Max Shikenjanski, a 6-foot-2 2023 guard from Stillwater (Minn.) High, is one of the top scorers in the state. He is also a familiar name to local basketball fans as his father, Jim Shikenjanski played at Minnesota from 1986-90 and even wears his dad’s number 45 today.

Shikenjanski averaged 28.3 points per game for the Ponies, who finished 13-14, losing to Tartan 56-41 in the Section 4A quarterfinals. He finished with the fourth most points and the fourth highest scoring average in the metro area this past season. Shikenjanski has scored in double figures in all 27 games with four games of more than 40 points, including 45 in the season opener versus Blaine and eight more games of 30 to 39 points. He became Stillwater’s all-time leading scorer this past season.

Shikenjanski averaged 24.2 points per game as a sophomore. He scored in double figures in all 17 of 19 games with five games of more than 30 points, including 49 versus Cretin-Derham Hall.

Shikenjanski averaged 16.8 points per game as a freshman. He scored in double figures in 22 of 27 games, including 33 versus Forest Lake.

Shikenjanski also plays football as a quarterback and baseball. He led the Ponies to an 8-2 mark on the gridiron, losing to Wayzata 28-7 in the second round of the Class 6A playoffs

The Gopher Report recently caught up with Shikenjanski after the Breakdown Summer Series to learn the latest on his college recruitment, his love of Minnesota and junior year.

Gopher Hole: You are playing with your high school team at this event. How much do you think that is going to help you guys for the upcoming season, especially with some new players and some new coaches?

Max Shikenjanski: It definitely helps a lot. We started summer workouts last week. The chemistry is getting down with a few new guys. Playing in this types of tournaments is super fun. You don’t really have a structured offense. You just play with the flow of the game, so it definitely helps a ton for the season with chemistry for the guys.

The Gopher Report: You finished up school last week. You are technically a senior. Does that feel weird?

Max Shikenjanski: It does, for sure. It’s feels like just yesterday I was a freshman playing varsity basketball, so it’s definitely weird, but it’s a new role that you have to take it. You are a guy for the younger guys to look up to, so it is definitely a big role that changes.

The Gopher Report: Last Sunday, I saw you at the Gopher football camp. What was that experience li

Max Shikenjanski: It was a ton of fun. There was a ton of good competition. I was throwing to ton of good guys. There was a lot of good quarterbacks there, so it was a ton of fun, learning from the coaches and Tanner Morgan, so it was a blast.

The Gopher Report: You switched from football to basketball mode. Is that hard to do that quick?

Max Shikenjanski: Not super hard, because I’m practicing both all the time. I can do one in the morning and switch to football at night or football in the morning and basketball at night. It’s actually something that I’ve been adjusting to. At the start, it was pretty hard, but I have gotten used to it by now.

The Gopher Report: Does going to a football camp like that, make you think more about football? I know that you are playing both and being recruited by both.

Max Shikenjanski: I’m leaving my options open. It doesn’t make me feel one way or the other. Just going with the flow and see what happens with recruiting and make a decision from that.

The Gopher Report: Any offers right now?

Max Shikenjanski: I don’t. I have a St. Thomas football offer, but for basketball, I don’t.

The Gopher Report: What are you hoping to show coaches in July during the evaluation period?

Max Shikenjanski: That I can go both ways. I can be a combo guard, a point guard. I can play on ball, off ball, so it is proving what a lot of them know or know of. Defending, shooting, scoring, pass. Kind of everything.

The Gopher Report: Is it a little bit frustrating at times because I look at you as a player and I’ve seen you play quite a few times, that you aren’t getting the looks that you feel you should get or I feel you should get?

Max Shikenjanski: For sure. It can get frustrating, but I control what I can control. Everything happens for a reason, so I’m putting my head down. Doing what I can do. It gets tough at times, but I know in the end, I’ll be where I want to be, so it will all work out.

The Gopher Report: I feel bad for high school kids, because of the transfer portal, I feel that some schools are relying on that than recruiting high school players. Does that make a little tougher, too?

Max Shikenjanski: It does. I’ve heard from a good amount of coaches that say that they are focusing on the transfer portal and “we’ll talk to you when we figure that out.” It definitely sucks. It has definitely taken a lot of opportunities away, but nothing we can do about it now. It’s kind of part of the game now and it probably wouldn’t go away for awhile, so it’s whatever at this point. Kind of just focusing on what we can do.

The Gopher Report: What is it going to mean to you to play Division I sports?

Max Shikenjanski: That’s the end goal for everyone. It would definitely be a dream come true. I feel like I can contribute to any school that would want to have me, so it has definitely always been a goal of mine, so I’m excited to see if I can do that.

The Gopher Report: Obviously in football, you had a great year and were a number one seed in your section. What are the expectations for you this year? Did you lose a lot of guys or do you have most of your guys back?

Max Shikenjanski: We lost a few guys, but the expectation is to definitely get to a state tournament. We’ve got a great coaching staff. A lot of great players. We’ve been on a little drought of not going to the state tournament, so that is definitely the goal. Winning a state championship would be the end goal, but we want to focus on getting to state first and go from there. We lose a few key guys, but we have a bunch of younger guys who can step up.

The Gopher Report: I don’t know how much you know about Stillwater’s tradition in football, but back in the day, they were a power. Is that something you guys have talked about to get back to that level?

Max Shikenjanski: Definitely, for sure. We kind of rebuilt the culture, starting two years ago when we won the conference and won the conference again, so getting Stillwater back to where they should be and where they’ve been, so that is definitely the goal.