I meant to do these rankings prior to the first round of playoffs but, didn't get a change, so I will not be including the first round of playoffs in these rankings. The majority of these teams, with the exception of D5, didn't play last night anyway. Here are my final rankings ......
Division One
DC Everst and Homestead lost and fall to #8 and #9. Homestead lost to Germantown but, at the top any lose is going to hurt you at the top. The City teams continue to beat up on each other as Hamilton beat Vincent and then lost to Riverside, who falls in at #11, Hamilton 12, and Vincent 13. Kimberly lost in conference and drop to 15.
1. Germantown
2. Milwaukee King
3. Madison Memorial
4. De Pere
5. Bay Port
6. Sheboygan North
7. West Allis Central
8. DC Everest
9. Homestead
10. Racine Park
11. Milwaukee Riverside
12. Milwaukee Hamilton
13. Milwaukee Vincent
14. Brookfield Central
15. Kimberly
Division Two
This is one ranking that I'll get ripped on for having Messmer as they lost first round of playoffs already. Obviously I over ranked them based solely on their record which benefited from playing smaller schools all year long. With the rankings only changes was Beaver Dam falling to 12 and Milwaukee Marshall to 14.
1. Onalaska
2. Rice Lake
3. Kaukana
4. Milwaukee Pius
5. Whitnall
6. Waunakee
7. Antigo
8. Milwaukee Messmer
9. Pulaski
10. New Berlin Eisenhower
11. Milwaukee Washington
12. Beaver Dam
13. Stoughton
14. Milwaukee Marshall
15. Plymouth
Division Three
Only changes was Sheboygan Falls falling to 15 and Westby lost twice and fall out of the rankings completely after losing twice and are replaced by Bloomer because of their record.
1. East Troy
2. GET
3. Clinton
4. Wisconsin Dells
5. Lodi
6. Brillion
7. Wrightstwon
8. Little Chute
9. Omro
10. Racine St. Cats
11. Valders
12. Peshtigo
13. Marshall
14. Bloomer
15. Sheboygan Falls
Division Four
Not a lot of changes but, Aburndale did lose their first game of the year and drop a spot to #3. Oshkosh Lourdes also lost to Randolph, a top D5 team and fall to #8. Only other teams that lost were Colby who lost twice and fall out of the rankings and are replaced by Three Lakes and then St. Mary's Springs who lost to D3 ranked Omro and hang in at the 15 spot.
1. Dominican
2. Cuba City
3. Aburndale
4. Elk Mound
5. Colfax
6. Laconia
7. Bonduel
8. Oshkosh Lourdes
9. Wild Rose
10. Grantsburg
11. Stratford
12. Shoreland Lutheran
13. Howards Grove
14. Three Lakes
15. St Mary's Springs
Division Five
Mcdonell Central lost to Augusta and drop to 10. Gilmanton lost and fall to 15 just behind Fall River, who lost first round of the playoffs and would not be in the rankings if that was included. Otherwise D5 stayed intact.
1. Siren
2. Clayton
3. Prentice
4. Racine Lutheran
5. Randolph
6. Augusta
7. Benton
8. Royal
9. Barneveld
10. McDonell Central
11. Suring
12. Sheboygan Lutheran
13. Green Bay NEW Lutheran
14. Fall River
15. Gilmanton
Wednesday, February 29, 2012
Verona over Madison East
In one of the few good matchups in the opening night of playoffs Verona took on Madison East at East. It was my last chance to see Rudy Bentely of Madison East a lighting quick 5'8 senior guard and the first time to see high scorer 6'5 senior Bryan Dalton of Verona. Both teams finished in the bottom half of the Big Eight Conference and as expected the turnout was small but, the gym did feel alive and was very loud as this game went right down to the wire.
East was leading the entire game and in the end foul trouble and fouls that gave up three point plays were their undoing. Throughout much of the game East was faster and quicker and they were hitting their outside shots. Bentely was the leader throughout the game and was really hitting the outside shots early on and hit some clutch shots throughout. In the second half Bentely was able to penetrate and find sharpshooter 6'2 junior Daniel Karlin-Kamin who hit three, three point shots in the second half to give East a big lead of about double digits but, Verona was able to claw back into this game.
Early on the only guy scoring was Dalton, who showed a nice array of scoring ability using his size and shooting touch from the outside. In the second half a pair of 6'1 guards got involved with senior Jason Biddle and junior Andrew Argall. Argall ran the point and in the second half drove the ball right to the hoop and took advantage of Bentely not wanting to pick up cheap fouls and scored most of his points pushing the tempo at the rim. Biddle struggled throughout the game but, came up the biggest late in the game hitting a wild shot in the lane to give Verona their first lead of the game and then hitting the basket to get the lead for good.
Most of the game was fairly lack luster but, the final two minutes were very exciting. East saw itself up by one when Biddle drove to the middle and hit a double pump wild shot in the lay that found the rim and basket. East promptly came down and found Bentely for the open three and. Verona ran the clock down and then Biddle pulled up for a three, which I thought was a bad shot, and nailed it to put Verona up by one, with 12 seconds left in the game. East took the timeout and took the ball down the court and took a bad contested three and it appeared that East gave up thinking the game was over as they stopped playing and Verona got a run out lay up. East inbounded the ball to Bentely who was fouled with 4.4 seconds left in the game hit both free throws and then fouled Verona. Verona missed both free throws but, the battle for a loose ball caused time to run out and Verona got the 57-56 win.
Top Players
Bryan Dalton 6'5 senior Verona - Took a lot of shots but, needs to at times. Has a nice three point shot and uses his size nicely on the inside to score.
Jason Biddle 6'1 senior Verona- Didn't have a great game but, had a great fourth quarter where he scored most of his points including the two biggest buckets of the game.
Rudy Bentely 5'8 senior Madison East- Could tell Bentely didn't want this to be his last game. Was able to hit four threes in the game and did his usual thing penetrating to the inside.
Daniel Karlin-Kamin 6'2 junior Madison East- Doesn't have much to his game but, can really stroke it from three point range as he hit four threes in this game.
Box Score
Verona- Dalton 21 Biddle 13 Argall 12 John Tackett 6 Mitch Flora 3 Kylan Reilly 2 Tavarionte Turner 0 James Gerlach 0 Adam Stiner 0
Madison East- Bentely 22 Karlin Kamin 12 Emani Brathwaite 7 Miles Kietzer 6 De'Shawn Burks 6 Stavon Staples 3 Alex Redd 0 Jermel McLin 0
Well for winning this hard fought battle Verona gets to take on conference champion Madison Memorial. East had every opportunity to win this game but, just didn't take advantage of putting the dagger in. This was one game where I think they could of gone inside more to 6'3 Emani Brathwaite, who had some success, but I just think their so used to not looking inside at all they forgot about him. Also Jermel McLin didn't start and he has been one of their top scorers every time I've seen him but, he just looked totally out of sink coming off the bench for whatever reason.
East was leading the entire game and in the end foul trouble and fouls that gave up three point plays were their undoing. Throughout much of the game East was faster and quicker and they were hitting their outside shots. Bentely was the leader throughout the game and was really hitting the outside shots early on and hit some clutch shots throughout. In the second half Bentely was able to penetrate and find sharpshooter 6'2 junior Daniel Karlin-Kamin who hit three, three point shots in the second half to give East a big lead of about double digits but, Verona was able to claw back into this game.
Early on the only guy scoring was Dalton, who showed a nice array of scoring ability using his size and shooting touch from the outside. In the second half a pair of 6'1 guards got involved with senior Jason Biddle and junior Andrew Argall. Argall ran the point and in the second half drove the ball right to the hoop and took advantage of Bentely not wanting to pick up cheap fouls and scored most of his points pushing the tempo at the rim. Biddle struggled throughout the game but, came up the biggest late in the game hitting a wild shot in the lane to give Verona their first lead of the game and then hitting the basket to get the lead for good.
Most of the game was fairly lack luster but, the final two minutes were very exciting. East saw itself up by one when Biddle drove to the middle and hit a double pump wild shot in the lay that found the rim and basket. East promptly came down and found Bentely for the open three and. Verona ran the clock down and then Biddle pulled up for a three, which I thought was a bad shot, and nailed it to put Verona up by one, with 12 seconds left in the game. East took the timeout and took the ball down the court and took a bad contested three and it appeared that East gave up thinking the game was over as they stopped playing and Verona got a run out lay up. East inbounded the ball to Bentely who was fouled with 4.4 seconds left in the game hit both free throws and then fouled Verona. Verona missed both free throws but, the battle for a loose ball caused time to run out and Verona got the 57-56 win.
Top Players
Bryan Dalton 6'5 senior Verona - Took a lot of shots but, needs to at times. Has a nice three point shot and uses his size nicely on the inside to score.
Jason Biddle 6'1 senior Verona- Didn't have a great game but, had a great fourth quarter where he scored most of his points including the two biggest buckets of the game.
Rudy Bentely 5'8 senior Madison East- Could tell Bentely didn't want this to be his last game. Was able to hit four threes in the game and did his usual thing penetrating to the inside.
Daniel Karlin-Kamin 6'2 junior Madison East- Doesn't have much to his game but, can really stroke it from three point range as he hit four threes in this game.
Box Score
Verona- Dalton 21 Biddle 13 Argall 12 John Tackett 6 Mitch Flora 3 Kylan Reilly 2 Tavarionte Turner 0 James Gerlach 0 Adam Stiner 0
Madison East- Bentely 22 Karlin Kamin 12 Emani Brathwaite 7 Miles Kietzer 6 De'Shawn Burks 6 Stavon Staples 3 Alex Redd 0 Jermel McLin 0
Well for winning this hard fought battle Verona gets to take on conference champion Madison Memorial. East had every opportunity to win this game but, just didn't take advantage of putting the dagger in. This was one game where I think they could of gone inside more to 6'3 Emani Brathwaite, who had some success, but I just think their so used to not looking inside at all they forgot about him. Also Jermel McLin didn't start and he has been one of their top scorers every time I've seen him but, he just looked totally out of sink coming off the bench for whatever reason.
Thursday, February 23, 2012
Divison One Playoffs Predictions
With playoffs less then a week away I figured I'd start my predictions for the playoffs and who will be at state and who will win state. I will have my favorite (team to win the sectional), contenders (teams that have good chances to with sectional), and sleepers (may not be seen as a team that will win it but, have a long shot).
Stevens Point Sectional
Oshkosh North over DC Everest
North has just played better competition all year long and have been battle tested. Everest just doesn't see the same competition playing in the Wisconsin Valley Conference.
Contenders
DC Everest- Have only lost one game all year long. That's all that needs to be said.
Appleton West- Don't know much about them but, they come out of the always tough Fox Valley Association conference and a lot of people are talking like they may make it to state.
Sleepers
Honestly don't see another team that has a remote chance to make it to state.
Racine Sectional
Milwaukee King over Milwaukee Hamilton
King won one of the best conferences in the state and have played some of the best teams in the country let alone the state. Have the senior leaders over Hamilton.
Contenders
Milwaukee Hamilton- Have great size and athleticism. Have a hand full of guys that were at state a year ago.
Racine Park- Have tons of athletes and depth on this team but, have had lapses from time to time.
Milwaukee Vincent- Haven't beaten and played with some of the best teams in the state. Have Deonte Burton who is just a physical beast.
West Allis Central- Another team full of athletes and height. Have three big time players that have each put up huge numbers throughout the year.
Brookfield Central- Were beating everyone early in the year but, struggled late as WAC over came them in conference.
Milwaukee Riverside- Have the team to win state but, just a question who is on the court. If everyone is active they are one of, if not, the tallest team in the state.
Sleepers
With so many contenders you really can't have any sleepers left.
Manitowoc Sectional
Germantown over De Pere
Gtown has a ton of depth and a ton of athletes. Have been most peoples number one team all year and I don't see anyone coming close to them.
Contenders
De Pere- Only team that has beaten De Pere is Germantown and they are the defending state runner ups.
Homestead- Another team that has only been beaten by Germantown.
Bay Port- Has pushed De Pere to the limit twice and have only lost three games this year.
Sheboygan North-Another team that has only lost three games this year and have been ranked all year long.
Sleepers
Arrowhead- Have had a so so year but, have had some very promising games beating some top teams.
Menomonee Falls- Have the best player in division one and have been playing some great ball late in the season.
Kimberly- Another battle tested team from the FVA and could find themselves coming out on top.
Kettle Morain Sectional
Madison Memorial over Mukwonago
Memorial probably has the easier road to state of any of the #1 seeds. They have been to state eight straight years and this year should be number nine. Five athletes that start and are as good as any starting five in the state.
Contender
Mukwonago- Their the other #1 seed so have to be a contender and they won their conference.
Sleepers
Sun Prairie- Have looked like the best team in the state at times but, other times have looked like a five win team.
Middleton- Team with a lot of depth and have battle Memorial for the top of the conference all year long.
State Picks
Milwaukee King over Oshkosh North
Just way too much talent for North to handle. North has the slight edge on the inside but, everything else should go King's way.
Germantown over Madison Memorial
Germantown has too much size and athletes for Memorial and should be able to handle Memorials pressure.
Germantown over Milwaukee King
King might be the one team in the state that have as many athletes as Germantown but, G'town's height will just be too much for King to overcome.
Well there are my picks and will shall see how well I do in my predictions.
Stevens Point Sectional
Oshkosh North over DC Everest
North has just played better competition all year long and have been battle tested. Everest just doesn't see the same competition playing in the Wisconsin Valley Conference.
Contenders
DC Everest- Have only lost one game all year long. That's all that needs to be said.
Appleton West- Don't know much about them but, they come out of the always tough Fox Valley Association conference and a lot of people are talking like they may make it to state.
Sleepers
Honestly don't see another team that has a remote chance to make it to state.
Racine Sectional
Milwaukee King over Milwaukee Hamilton
King won one of the best conferences in the state and have played some of the best teams in the country let alone the state. Have the senior leaders over Hamilton.
Contenders
Milwaukee Hamilton- Have great size and athleticism. Have a hand full of guys that were at state a year ago.
Racine Park- Have tons of athletes and depth on this team but, have had lapses from time to time.
Milwaukee Vincent- Haven't beaten and played with some of the best teams in the state. Have Deonte Burton who is just a physical beast.
West Allis Central- Another team full of athletes and height. Have three big time players that have each put up huge numbers throughout the year.
Brookfield Central- Were beating everyone early in the year but, struggled late as WAC over came them in conference.
Milwaukee Riverside- Have the team to win state but, just a question who is on the court. If everyone is active they are one of, if not, the tallest team in the state.
Sleepers
With so many contenders you really can't have any sleepers left.
Manitowoc Sectional
Germantown over De Pere
Gtown has a ton of depth and a ton of athletes. Have been most peoples number one team all year and I don't see anyone coming close to them.
Contenders
De Pere- Only team that has beaten De Pere is Germantown and they are the defending state runner ups.
Homestead- Another team that has only been beaten by Germantown.
Bay Port- Has pushed De Pere to the limit twice and have only lost three games this year.
Sheboygan North-Another team that has only lost three games this year and have been ranked all year long.
Sleepers
Arrowhead- Have had a so so year but, have had some very promising games beating some top teams.
Menomonee Falls- Have the best player in division one and have been playing some great ball late in the season.
Kimberly- Another battle tested team from the FVA and could find themselves coming out on top.
Kettle Morain Sectional
Madison Memorial over Mukwonago
Memorial probably has the easier road to state of any of the #1 seeds. They have been to state eight straight years and this year should be number nine. Five athletes that start and are as good as any starting five in the state.
Contender
Mukwonago- Their the other #1 seed so have to be a contender and they won their conference.
Sleepers
Sun Prairie- Have looked like the best team in the state at times but, other times have looked like a five win team.
Middleton- Team with a lot of depth and have battle Memorial for the top of the conference all year long.
State Picks
Milwaukee King over Oshkosh North
Just way too much talent for North to handle. North has the slight edge on the inside but, everything else should go King's way.
Germantown over Madison Memorial
Germantown has too much size and athletes for Memorial and should be able to handle Memorials pressure.
Germantown over Milwaukee King
King might be the one team in the state that have as many athletes as Germantown but, G'town's height will just be too much for King to overcome.
Well there are my picks and will shall see how well I do in my predictions.
Tuesday, February 21, 2012
Milwaukee Washington over Waunakee
I came into this game expecting a battle of contracting styles. I figured Waunakee would be very disciplined in their offensive attack and wear Washington down. Also thought Waunakee would dominate the glass and Washington would be the quicker team but, Waunakee's team defense would keep Washington from getting easy buckets. Washington would look to push the tempo but, Waunakee's zone press would force them into turnovers.
Well I was basically completely wrong in my predictions of how the game would go. Waunakee was not patient on the offensive end and settled for a ton of three point shots. Washington was the team that dominated the glass even when their best big man 6'4 junior Jamaar McKay went down with an injury. Washington was by far the quicker team but, Waunakee's team defense wasn't there which led to numerous easy baskets. I'm not sure if Waunakee was tired from the game the previous night, or they slacked off after winning the conference the previous night but, this was easily the worst game I had seen Waunakee play this year.
Waunakee rarely looked in the post all game and settled for three after three and the three point shots just weren't falling. This may of because their big man 6'6 senior Joe Tagarelli was in foul trouble but, even when he was in the game they rarely went to him. Much of the night Washington simply allowed their players to go one on one in a spread four corners offense. Waunakee had the height advantage but, Washington made up for that by playing extremely hard and not letting Waunakee get any offensive rebounds and every long rebound went to Washington.
Top Players
Dereck Williams 5'9 senior Mil Washington- There was no one on the court that could stay with Williams. The little lefty was super quick and had the ability to clear himself some room and knock down the shot.
Deandre Harris 6'3 senior Mil Washington- Just a superior athlete that used his athleticism to get to the hoop and score. Has the ability to elevated over his defender and score.
Will Decorah 6'4 junior Waunakee- Just went to work and had his usually game. Hit some outside shots, scored on the inside, and got to the free throw line and scored.
Box Score
Waunakee- Decorah 15 Tagarelli 8 Ben Cable 8 Dylan DesRochers 6 Tim Keenan 4 Justin Block 3 Ryan Kruser 3 Max Chamberlin 2 Alex Cole 0 Michael Meffert 0 Brett Richgels 0 Jake Heitland 0 Jakub Bollant-Ulvilden 0
Milwaukee Washington- Harris 23 Williams 14 Demecko Whitehead 9 Winn 8 Justice Hindall 6 McKay 4 Trequan Martin 0 Tim Johnson 0 Kendall Boyd 0
I still stick with my think that Waunakee will end up at state. I just don't see a team that will be able to beat them in their sectional. As for Washington I think they may very well be a state team. If you look at who they just beat other then Waunakee, they beat Milwaukee Hamilton and Riverside, two teams that many thought and still think have very good chances of getting to state. Washington was very impressive and they could run up and down the court but, didn't turn the ball over.
Well I was basically completely wrong in my predictions of how the game would go. Waunakee was not patient on the offensive end and settled for a ton of three point shots. Washington was the team that dominated the glass even when their best big man 6'4 junior Jamaar McKay went down with an injury. Washington was by far the quicker team but, Waunakee's team defense wasn't there which led to numerous easy baskets. I'm not sure if Waunakee was tired from the game the previous night, or they slacked off after winning the conference the previous night but, this was easily the worst game I had seen Waunakee play this year.
Waunakee rarely looked in the post all game and settled for three after three and the three point shots just weren't falling. This may of because their big man 6'6 senior Joe Tagarelli was in foul trouble but, even when he was in the game they rarely went to him. Much of the night Washington simply allowed their players to go one on one in a spread four corners offense. Waunakee had the height advantage but, Washington made up for that by playing extremely hard and not letting Waunakee get any offensive rebounds and every long rebound went to Washington.
Top Players
Dereck Williams 5'9 senior Mil Washington- There was no one on the court that could stay with Williams. The little lefty was super quick and had the ability to clear himself some room and knock down the shot.
Deandre Harris 6'3 senior Mil Washington- Just a superior athlete that used his athleticism to get to the hoop and score. Has the ability to elevated over his defender and score.
Will Decorah 6'4 junior Waunakee- Just went to work and had his usually game. Hit some outside shots, scored on the inside, and got to the free throw line and scored.
Box Score
Waunakee- Decorah 15 Tagarelli 8 Ben Cable 8 Dylan DesRochers 6 Tim Keenan 4 Justin Block 3 Ryan Kruser 3 Max Chamberlin 2 Alex Cole 0 Michael Meffert 0 Brett Richgels 0 Jake Heitland 0 Jakub Bollant-Ulvilden 0
Milwaukee Washington- Harris 23 Williams 14 Demecko Whitehead 9 Winn 8 Justice Hindall 6 McKay 4 Trequan Martin 0 Tim Johnson 0 Kendall Boyd 0
I still stick with my think that Waunakee will end up at state. I just don't see a team that will be able to beat them in their sectional. As for Washington I think they may very well be a state team. If you look at who they just beat other then Waunakee, they beat Milwaukee Hamilton and Riverside, two teams that many thought and still think have very good chances of getting to state. Washington was very impressive and they could run up and down the court but, didn't turn the ball over.
Monday, February 20, 2012
Sixth Round Team Rankings
Another week and another round of my team rankings. I have a game from Saturday night to write about and then I will not be attending another game before the playoffs so I will be doing my predictions for the playoffs this week. Well anyway here are my new rankings.
Division One
Homestead lost in a minor upset to Whitefish Bay and fall to #7. Bay Port also lost to De Pere on a buzzer shot which allows them to stay at the same spot in the rankings. The city schools really struggled this past week as Vincent and Hamilton both dropped a game and check in at 10 and 11, while Riverside lost a pair of games and fall to #14. Racine Park lost but, since the only lost once are just above Riverside at #13. Middleton has now lost three games in a row and fall out of the rankings and are replaced by Brookfield Central who had just fallen out of the rankings a week ago.
1. Germantown
2. Milwaukee King
3. Madison Memorial
4. De Pere
5. DC Everest
6. Bay Port
7. Homestead
8. Sheboygan North
9. West Allis Central
10. Milwaukee Vincent
11. Milwaukee Hamilton
12. Kimberly
13. Racine Park
14. Milwaukee Riverside
15. Brookfield Central
Division Two
Waunakee lost a tough game to red hot Washington team and fall to #6 and Antigo lost and fall to #7. Pulaski and Eisenhower each dropped a game and fall to 10 and 11. Marshall lost to a top D1 team in Milwaukee King and drop to 13, while fellow City team Washington reappears in the rankings at 12 after defeated Waunakee and a pair of ranked D1 teams. Tosa East and Deforest fall from the rankings and are replaced by Washington and Plymouth who lost but, by the benefit of others losing find themselves at 15.
1. Onalaska
2. Rice Lake
3. Kaukana
4. Milwaukee Pius
5. Whitnall
6. Waunakee
7. Antigo
8. Milwaukee Messmer
9. Beaver Dam
10. Pulaski
11. New Berlin Eisenhower
12. Milwaukee Washington
13. Milwaukee Marshall
14. Stoughton
15. Plymouth
Division Three
Just a few minor changes here. Little Chute lost another game and fall all the way to #8. Peshtigo lost to an out of state team but, stays at the same spot. Oostburg lost a pair of games including a game to Sheboygan Falls who replaces them in the rankings at #14. Arcadia lost to Westby who replaces them at #15.
1. East Troy
2. GET
3. Clinton
4. Wisconsin Dells
5. Lodi
6. Brillion
7. Wrightstown
8. Little Chute
9. Omro
10. Racine St. Cats
11. Valders
12. Peshtigo
13. Marshall
14. Sheboygan Falls
15. Westby
Division Four
Hardly a change in these rankings. Stratford lost to Aburndale and drop to #11 and Shoreland Lutheran lost to St. Cats a ranked D3 team and drop to 12. Only other change was Crandon losing and falling out of the rankings and are replaced by St. Mary Springs.
1. Dominican
2. Aburndale
3. Cuba City
4. Elk Mound
5. Colfax
6. Oshkosh Lourdes
7. Laconia
8. Bonduel
9. Wild Rose
10. Grantsburg
11. Stratford
12. Shoreland Lutheran
13. Colby
14. Howards Grove
15. St Mary's Springs
Division Five
Benton got beat bad by Cuba City and fall to #8 while Royal lost as well and find themselves at #9. Sheboygan Lutheran lost to a ranked D3 team and check in at 13, while Goodman/Pembine lost and fall out of the rankings and are replaced by Fall River.
1. Siren
2. Clayton
3. Prentice
4. Racine Lutheran
5. Randolph
6. McDonell Central
7. Augusta
8. Benton
9. Royal
10. Barneveld
11. Gilmanton
12. Suring
13. Sheboygan Lutheran
14. Green Bay NEW Lutheran
15. Fall River
As I said earlier I will b doing my playoff predictions this week and next week I will have my last rankings as once the playoffs start I don't see a reason to update rankings anymore.
Division One
Homestead lost in a minor upset to Whitefish Bay and fall to #7. Bay Port also lost to De Pere on a buzzer shot which allows them to stay at the same spot in the rankings. The city schools really struggled this past week as Vincent and Hamilton both dropped a game and check in at 10 and 11, while Riverside lost a pair of games and fall to #14. Racine Park lost but, since the only lost once are just above Riverside at #13. Middleton has now lost three games in a row and fall out of the rankings and are replaced by Brookfield Central who had just fallen out of the rankings a week ago.
1. Germantown
2. Milwaukee King
3. Madison Memorial
4. De Pere
5. DC Everest
6. Bay Port
7. Homestead
8. Sheboygan North
9. West Allis Central
10. Milwaukee Vincent
11. Milwaukee Hamilton
12. Kimberly
13. Racine Park
14. Milwaukee Riverside
15. Brookfield Central
Division Two
Waunakee lost a tough game to red hot Washington team and fall to #6 and Antigo lost and fall to #7. Pulaski and Eisenhower each dropped a game and fall to 10 and 11. Marshall lost to a top D1 team in Milwaukee King and drop to 13, while fellow City team Washington reappears in the rankings at 12 after defeated Waunakee and a pair of ranked D1 teams. Tosa East and Deforest fall from the rankings and are replaced by Washington and Plymouth who lost but, by the benefit of others losing find themselves at 15.
1. Onalaska
2. Rice Lake
3. Kaukana
4. Milwaukee Pius
5. Whitnall
6. Waunakee
7. Antigo
8. Milwaukee Messmer
9. Beaver Dam
10. Pulaski
11. New Berlin Eisenhower
12. Milwaukee Washington
13. Milwaukee Marshall
14. Stoughton
15. Plymouth
Division Three
Just a few minor changes here. Little Chute lost another game and fall all the way to #8. Peshtigo lost to an out of state team but, stays at the same spot. Oostburg lost a pair of games including a game to Sheboygan Falls who replaces them in the rankings at #14. Arcadia lost to Westby who replaces them at #15.
1. East Troy
2. GET
3. Clinton
4. Wisconsin Dells
5. Lodi
6. Brillion
7. Wrightstown
8. Little Chute
9. Omro
10. Racine St. Cats
11. Valders
12. Peshtigo
13. Marshall
14. Sheboygan Falls
15. Westby
Division Four
Hardly a change in these rankings. Stratford lost to Aburndale and drop to #11 and Shoreland Lutheran lost to St. Cats a ranked D3 team and drop to 12. Only other change was Crandon losing and falling out of the rankings and are replaced by St. Mary Springs.
1. Dominican
2. Aburndale
3. Cuba City
4. Elk Mound
5. Colfax
6. Oshkosh Lourdes
7. Laconia
8. Bonduel
9. Wild Rose
10. Grantsburg
11. Stratford
12. Shoreland Lutheran
13. Colby
14. Howards Grove
15. St Mary's Springs
Division Five
Benton got beat bad by Cuba City and fall to #8 while Royal lost as well and find themselves at #9. Sheboygan Lutheran lost to a ranked D3 team and check in at 13, while Goodman/Pembine lost and fall out of the rankings and are replaced by Fall River.
1. Siren
2. Clayton
3. Prentice
4. Racine Lutheran
5. Randolph
6. McDonell Central
7. Augusta
8. Benton
9. Royal
10. Barneveld
11. Gilmanton
12. Suring
13. Sheboygan Lutheran
14. Green Bay NEW Lutheran
15. Fall River
As I said earlier I will b doing my playoff predictions this week and next week I will have my last rankings as once the playoffs start I don't see a reason to update rankings anymore.
Friday, February 17, 2012
East Troy over Mcfarland
Last night was my first chance to see the overwhelming division three favorite East Troy. This was the closes that they have been to my home all year and they were playing the second place team in the conference. I knew East Troy was very big and wouldn't play much of their bench and honestly didn't have any idea what to expect in regards to Mcfarland.
I came expecting to see 6'8 senior Tanner Plomb and 6'3 junior Nate Dodge put up bigger scoring numbers and 6'9 junior twins Alex and Brett Pahl doing a little scoring, rebounding, and playing solid defense. With these four players I didn't see much else in the scoring column but, it was 6'0 senior Myles Olsen that stole the show early on. Olsen should the ability to run the offense very well and knock down the open shot when given the opportunity, which he should get a lot since the opponent will be focused on stopping his teammates first. Plomb is the guy going to the D1 school but, he didn't have a great night as the shots just weren't falling, but you could tell that he has tremendous skill with the way he plays and moves for a guy that's 6'8. Dodge was every bit the player I expected to see as he could and would take the outside shot at any time and more times then not would knock it down. The Pahl's weren't great offensive threats but, did their thing on the inside both on offense and defense. Alex was limited due to foul trouble.
On the other side Mcfarland looked totally lost against the bigger East Troy defenders. It seemed to take forever for Mcfarland to get a shot off and when the did take a shot it was swatted back in their face. It took about five minutes into the game before Mcfarland actually ran something that appeared to be an offense. Mcfarland had some nice back door cuts and finally got something going when they went through 6'3 senior Adam Schluter. Despite giving up six inches to both of the Pahls, Schluter was able to use his quickness to get around the defenders and caused Alex Pahl to spend a good portion of the game on the bench. Mcfarland was down 13 points after the first quarter and the game stayed that way for the majority of the time as East Troy got the 75-58 win.
Top Players
Nate Dodge 6'3 junior East Troy- Can get his shot off at any time. Has a very quick release and unlimited range. Moves very well without the ball.
Myles Olsen 6'0 senior East Troy- Considered the fifth best starter in most peoples eyes but, I was really impressed with him. Did a great job controlling the offense and is actually a pretty good shooter but, is over shadowed by by Dodge and Plomb.
Adam Schluter 6'3 senior Mcfarland- Really out played the East Troy big men throughout the entire game and at times was the best player on the court.
Box Score
East Troy- Dodge 25 Olsen 14 B Pahl 11 A Pahl 10 Plomb 10 Will Iloncaie 3 Alex Kaz 2 Zach Davis 0
Mcfarland- Schluter 19 Nik Ewelt 15 Brandon Doll 10 Cory Frank 4 Seth Johnson 4 Chris Wedel 4 Zach Hutson 2 Antwon Washington 0 Ben Jordan 0 Casey Engelhart 0 Ben Miller 0
I came away from this game fairly impressed with East Troy but, I don't think that they are an unbeatable team. Of the teams I have seen in D3 I could only see possibly beating them are Wisconsin Dells, if they were hitting their threes, and Lodi if they can stay out of foul trouble with their big guys. For Mcfarland I think they could possibly win one playoff game but, probably won't get much further in the playoffs.
I came expecting to see 6'8 senior Tanner Plomb and 6'3 junior Nate Dodge put up bigger scoring numbers and 6'9 junior twins Alex and Brett Pahl doing a little scoring, rebounding, and playing solid defense. With these four players I didn't see much else in the scoring column but, it was 6'0 senior Myles Olsen that stole the show early on. Olsen should the ability to run the offense very well and knock down the open shot when given the opportunity, which he should get a lot since the opponent will be focused on stopping his teammates first. Plomb is the guy going to the D1 school but, he didn't have a great night as the shots just weren't falling, but you could tell that he has tremendous skill with the way he plays and moves for a guy that's 6'8. Dodge was every bit the player I expected to see as he could and would take the outside shot at any time and more times then not would knock it down. The Pahl's weren't great offensive threats but, did their thing on the inside both on offense and defense. Alex was limited due to foul trouble.
On the other side Mcfarland looked totally lost against the bigger East Troy defenders. It seemed to take forever for Mcfarland to get a shot off and when the did take a shot it was swatted back in their face. It took about five minutes into the game before Mcfarland actually ran something that appeared to be an offense. Mcfarland had some nice back door cuts and finally got something going when they went through 6'3 senior Adam Schluter. Despite giving up six inches to both of the Pahls, Schluter was able to use his quickness to get around the defenders and caused Alex Pahl to spend a good portion of the game on the bench. Mcfarland was down 13 points after the first quarter and the game stayed that way for the majority of the time as East Troy got the 75-58 win.
Top Players
Nate Dodge 6'3 junior East Troy- Can get his shot off at any time. Has a very quick release and unlimited range. Moves very well without the ball.
Myles Olsen 6'0 senior East Troy- Considered the fifth best starter in most peoples eyes but, I was really impressed with him. Did a great job controlling the offense and is actually a pretty good shooter but, is over shadowed by by Dodge and Plomb.
Adam Schluter 6'3 senior Mcfarland- Really out played the East Troy big men throughout the entire game and at times was the best player on the court.
Box Score
East Troy- Dodge 25 Olsen 14 B Pahl 11 A Pahl 10 Plomb 10 Will Iloncaie 3 Alex Kaz 2 Zach Davis 0
Mcfarland- Schluter 19 Nik Ewelt 15 Brandon Doll 10 Cory Frank 4 Seth Johnson 4 Chris Wedel 4 Zach Hutson 2 Antwon Washington 0 Ben Jordan 0 Casey Engelhart 0 Ben Miller 0
I came away from this game fairly impressed with East Troy but, I don't think that they are an unbeatable team. Of the teams I have seen in D3 I could only see possibly beating them are Wisconsin Dells, if they were hitting their threes, and Lodi if they can stay out of foul trouble with their big guys. For Mcfarland I think they could possibly win one playoff game but, probably won't get much further in the playoffs.
Saturday, February 11, 2012
Fifth Round Team Rankings
My updated team rankings.
Division One
Riverside dropped to #9 behind Vincent who just beat them and Hamilton fell to #11 after losing to Milwaukee Washington. Brookfield Central lost another game and are replaced by the team that beat them in West Allis Central who comes in at #13 followed by Kimberly that lost a tough game to conference rival Kaukana, and Middleton who dropped a pair of games to Madison Memorial and Sun Prairie.
1. Germantown
2. Milwaukee King
3. Madison Memorial
4. De Pere
5. Homestead
6. DC Everest
7. Bay Port
8. Milwaukee Vincent
9. Milwaukee Riverside
10. Sheboygan North
11. Milwaukee Hamilton
12. Racine Park
13. West Allis Central
14. Kimberly
15. Middleton
Division Two
Eisenhower dropped a game and fall to #9 while Antigo lost to a top D1 team and fall to #6. Beaver Dam lost a pair of games one to an out of state team and fall to 12. Stoughton, Edgewood, and Tosa East all lost but, Edgewood had their worst lose and fall out of the rankings and are replaced by Deforest who defeated Stoughton.
1. Onalaska
2. Rice Lake
3. Kaukana
4. Waunakee
5. Milwaukee Pius
6. Antigo
7. Whitnall
8. Pulaski
9. New Berlin Eisenhower
10. Milwaukee Messmer
11. Milwaukee Marshall
12. Beaver Dam
13. Deforest
14. Stoughton
15. Wauwatosa East
Division Three
Unlike the last rankings their wasn't a lot of change in D3 with the exception of the very top. GET and Little Chute both lost dropping them each one spot which allowed East Troy to climb back into the #1 spot. The only other change was that Omro lost their second game of the year and fall all the way to #9 from #4 just shows how tight the rankings are right now.
1. East Troy
2. GET
3. Little Chute
4. Clinton
5. Wisconsin Dells
6. Lodi
7. Brillion
8. Wrightstown
9. Omro
10. Racine St. Cats
11. Oostburg
12. Peshtigo
13. Valders
14. Arcadia
15. Marshall
Division Four
Bonduel lost a tough game and fall to #8. Wild Rose, Shoreland Lutheran, Grantsburg, Amherst, Crandon, and Howards Grove all lost but, Amherst was hit the hardest as the fell out of the rankings. Colby is the new team that replaces Amherst. I really find these smaller schools tougher to rank because you just don't pay that much attention to them and there just isn't a lot of interest in them.
1. Dominican
2. Aburndale
3. Cuba City
4. Elk Mound
5. Colfax
6. Oshkosh Lourdes
7. Laconia
8. Bonduel
9. Stratford
10. Wild Rose
11. Shoreland Lutheran
12. Grantsburg
13. Crandon
14. Colby
15. Howards Grove
Division Five
Just a few changes but, the big one was Racine Lutheran losing and honestly don't completely agree with what I put but, Siren is the only undefeated team so I'll give them #1. Lutheran falls to #4. Barnveld lost a bad game and drop to #11. Suring lost to a good D2 team and drop to #13 while Columbus Catholic lost to Augusta and drop from the rankings and are replaced by Goodman/Pembine a team that I have simply been over looking all year.
1. Siren
2. Clayton
3. Prentice
4. Racine Lutheran
5. Randolph
6. Benton
7. Royal
8. McDonell Central
9. Augusta
10. Sheboygan Lutheran
11. Barneveld
12. Gilmanton
13. Suring
14. Green Bay NEW Lutheran
15. Goodman/Pembine
There are my rankings not much else to say. D1 should be very interesting to watch as I currently have four teams from the City Conference ranked so things will obviously shake up a bit up there. Also just wanted to restate that these rankings have absolutely no meaning and are simply for my enjoyment and to give what my thoughts are on the rankings.
Division One
Riverside dropped to #9 behind Vincent who just beat them and Hamilton fell to #11 after losing to Milwaukee Washington. Brookfield Central lost another game and are replaced by the team that beat them in West Allis Central who comes in at #13 followed by Kimberly that lost a tough game to conference rival Kaukana, and Middleton who dropped a pair of games to Madison Memorial and Sun Prairie.
1. Germantown
2. Milwaukee King
3. Madison Memorial
4. De Pere
5. Homestead
6. DC Everest
7. Bay Port
8. Milwaukee Vincent
9. Milwaukee Riverside
10. Sheboygan North
11. Milwaukee Hamilton
12. Racine Park
13. West Allis Central
14. Kimberly
15. Middleton
Division Two
Eisenhower dropped a game and fall to #9 while Antigo lost to a top D1 team and fall to #6. Beaver Dam lost a pair of games one to an out of state team and fall to 12. Stoughton, Edgewood, and Tosa East all lost but, Edgewood had their worst lose and fall out of the rankings and are replaced by Deforest who defeated Stoughton.
1. Onalaska
2. Rice Lake
3. Kaukana
4. Waunakee
5. Milwaukee Pius
6. Antigo
7. Whitnall
8. Pulaski
9. New Berlin Eisenhower
10. Milwaukee Messmer
11. Milwaukee Marshall
12. Beaver Dam
13. Deforest
14. Stoughton
15. Wauwatosa East
Division Three
Unlike the last rankings their wasn't a lot of change in D3 with the exception of the very top. GET and Little Chute both lost dropping them each one spot which allowed East Troy to climb back into the #1 spot. The only other change was that Omro lost their second game of the year and fall all the way to #9 from #4 just shows how tight the rankings are right now.
1. East Troy
2. GET
3. Little Chute
4. Clinton
5. Wisconsin Dells
6. Lodi
7. Brillion
8. Wrightstown
9. Omro
10. Racine St. Cats
11. Oostburg
12. Peshtigo
13. Valders
14. Arcadia
15. Marshall
Division Four
Bonduel lost a tough game and fall to #8. Wild Rose, Shoreland Lutheran, Grantsburg, Amherst, Crandon, and Howards Grove all lost but, Amherst was hit the hardest as the fell out of the rankings. Colby is the new team that replaces Amherst. I really find these smaller schools tougher to rank because you just don't pay that much attention to them and there just isn't a lot of interest in them.
1. Dominican
2. Aburndale
3. Cuba City
4. Elk Mound
5. Colfax
6. Oshkosh Lourdes
7. Laconia
8. Bonduel
9. Stratford
10. Wild Rose
11. Shoreland Lutheran
12. Grantsburg
13. Crandon
14. Colby
15. Howards Grove
Division Five
Just a few changes but, the big one was Racine Lutheran losing and honestly don't completely agree with what I put but, Siren is the only undefeated team so I'll give them #1. Lutheran falls to #4. Barnveld lost a bad game and drop to #11. Suring lost to a good D2 team and drop to #13 while Columbus Catholic lost to Augusta and drop from the rankings and are replaced by Goodman/Pembine a team that I have simply been over looking all year.
1. Siren
2. Clayton
3. Prentice
4. Racine Lutheran
5. Randolph
6. Benton
7. Royal
8. McDonell Central
9. Augusta
10. Sheboygan Lutheran
11. Barneveld
12. Gilmanton
13. Suring
14. Green Bay NEW Lutheran
15. Goodman/Pembine
There are my rankings not much else to say. D1 should be very interesting to watch as I currently have four teams from the City Conference ranked so things will obviously shake up a bit up there. Also just wanted to restate that these rankings have absolutely no meaning and are simply for my enjoyment and to give what my thoughts are on the rankings.
Friday, February 10, 2012
Week in Review Including Border Battle
Once again I have procrastinated my blogging and have two games and a tournament that I haven't written about so will include them all in this blog with just short write ups of each game. Friday night I watched Madison Memorial vs Sun Prairie, Tuesday night Wisconsin Dells vs Larcosse Aquinas, and then the big one on Saturday was the Border Battle.
Madison Memorial 60 Sun Prairie 50
This wouldn't of been a shock had it not been the fact that Memorial was without their top two scorers in seniors 6'5 Junior Lomomba and 6'6 Jamar Morris. After seeing that I thought for sure that Sun Prairie was going to win but, the rest of Memorial's starters really picked up their game and took over. The star of the night was 6'4 senior Ngijol Songolo. Songolo really locked up Sun Prairie's star 6'6 junior Nick Fuller. In their first match up Fuller could do whatever he wanted but, in this game Songolo was right up in his face and didn't let Fuller get a good look all night and most of Fuller's points came late in the game. Much of the game Memorial was up by 15 to 20 points until both benches were cleared. Songolo did it on the offensive end as well as he was able to penetrate and score and find open teammates. 6'5 junior Jester Weah also had a huge game scoring and rebounding. Weah is just a physical beast and may be on the level of former Big Eight players Marquis Mason and Chris Hawkins who could just jump out of the gym. Brendan Ortiz 6'1 junior also teamed with Songolo to do most of the ball handling and did a nice job leading the team.
Border Battle
Match up of some of the best teams from Minnesota verse the best of Wisconsin.
Wisconsin Dells 61 Maple River 47
From the get go Dells was the better team. Dells junior star 5'10 MJ Delmore got off to a quick start and never looked back as he finished with 27 points. Dells other top player 6'4 junior Shane Wimann was in foul trouble which hurt him but, he still managed 17 points in the game. The biggest story was Maple River's inability to get the ball inside against the Dells zone defense. The Eagles settled for three after three and some dropped but, for the most part they weren't falling for them. Dells two man team just took the game over the game and Maple River had no answer.
GET 71 Maranatha Christian 54
Another Minnesota team that was just over matched early on and really struggled against the zone defense. 6'4 senior Riley Bambenek was the guy I was excited to see and he didn't disappoint early on. Bambenek is very smooth and hit the mid range jumper and used his size against small guards to score on the inside. Late in the game Maranatha had no answer for 6'5 senior Chris Johnson on the inside, who just seemed to be able to score at will. Turnovers killed Maranatha all game long as well as their interior defense.
Grand Rapids 71 Beaver Dam 65
Easily the best game of the day as it took three overtimes before this game was decided. Rapids had a huge height advantage with two 6'8 players but, didn't use them. Beaver Dam's top player 6'4 senior Jake Heuer struggled greatly for the first three and a half quarters on the game. With these two things going on the game turned into a one on one battle between the two point guards 6'0 junior RJ Shelton for Beaver Dam and 6'1 senior Austin Pohlen for Grand Rapids. I'm not sure if anyone besides Pohlen took a shot in overtime but, that's all Rapids needed. Rapids always had the lead and missed some free throws that allowed BD to tie the game back up but, in the end BD just tired out and Shelton fouled out late.
Madison Edgewood 70 North St Paul 59
Early on NSP was able to hang with Edgewood but, in the end the more disciplined team was able to pull this game out. For a time it this game Edgewood's best offense was to just take off when the ball was out of bounds and beat their defender down the court for an easy layup. Edgewood is always a fun team to watch because they play so hard and are just so fundamentally sound. NSP seemed to really on their skills and not their execution and that just wasn't enough.
Waunakee 66 Tartan 65
Another great game that Waunakee was able to win when 6'6 senior Joe Tagarelli was able to knock down a pair of free throws with two seconds left in the game. Tartan had the best player on the court in 6'0 junior Darrion Strong but, Waunakee was the better team. 6'4 junior Will Decorah also had a huge game as he was able to score in the paint and from mid range. Honestly wasn't feeling to great at this time so don't remember much else.
Sun Prairie 61 Minneapolis DeLasalle 35
This game was over before it began. Delasalle just couldn't do anything and Fuller just absolutely took over and could do no wrong. I left at half time once I could see their was no was DeLasalle was going to be able to take over.
Wisconsin Dells 74 Lacrosse Aquinas 52
Another game that was over early. Delmore continued his torrid scoring run and the rest of the team seemed to pick up his hot outside shooting as well. Wimann
Well another great week of basketball under my belt and will be doing my updated rankings some time this weekend as I will actually have some time this weekend.
Madison Memorial 60 Sun Prairie 50
This wouldn't of been a shock had it not been the fact that Memorial was without their top two scorers in seniors 6'5 Junior Lomomba and 6'6 Jamar Morris. After seeing that I thought for sure that Sun Prairie was going to win but, the rest of Memorial's starters really picked up their game and took over. The star of the night was 6'4 senior Ngijol Songolo. Songolo really locked up Sun Prairie's star 6'6 junior Nick Fuller. In their first match up Fuller could do whatever he wanted but, in this game Songolo was right up in his face and didn't let Fuller get a good look all night and most of Fuller's points came late in the game. Much of the game Memorial was up by 15 to 20 points until both benches were cleared. Songolo did it on the offensive end as well as he was able to penetrate and score and find open teammates. 6'5 junior Jester Weah also had a huge game scoring and rebounding. Weah is just a physical beast and may be on the level of former Big Eight players Marquis Mason and Chris Hawkins who could just jump out of the gym. Brendan Ortiz 6'1 junior also teamed with Songolo to do most of the ball handling and did a nice job leading the team.
Border Battle
Match up of some of the best teams from Minnesota verse the best of Wisconsin.
Wisconsin Dells 61 Maple River 47
From the get go Dells was the better team. Dells junior star 5'10 MJ Delmore got off to a quick start and never looked back as he finished with 27 points. Dells other top player 6'4 junior Shane Wimann was in foul trouble which hurt him but, he still managed 17 points in the game. The biggest story was Maple River's inability to get the ball inside against the Dells zone defense. The Eagles settled for three after three and some dropped but, for the most part they weren't falling for them. Dells two man team just took the game over the game and Maple River had no answer.
GET 71 Maranatha Christian 54
Another Minnesota team that was just over matched early on and really struggled against the zone defense. 6'4 senior Riley Bambenek was the guy I was excited to see and he didn't disappoint early on. Bambenek is very smooth and hit the mid range jumper and used his size against small guards to score on the inside. Late in the game Maranatha had no answer for 6'5 senior Chris Johnson on the inside, who just seemed to be able to score at will. Turnovers killed Maranatha all game long as well as their interior defense.
Grand Rapids 71 Beaver Dam 65
Easily the best game of the day as it took three overtimes before this game was decided. Rapids had a huge height advantage with two 6'8 players but, didn't use them. Beaver Dam's top player 6'4 senior Jake Heuer struggled greatly for the first three and a half quarters on the game. With these two things going on the game turned into a one on one battle between the two point guards 6'0 junior RJ Shelton for Beaver Dam and 6'1 senior Austin Pohlen for Grand Rapids. I'm not sure if anyone besides Pohlen took a shot in overtime but, that's all Rapids needed. Rapids always had the lead and missed some free throws that allowed BD to tie the game back up but, in the end BD just tired out and Shelton fouled out late.
Madison Edgewood 70 North St Paul 59
Early on NSP was able to hang with Edgewood but, in the end the more disciplined team was able to pull this game out. For a time it this game Edgewood's best offense was to just take off when the ball was out of bounds and beat their defender down the court for an easy layup. Edgewood is always a fun team to watch because they play so hard and are just so fundamentally sound. NSP seemed to really on their skills and not their execution and that just wasn't enough.
Waunakee 66 Tartan 65
Another great game that Waunakee was able to win when 6'6 senior Joe Tagarelli was able to knock down a pair of free throws with two seconds left in the game. Tartan had the best player on the court in 6'0 junior Darrion Strong but, Waunakee was the better team. 6'4 junior Will Decorah also had a huge game as he was able to score in the paint and from mid range. Honestly wasn't feeling to great at this time so don't remember much else.
Sun Prairie 61 Minneapolis DeLasalle 35
This game was over before it began. Delasalle just couldn't do anything and Fuller just absolutely took over and could do no wrong. I left at half time once I could see their was no was DeLasalle was going to be able to take over.
Wisconsin Dells 74 Lacrosse Aquinas 52
Another game that was over early. Delmore continued his torrid scoring run and the rest of the team seemed to pick up his hot outside shooting as well. Wimann
Well another great week of basketball under my belt and will be doing my updated rankings some time this weekend as I will actually have some time this weekend.
Thursday, February 2, 2012
Madison Memorial gains sole possession of Big Eight lead
In a battle of first place in the Big Eight, Madison Memorial took on Middleton. All year Middleton has been a surprise to me that they were undefeated in the conference and were neck and neck with Memorial throughout the year. I figured Middleton was playing a lot of players and were very fundamentally sound. For the most part I was spot on with the exception of the first three quarters or so.
Middleton did play eight players big minutes, to the fact that after about two minutes in the game I could no longer tell who the starters were and in fact the top two scorers in the game came off the bench. Looking at the scoring Middleton's three bench players out scored the starters 32 to 20. Middleton didn't really play fundamental tell the fourth quarter when they finally made a huge comeback.
Early on Memorial started like normal dominating the boards with their two big leapers 6'6 senior Jamar Morris and 6'5 junior Jester Weah. Morris finally had a game I expected to see all year long as he was scoring in the post and hitting the 15 foot jumpers from the outside. Morris pair with 6'1 junior Brendan Ortiz were huge in this game because their star and leading scorer 6'5 senior Junior Lomomba didn't really show up in this game. Morris was huge in the first and Ortiz took over in the second hitting three, three point shot in about a five minute time each of which came with a defender in his face. I've said all year Ortiz has been a pass first point guard but, this was the first time he was looking for his shot and looking to score. On the Middleton end it really was a group effort as it seemed everyone that played scored. Almost all of the baskets were scored within two feet of the hoop and typically usually on second attempts at the hoop as their threes just weren't falling and many times they just out hustled Memorial on that end. Middleton's other big struggle was turning the ball over which they did time and again and in the end I think that was the biggest reason that Middleton lost this game.
Memorial led 29-20 at half and extended the lead to 41-28 after three quarters before Middleton made their huge comeback. Middleton was able to climb back into this game and lost 56-52 in the end. The biggest reason Middleton got back in this game was Memorial fouling and allowing the Cardinals to score with the clock stopped. When the game ended Ortiz had fouled out, Lomomba, Weah, Ngijol Songolo had four fouls and Morris had three fouls. Combined with the free throw shooting and then the ability of 6'3 sophomore Derek Rongstad getting himself going driving to the hoop and hitting threes Middleton won the fourth quarter 24-14.
Top Players
Brendan Ortiz 6'1 junior Madison Memorial- Finally broke out of the pass first point guard mold and did some scoring. Shoewed off his superior three point shooting. Didn't have a ton of assists but, still did a good job running the offense.
Jamar Morris 6'6 senior Madison Memorial- Finally appeared to be the player that I thought he would be all year long as he was scoring with his back to the basket, on put backs, and mid range jump shots.
Derek Rongstad 6'3 sophomore Middleton- Honestly didn't do a lot tell late in the game. Did a nice job penetrating to the of the Memorial defense and scoring, hit the three point shot, and was money from the free throw line late in the game.
Box Score
Madison Memorial- Morris 16 Ortiz 14 Weah 11 Lomomba 8 Songolo 3 Joe Ferguson 2 Tyler Lindquist 2 Julian Walters 0 Donnel Thomspon 0
Middleton- Rongstad 16 Eric Hagstrom 10 Sam Everson 7 Nick Schmidt 6 Antoine Buchanon 5 Jake Raffel 3 Bryan Machmeier 3 Robby Williams 2
This game just furthered my belief that Memorial is head and shoulders above every other team in the Big Eight. It may of only been a four point game but, in reality Memorial didn't play very good the entire game but, still had a thirteen point lead after three quarters and if not for a ton of free throw shots would of won by double digits. I just feel as a whole the Big Eight is down with the exception of Memorial who has really dominated and may only drop a game in a second time around match up with Middleton or Sun Prairie.
Middleton did play eight players big minutes, to the fact that after about two minutes in the game I could no longer tell who the starters were and in fact the top two scorers in the game came off the bench. Looking at the scoring Middleton's three bench players out scored the starters 32 to 20. Middleton didn't really play fundamental tell the fourth quarter when they finally made a huge comeback.
Early on Memorial started like normal dominating the boards with their two big leapers 6'6 senior Jamar Morris and 6'5 junior Jester Weah. Morris finally had a game I expected to see all year long as he was scoring in the post and hitting the 15 foot jumpers from the outside. Morris pair with 6'1 junior Brendan Ortiz were huge in this game because their star and leading scorer 6'5 senior Junior Lomomba didn't really show up in this game. Morris was huge in the first and Ortiz took over in the second hitting three, three point shot in about a five minute time each of which came with a defender in his face. I've said all year Ortiz has been a pass first point guard but, this was the first time he was looking for his shot and looking to score. On the Middleton end it really was a group effort as it seemed everyone that played scored. Almost all of the baskets were scored within two feet of the hoop and typically usually on second attempts at the hoop as their threes just weren't falling and many times they just out hustled Memorial on that end. Middleton's other big struggle was turning the ball over which they did time and again and in the end I think that was the biggest reason that Middleton lost this game.
Memorial led 29-20 at half and extended the lead to 41-28 after three quarters before Middleton made their huge comeback. Middleton was able to climb back into this game and lost 56-52 in the end. The biggest reason Middleton got back in this game was Memorial fouling and allowing the Cardinals to score with the clock stopped. When the game ended Ortiz had fouled out, Lomomba, Weah, Ngijol Songolo had four fouls and Morris had three fouls. Combined with the free throw shooting and then the ability of 6'3 sophomore Derek Rongstad getting himself going driving to the hoop and hitting threes Middleton won the fourth quarter 24-14.
Top Players
Brendan Ortiz 6'1 junior Madison Memorial- Finally broke out of the pass first point guard mold and did some scoring. Shoewed off his superior three point shooting. Didn't have a ton of assists but, still did a good job running the offense.
Jamar Morris 6'6 senior Madison Memorial- Finally appeared to be the player that I thought he would be all year long as he was scoring with his back to the basket, on put backs, and mid range jump shots.
Derek Rongstad 6'3 sophomore Middleton- Honestly didn't do a lot tell late in the game. Did a nice job penetrating to the of the Memorial defense and scoring, hit the three point shot, and was money from the free throw line late in the game.
Box Score
Madison Memorial- Morris 16 Ortiz 14 Weah 11 Lomomba 8 Songolo 3 Joe Ferguson 2 Tyler Lindquist 2 Julian Walters 0 Donnel Thomspon 0
Middleton- Rongstad 16 Eric Hagstrom 10 Sam Everson 7 Nick Schmidt 6 Antoine Buchanon 5 Jake Raffel 3 Bryan Machmeier 3 Robby Williams 2
This game just furthered my belief that Memorial is head and shoulders above every other team in the Big Eight. It may of only been a four point game but, in reality Memorial didn't play very good the entire game but, still had a thirteen point lead after three quarters and if not for a ton of free throw shots would of won by double digits. I just feel as a whole the Big Eight is down with the exception of Memorial who has really dominated and may only drop a game in a second time around match up with Middleton or Sun Prairie.
Wednesday, February 1, 2012
Fourth Round Team Rankings
It's been another two weeks so figure it's time to do another round of team rankings. Again these rankings are purely my thoughts and mean absolutely nothing.
Division One
The top three teams won out since the last rankings and after that just about everyone lost. Riverside lost to one of the top teams in the country so they actually moved up two spots, Homestead falls one spot after losing to Germantown and Hamilton remains the same having lost to King. Vincent lost to a tough team from Illinois in Waukegan but, their lose was "the best" I guess you could say as they moved up two spots, Sheboygan North stayed in the same spot having lost to De Pere, Kimberly follows having been the only team left that actually won out, Middleton lost to Madison Memorial but, still moves up, Racine Park had a bad lose to Racine Horlick and hang in at 14, and Brookfield Central was the biggest loser having dropped two games to .500 or below teams and hang in at #15.
1. Germantown
2. Milwaukee King
3. Madison Memorial
4. De Pere
5. Miwaukee Riverside
6. Homestead
7. DC Everest
8. Milwaukee Hamilton
9. Bay Port
10. Milwaukee Vincent
11. Sheboygan North
12. Kimberly
13. Middleton
14. Racine Park
15. Brookfield Central
Division Two
Lots of changes at the D2 level. Whitnall lost to Eisenhower which moved Eisenhower up to #7 and then dropped Whitnall to #8. Tosa East lost twice to Waunakee and a so so D1 team and fall to #11. Pius lost to a team they should of beat but, hang on at #6 while Beaver Dam dropped a tough game and fall two spots. Stoughton and Pulaski each lost a pair of games and fall to the 13 and 10 spot. Messmer lost to a very good Dominican team and drop to #14. Oregon lost twice and falls out of the rankings Luxemburg-Casco has lost three games in a row and fall out as well. Edgewood defeated Stoughton and got a boast into the rankings while Marshall gets the benefit of having a good record despite having lost two games in the past week both to top ranked D1 teams.
1. Onalaska
2. Rice Lake
3. Antigo
4. Kaukana
5. Waunakee
6. Milwaukee Pius
7. New Berlin Eisenhower
8. Whitnall
9. Beaver Dam
10. Pulaski
11. Wauwatosa East
12. Madison Edgewood
13. Stoughton
14. Milwaukee Messmer
15. Milwaukee Marshall
Division Three
Lots of changes in D3 just like D2 with the exception of the top teams. East Troy dropped a game to Germantown and drop one spot to undefeated Little Chute. Lodi got beat pretty bad by the Dells and fall one spot behind them at #7, same thing happened to Wrightstown as they fell to Brillion and fall to #9. Oostburg lost to a D5 power and drop to #11. Valders lost twice to Brillion and Wrightstown but, still hang in at #13. Marshall drops a game but, stays at #15. Watertown Luther Prep dropped a pair of games and fall from the rankings and Westby lost to Arcadia who replaces them in the rankings. The other new team is Peshtigo who just finally got some recognition from me at #12.
1. GET
2. Little Chute
3. East Troy
4. Omro
5. Clinton
6. Wisconsin Dells
7. Lodi
8. Brillion
9. Wrightstown
10. Racine St. Cats
11. Oostburg
12. Peshtigo
13. Valders
14. Arcadia
15. Marshall
Divison Four
Not as many changes in D4 as the other divisions. Bonduel lost to a top D3 team in Peshtigo and fall to #4. Wild Rose lost to Aburndale and drop to #8. In the bottom half Thorp has fallen completely off the map and out of the rankings. Howards Groe lost a game and fall to #15 and Amherst lost to Bonduel so they hang on to their #13 spot.
1. Dominican
2. Aburndale
3. Cuba City
4. Elk Mound
5. Bonduel
6. Colfax
7. Oshkosh Lourdes
8. Wild Rose
9. Laconia
10. Shoreland Lutheran
11. Grantsburg
12. Stratford
13. Amherst
14. Crandon
15. Howards Grove
Division Five
The big news in D5 is Randolph falling to #5. They have now lost four games all have been to D2 schools or bigger but, a lose is a lose and that is what the rankings are about. McDonnel Central lost their first game and drop to #8. Gilmanton, Marshfield Columbus and GB NEW Lutheran were the only other two teams that lost and fall in at 13-15 in the rankings.
1. Racine Lutheran
2. Siren
3. Clayton
4. Prentice
5. Randolph
6. Benton
7. Royal
8. McDonnel Central
9. Barneveld
10. Augusta
11. Suring
12. Sheboygan Lutheran
13. Gilmanton
14. Marshfield Columbus
15. Green Bay NEW Lutheran
Well there are my updated rankings. I did attend a game last night and will hopefully have a write up done tomorrow night.
Division One
The top three teams won out since the last rankings and after that just about everyone lost. Riverside lost to one of the top teams in the country so they actually moved up two spots, Homestead falls one spot after losing to Germantown and Hamilton remains the same having lost to King. Vincent lost to a tough team from Illinois in Waukegan but, their lose was "the best" I guess you could say as they moved up two spots, Sheboygan North stayed in the same spot having lost to De Pere, Kimberly follows having been the only team left that actually won out, Middleton lost to Madison Memorial but, still moves up, Racine Park had a bad lose to Racine Horlick and hang in at 14, and Brookfield Central was the biggest loser having dropped two games to .500 or below teams and hang in at #15.
1. Germantown
2. Milwaukee King
3. Madison Memorial
4. De Pere
5. Miwaukee Riverside
6. Homestead
7. DC Everest
8. Milwaukee Hamilton
9. Bay Port
10. Milwaukee Vincent
11. Sheboygan North
12. Kimberly
13. Middleton
14. Racine Park
15. Brookfield Central
Division Two
Lots of changes at the D2 level. Whitnall lost to Eisenhower which moved Eisenhower up to #7 and then dropped Whitnall to #8. Tosa East lost twice to Waunakee and a so so D1 team and fall to #11. Pius lost to a team they should of beat but, hang on at #6 while Beaver Dam dropped a tough game and fall two spots. Stoughton and Pulaski each lost a pair of games and fall to the 13 and 10 spot. Messmer lost to a very good Dominican team and drop to #14. Oregon lost twice and falls out of the rankings Luxemburg-Casco has lost three games in a row and fall out as well. Edgewood defeated Stoughton and got a boast into the rankings while Marshall gets the benefit of having a good record despite having lost two games in the past week both to top ranked D1 teams.
1. Onalaska
2. Rice Lake
3. Antigo
4. Kaukana
5. Waunakee
6. Milwaukee Pius
7. New Berlin Eisenhower
8. Whitnall
9. Beaver Dam
10. Pulaski
11. Wauwatosa East
12. Madison Edgewood
13. Stoughton
14. Milwaukee Messmer
15. Milwaukee Marshall
Division Three
Lots of changes in D3 just like D2 with the exception of the top teams. East Troy dropped a game to Germantown and drop one spot to undefeated Little Chute. Lodi got beat pretty bad by the Dells and fall one spot behind them at #7, same thing happened to Wrightstown as they fell to Brillion and fall to #9. Oostburg lost to a D5 power and drop to #11. Valders lost twice to Brillion and Wrightstown but, still hang in at #13. Marshall drops a game but, stays at #15. Watertown Luther Prep dropped a pair of games and fall from the rankings and Westby lost to Arcadia who replaces them in the rankings. The other new team is Peshtigo who just finally got some recognition from me at #12.
1. GET
2. Little Chute
3. East Troy
4. Omro
5. Clinton
6. Wisconsin Dells
7. Lodi
8. Brillion
9. Wrightstown
10. Racine St. Cats
11. Oostburg
12. Peshtigo
13. Valders
14. Arcadia
15. Marshall
Divison Four
Not as many changes in D4 as the other divisions. Bonduel lost to a top D3 team in Peshtigo and fall to #4. Wild Rose lost to Aburndale and drop to #8. In the bottom half Thorp has fallen completely off the map and out of the rankings. Howards Groe lost a game and fall to #15 and Amherst lost to Bonduel so they hang on to their #13 spot.
1. Dominican
2. Aburndale
3. Cuba City
4. Elk Mound
5. Bonduel
6. Colfax
7. Oshkosh Lourdes
8. Wild Rose
9. Laconia
10. Shoreland Lutheran
11. Grantsburg
12. Stratford
13. Amherst
14. Crandon
15. Howards Grove
Division Five
The big news in D5 is Randolph falling to #5. They have now lost four games all have been to D2 schools or bigger but, a lose is a lose and that is what the rankings are about. McDonnel Central lost their first game and drop to #8. Gilmanton, Marshfield Columbus and GB NEW Lutheran were the only other two teams that lost and fall in at 13-15 in the rankings.
1. Racine Lutheran
2. Siren
3. Clayton
4. Prentice
5. Randolph
6. Benton
7. Royal
8. McDonnel Central
9. Barneveld
10. Augusta
11. Suring
12. Sheboygan Lutheran
13. Gilmanton
14. Marshfield Columbus
15. Green Bay NEW Lutheran
Well there are my updated rankings. I did attend a game last night and will hopefully have a write up done tomorrow night.
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