Big Eight Conference Preview

In the Big Eight Conference Madison Memorial is easily the favorite for anyone that follows high school basketball at all. They have two division one recruits in 6'6 senior Jeronne Maymon and 6'3 junior Vander Blue, Maymon is considered the top player in the conference, and Memorial was the runner ups last year for D1 state. The rest of the conference predictions depend on who you talk to. Madison Lafollette, Verona, Janesville Craig, Beloit, and Madison East are all very even teams that will give good games night in and night out. Those five teams could finish in any order and I would not be surprised. Memorial may be the clear cut favorite but, after that the conference may be the most competitive that I have seen it since I began following high school basketball closely. Now on to my picks which seem to differ greatly from the picks of the yearbook and wishoops.

Predictions
1. Madison Memorial- I pretty much stated everything above. Maymon and Blue are great players and teamed with returning starter 6'3 junior Tre Creamer and an incoming freshmen from Canada that is supposedly a top player in the 2012 class.
2. Verona- 6'4 senior Jason Ziemer is a beast on the boards and in the paint and Verona is always a strong team year in and year out.
3. Janesville Craig- I know many people disagree with me on this but, I truly think Craig will be towards the top of the conference. They bring back 6'6 JoJo Pregont and 6'3 senior Kyle Goike, have a very good coach, and are a pretty tall team overall.
4. Madison East- Very strong post game with the return of mister everything 6'5 junior Marquis Mason, 6'7 senior James Bartelt, and 6'4 junior Jeff Hull off the bench. Their play hindges on their play of their guards and from highlights I've seen 5'10 sophomore Nimrod Hilliard should have no problem contributing big time at the varsity level.
5. Madison Lafollette- Almost everyone has Lafollette as a top 10 team in the state but, I just don't see it. 5'10 junior DJ Fuller is a great great player but, he's their only proven player. Their only post presence 6'6 senior Deonte Thompson has shown some flashes of brilliance but, there are rumors that he may not be playing this year.
6. Beloit- Can't see a Beloit team being towards the bottom of the conference two years in a row. They also return almost everyone and add 6'7 senior Terrell Parks.
7. Sun Praire- 6'1 juniors Michael Boos and Michael Handel are in their third year on varsity and should continue to make great strides.
8. Middleton- 6'0 senior Brooks Braga may be a one man team this year.
9. Madison West- Lost all of their starters from a year ago and don't seem to have a lot of discipline.
10. Janesville Parker- Well their Janseville Parker and they lost Riley Grafft from last year.

Conference Standings Predictions
1. Madison Memorial 18-0
2. Verona 14-4
3. Janesville Craig 13-5
4. Madison East 12-6
Madison Lafollette 12-6
6. Beloit 8-10
7. Sun Praire 5-13
8. Middleton 4-14
9. Madison West 2-16
10. Janesville Parker 1-17

All Conference 1st Team
Jeronne Maymon 6'6 senior Madison Memorial
Marquis Mason 6'5 junior Madison East
Jason Ziemer 6'4 senior Verona
Vander Blue 6'3 junior Madison Memorial
DJ Fuller 5'10 junior Madison Lafollette

2nd Team
JoJo Pregont 6'6 senior Janesville Craig
Brooks Braga 6'0 senior Middleton
Michael Boos 6'1 junior Sun Praire
Kyle Goike 6'3 senior Janesville Craig
Adam Wadzinski 6'3 junior Verona

3rd Team
Nimrod Hilliard 5'10 sophomore Madison East
Michael Handel 6'1 junior Sun Praire
Tre Creamer 6'3 junior Madison Memorial
Jahil Smith 6'1 junior Beloit
Terrell Parks 6'7 senior Beloit

This is the last of my preseason predictions. After this week if I see a few more games I will probably begin my player and team rankings.