Prior Lake's McKenna Hofschild is small in stature but a big star in college hoops

After Colorado State women's basketball games, Prior Lake's McKenna Hofschild is often swarmed by young fans for autographs — her 5-foot-2 frame easily gets lost in the crowd.

Once, a fan even joked that when hundreds of kids left the arena to "please tell McKenna not to get on the bus with the middle schoolers, we need her."

Despite being small in stature, Hofschild is one of the biggest stars in women's college hoops — the mid-major level's Caitlin Clark.

Hofschild and Iowa's Clark are the only two players nationally averaging at least 20 points and seven assists this season. Hofschild leads the nation in assists per game, just ahead of Clark.

Nobody scores and facilitates at an elite level like Clark. Although nearly a foot shorter, Hofschild seems as close as it gets right now in the women's game.

"I do watch [Clark] a lot because she's absolutely electric," the Rams senior said. "The way she can completely take over a game by not only getting herself great looks consistently, but her teammates. That's something I try to do as much as possible."

Hofschild was third in Division I in scoring (24.0) and first in assists (8.6) after Wednesday's win vs. Fresno State. Her five 25-point double-doubles this season, include consecutive games with 30 points and 10 assists.

Last season, Hofschild was a finalist for the Nancy Lieberman Award, given to the nation's top point guard, but Clark received the honor for the second straight year. The award went to former Hopkins star and UConn guard Paige Bueckers before Clark.

Being from Minnesota, Hofschild was used to being overshadowed by Bueckers, but she became a local legend in her own right.

Hofschild led the state in scoring as a Prior Lake junior with 28 points per game in 2018, while breaking the state's 36-year-old single-game scoring record with 63 points vs. Park Center. That record stood until Gianna Kneepkens, the Duluth Marshall star now at Utah, scored 67 points in 2021.

Though Hofschild's not blessed with height, something grew immensely: a chip on her shoulder to silence critics. People told her there was no future in basketball at her size. She ended up signing with Seton Hall out of high school before transferring to seek a larger role.

"There were a lot of naysayers," Hofschild's father, Chris, said. "That was part of her motivation. Not a lot of people at 5-2 and 100 pounds can do what she's doing."

Certainly, Clark's an inspiration to a younger generation of players. So should Hofschild be with how much she's accomplished and overcame at barely five feet without shoes in a sport of giants.

"I've got to do it a little bit differently," Hofschild said. "I've always been the smallest girl on the court, the tiniest girl, whatever you want to say. It's always been normal to me. That doesn't mean I can't be effective and a great player on this stage."

Prior Lake had another budding basketball star when Hofschild was there, and there was quite a size difference. Dawson Garcia is a 6-11 former McDonald's All-American who now leads the Gophers in scoring. He watched Hofschild dominate for years as a teammate of his sister, Madi, since the youth level.

"She's always been a killer," Garcia said. "Watching her play with other girls, she always stuck out as a great basketball player. She was definitely a star [at Prior Lake]."

This season Garcia, Hofschild and their families reunited when Colorado State's women's team and the Gophers men's team both played against San Francisco in a doubleheader at the Golden State Warriors' Chase Arena on Nov. 26.

"I'm super proud of Dawson and seeing the journey he took to get where he is," Hofschild said. "To see him for the first time in years was really fun."

Minnesotans have helped reshape the college hoops scene in Fort Collins, Colo. Hofschild shares ties to the state with Colorado State men's coach Niko Medved, who grew up in Roseville and is a U graduate.

Medved's Rams reached the NCAA tournament two years ago and started this season 9-0 and ranked 13th nationally. The Colorado State women posted back-to-back seasons with at least 20 wins under coach Ryun Williams after Hofschild's arrival in 2020. They started 9-1 this season.

"You can really tell within the community and the campus itself that basketball is kind of the sport here," Hofschild said. "Everybody's super excited about both programs. To be a part of that is really special."

When her playing career is over, Hofschild wants to coach. Fittingly, her path to stardom brought her to a Colorado State program that produced Hall of Famer Becky Hammon, now a WNBA coach.

"When I was choosing Colorado State and looking at other schools in the portal that didn't even cross my mind," Hofschild said. "Now looking back, it kind of seems a little like destiny."

Five Minnesota ballers who stood out:

Jacob Beeninga, Minnesota State Moorhead

The junior from Maple Grove helped the Dragons improve to 14-0 and earn a first-ever No. 1 ranking in Division II after his 22 points in an 80-68 win at Wayne State on Saturday.

Poet Davis, Minneapolis South

The 6-foot senior averaged 22 points during his team's four-game win streak, including a game-high 19 points in a 79-76 win Monday vs. rival Minneapolis North.

Grace Grocholski, Gophers

The 5-10 freshman was scorching late in the first win at Michigan since 2014, with 16 of her 19 points in the fourth quarter, including four of her five three-pointers.

Lu'Cye Patterson, Charlotte

The 6-2 junior from Minneapolis led the 49ers with 16 points and four assists in an upset against No. 17 Florida Atlantic, a Final Four team last season.

Brady Wooley, Orono

The 6-9 junior had 21 points, 13 rebounds and eight assists in a win vs. Alexandria. He also recently had a 29-point, 15-rebound game vs. Mankato East.

1,000 Career points milestone reached by Stillwater's Liza Karlen, who scored 30 points for Marquette in Tuesday's win at Seton Hall.

800 Career coaching milestone for Crosby-Ironton girls basketball coach Dave Galovich in a win vs. Pillager, the fourth coach to reach that mark in state history.

74 Assists by Elijah Hawkins during the Gophers' seven-game win streak, the most for a Big Ten player since 1996-97.

26.7 Average points for Mahtomedi's Brody Fox, the brother of Gopher Parker Fox, which leads NCAA Division III through 13 games.

15 Threes for the Gophers women in a win at Michigan on Tuesday, coming from Mallory Heyer (6-for-9), Grocholski (5-for-9) and Mara Braun (4-for-9).

9 Years since Minneapolis North suffered a conference home loss before falling Monday against Minneapolis South.

6 National ranking for St. Thomas men in scoring defense, holding opponents to just 61.4 points per game entering this week with a six-game win streak.

. . .

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