Even before DeLaSalle's basketball team departed the Target Center floor as back-to-back state champion last March, coach Dave Thorson booked a return trip.
"As we were getting our medals, Thorson came up behind myself and a couple other guys and said, 'We're coming right back here next year,' " senior guard Mike Pucci said.
And here the Islanders are, ranked No. 1 in Class 3A and favored to complete the three-peat. Thorson's bold declaration failed to unnerve the team. Neither did an injury that delayed star senior forward Reid Travis from joining the lineup, nor the resulting 4-3 slow start this season.
Travis, who has signed with Stanford, returned to help Geno Crandall (North Dakota), James Lawson (Sioux Falls) and additional talented players post a 19-0 run. The Islanders begin the state tournament against St. Paul Central at 10 a.m. Wednesday at Williams Arena.
The spotlight will be more intense on a team going for three consecutive state titles led by Travis, the only member of Minnesota's "Big Three" recruiting class in the state tournament. Rashad Vaughn, who committed to UNLV a month ago, played in Las Vegas this season while Apple Valley and Duke-bound Tyus Jones were upset in the section finals.
Rather than wilt, the Islanders are taking a cue from their confident coach.
"It's nice to have more focus on you because people can appreciate how hard we've worked to get to this point," Crandall said.
Playing without Travis, a 6-8, 235-pound specimen, forced the team to run the offense differently. Three players took turns leading the team in scoring in the first nine games without Travis: Crandall and juniors Jarvis Johnson and Sacar Anim.
