Henry Ellenson to Play in Mequon and Minneapolis
- Ellenson in Mequon on December 30 & 31
- At Target Center in Minneapolis on January 10, 2015
- Newly posted video on Ellenson and Haanif Cheatham
Rice Lake and 2015 Marquette commit Henry Ellenson will be in the Milwaukee area this week to play in the Wisconsin Basketball Yearbook Shootout. Games are being held at Concordia University in Mequon.
The Warriors of Rice Lake play Wauwatosa West on Tuesday night at 6 p.m. That match-up is followed by Germantown and Neenah, who is led by 2015 Marquette commit Matt Heldt (Neenah also plays at 4:30 p.m. on Monday afternoon). The teams are ranked #2 and #4, respectively, in Division 1 Wisconsin boys’ basketball.
On Wednesday Rice Lake, #4 in Division 2, faces a tough challenge when they go up against #3 Kaukuana at noon.
Rice Lake’s season opened up in Minnesota against Minnetonka, a school with an enrollment approximately four times that of Rice Lake. Henry had 48 points, 15 rebounds, 5 blocks and 5 assists, but it wasn’t enough to beat Minnetonka’s transition attack and strong 3-point shooting. The final was 92-81.
Since then Rice Lake has rattled off 5 victories, including Tuesday night’s 73-57 win at New Richmond in which Henry scored 40. Current Marquette basketball player Wally Ellenson (redshirting junior) was on hand with the rest of the Ellenson family to support the Warriors.
Rice Lake will be at Target Center in Minneapolis for the 2015 Timberwolves Shootout. Game time on Saturday, January 10 is set for 2:30 p.m. Their opponent, Champlin Park (Minn.), is undefeated heading into a game tonight against an excellent Apple Valley squad.
The video below includes Henry highlights from both the Minnetonka and New Richmond games.
Usage at Marquette
Ellenson was one of 12 players in the 2014 EYBL season (minimum of 30% of team minutes) to have a usage rate of more than 30%.
In 2013, there were 14 EYBL’ers with 30%+ minutes and a 30%+ usage. Of those 14, seven of them have played D-I basketball this year as freshman and more than half have usage rates under 20%. Only two have a usage of greater than 22% (Arizona’s Stanley Johnson at 28% and UNLV’s Rashad Vaughn at 32%).
Based on having watched Henry over the years in many different settings, a usage in the ballpark of 26% to 28% may be optimal for him in 2015-16. Marquette hasn’t had a player averaging 15 minutes per game with a usage greater than 26% since 2010 (Lazar Hayward’s senior season). There’s a good chance that changes with Henry.
Haanif Cheatham
In addition to seeing Marquette at the Orlando Classic over the Thanksgiving holiday weekend, I was able to see Haanif Cheatham’s second game back after an MCL sprain at the nearby Breast Cancer Awareness Classic. One thing he wants to work on is finishing through contact and despite the recent injury, he didn’t show any fear in attacking the rim. I didn’t film much, but have included some video footage from the game below as well.
Cheatham is a versatile guard with good size and the ability to impact games in a variety of ways. How good can he be? Consider the following…
In 2014 EYBL play, there were 28 players who met the following criteria: 30%+ minutes played and 27%+ usage. Haanif’s offensive rating was the best out of those 28. The players with the second through fifth best offensive ratings in the group were as follows: Malik Monk (#4 ESPN in 2016); Jessie Govan (#46 RSCI; Georgetown commit); Allonzo Trier (#10; Arizona); Isaiah Briscoe (#12; Kentucky).
On the other side of the ball, Haanif’s steal percentage was the highest and his fouls called per 32 minutes the lowest among the group of five listed above.
Paint Touches 
Well written article. Henry is performing in line with expectations. A top 10 recruit should be getting frequent 40 point nights against weak competition.
I was very interested in the point guard from Minnetonka who seemed to be lighting it up. He is a bit on the small side, but I think he has a big time game.