In my first game of the double header I took in Wisconsin Dells vs River Valley at Baraboo. This was a great game with momentum swinging back and forth and was highlighted by some stretches of defense. The game opened up with River Valley in a box and one defense on Dells star Jade Royston. This seemed to work in the favor of the Dells as they jumped out to the early 9-0 lead. River Valley countered this by going to a man to man defense and getting three or four steals on each of the Dells's next possessions. Valley was able to knock down some outside shots and go on an 11-0 run, which put the score at 11-9. Once each team had gone on their runs both teams settled in and the game went back and forth from there. The game featured a great match up of guards between Valley's Marc Manske, Craig Johnson, and Noah Baryenbruch verse Royston, Ryan Wenkman, and alittle help from Laddie Lucke. There was also a nice matchup on the inside between Garrett Peck and Nate Gibson. In the end the game came down to free throws as River Valley struggled from the line late in the game while the Dells was able to knock down their free throws to seal the game. River Valley had some opportunities to knock down the three to tie the game at the end but, were unable to and Wisconsin Dells hung on for a 64-61 win.
For Wisconsin Dells the story all year has been that they are only a two man team with Royston and Wenkman and even though they are both two great players they still need some more help to take them far in the tournament. In yesterdays game 6'9 sophomore Nate Gibson stepped up to help the big two. In the first half of the game it seemed every time Gibson got the ball he was going to score. Gibson has a very wide body and was able to turn and clear out space and score with ease on the inside. Royston didn't score in the first half so it was Wenkman who teamed with Gibson to carry the Chiefs. Wenkman was able to get to the inside and finish with either hand and also knocked down a three or two. For anyone that's never seen Wenkman play he's a right handed guy, QB in football, shortstop baseball, that plays basketball left handed, which allows him to be able to finish with both hands equally well. In the second half Royston was able to break out a bit and hit a couple 10 foot floaters alone the base line and knock down a pair of threes and then finished off making 8 of 10 free throws to finish with 18 second half points to lead the Chiefs in scoring.
For River Valley the story was the hot shooting of Marc Manske who seemed to be able to knock down everything in the first half whether he had a defender in his face or not. Johnson was able to add alittle help as he was able knock down three, three pointers. Garrett Peck also made a really big impact as he was able to use his quickness against Gibson to get around him and score and also did a nice job on the offensive boards to give Valley second and third chances.
Scoring Breakdown
Wisconsin Dells 64- Royston 18 Wenkman 16 Gibson 16 Lucke 6 Alex Buesing 6 Jimmy Alvin 2 Ryan Field 0
River Valley 61- Manske 20 Johnson 13 Peck 12 Baryenbruch 8 Drew Umhoefer 4 Joel Benson 3 Justin Bindl 1
So far is the playoffs Wisconsin Dells has done just enough to get by and will probably struggle against Monroe in the next round and I will be very surprised if they are able to beat Monroe.
In game two of the double header Madison East took on Waunakee. Waunakee took an early lead and never looked back in this one. Waunakee was able to extend their lead to as much as 12 at one time in the first half but, East was able to pull back into it and get within three of Waunakee at half time. In the third Waunakee once again got their lead up to double digits then late in the third quarter East was able to pull within in two. Early in the fourth quarter Madison East just could not hit a shot and Waunakee got up by 10 or 12 around the four minute mark when it seemed that Madison East just gave up. In the end the final score was 54-37 and each team cleared the benches.
For Madison East they never could get Marquis Mason going as he had some foul trouble early on that limited his playing time and Waunakee used their size and strength to limit Mason's touches. East top outside shooter Augustine Avelleyra really struggled from the outside and couldn't seem to knock down the outside shots. Add in their third offensive option Al Mayne was in foul trouble the entire game. These three factors were the reason that East struggled in this game and could never really close the gap in this one.
This was the first time that I have seen Waunakee play and they are a very good team that deserves their undefeated record. They are an extremely balanced team that really spreads out the scoring, rebounds well as a team, and has very good overall team size. They have some very good shooters in Ryan Staege, Mitch Roelke, and Eric Helt. Have some scorers off the bench in Devin Coyle and Derek Dailey and some solid big men in Zach Ripley and Hal Krantz. They are a very good team that should be able to defeat Lafollette because of their height and discipline but, won't be able to handle the athleticism to defeat Madison Memorial.
Scoring Breakdown
Madison East 37- Mason 8 Avelleyra 8 Mayne 6 Stafford Park 6 James Bartelt 4 Robert Steele 3 Kody Johnson 1 Jeff Hull 1 Sam Schuler 0 Jonathon Wilson 0 Walt Hetzel 0 Sam Kubly 0 Leonard Love 0 Yamil Bacallao 0
Waunakee 54- Ripley 14 Helt 8 Krantz 8 Staege 7 Dailey 6 Roelke 4 Coyle 4 Jason Paulson 2 Dustin Murray 1 Jeff Tagarelli 0 Austin Goetsch 0 Nick Gilles 0 Kyle Wittwer 0 Ryan Gilles 0 Adam Burns 0
Following this week I'll be doing some more predictions on state tournament and then I'll be doing an updating of player and team rankings.
Sunday, February 24, 2008
Friday, February 22, 2008
Wisconsin Dells outlasts Richland Center
In a slightly ugly and very physical game Wisconsin Dells was able to outlast Richland Center 45 to 42, to move on to the Regional Final against River Valley. The game was full of a high amount of turnovers and some so called "fouls" that weren't called. The game was back and forth throughout the entire and was sealed late in the fourth quarter after RC star Bradie Ewing had fouled out and starter Brad Hemling picked up a technical foul that fouled him out of the game.
For Wisconsin Dells is was the typical two man show of Jade Royston and Ryan Wenkman, as they scored 22 and 14 points respectively. Royston was able to connect one three, three point baskets, knocked down a couple deep jumpers, and finished up his scoring by sealing the game with free throws. Wenkman was able to penetrate on the base line and knock down the 10 foot floaters for the bulk of his points as well as penetrating inside and scoring at times. The big men in the middle Nate Gibson and Alex Buesing didn't score much but, made their presence felt on the defensive end. Gibson clogged up the middle with his size and seemed to be able to get his hands in on the ball when the RC players were penetrating. Buesing had three very nice blocks in the game and was really able to shut down Richland's inside game late in the game.
Coming into the game Bradie Ewing was the player to watch for Richland Center as he averaged 20 points a game during the regular season. Ewing never could get things going as he was in foul trouble all night and fouled out with only eight points in the game with five of those coming from the free throw line. Eric Frawley was the star for the Hornets as he was able to use his quickness to get around Gibson and finish with the strong layup.
If you talked to a Richland Center fan their probably going to blame this game on the refs but, in the end it was Wisconsin Dells ability to track down the long rebounds and their guards being able to get inside and score.
Scoring Breakdown
Richland Center 42-E. Frawley 12 Ewing 8 Colton Wilson 8 Hemling 7 K. Frawley 4 Jordan Lynch 3 Dustin Hanson 0
Wisconsin Dells 45- Royston 22 Wenkman 14 Jimmy Alvin 3 Ryan Field 2 Buesing 2 Gibson 2 Laddie Lucke 0
Tomorrow I will be at the regional final against River Valley and then tomorrow night I will be at either the Madison East vs Waunakee game or Madison West vs Madison Memorial haven't decided which game I will be attending. The West/Memorial game will probably be more entertaining while the East/Waunakee game will probably be a closer game.
For Wisconsin Dells is was the typical two man show of Jade Royston and Ryan Wenkman, as they scored 22 and 14 points respectively. Royston was able to connect one three, three point baskets, knocked down a couple deep jumpers, and finished up his scoring by sealing the game with free throws. Wenkman was able to penetrate on the base line and knock down the 10 foot floaters for the bulk of his points as well as penetrating inside and scoring at times. The big men in the middle Nate Gibson and Alex Buesing didn't score much but, made their presence felt on the defensive end. Gibson clogged up the middle with his size and seemed to be able to get his hands in on the ball when the RC players were penetrating. Buesing had three very nice blocks in the game and was really able to shut down Richland's inside game late in the game.
Coming into the game Bradie Ewing was the player to watch for Richland Center as he averaged 20 points a game during the regular season. Ewing never could get things going as he was in foul trouble all night and fouled out with only eight points in the game with five of those coming from the free throw line. Eric Frawley was the star for the Hornets as he was able to use his quickness to get around Gibson and finish with the strong layup.
If you talked to a Richland Center fan their probably going to blame this game on the refs but, in the end it was Wisconsin Dells ability to track down the long rebounds and their guards being able to get inside and score.
Scoring Breakdown
Richland Center 42-E. Frawley 12 Ewing 8 Colton Wilson 8 Hemling 7 K. Frawley 4 Jordan Lynch 3 Dustin Hanson 0
Wisconsin Dells 45- Royston 22 Wenkman 14 Jimmy Alvin 3 Ryan Field 2 Buesing 2 Gibson 2 Laddie Lucke 0
Tomorrow I will be at the regional final against River Valley and then tomorrow night I will be at either the Madison East vs Waunakee game or Madison West vs Madison Memorial haven't decided which game I will be attending. The West/Memorial game will probably be more entertaining while the East/Waunakee game will probably be a closer game.
Tuesday, February 19, 2008
Madison West edges Baraboo
When the eight and nine seeds matchup the result should be a very good close game. Tonight when Baraboo the eight and Madison West the nine, this was the case as West edged out Baraboo 62-59. West was able to use their athleticism in this game to get offensive rebounds and to force Baraboo into some turnovers that really made the difference in this game.
For Madison West it was offensive rebounds that made the biggest difference and the player that provided the rebounds was Deon Johnson. Johnson is a superb leaper and he used his leaping ability to snatch multiple offensive rebounds and got a bunch of second and third chance buckets, which led to 26 points for him. Despite Johnson leading the team in rebounds and points it was Michael Horton who won the game for the Regents. I have said it before and I'll say it again Horton is vastly underrated player and is one of the better pass first point guards around. Horton sat the entire second quarter due to some foul trouble but, really took over the game in the third and fourth quarters. Horton had five points in the third quarter, had a hand full of steals, and at least five assists, which led to the majority of Johnsons second half baskets. When West was struggling against Baraboo's 1-3-1 zone it was Horton who was able to beat the zone with some cross court passes and some impressive no look passes. Corvonn Gaines also had a fairly solid game as he was able to score early in the game by penetrating to the inside and finishing strong and getting fouled and then knocking down the free throws. Another guy that was able to score was John Harth who was able to penetrate and go over the defenders out stretched hands to score.
Baraboo did their best to keep the game close as they hit nine three point shots. Baraboo star Chris Siebert had a very quiet 19 points as he hit midrange jumpers, three pointers, and had some break away layups. The main three point man was Jon Schlender who hit four three pointers. Everytime West was pulling away it seemed that Schlender was able to knock down a three. The third scored for the T-Birds and the only inside presence was Jordan Taylor. Despite being only 6'2 Taylor did a great job of scoring in the paint with his back to the basket.
Scoring Breakdown
Madison West 62- Johnson 26 Gaines 12 Harth 11 M Horton 7 Daniel Buie 4 Michael Carter 2 James Horton 0 Sam Bester 0 Antonio Golden 0 Clifford Simon 0
Baraboo 59- Siebert 19 Schlender 15 Taylor 14 Jacob Overlien 6 Ethan Dosler 3 Griff Kalepp 2 Michael Kohnert 0 David Kohnert 0 Brady Olson 0 Micah Kuchta 0 Bryan Szdlowski 0 Riley Arnold 0 Taylor Jahn 0
Well this was a great start to the state tournament hopefully the following weeks will be just as great with some great games.
For Madison West it was offensive rebounds that made the biggest difference and the player that provided the rebounds was Deon Johnson. Johnson is a superb leaper and he used his leaping ability to snatch multiple offensive rebounds and got a bunch of second and third chance buckets, which led to 26 points for him. Despite Johnson leading the team in rebounds and points it was Michael Horton who won the game for the Regents. I have said it before and I'll say it again Horton is vastly underrated player and is one of the better pass first point guards around. Horton sat the entire second quarter due to some foul trouble but, really took over the game in the third and fourth quarters. Horton had five points in the third quarter, had a hand full of steals, and at least five assists, which led to the majority of Johnsons second half baskets. When West was struggling against Baraboo's 1-3-1 zone it was Horton who was able to beat the zone with some cross court passes and some impressive no look passes. Corvonn Gaines also had a fairly solid game as he was able to score early in the game by penetrating to the inside and finishing strong and getting fouled and then knocking down the free throws. Another guy that was able to score was John Harth who was able to penetrate and go over the defenders out stretched hands to score.
Baraboo did their best to keep the game close as they hit nine three point shots. Baraboo star Chris Siebert had a very quiet 19 points as he hit midrange jumpers, three pointers, and had some break away layups. The main three point man was Jon Schlender who hit four three pointers. Everytime West was pulling away it seemed that Schlender was able to knock down a three. The third scored for the T-Birds and the only inside presence was Jordan Taylor. Despite being only 6'2 Taylor did a great job of scoring in the paint with his back to the basket.
Scoring Breakdown
Madison West 62- Johnson 26 Gaines 12 Harth 11 M Horton 7 Daniel Buie 4 Michael Carter 2 James Horton 0 Sam Bester 0 Antonio Golden 0 Clifford Simon 0
Baraboo 59- Siebert 19 Schlender 15 Taylor 14 Jacob Overlien 6 Ethan Dosler 3 Griff Kalepp 2 Michael Kohnert 0 David Kohnert 0 Brady Olson 0 Micah Kuchta 0 Bryan Szdlowski 0 Riley Arnold 0 Taylor Jahn 0
Well this was a great start to the state tournament hopefully the following weeks will be just as great with some great games.
Monday, February 18, 2008
State Tournament Thoughts
I was going to go through and predict all the game in the state tournament but, then I went and looked at the Wishoops predictions and noticed that all their picks were essentially the same as mine and I figured what would be the point of just retyping everything that they had just typed. If anyone is interested in making their own predictions on the state tournament and measuring up against all the "experts" on Wishoops, go to http://www.bracketmaker.com/ and find the Wisconsin High School State Tournament. Since I'm not going to go predict all the games I'm just going to predict how the South Central Conference will fair in the first round.
Wisconsin Dells moves on because they have a first round bye.
Nekoosa over Mosinee- Nekoosa isn't a very good team but, Mosinee is even worse.
Adams Friendship over Sparta- Should be no contest here.
Onalaska over Mauston- Kyle Stewart should go wild as Mauston has no one to guard him.
Black River Falls over Westfield- Jack Taylor will light up the Pioneers.
Wautoma over Lomira- Two bad teams match up with Wautoma having the slight edge.
I have the SCC going 3-2 tomorrow night which isn't too bad but, in the long run only Adams and Dells will go anywhere. Tomorrow I will be taking in the Baraboo vs Madison West game because its fairly close to home for me. Should be a great night of basketball tomorrow.
Wisconsin Dells moves on because they have a first round bye.
Nekoosa over Mosinee- Nekoosa isn't a very good team but, Mosinee is even worse.
Adams Friendship over Sparta- Should be no contest here.
Onalaska over Mauston- Kyle Stewart should go wild as Mauston has no one to guard him.
Black River Falls over Westfield- Jack Taylor will light up the Pioneers.
Wautoma over Lomira- Two bad teams match up with Wautoma having the slight edge.
I have the SCC going 3-2 tomorrow night which isn't too bad but, in the long run only Adams and Dells will go anywhere. Tomorrow I will be taking in the Baraboo vs Madison West game because its fairly close to home for me. Should be a great night of basketball tomorrow.
Friday, February 15, 2008
Wisconsin Dells Earns a Share of the Conference Title
In tonights huge South Central Conference matchup, Wisconsin Dells was able to defeat Adams Friendship, 47-37 to clinch a share of the conference title with Adams. This game was a very slow paced game, that wasn't the most pretty thing to watch but, WD was able to out last Adams and win the game.
Adams had the lead for much of the first half and a half court shot hit by Ryan Wenkman propelled Wisconsin Dells into the second half as the took the lead in the third quarter and held on and extended their lead to 10 with some free throws at the end. Three things were the factors that led to the Dells win. The first reason was Dells was able to get offensive rebounds and get second and third chances at the hoop. Number two was their ball movement against the adams zone which led to some easy baskets. The third and maybe the biggest thing was their ability to contain Lance Fritz. Fritz scored 24 points the first time the two teams play but, was held to a very difficult 12 points tonight, three of which came on a last second three when the game was basically over.
It was really a team effort for the Dells in this one as everyone did their past in this one. In the first half it was 6'9 sophomore Nate Gibson that did most of the damage for the Dells. Gibson was able to get position and score inside, pass the ball out of the low and high post, and scored a good portion of his points on offensive rebounds. In the second half Ethan Loofboro was huge, as he hit a pair of three points and had a couple big layups. Loofboro's biggest impact was on the defensive end as he was able to limit Lance Fritz to 12 very hard earned points, from the moment Fritz crossed halfcourt Loofboro was with him. Jade Royston had his usual solid game as he hit a pair of three pointers to help the Chiefs maintain their lead and was able to knock down the free throws to seal the game. Ryan Wenkman didn't score as much as usual but, was had a hand full of steals to help the Dells get the lead and did a great job of finding open teammates for open layups. Big man Alex Buesing didn't make a dent in the scoring column but, he made his presence felt else where. Buesing did a great job of getting offensive rebounds which allowed teammates to be able to score and played some solid defense which included a huge block in the second half.
For Adams Friendship Ben Pease did his best to try and get the Green Devils a win. Pease hit three, three pointers and had a couple nice drives to hoop. Despite struggling in this game Lance Fritz was still AF's second leading scorer and still managed to get 12 points. One thing to note is that Adams star Tommie Gaston was not suited up. Gaston hasn't been the stand out I expected him to be this year, so I can't say one way or the other if he would of made a difference in the outcome of this game.
Scoring Breakdown
Wisconsin Dells 47- Royston 15 Gibson 11 Loofboro 10 Wenkman 7 Ryan Field 2 Laddie Lucke 2 Jimmy Alvin 0 Buesing 0
Adams Friendship 37- Pease 17 Fritz 12 Billy Deane 4 Bryce Wormet 2 Mike Chetney 2 Tony Kuchta 0 #12 0
Coming in the next few days are more state predictions.
Adams had the lead for much of the first half and a half court shot hit by Ryan Wenkman propelled Wisconsin Dells into the second half as the took the lead in the third quarter and held on and extended their lead to 10 with some free throws at the end. Three things were the factors that led to the Dells win. The first reason was Dells was able to get offensive rebounds and get second and third chances at the hoop. Number two was their ball movement against the adams zone which led to some easy baskets. The third and maybe the biggest thing was their ability to contain Lance Fritz. Fritz scored 24 points the first time the two teams play but, was held to a very difficult 12 points tonight, three of which came on a last second three when the game was basically over.
It was really a team effort for the Dells in this one as everyone did their past in this one. In the first half it was 6'9 sophomore Nate Gibson that did most of the damage for the Dells. Gibson was able to get position and score inside, pass the ball out of the low and high post, and scored a good portion of his points on offensive rebounds. In the second half Ethan Loofboro was huge, as he hit a pair of three points and had a couple big layups. Loofboro's biggest impact was on the defensive end as he was able to limit Lance Fritz to 12 very hard earned points, from the moment Fritz crossed halfcourt Loofboro was with him. Jade Royston had his usual solid game as he hit a pair of three pointers to help the Chiefs maintain their lead and was able to knock down the free throws to seal the game. Ryan Wenkman didn't score as much as usual but, was had a hand full of steals to help the Dells get the lead and did a great job of finding open teammates for open layups. Big man Alex Buesing didn't make a dent in the scoring column but, he made his presence felt else where. Buesing did a great job of getting offensive rebounds which allowed teammates to be able to score and played some solid defense which included a huge block in the second half.
For Adams Friendship Ben Pease did his best to try and get the Green Devils a win. Pease hit three, three pointers and had a couple nice drives to hoop. Despite struggling in this game Lance Fritz was still AF's second leading scorer and still managed to get 12 points. One thing to note is that Adams star Tommie Gaston was not suited up. Gaston hasn't been the stand out I expected him to be this year, so I can't say one way or the other if he would of made a difference in the outcome of this game.
Scoring Breakdown
Wisconsin Dells 47- Royston 15 Gibson 11 Loofboro 10 Wenkman 7 Ryan Field 2 Laddie Lucke 2 Jimmy Alvin 0 Buesing 0
Adams Friendship 37- Pease 17 Fritz 12 Billy Deane 4 Bryce Wormet 2 Mike Chetney 2 Tony Kuchta 0 #12 0
Coming in the next few days are more state predictions.
Thursday, February 14, 2008
Middleton Sectional
With about five days left until the start of the state tournament I'll be focusing on my predictions on how the tournament will play out. Today I will be focusing on the division one Middleton sectional.
1. Madison Memorial- Memorial has won this sectional three years in a row and are the claer cut favorite to win the sectional. Memorial is an extremely athletic team that pressures their opponents into turning the ball over and getting easy baskets. Jeronne Maymon is the best player in this sectional and should carry Memorial to state.
8. Baraboo- Took second in a so so conference and lack size. Will be lucky to get past West and if they do they will have no chance against Memorial. Only two bigtime scorers in guards Jordan Taylor and Chris Seibert.
9. Madison West- As I've stated many times before West is an extremely athletic team that lacks discipline. If they get hot from the outside they could blow Baraboo out. I see West taking down Baraboo by just out athleticising them. West will then go and lose to Memorial for a third time this year.
5. Watertown- Coming out of a fairly solid conference, Watertown should have a fairly easy time with Holmen. The Goslings will use balanced scoring and their height to overwhelm the undermaned Holmen team. Watertown will then fall to MVC power Lacrosse Logan.
12. Holmen- Holmen was towards the bottom in a lackluster MVC and should have no chance against the bigger and more athletic Watertown team.
4. Lacrosse Logan- Logan will get a chance to show themselves against a Big Eight team. Sun Praire will keep it close but, Logan's disciplined and talent will pull out the win for them in the end. Logan will then face another tough test in Watertown, who they will take down in a close game and then will bow out to Madison Memorial.
13. Sun Praire- An athletic team should give Logan all they can handle but, in the end what have the talent to hang with the Lacrosse team.
2. Madison Lafollette- Another very athletic Big Eight team. They have lost a few players for the year due to some athletic code violations which will cause them to struggle but, even without those players should be able to beat Tomah and depending on who and for how long those players are suspended for will depend on if they can defeat Deforest or Middleton. As long as Cashton Craig and DJ Fuller are playing they should be able to make it to the sectional came before losing to Waunakee.
15. Tomah- Well its Tomah. They will be lucky to keep the game with Lafollette close.
7. Deforest- Finished the regular season fairly weak and will be lucky to beat Middleton.
10. Middleton- Will handle a struggling Deforest team and then will give Lafollette a scare before their season ends.
6. Lacrosse Central- Won't have the inside presence to handle Marquis Mason and will once again get upset, just like the last two seasons.
11. Madison East- Marquis Mason is one of the top players in this sectional and should go wild and carry his team to a first round victory. Unfortunatly Mason will only be able to carry them through to the second round before they fall to Waunakee.
3. Waunakee- Undefeated team finally gets a chance to show themselves. Their streak of good luck should continue until their matchup with Memorial where their great season will end.
14. Monona Grove- MG has had a very rough season and their finally game of the year will be no different.
Well theres my picks for the Middleton sectional where Madison Memorial will defeat Waunakee in the game to go to state. Tomorrow I'll be looking at the divison two Sun Praire sectional.
1. Madison Memorial- Memorial has won this sectional three years in a row and are the claer cut favorite to win the sectional. Memorial is an extremely athletic team that pressures their opponents into turning the ball over and getting easy baskets. Jeronne Maymon is the best player in this sectional and should carry Memorial to state.
8. Baraboo- Took second in a so so conference and lack size. Will be lucky to get past West and if they do they will have no chance against Memorial. Only two bigtime scorers in guards Jordan Taylor and Chris Seibert.
9. Madison West- As I've stated many times before West is an extremely athletic team that lacks discipline. If they get hot from the outside they could blow Baraboo out. I see West taking down Baraboo by just out athleticising them. West will then go and lose to Memorial for a third time this year.
5. Watertown- Coming out of a fairly solid conference, Watertown should have a fairly easy time with Holmen. The Goslings will use balanced scoring and their height to overwhelm the undermaned Holmen team. Watertown will then fall to MVC power Lacrosse Logan.
12. Holmen- Holmen was towards the bottom in a lackluster MVC and should have no chance against the bigger and more athletic Watertown team.
4. Lacrosse Logan- Logan will get a chance to show themselves against a Big Eight team. Sun Praire will keep it close but, Logan's disciplined and talent will pull out the win for them in the end. Logan will then face another tough test in Watertown, who they will take down in a close game and then will bow out to Madison Memorial.
13. Sun Praire- An athletic team should give Logan all they can handle but, in the end what have the talent to hang with the Lacrosse team.
2. Madison Lafollette- Another very athletic Big Eight team. They have lost a few players for the year due to some athletic code violations which will cause them to struggle but, even without those players should be able to beat Tomah and depending on who and for how long those players are suspended for will depend on if they can defeat Deforest or Middleton. As long as Cashton Craig and DJ Fuller are playing they should be able to make it to the sectional came before losing to Waunakee.
15. Tomah- Well its Tomah. They will be lucky to keep the game with Lafollette close.
7. Deforest- Finished the regular season fairly weak and will be lucky to beat Middleton.
10. Middleton- Will handle a struggling Deforest team and then will give Lafollette a scare before their season ends.
6. Lacrosse Central- Won't have the inside presence to handle Marquis Mason and will once again get upset, just like the last two seasons.
11. Madison East- Marquis Mason is one of the top players in this sectional and should go wild and carry his team to a first round victory. Unfortunatly Mason will only be able to carry them through to the second round before they fall to Waunakee.
3. Waunakee- Undefeated team finally gets a chance to show themselves. Their streak of good luck should continue until their matchup with Memorial where their great season will end.
14. Monona Grove- MG has had a very rough season and their finally game of the year will be no different.
Well theres my picks for the Middleton sectional where Madison Memorial will defeat Waunakee in the game to go to state. Tomorrow I'll be looking at the divison two Sun Praire sectional.
Wednesday, February 13, 2008
Memorial Wins Two
My internet has been down for the last few days and I'm now just finally getting back on the net. During my time of absence I was able to attend two Madison Memorial games. Early on in the year I thought Memorial had to really rely on Jeronne Maymon to do most of their scoring but, these last couple games have shown me otherwise. In one game Maymon was a fourth leading scorer and in the second game he was the second leading scorer but, still only had 12 points.
In my preview of the Memorial vs Lafollette game I said the keys to the game were Lafollette limiting their turnovers, Darnell Small's ability to control J Maymon, and Lafollette's ability to keep Memorial off the offensive boards. Lafollette didn't really turn the ball over much but, Memorial never applied a lot of pressure on Lafollette's guards. Small was a non factor in this game as he picked up two early fouls and ended up playing only five minutes before fouling out. As I stated earlier Maymon still only scored 14 points which came primarily on second chance points and free throws. The one thing that Lafollette didn't do well is keep Memorial off the offensive glass, as Memorial was able to get second and third opportunities at the hoop.
For Memorial Vander Blue was able to get off early as he knocked down some jumpers and got to the inside and score. In the second half it was Devonte Maymon who was able to help extend the lead by knocking down multiple free throws. I already mentioned Jeronne Maymon's impact but, it was Derek Nkemji who really carried Memorial in this one. As he worked hard underneath getting offensive rebounds and fighting for position as he finished with 23 points.
On Lafollettes DJ Fuller was the only player to really get anything going. Fuller was able to get in the lane at will and knock down the 10 foot jumpers and was also able to knock down a couple threes. Their star Cashton Craig really struggled in this game and was forcing things and the shots weren't dropping. Michael Knop was able to come off the bench and hit two quick threes but, then went cold for the rest of the game.
Scoring Breakdown
Memorial 83- Nkemji 23 D. Maymon 17 V Blue 17 J Maymon 14 Tre Creamer 7 Fred Ringhand 2 Erick Blue 2 Eric Lutz 0 Ryan Curtin 0 Xavier Jones 0 Mathew Laubmeier 0 Ryan Murray 0
Lafollette 63- Fuller 28 Craig 9 Javonte Walters 6 Knop 6 Deonte Thompson 6 Steve Chapiewsky 4 Caleb Krueger 2 Small 2 AJ Hallmon 0 Jon Dybevik 0 Brett Klinkner 0 Ryan Waeffler 0 Anthony Nance 0 Jaren Singh 0 Porter 0
The second game I saw Memorial was against Madison West and this game really was a team effort. Memorial was able to get the ball inside to J Maymon who was able to find the open cutters for layups. In the second half Memorial was able to get long rebounds and ignite their fast break and get easy baskets. West who I've said many times is a very undisciplined team, was just that in this game, as the took some very bad shots in the second half and were doing way too much one on one play.
For Memorial Devonte Maymon and Tre Creamer were both able to get out on the break and score as D Maymon had a game high 18 and Creamer had 11 respectivily. Jeronne Maymon finished with 12 points but, probably had 6-8 assists to go along with his double digits rebounds.
For West is was basically a three man show. Michael Horton looked to get teammates involved early on but, when Memorial started to pull away Horton began looking for his own shot and was able to knock down some three pointers. Corvonn Gaines was able to get inside and get fouled which led to most of his points coming from the free throw line. Deon Johnson who is a tremendous leaper was able to pound the offensive glass and had two or three very impressive tip ins.
Scoring Breakdown
Memorial 70- D Maymon 18 J Maymon 12 Creamer 11 Ringhand 6 Nkemnji 6 V Blue 6 Curtin 4 Ace Davis 4 Jones 3 E Blue 0 Lutz 0 Brian McClurg 0 Laubmeier 0 Eric Fruhling 0 Murray 0
West 50- M Horton 15 Gaines 12 Johnson 11 James Horton 7 Daniel Buie 3 Sam Bester 1 John Harth 1 Shaun Kell 0 Mark Domann 0 Michael Krohn 0 Clifford Simon 0 Patrick Remington 0
Doesn't look like I will be attending any more games this week, so I will be focusing primarily on the state tournament on my predictions, which starts next tuesday.
In my preview of the Memorial vs Lafollette game I said the keys to the game were Lafollette limiting their turnovers, Darnell Small's ability to control J Maymon, and Lafollette's ability to keep Memorial off the offensive boards. Lafollette didn't really turn the ball over much but, Memorial never applied a lot of pressure on Lafollette's guards. Small was a non factor in this game as he picked up two early fouls and ended up playing only five minutes before fouling out. As I stated earlier Maymon still only scored 14 points which came primarily on second chance points and free throws. The one thing that Lafollette didn't do well is keep Memorial off the offensive glass, as Memorial was able to get second and third opportunities at the hoop.
For Memorial Vander Blue was able to get off early as he knocked down some jumpers and got to the inside and score. In the second half it was Devonte Maymon who was able to help extend the lead by knocking down multiple free throws. I already mentioned Jeronne Maymon's impact but, it was Derek Nkemji who really carried Memorial in this one. As he worked hard underneath getting offensive rebounds and fighting for position as he finished with 23 points.
On Lafollettes DJ Fuller was the only player to really get anything going. Fuller was able to get in the lane at will and knock down the 10 foot jumpers and was also able to knock down a couple threes. Their star Cashton Craig really struggled in this game and was forcing things and the shots weren't dropping. Michael Knop was able to come off the bench and hit two quick threes but, then went cold for the rest of the game.
Scoring Breakdown
Memorial 83- Nkemji 23 D. Maymon 17 V Blue 17 J Maymon 14 Tre Creamer 7 Fred Ringhand 2 Erick Blue 2 Eric Lutz 0 Ryan Curtin 0 Xavier Jones 0 Mathew Laubmeier 0 Ryan Murray 0
Lafollette 63- Fuller 28 Craig 9 Javonte Walters 6 Knop 6 Deonte Thompson 6 Steve Chapiewsky 4 Caleb Krueger 2 Small 2 AJ Hallmon 0 Jon Dybevik 0 Brett Klinkner 0 Ryan Waeffler 0 Anthony Nance 0 Jaren Singh 0 Porter 0
The second game I saw Memorial was against Madison West and this game really was a team effort. Memorial was able to get the ball inside to J Maymon who was able to find the open cutters for layups. In the second half Memorial was able to get long rebounds and ignite their fast break and get easy baskets. West who I've said many times is a very undisciplined team, was just that in this game, as the took some very bad shots in the second half and were doing way too much one on one play.
For Memorial Devonte Maymon and Tre Creamer were both able to get out on the break and score as D Maymon had a game high 18 and Creamer had 11 respectivily. Jeronne Maymon finished with 12 points but, probably had 6-8 assists to go along with his double digits rebounds.
For West is was basically a three man show. Michael Horton looked to get teammates involved early on but, when Memorial started to pull away Horton began looking for his own shot and was able to knock down some three pointers. Corvonn Gaines was able to get inside and get fouled which led to most of his points coming from the free throw line. Deon Johnson who is a tremendous leaper was able to pound the offensive glass and had two or three very impressive tip ins.
Scoring Breakdown
Memorial 70- D Maymon 18 J Maymon 12 Creamer 11 Ringhand 6 Nkemnji 6 V Blue 6 Curtin 4 Ace Davis 4 Jones 3 E Blue 0 Lutz 0 Brian McClurg 0 Laubmeier 0 Eric Fruhling 0 Murray 0
West 50- M Horton 15 Gaines 12 Johnson 11 James Horton 7 Daniel Buie 3 Sam Bester 1 John Harth 1 Shaun Kell 0 Mark Domann 0 Michael Krohn 0 Clifford Simon 0 Patrick Remington 0
Doesn't look like I will be attending any more games this week, so I will be focusing primarily on the state tournament on my predictions, which starts next tuesday.
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