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Even in what could be termed a rebuilding year, the Ely Timberwolves have put themselves in position to contend in Section 7A.
The high school girls basketball team went into Friday’s regular season finale as the sixth-ranked team in the section, and the Wolves are almost certain to be at home when the 7A playoffs begin Thursday night.
Seeding will be completed over the weekend, but it appeared that the Wolves would get the sixth seed and tangle with the 11-seed, possibly McGregor, at 6 p.m.
With a new head coach in Tomi Cole and an almost entirely new starting lineup, the Wolves were in many respects starting over this winter after three consecutive trips to the 7A semifinals.
But a sophomore-heavy Ely team has more than picked up the slack, securing 15 wins so far and playing competitively against the teams rated above them, including defending 7A champion and state-ranked Mt. Iron-Buhl.
If seeding holds in the opening round, the Wolves would be matched against Floodwood, the likely threeseed in a March 1 7A quarterfinal game.
The Wolves and the Polar Bears battled Jan. 31, with Floodwood prevailing 59-51.
• Ely got off to a strong start, overcame a lull late in the first half and got right back on track in the second on the way to a 57-47 home victory over Deer River on Tuesday.
Junior Zoe MacKenzie, who had 15 points, got hot early from long range and the Wolves built a 20-4 lead.
Deer River rallied and tied the game at 23 by halftime, and freshman Tatum Morrison scored her 1,000th point during the game.
The second half, however, tilted back in Ely’s favor and sophomore Lydia Shultz paced the Wolves with 16 points, six steals and five rebounds.
All of MacKenzie’s points came from three-point distance while sophomore Audrey Kallberg added 10 points with nine rebounds.
Senior Maija Mattson had a solid night with six points and seven rebounds, and sophomore Amelia Penke pulled down 11 rebounds. Senior Clare Thomas also had six points for the Wolves.
• The Wolves downed North Woods for the second time this year, dominating the Feb. 13 road contest 69-34.
Ely pressured the Grizzlies into nearly 30 turnovers, and Penke had a huge evening, scoring a season-high 34 points and draining five triples during the evening. She also had 11 rebounds to complete a double-double.
Thomas scored 10 points and Kallberg wound up with nine points, six rebounds and five steals Shultz dished out eight assists to go with her seven points and four steals.
