Nolan Minessale committed to St. Thomas basketball in the summer of 2023, before his senior year at Marquette University High School in Milwaukee — well before he became the school’s all-time leading scorer and well before he helped lead his team to a state championship.

In choosing the Tommies over Wisconsin-Green Bay and South Dakota State, the 6-foot-5 guard pointed to the connection he made with Tommies head coach Johnny Tauer and his staff. Minnesale also was inspired by the trajectory of the program, as it made the transition from Division III to Division I.

There was something else, too.

“About a year after he signed,” Tauer said, “I asked him about his decision. He said he just wanted to get the recruiting process over with. He didn’t like talking with all those adults on the phone.”

Nolan Minessale, left, goes up for a shot against Army’s Jorn Everson in the Tommies’ 83-76 victory Nov. 8 at Lee & Penny Arena. The 6-foot-5 shooting guard from Brookfield, Wis., was the Summit League’s preseason player of the year and ranks fifth nationally in scoring with a 22.4-point average per game. (Kylie Macziewski / University of St. Thomas)

The self-described introvert boasts a quiet confidence that makes him comfortable in his own skin — and on the basketball court. Combining that with his talent, hard work and competitiveness has created a recipe for success.

Minessale started in all 34 games last season as a freshman, averaging 11.2 points, and 3.5 rebounds a game, enough of an impression to be named the Summit League preseason player of the year this fall.

Fourteen games into this season, Minessale has made the prognosticators look good. He ranks fifth in the nation in scoring at 22.4 points a game and aready earned Summit League player of the week honors four times.

Don’t count him among those who are impressed.

“I just want to win,” he Minessale said while talking to an adult on the phone. “It’s really the only thing I care about.”

His interview with the Pioneer Press took place late Monday morning as Minessale was just setting out on a road trip home for the holiday break. It was supposed to occur at the Tommies’ new Anderson Arena, but despite an open line of communication, the connection wasn’t made.

Perhaps the phone call was deemed the lesser of two evils.

Through conversations with Minessale’s mother, Michelle, Tauer knows that the young man of few words once was a boy of few words. And he’s fine with that.

“He’s got a great sense of humor,” Tauer said, “and when you watch him with his teammates, they love him, and he’s really funny. Put him around adults … . As coaches we joke with him that he could talk a little more around us.”

Tauer lauds Minessale’s parents for raising a thoughtful, humble and determined son.

“He’s very low maintenance,” Tauer said, “because what he needs is the opportunity to play and compete, and then he goes and does his thing.”

From a basketball perspective, it all but screams for a nickname — a handle for the guy with the handles.

Quiet Riot? Silent Knight? Something, one assumes, Minessale would be happy to live without.

Tauer first set his sights on landing Minessale after watching him play for his club team at a tournament in Louisville, Ky., in April of 2023.

“I was just enamored with how hard he played, what a phenomenal passer he was and his versatility,” Tauer recalled. “I said, ‘This kid is a basketball player.’ ”

Minessale spent the past offseason working on his 3-point shot and gaining weight by adding muscle to a frame that is now a sturdy 200 pounds. The result has been the emergence of a player who can score in every way possible.

“I could see all summer the tireless work he was putting in,” Tauer said. “I told people, ‘You’re not going to believe it when you see him.’”

After filling a team need by playing as an undersized power forward last season, Minessale has moved to the backcourt this season and has flourished.

“His 2-point shooting percentage (66 percent) looks like a post player who only dunks,” Tauer said. “Yet, he’s a perimeter player who has the ball in his hands a lot. And he leads our team in assists. Those are the things that highlight the versatility I saw in him.

“We don’t call a lot of plays for him,” Tauer added. “He’s able to find ways to score, and he doesn’t force things. I think he’s a perfect fit here in the sense of how we play position-less basketball.”

The Tommies lost some veteran leadership through graduation, and as a returning starter and the team’s leading scorer, the Tommies would benefit from having Minessale assume some of that responsibility.

Minessale said he’s working on it.

“That’s one of the harder parts for me,” he said. “I’m not a huge talker. I’m trying to be better at it. It’s hard to lead if you don’t talk.”

But not impossible, not with the respect he has earned from his teammates by working hard and having his priorities in order.

“We’ve talked to him about it,” Tauer said. “We told him that he doesn’t need to be overly verbose. But when he huddles the guys up, they’re going to listen.”

The Tommies, who open Summit League play on January 4 at home against Denver, are the preseason favorite. Winning the conference tournament would earn them a spot in the Division I NCAA Tournament for the first time.

Tauer and his charge know that opponents undoubtedly will game plan a strategy aimed at keeping Minessale in check. His focus will be on taking what the defense gives him.

Tauer is confident his best player will be focused on doing what is best for the team.

“He doesn’t pay attention to statistics,” Tauer said.

Minessale ended the phone call on Monday by saying, “Appreciate you,” and it was easy to believe he meant it.

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By LAURA UNGAR, AP Medical Writer

The American Academy of Pediatrics sued the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services on Wednesday, seeking to block nearly $12 million in cuts to the group.

Earlier this month, the federal government “abruptly terminated” grants to the group, the lawsuit says.

The funding supported numerous public health programs, including efforts to prevent sudden unexpected infant death, strengthen pediatric care in rural communities and support teens facing substance use and mental health challenges.

“AAP does not have other sources of grant funding to replace the federal awards, and without the necessary funds it must immediately terminate its work on its dozens of programs that save children’s lives every day,” says the lawsuit, filed in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia. “Within a few weeks, AAP will have to begin laying off employees dedicated to this critically important work.”

The suit alleges HHS made the cuts in retaliation for the doctors’ group speaking out against the Trump administration’s positions and actions.

The doctors’ group has been vocal about its support for pediatric vaccines and has publicly opposed HHS positions. Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. — who helped lead the anti-vaccine movement for years — is seeking to broadly remake federal policies on vaccines. Earlier this year, the pediatrics group released its own recommendations on COVID-19 vaccines, which substantially diverged from the government’s recommendations.

The group also supports access to gender-affirming care and has publicly criticized HHS positions on the topic, saying it opposes what it calls the government’s infringements on the doctor-patient relationship.

“The Department of Health and Human Services is using federal funding as a political weapon to punish protected speech, trying to silence one of the nation’s most trusted voices for children’s well-being by cutting off critical public-health funding in retaliation for speaking the truth,” Skye Perryman, president and CEO of Democracy Forward, said in a statement. Perryman’s organization is representing the doctors’ group in the case.

A spokesman for HHS could not immediately be reached for comment.

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Mark Del Monte, CEO and executive vice president of the 67,000-member doctors’ group, said the organization depends on its relationship with the federal government.

“We need this partnership to advance policies that prioritize children’s health. These vital child health programs fund services like hearing screenings for newborns and safe sleep campaigns to prevent sudden unexpected infant death,” he said in a statement. “We are forced to take legal action today so that these programs can continue to make communities safer and healthier.”

The Associated Press Health and Science Department receives support from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute’s Department of Science Education and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. The AP is solely responsible for all content.

Immigration officials have promised to not target metro area churches this holiday season, according to the metro’s Catholic leader.

In a statement Tuesday, Archbishop Bernard Hebda of the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis said Department of Homeland Security officials recently reiterated to archdiocesan representatives that action would not be taken unless there is an imminent public safety threat.

“We are unaware of any enforcement actions in our parishes and schools in these past weeks and months and have no reason to believe that will change,” Hebda said.

Gov. Tim Walz, joined by faith leaders and other public officials at a press conference on Tuesday, said he would “not put it past” immigration officials to target midnight Mass services or to step up actions during other parts of the holiday season, according to KARE 11.

“Public safety is strongest when law enforcement can focus on real threats and when communities trust that they will be treated fairly and with dignity,” Walz said. “What we are seeing from the Trump Administration is not about safety — it is political theater that creates fear and weakens trust.”

Hebda emphasized the role of Catholic churches as places of refuge for all.

“We are at a moment in this country when we need to lower the temperature of rhetoric, stop fear-filled speculation and start seeing all people as created in the image and likeness of God,” Hebda said. “That is as true for our immigrant sisters and brothers as it is for our elected officials and those who are responsible for carrying out our laws.”

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Waiting for a mentor: Mason

In an alternate universe, quarterback J.J. McCarthy didn’t suffer a small hairline fracture in his right hand, which meant he was able to continue his upward trajectory for the Vikings last weekend in a win over the New York Giants.

Let’s continue to play out the string.

If that were indeed the case, McCarthy would be able to start for the Vikings on Thursday afternoon at U.S. Bank Stadium against the Detroit Lions. Then, assuming he got out of that game unscathed, once more next weekend against the Green Bay Packers.

That would pave the way for the Vikings to bring in a veteran quarterback in free agency as insurance on McCarthy, who, for all the strides he’s taken, has not yet proven he can be consistently available.

As much as that hypothetical scenario might’ve been great for McCarthy, the butterfly effect could have resulted in rookie quarterback Max Brosmer never playing in the NFL again.

The only line on Brosmer’s résumé would’ve been his start for the Vikings last month, when they got demolished by the Seahawks in Seattle. He looked completely overwhelmed by the moment amid a disastrous display that threatened to shake his confidence. He wasn’t going to let that happen.

“My dream has been to play in the NFL,” Brosmer said. “To define myself by that game wouldn’t be fair to the younger me.”

Luckily for Brosmer, he has been given a chance to atone. Coming on in relief last weekend, he showed the composure that earned him a roster spot after initially signing as an undrafted free agent. Not only did Brosmer effectively manage the game last Sunday, completing 7 of 9 passes for 52 yards, he led the Vikings down the field in the final minutes for a scoring drive that held up as the difference in a 16-13 win.

“It was a good feeling to be in the huddle with the guys,” Brosmer said. “We’ve got to see the fruits of our labor a little bit towards the end.”

Now, Brosmer is in line to to start for the Vikings against the Lions in a nationally televised game on Christmas, and perhaps even against the Packers depending on how McCarthy’s hand responds to treatment over the next week or so.

It’s a crossroads for Brosmer that has the potential to shape his life in the NFL. If he plays well over the next couple of games, he could carve out a niche as a reliable backup with room to grow. If he struggles, he might not be given another chance to prove himself.

There is precedence to suggests Brosmer will only get better the more he plays.

You don’t have to go back far to find the last time Brosmer made a pretty bad first impression. He was largely ineffective in his debut with the Gophers on Aug. 29, 2024, when his play contributed to a disappointing loss to North Carolina. He completed only 13 of 21 passes for 165 yards, got sacked a handful of times, and had a costly fumble in the final frame.

It was fair to wonder if Brosmer had bitten off more than he could chew as a graduate transfer jumping from the FCS level to the FBS level. His response was immediate, however, as he led the Gophers to a pair of wins to close out the nonconference schedule before he and the Gophers upset Southern Cal.

It was a steady build from there as Brosmer went on to put together the best campaign the program had seen from a quarterback in more than a decade. It would not have been possible had he not been given the chance to push through adversity early.

That mental toughness has been apparent with the Vikings.

“There are going to be games throughout the rest of my career where I might have a few picks, or we might lose a game where I felt like maybe I could’ve done something better,” Brosmer said. “I’m going to use that and continue to build and know that whenever that comes, next time in my career I’ll be ready to handle that.”

Is that easier said than done?

“It’s way easier said than done,” Brosmer said with a laugh. “I’ve had some really helpful people in my ear a little bit continuing to push me along and make sure that I’m staying on the right track.”

That tenacity has led Brosmer to this point. Perhaps this NFL journey is just beginning.

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