Jackson McAndrew of Wayzata elevated his game and his profile over the past five months.
His stock rose, and the Creighton men's basketball team cashed in, landing a verbal commitment from the 6-9, 210-pound senior forward Tuesday. McAndrew selected the Bluejays over three other finalists, Notre Dame, Wisconsin and Xavier.
"Something that really stood out about them was the coaching staff. I built really good relationships with all of them," McAndrew said. "I felt it would be a perfect fit for the way they play and the way I play."
He is the state's top-ranked player according to 247Sports, which moved him ahead of Daniel Freitag this summer, 89th in the nation to Freitag's 96th. Rivals.com has Freitag ranked higher, No. 66 nationally to No. 79 for McAndrew. Freitag, previously of Bloomington Jefferson and now with Breck, announced earlier this summer that he would attend Wisconsin.
"The player development piece was really big for me," McAndrew said. "They have developed guys like me. I think they can help my game a lot."
An excellent three-point shooter at over 40%, McAndrew reached another level during the state tournament. He had 25 points, nine rebounds and three blocked shots in the Trojans' 75-71 overtime victory over defending state champion Park Center in the Class 4A championship game. He scored 13 of the Trojans' final 14 points. McAndrew averaged 22.3 points — six more than his season average — and eight rebounds per game in the state tournament. He was 21-for-40 from the field and 15-for-16 from the free-throw line.
"He is a heck of a player," Park Center coach James Ware said after the state final. "You name it, he can do it."
