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The Midwest Player's Classic held this year at the La Crosse Center on Saturday, January 13th and 14th has grown into one of the top in-season basketball events in the state and has expanded into two days, and once again features an incredible mix of team and individual talent. 

WisSports.net is happy to once again join the event as a statewide media sponsor, and we will have coverage leading up to and throughout the event.

Featuring 12 games and 21 teams in a two-day format, it is a great opportunity to see outstanding teams and players in a single setting. Teams from Wisconsin, Minnesota, and Iowa are represented at the event.

The Midwest Players Classic has seen 18 teams go on to win state championships in their year of participation, as well as more than 60 players go on to play NCAA Division I basketball, and 13 players reach the highest level and compete in the NBA.

General admission tickets will be available at the door. Tickets for Friday night (3 games) are $6 each. Tickets for Saturday (9 games) are $12 each. Pre-sale tickets are available here. Children ages 5 and under will be admitted free. Cash is also accepted at the game.

In good news, for those fans unable to attend, all games will be streamed live by our friends at JustAGame Live.

WSN staff will be on hand Saturday to provide updates throughout the day as well.

January 13 & 14, 2023
La Crosse Center, La Crosse, WI
(Records as of 1/11/2023)

Friday, January 13

 6:00pm       Aquinas (9-1; D4 #10) vs. Caledonia, MN (3-4)
 7:30pm       Luther (9-1; D4 #5) vs. Prescott (10-0; D3 #3)
 9:00pm       Waunakee (8-3) vs. Onalaska (6-3; D2 #9)

Saturday, January 14

9:00am       Bangor (9-3) vs. Aquinas (12-1; D4 #1), Girls Basketball
10:30am       La Crescent, MN (7-2) vs. G-E-T (5-5)
12:00pm       Caledonia, MN (3-4) vs. Rice Lake (8-4)  
  1:30pm       Onalaska  (6-3; D2 #9) vs. Wauwatosa West (9-4; D2 #10)
  3:00pm       St. Cloud Tech, MN (5-4) vs. Waunakee (8-3)
  4:30pm       Minneapolis North, MN (3-3; 2A #3) vs. Milwaukee Bradley Tech (6-4)
  6:00pm       Grandview Christian, IA (10-0; 1A #1) vs.   Milw. Academy of Science (5-4)
  7:30pm       Park Center, MN (7-0; 4A #1) vs. West Salem (8-0; D3 #1)
  9:00pm       Bangor (7-2) vs. Tomah (4-8)

Wisconsin rankings based on WisSports.net Coaches Polls; Minnesota rankings based on Minnesota Basketball News; Iowa rankings based on AP Poll

Friday

Action begins at 6:00 pm on Friday as host Aquinas will face off against Caledonia (MN). Aquinas is 9-1 and in the top ten of Division 4. Caledonia is working to find its stride at 3-4 overall, but the Warriors are one of the top small-school programs in Minnesota year after year.

The second game on Friday night is a showdown between ranked Wisconsin squads. Luther, the fifth-ranked team in Division 4, takes on D3 third-ranked Prescott, who is unbeaten.

The final game on Friday features local powerhouse Onalaska facing off against another strong Division 2 contender Waunakee.

Saturday

Saturday starts with a spectacular girls basketball contest featuring Aquinas, who is ranked first in the latest Division 4 WisSports.net Girls Basketball poll, against Bangor, another La Crosse-area power.

The first boys game on Saturday is G-E-T against La Crescent, MN. G-E-T is led by high-scoring junior Cody Schmitz, who averages 29.7 points per game.

The noon game has Caledonia, MN headed back to the La Crosse Center, where the Warriors will take on the Rice Lake Warriors.

The 1:30 contest sees Onalaska return to action, taking on Wauwatosa West. The Trojans of Tosa West moved into the Division 2 top ten this week, making this a showdown of ranked teams.

Waunakee is back at it on Saturday in the 3:00 pm game against St. Cloud Tech, MN.

Milwaukee Bradley Tech faces off against Minneapolis North, MN at 4:30. Minneapolis North is one of the top programs in Minnesota and ranked third in Class 2A (the second-smallest class in Minnesota).

At 6:00 pm it will be Milwaukee Academy of Science against Grandview Christian, Iowa. Despite a 5-4 record against a very tough schedule, Academy of Science has a talented young squad. Grandview Christian is the top-ranked team in Iowa's smallest division.

Division 3 top-ranked West Salem faces off against the number one team in Minnesota's largest class, Park Center, in a showcase 7:30 matchup. Park Center has six players averaging at least 9.9 points per game, led by 18.7 per game for junior Casmir Chavis, who holds an offer from West Virginia.

The final game of the 2023 Midwest Players Classic features Bangor taking on Tomah.

Travis Wilson serves as the WisSports.net General Manager, Football Editor, and contributing writer for other parts of the site. Wilson was selected as part of the Sports 40 Under 40 list by Coach & AD Magazine and the National High School Athletic Coaches Association for 2019. The Wisconsin Football Coaches Association (WFCA) named Travis the 2015 recipient of the Dave McClain Distinguished Service Award. He currently serves on the WFCA Executive Board and is a member of the Executive Board of the Wisconsin Basketball Coaches Association. A graduate of Richland Center High School and Mount Mercy College in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, Travis was a three-sport athlete in high school (football, baseball, basketball), inducted to the Richland Center High School Hall of Fame in 2023, and currently resides in Reedsburg. You can follow him on Twitter at @travisWSN.