In possibly the biggest upset of the year Sun Prairie was able to take down Madison Memorial in overtime on a buzzer shot from a freshmen. Many people look at this game as showing that Memorial is not the team they were a year ago or what they were in years past and that they may no longer be the power they once were. On the other hand some people think that it just shows how tough the Big Eight conference actually is and this is the side that I find myself on. In the game Sun Prairie was very impressive and handle the Memorial pressure very well and looked confident throughout much of the game. Memorial is still a young team looking to find their way and are missing their second best player in 6'4 sophomore Junior Lomomba who will probably miss the entire regular season and may make it back come playoff time. Despite Sun Prairie winning this game I can't help but, think that when these two teams match up for a second time that Memorial will probably come out on top and it won't be by a buzzer shot or in overtime.
Early on in the game Memorial came out in their typical intense trapping defense but, Sun Prairie didn't falter and used the aggressive defense to their favor which led to some easy two on one layups. Memorial was headlined on the offensive end by a very impressive freshmen in 5'11 Brendan Ortiz who seemed to be knocking everything down with the mid range jump shot. When Ortiz did finally cool off Memorial went to their star 6'4 senior Vander Blue who seemed to get where ever he wanted on the court and out jump defenders to get second and third chances. Throughout the entire first half the Memorial defensive ended up giving the Sun Prairie open shots and it didn't seem to matter who it was shooting but, they were going to knock the shot down. One of the most impressive players of the first half and the game was 6'5 sophomore Jamar Morris who absolutely dominated the boards both on the defensive and offensive end. Half time score was Memorial 38 Sun Prairie 33.
The third quarter belonged to Sun Prairie junior 6'3 Jordan Noskowiak. He seemed to be knocking everything down whether it was spotting up for the outside or coming off the screen it didn't matter. For Memorial Blue cooled off and they continued to depend on the rebounding of Morris who seemed to have a handful of offensive rebounds just in the third quarter alone. At the end of three Memorial was still clinging to a 54-51 lead. In the fourth quarter Memorial senior 6'2 Tre Creamer finally showed up and was able to slash to the hoop and score. Despite Creamers best efforts Sun Prairie was able to tie the game up behind freshmen 6'4 Nick Fuller who hit a three from the top of the key midway through the fourth and then hit another from the corner to tie the game up with six seconds left in regulation. Blue took a contested three at the buzzer but, the shot fell short. Overtime didn't have a lot of scoring but, Jamar Morris emerged again as the hero grabbing an offensive rebound and getting fouled and went to the line with Memorial down by one. Morris had spent a lot of time throughout the night and struggled at the line which led to the Sun Prairie's students starting a "You Can't Shoot" chant but, Morris calmly knocked both down to give Memorial a one point lead. Sun Prairie senior point guard 6'1 Michael Boos drove the length of the court and pulled up for a jumper with a foot on the three point line. The shot didn't grab rim but, the rebound bounced off Morris's hands and right to Nick Fuller who layed in the game winning shot as the buzzer sounded. Sun Prairie got the W with a 79-78 final.
Top Players
Vander Blue 6'4 senior Madison Memorial- As I said earlier seemed to get anywhere he wanted on the court and was just the most athletic player on the court.
Jamar Morris 6'5 sophomore Madison Memorial- I can see now why they call him "Popcorn" kid can jump outta the gym and knocked down the free throws when they really mattered.
Brendan Ortiz 5'11 freshmen Madison Memorial- Did a great job of running the point for the team and when given the open shot knocked it down.
Tre Creamer 6'3 senior Madison Memorial- Could go to his left at will and get to the rim.
Jordan Noskowiak 6'3 junior Sun Prairie- Was on fire in the game and everything he put up was dropping.
Nick Fuller 6'4 freshmen Sun Prairie- Was the hero of the night and basically said everything that was needed earlier.
Chris Hawkins 6'4 junior Sun Prairie- Did a nice job of battling on the inside Memorial just had more depth on the inside.
Box Score (starters in italics)
Memorial- Blue 21 Creamer 16 Morris 15 Ortiz 15 Tre Burnette 6 Eric Fruhling 3 Miles Chamberlain 2 Ed Kluender 0
SP- Noskowiak 26 Fuller 19 Hawkins 10 Boos 9 Jaron Schaffner 5 Daniel Mifflin 5 William Thiel 4 Reggie Williams 0
Should really be a great year in the Big Eight conference as it appears to be a four horse race after Friday night. Sun Prairie took down the favorite Madison Memorial and the other favorite Madison East was pushed to the limit by Beloit winning by only two, and Verona is always a team that can play with anyone. I'll get my first look at Verona Tuesday night when I head down to watch Memorial take on Verona.
Sunday, December 13, 2009
Tuesday, December 8, 2009
Wisconsin Dells dominates New Lisbon
A game that seemed lopsided from the beginning, lived up to the predictions with Wisconsin Dells basically dominating from the get go. Wisconsin Dells just seemed faster in every aspect of the game. By the time a New Lisbon player spotter an open teammate there was a Dells defender right there to steal the ball. On the offensive end the Chiefs were able to get any shot they wanted whether it was on the inside of settling for the three.
The Dells defense led to a very impressive 21-2 lead after the first quarter and then just put it in cruise control the rest of the game. NL was only able to get three shots up to the rim, as the Dells defense seemed to frustrate them and caused them to be timid with their passes. Early on Wisconsin Dells looked to the inside to their big man 6'9 senior Nate Gibson who was able to finish with either his left or right hand. Dells was always able to get second and third shots at the basket which typically led to fouls by the NL defenders. Half time score was WD 33 NL 13. The game remained at 20 for nearly the entire game as Wisconsin Dells seemed content to keep the game at this point and not really put the pedal down and make this one to embarrassing. Benches were cleared half way through the fourth quarter and the final score was 65-45.
Top Players
Justin Ward 6'4 senior Wisconsin Dells - Was a little bit of a ball hog but, had a strong game overrall as he was able to knock down the three point shot and used his length to get to the paint and score.
Nate Gibson 6'9 senior Wisconsin Dells- Big man that used his size to score in the inside. He was very impressive going to his left hand or right hand. I was very impressed with how his offensive game has improved since last year.
Chad Wyss 6'3 senior New Lisbon- The lone Rocket player that got things goings He was able to use his aggression to score on the inside or get to the foul line and get some freebie points.
Box Score (starters in italics)
Wisconsin Dells- Ward 20 Gibson 16 Kyle Stowers 9 MJ Delmore 8 Shane Wimann 5 Bobby Blaschke 5 Josh Elftmann 2 Ryan Davis 0 Sterling Greyhair 0 Alex Bernander 0 Bobby Sowls 0
New Lisbon- Wyss 13 John McCann 9 Cory Kalmerton 7 Landon Wilson 6 Matt Spaniol 3 Tyler Peterson 3 Trevor Gibbons 2 Ryan Jensen 2 Jaime Gollmar 0 Andy Heindl 0 Sean Frank 0
Wisconsin Dells is an interesting team to watch because they have a seven man rotation that they use which consists of five senior starters and two freshmen off the bench. The two freshmen are truly ready to contribute on the varsity level this year. MJ Delmore is a bit undersized but, does a very good job running the point finding open teammates and can knock down the open three pointer. The other freshmen Shane Wimann is probably even more ready for varsity then Delmore. Wimann looks like an upper class men size wise on the court and plays as aggressive one on the court. I will be very interested to see the progression of Wimann and Delmore throughout their four years of varsity along with a strong freshmen class that has five freshmen on JV.
The Dells defense led to a very impressive 21-2 lead after the first quarter and then just put it in cruise control the rest of the game. NL was only able to get three shots up to the rim, as the Dells defense seemed to frustrate them and caused them to be timid with their passes. Early on Wisconsin Dells looked to the inside to their big man 6'9 senior Nate Gibson who was able to finish with either his left or right hand. Dells was always able to get second and third shots at the basket which typically led to fouls by the NL defenders. Half time score was WD 33 NL 13. The game remained at 20 for nearly the entire game as Wisconsin Dells seemed content to keep the game at this point and not really put the pedal down and make this one to embarrassing. Benches were cleared half way through the fourth quarter and the final score was 65-45.
Top Players
Justin Ward 6'4 senior Wisconsin Dells - Was a little bit of a ball hog but, had a strong game overrall as he was able to knock down the three point shot and used his length to get to the paint and score.
Nate Gibson 6'9 senior Wisconsin Dells- Big man that used his size to score in the inside. He was very impressive going to his left hand or right hand. I was very impressed with how his offensive game has improved since last year.
Chad Wyss 6'3 senior New Lisbon- The lone Rocket player that got things goings He was able to use his aggression to score on the inside or get to the foul line and get some freebie points.
Box Score (starters in italics)
Wisconsin Dells- Ward 20 Gibson 16 Kyle Stowers 9 MJ Delmore 8 Shane Wimann 5 Bobby Blaschke 5 Josh Elftmann 2 Ryan Davis 0 Sterling Greyhair 0 Alex Bernander 0 Bobby Sowls 0
New Lisbon- Wyss 13 John McCann 9 Cory Kalmerton 7 Landon Wilson 6 Matt Spaniol 3 Tyler Peterson 3 Trevor Gibbons 2 Ryan Jensen 2 Jaime Gollmar 0 Andy Heindl 0 Sean Frank 0
Wisconsin Dells is an interesting team to watch because they have a seven man rotation that they use which consists of five senior starters and two freshmen off the bench. The two freshmen are truly ready to contribute on the varsity level this year. MJ Delmore is a bit undersized but, does a very good job running the point finding open teammates and can knock down the open three pointer. The other freshmen Shane Wimann is probably even more ready for varsity then Delmore. Wimann looks like an upper class men size wise on the court and plays as aggressive one on the court. I will be very interested to see the progression of Wimann and Delmore throughout their four years of varsity along with a strong freshmen class that has five freshmen on JV.
Sunday, December 6, 2009
Madison East over Middleton
In the opening game of Big Eight play Madison East came out and dominated Middleton. East came out looking extremely confident playing very good basketball. On the other side Middleton came out a little timid and basically looked terrible. East game out of the gate looking to push the ball and play at a fast pace which worked to perfection as they were able to penetrate the lane and score. Middleton on the other hand looked timid going against East big man 6'4 senior Marquis Mason .
These things led to an East lead of 19-4 after one quarter and they never looked back from there. Throughout the entire game East point guard 6'0 junior Nimrod Hillard was able to get where ever he wanted. He got around the perimeter defenders with ease and then was able to score around the Middleton big men. When he wasn't able to get to the rim he would find wide open teammates for 15 foot jump shots and the typically knocked them down. In the second quarter Middleton finally figured some things out and had the guy that Mason was guarding feed the post to keep Mason out of the inside on the defense side. The benefactor of this was Middleton big man 6'6 junior Ian Joyce who scored 13 of the teams first 17 points. Despite the success of Joyce Middleton still trailed 33-13 at half and Joyce finished with 15 points for the game. Hillard led East to a 50-28 lead after three and then cruised to the 63-43 win.
Top Players
Nimrod Hillard 6'0 junior Madison East- As I said earlier pretty much got where ever he wanted and finished with a game high 24 points.
Marquis Mason 6'4 senior Madison East- Didn't score a ton but, made his presence felt on the defensive end as Middleton missed bunny after bunny shot.
Jeff Hull 6'4 senior Madison East- Did a nice job of dropping the 15 foot jumpers and battling on the inside for rebounds.
Drew Mc Adams 6'2 senior Madison East- Ran the court very well and in the half court was another guy that was able to knock down the 15 footers.
Ian Joyce 6'6 junior Middleton- The lone Middleton player to really do anything on the offensive end. Joyce was able to get position and score in the paint.
Box Score (starters in italics)
Madison East- Hillard 24 Hull 13 Mason 11 Mc Adams 10 Arthur Adams 3 Rudy Bentley 2 Kedrick Fowler 0 Steve Horn 0 Ylli Berisha 0 Malcolm Williams 0 Pete Strommen 0 Wi Hetzel 0
Middleton- Joyce 15 Shane Adler 7 Matt Everson 6 Seth Coyne 4 Michael Owen 4 Connor Wipfli 3 Charlie Optiz 3 Will O'Brien 1 Corey Nelson 0 Connor Stubbe 0 Skylar Yaktus 0 Sonny Bavery 0
Well opening night of the Big Eight showed the Madison East is truly a top 15 team in the state and it will be very interesting when they match up with Madison Memorial.
These things led to an East lead of 19-4 after one quarter and they never looked back from there. Throughout the entire game East point guard 6'0 junior Nimrod Hillard was able to get where ever he wanted. He got around the perimeter defenders with ease and then was able to score around the Middleton big men. When he wasn't able to get to the rim he would find wide open teammates for 15 foot jump shots and the typically knocked them down. In the second quarter Middleton finally figured some things out and had the guy that Mason was guarding feed the post to keep Mason out of the inside on the defense side. The benefactor of this was Middleton big man 6'6 junior Ian Joyce who scored 13 of the teams first 17 points. Despite the success of Joyce Middleton still trailed 33-13 at half and Joyce finished with 15 points for the game. Hillard led East to a 50-28 lead after three and then cruised to the 63-43 win.
Top Players
Nimrod Hillard 6'0 junior Madison East- As I said earlier pretty much got where ever he wanted and finished with a game high 24 points.
Marquis Mason 6'4 senior Madison East- Didn't score a ton but, made his presence felt on the defensive end as Middleton missed bunny after bunny shot.
Jeff Hull 6'4 senior Madison East- Did a nice job of dropping the 15 foot jumpers and battling on the inside for rebounds.
Drew Mc Adams 6'2 senior Madison East- Ran the court very well and in the half court was another guy that was able to knock down the 15 footers.
Ian Joyce 6'6 junior Middleton- The lone Middleton player to really do anything on the offensive end. Joyce was able to get position and score in the paint.
Box Score (starters in italics)
Madison East- Hillard 24 Hull 13 Mason 11 Mc Adams 10 Arthur Adams 3 Rudy Bentley 2 Kedrick Fowler 0 Steve Horn 0 Ylli Berisha 0 Malcolm Williams 0 Pete Strommen 0 Wi Hetzel 0
Middleton- Joyce 15 Shane Adler 7 Matt Everson 6 Seth Coyne 4 Michael Owen 4 Connor Wipfli 3 Charlie Optiz 3 Will O'Brien 1 Corey Nelson 0 Connor Stubbe 0 Skylar Yaktus 0 Sonny Bavery 0
Well opening night of the Big Eight showed the Madison East is truly a top 15 team in the state and it will be very interesting when they match up with Madison Memorial.
Tuesday, December 1, 2009
South Central Preview
I'll be the first to admit that I don't follow the South Central Conference very closely but, it is my former conference so I do pay some attention to it. The fact is the conference has been fairly weak that past few years and this year should be no different. Yes, Wisconsin Dells and Adams Friendship have had some very good teams and have each made runs to state in the past five years but, typically either one of these teams or both have completely dominate the conference outside of a hiccup here or there. Last year Wisconsin Dells had a so so team that really hinged on one player and they went undefeated in the conference with relative ease. The bottom four teams just haven't come to play as of recent.
Once again the Dells and Adams will battle for the conference title but, I think that Mauston will be more then just another team in the conference. As I mentioned earlier the Dells won the conference a year ago and went undefeated. They do return three of their top six players from a year ago but, that is really their only experienced players coming back. The three senior that are back are 6'9 Nate Gibson, 6'2 Justin Ward and 6'1 Bobby Blaschke. Gibson is a huge body out there and seemed quicker then a year ago when I saw him play football but, he still needs to get the ball in a good position to score. I expect a big year from Ward but, last year he was primarily a spot up shooter and didn't do much else. Blaschke is that glue guy everyone talks about, does the dirty work rebounding and on defense. The team success will hinge on their young, inexperienced players and they already have a pair of freshmen listed on their preseason roster in 5'8 MJ Delmore, who I've heard through rumors may be the starting point guard, and 6'1 Shane Wimann.
Adams Friendship will be right there with the Dells after having a disappointing season a year ago but, bring back three starters including the best player in the conference in 6'5 senior Bryce Wormet who I am expecting to have a break out year in his third year on varsity. Wormet along with this being coach Klass's last year should mean success for the Green Devils.
Mauston is another team that returns three starters and should finally challenge the big dogs at the top of the conference. The Golden Eagles bring back a pair of double digit scoring seniors in 5'10 Jeff Erickson and 6'3 Dustin Manthe. I'm also starting big things by 6'0 freshmen Joel Heesch who I am assuming is the coaches son as they have the exact same name.
Wautoma apparantly had a very good JV team a year ago and that will hopefully lead to an alright varsity squad this year, while Nekoosa brings back a pair of starters, and Westfield is Westfield.
Predicted Standings
Wisconsin Dells 8-2
Adams Friendship 8-2
Mauston 7-3
Nekoosa 4-6
Wautoma 3-7
Westfield 0-10
All Conference Predictions
1st Team
6'5 Senior Adams Bryce Wormet
6'9 Senior Dells Nate Gibson
6'3 Senior Mauston Dustin Manthe
6'2 Senior Dells Justin Ward
5'10 Senior Mauston Jeff Erickson
2nd Team
6'2 Senior Nekoosa Ben Tenpas
6'0 Senior Adams Cody Paepke
5'10 Junior Adams Kincaid Hodkiewicz
6'2 Junior Wautoma Derek Szcewski
6'0 Freshmen Mauston Joel Heesch
HM
5'9 Senior Mauston Brady Nelson
5'8 Freshmen Dells MJ Delmore
6'1 Senior Dells Bobby Blaschke
I know that I spent more time on Wisconsin Dells then the other teams but, they are my alma mater and the team that I've seen the most. Thinking about it more and more this should be a pretty solid year for the South Central with three fairly solid teams that are all evenly matched and be an interesting year.
Once again the Dells and Adams will battle for the conference title but, I think that Mauston will be more then just another team in the conference. As I mentioned earlier the Dells won the conference a year ago and went undefeated. They do return three of their top six players from a year ago but, that is really their only experienced players coming back. The three senior that are back are 6'9 Nate Gibson, 6'2 Justin Ward and 6'1 Bobby Blaschke. Gibson is a huge body out there and seemed quicker then a year ago when I saw him play football but, he still needs to get the ball in a good position to score. I expect a big year from Ward but, last year he was primarily a spot up shooter and didn't do much else. Blaschke is that glue guy everyone talks about, does the dirty work rebounding and on defense. The team success will hinge on their young, inexperienced players and they already have a pair of freshmen listed on their preseason roster in 5'8 MJ Delmore, who I've heard through rumors may be the starting point guard, and 6'1 Shane Wimann.
Adams Friendship will be right there with the Dells after having a disappointing season a year ago but, bring back three starters including the best player in the conference in 6'5 senior Bryce Wormet who I am expecting to have a break out year in his third year on varsity. Wormet along with this being coach Klass's last year should mean success for the Green Devils.
Mauston is another team that returns three starters and should finally challenge the big dogs at the top of the conference. The Golden Eagles bring back a pair of double digit scoring seniors in 5'10 Jeff Erickson and 6'3 Dustin Manthe. I'm also starting big things by 6'0 freshmen Joel Heesch who I am assuming is the coaches son as they have the exact same name.
Wautoma apparantly had a very good JV team a year ago and that will hopefully lead to an alright varsity squad this year, while Nekoosa brings back a pair of starters, and Westfield is Westfield.
Predicted Standings
Wisconsin Dells 8-2
Adams Friendship 8-2
Mauston 7-3
Nekoosa 4-6
Wautoma 3-7
Westfield 0-10
All Conference Predictions
1st Team
6'5 Senior Adams Bryce Wormet
6'9 Senior Dells Nate Gibson
6'3 Senior Mauston Dustin Manthe
6'2 Senior Dells Justin Ward
5'10 Senior Mauston Jeff Erickson
2nd Team
6'2 Senior Nekoosa Ben Tenpas
6'0 Senior Adams Cody Paepke
5'10 Junior Adams Kincaid Hodkiewicz
6'2 Junior Wautoma Derek Szcewski
6'0 Freshmen Mauston Joel Heesch
HM
5'9 Senior Mauston Brady Nelson
5'8 Freshmen Dells MJ Delmore
6'1 Senior Dells Bobby Blaschke
I know that I spent more time on Wisconsin Dells then the other teams but, they are my alma mater and the team that I've seen the most. Thinking about it more and more this should be a pretty solid year for the South Central with three fairly solid teams that are all evenly matched and be an interesting year.
Saturday, November 28, 2009
Racine Park outruns Baraboo
In my first games of the year I headed over to Baraboo to catch their very first Thanksgiving tournament. The first game was Rhinelander against West DePere which I got to a little late so I wasn't able to keep track of the scoring and never really got into the game and actually didn't even get the final score of the game but, West DePere easily defeated Rhinelander who was over matched in this game.
Some of the players that did stand out to me where 6'3 junior Dylan Smith for Rhinelander who despite being very undersized both in height and thickness did a very good job of battling on the inside. For West DePere it really was a team effort and they didn't seem to have any huge stars but, 6'4 senior Justin Hackl was very solid in the paint on the offensive end while 5'10 junior Shane Gulseth was dropping the threes from the outside.
In the marquee game Racine Park took on host Baraboo. Park had the advantage in nearly every aspect of the game but, the biggest thing that gave Park their victory was their team speed and pressing in your face defense. Park used their speed and athleticism to get a 78-54 victory over Baraboo. Numerous turnovers doomed Baraboo from the start and Park jumped out to the early lead and never looked back. Baraboo was able to climb back into the game and cut the lead to 43-31 at half but, in the third quarter Park turned up the pressure and after three where up 61-39 and midway through the fourth both teams cleared their benches. In the third quarter the game was pretty much sealed when Park 6'1 senior Tre Edwards had three straight steals and scored each time and then a fourth steal minutes later led to an ally oop dunk from Edwards to 6'5 senior JD Magruder. Only thing that kept the game within 20 points for much of the game was Park's fouling and Baraboo scoring with the clock stopped. Racine Park senior 6'1 Josh Cameron had lots of hype surrounding him prior to the season starting after averaging 22 points a game a year ago and then being dismissed from his previous school before the start of the season and ending up at Park. Cameron seemed to be out of it today as he only finished with nine points but, did a nice job of distributing the ball.
Top Players
Tre Edwards 6'1 senior Racine Park- Very quick hands which led to a ton of steals and easy buckets. Also did a great job of finishing at the rim around defenders outstretched arms.
Taron Edwards 5'10 sophomore Racine Park- Probably much taller then the listed height of 5'10 but, was a great shooter, that seemed to knock down every shoot where he was open.
Sean McGann 6'3 sophomore Baraboo- Very nice job of helping bringing the ball up the court and did a nice job of knifing through the Park defenders to score.
Box Score (as always starters are in italics)
Racine Park - Tr. Edwards 22 Ta. Edwards 13 Issaih Bridges 11 Cameron 9 Stan MacKenzie 9 Isaiah Scott 5 David Campbell 4 Shane St. Pierre 2 JD Magruder 2 Josh Beaton 2 Finest Marshall 0 John Harris 0 Frank Gutierrez 0 James Orth 0 Bryan Kelly 0
Baraboo- McGann 13 Josh Statz 12 Mark Kowalke 8 Jed Traxler 5 Ton Brandt 4 Tyler Fish 4 Emerson Halbach 2 Mike Weinke 2 Jake Meiller 2 Caleb Leonhardt 2 Ryan Baxter 0 Joe Becraft 0 Erik Anderson 0
Well it was an exciting first day of high school basketball, getting a chance to see the #10 ranked team in the state. Racine Park was a pretty impressive team but, I think I may of put them just outside of the top 10.
Some of the players that did stand out to me where 6'3 junior Dylan Smith for Rhinelander who despite being very undersized both in height and thickness did a very good job of battling on the inside. For West DePere it really was a team effort and they didn't seem to have any huge stars but, 6'4 senior Justin Hackl was very solid in the paint on the offensive end while 5'10 junior Shane Gulseth was dropping the threes from the outside.
In the marquee game Racine Park took on host Baraboo. Park had the advantage in nearly every aspect of the game but, the biggest thing that gave Park their victory was their team speed and pressing in your face defense. Park used their speed and athleticism to get a 78-54 victory over Baraboo. Numerous turnovers doomed Baraboo from the start and Park jumped out to the early lead and never looked back. Baraboo was able to climb back into the game and cut the lead to 43-31 at half but, in the third quarter Park turned up the pressure and after three where up 61-39 and midway through the fourth both teams cleared their benches. In the third quarter the game was pretty much sealed when Park 6'1 senior Tre Edwards had three straight steals and scored each time and then a fourth steal minutes later led to an ally oop dunk from Edwards to 6'5 senior JD Magruder. Only thing that kept the game within 20 points for much of the game was Park's fouling and Baraboo scoring with the clock stopped. Racine Park senior 6'1 Josh Cameron had lots of hype surrounding him prior to the season starting after averaging 22 points a game a year ago and then being dismissed from his previous school before the start of the season and ending up at Park. Cameron seemed to be out of it today as he only finished with nine points but, did a nice job of distributing the ball.
Top Players
Tre Edwards 6'1 senior Racine Park- Very quick hands which led to a ton of steals and easy buckets. Also did a great job of finishing at the rim around defenders outstretched arms.
Taron Edwards 5'10 sophomore Racine Park- Probably much taller then the listed height of 5'10 but, was a great shooter, that seemed to knock down every shoot where he was open.
Sean McGann 6'3 sophomore Baraboo- Very nice job of helping bringing the ball up the court and did a nice job of knifing through the Park defenders to score.
Box Score (as always starters are in italics)
Racine Park - Tr. Edwards 22 Ta. Edwards 13 Issaih Bridges 11 Cameron 9 Stan MacKenzie 9 Isaiah Scott 5 David Campbell 4 Shane St. Pierre 2 JD Magruder 2 Josh Beaton 2 Finest Marshall 0 John Harris 0 Frank Gutierrez 0 James Orth 0 Bryan Kelly 0
Baraboo- McGann 13 Josh Statz 12 Mark Kowalke 8 Jed Traxler 5 Ton Brandt 4 Tyler Fish 4 Emerson Halbach 2 Mike Weinke 2 Jake Meiller 2 Caleb Leonhardt 2 Ryan Baxter 0 Joe Becraft 0 Erik Anderson 0
Well it was an exciting first day of high school basketball, getting a chance to see the #10 ranked team in the state. Racine Park was a pretty impressive team but, I think I may of put them just outside of the top 10.
Tuesday, November 24, 2009
Big Eight Preview
The Big Eight is easily one of the top three conferences in Wisconsin, if not the best conference. This is fairly common year in and year out which makes the Big Eight a very fun conference to watch and follow. The conference is also much closer then a City Conference which allows me to catch a lot of games.
As last year this will be a two horse race between Madison Memorial and Madison East. After the top two, three through seven could finish in any order, and then the bottom three teams will be battling it out. My rankings will include my best guess at each teams record.
1. Madison Memorial- As always Memorial has the most talent in the conference and are led by the top player in the state in 6'4 senior Vander Blue.
2. Madison East- Best one two punch in the conference in 5'11 junior Nimrod Hillard and 6'4 senior Marquis Mason.
3. Verona- Yes they lost their Mr. Everything in Jason Ziemer but, this is a very disciplined team that plays hard the entire game. 6'4 senior Adam Wadzinski is a three year letter winner and 6'4 senior Sam Karls can do a little bit of everything.
4. Beloit- State team a year ago bring back two key starts in 6'2 senior KJ Evans and 5'10 senior Sharod Stone.
5. Sun Prairie- Their starting back court of Michael Boos and Michael Handel are on varsity for their fourth years and 6'3 junior Jordan Noskowiak will be in his second year of varsity.
6. Middleton- Matt Everson is a returning all conference preformer and they have lots of height on the team.
7. Madison Lafollette- This team hinges on one player in 5'11 senior DJ Fuller but, if Fuller misses some games they will be in trouble.
8. Madison West- This team always seems to have lots of athletes but, they will struggle with a first year coach.
9. Janesville Craig- Basically lost everything from a year ago and have a new coach.
10. Janesville Parker- Well Parker is always picked last in the conference year in and year out.
Conference Standings
Madison Memorial 17-1
Madison East 16-2
Verona 14-4
Beloit 11-7
Sun Prairie 9-9
Middleton 9-9
Madison Lafollette 7-11
Madison West 4-14
Janesville Craig 2-16
Janesville Paker 1-17
All Conference
1st Team
5'11 junior Nimrod Hillard Madison East
5'11 senior DJ Fuller Madison Lafollette
6'2 senior KJ Evans Beloit
6'4 senior Vander Blue Madison Memorial
6'4 senior Marquis Mason Madison East
6'4 Sophomore Junior Lomomba Madison Memorial out for most of the season
2nd Team
5'10 senior Sharrod Stone Beloit
6'1 senior Michael Boos Sun Prairie
6'2 senior Matt Everson Middleton
6'4 senior Tre Creamer Madison Memorial
6'4 senior Adam Wadzinski Verona
HM
6'2 junior Jordan Noskowiak Sun Prairie
6'3 senior Shane Adler Middleton
6'4 senior Matt Karls Verona
Those are my preseason thoughts on the Big Eight. I only added three players to the honorable mention list because those three guys could of just as easily be second team all conference players. South Central conference will follow with in the next day or two and then the season begins.
As last year this will be a two horse race between Madison Memorial and Madison East. After the top two, three through seven could finish in any order, and then the bottom three teams will be battling it out. My rankings will include my best guess at each teams record.
1. Madison Memorial- As always Memorial has the most talent in the conference and are led by the top player in the state in 6'4 senior Vander Blue.
2. Madison East- Best one two punch in the conference in 5'11 junior Nimrod Hillard and 6'4 senior Marquis Mason.
3. Verona- Yes they lost their Mr. Everything in Jason Ziemer but, this is a very disciplined team that plays hard the entire game. 6'4 senior Adam Wadzinski is a three year letter winner and 6'4 senior Sam Karls can do a little bit of everything.
4. Beloit- State team a year ago bring back two key starts in 6'2 senior KJ Evans and 5'10 senior Sharod Stone.
5. Sun Prairie- Their starting back court of Michael Boos and Michael Handel are on varsity for their fourth years and 6'3 junior Jordan Noskowiak will be in his second year of varsity.
6. Middleton- Matt Everson is a returning all conference preformer and they have lots of height on the team.
7. Madison Lafollette- This team hinges on one player in 5'11 senior DJ Fuller but, if Fuller misses some games they will be in trouble.
8. Madison West- This team always seems to have lots of athletes but, they will struggle with a first year coach.
9. Janesville Craig- Basically lost everything from a year ago and have a new coach.
10. Janesville Parker- Well Parker is always picked last in the conference year in and year out.
Conference Standings
Madison Memorial 17-1
Madison East 16-2
Verona 14-4
Beloit 11-7
Sun Prairie 9-9
Middleton 9-9
Madison Lafollette 7-11
Madison West 4-14
Janesville Craig 2-16
Janesville Paker 1-17
All Conference
1st Team
5'11 junior Nimrod Hillard Madison East
5'11 senior DJ Fuller Madison Lafollette
6'2 senior KJ Evans Beloit
6'4 senior Vander Blue Madison Memorial
6'4 senior Marquis Mason Madison East
6'4 Sophomore Junior Lomomba Madison Memorial out for most of the season
2nd Team
5'10 senior Sharrod Stone Beloit
6'1 senior Michael Boos Sun Prairie
6'2 senior Matt Everson Middleton
6'4 senior Tre Creamer Madison Memorial
6'4 senior Adam Wadzinski Verona
HM
6'2 junior Jordan Noskowiak Sun Prairie
6'3 senior Shane Adler Middleton
6'4 senior Matt Karls Verona
Those are my preseason thoughts on the Big Eight. I only added three players to the honorable mention list because those three guys could of just as easily be second team all conference players. South Central conference will follow with in the next day or two and then the season begins.
Saturday, November 21, 2009
Division Four Preseason Rankings
I'll be the first to admit that I don't follow the D4 rankings as closely as the other three divisions and that's because there are typically not as many great athletes in the smallest division because they are drawing from the smallest populations. That being said I do my best to predict the division but, for the most part I'm making my judgements on the teams that I may of never seen play.
This year is no different then the past 10 years or so in the fact that Randolph is one of the top teams in D4. Unlike the past though Randolph isn't a clear cut favorite, there are two other teams that are right there with them. The other two teams are Benton who won the division a year ago and then Sheboygan Christian who actually defeated Randolph in the playoffs a year ago. All three teams bring back big contributors from a year ago and should be a great three team race. Outside of those three teams no one else really has a huge shot to win it all, at least as of right now. The one problem with this is that all three of these teams come out of the same sectional and only one of these three teams will make state. Randolph and Sheboygan Christian should meet in the fourth round, the sectional semi final, with the winner facing Benton in the next round, the sectional final.
1. Randolph- Coaching and 6'9 senior Kyle Kelm gives Randolph the edge here.
2. Sheboygan County Christian- Eagles bring back three starters from a team that beat Randolph in the playoffs a year ago.
3. Benton- Three of their top six players return for the defending state champs.
4. Luck- Should benefit greatly from dropping down a division this year.
5. Barneveld- 6'3 senior Logan Johnson who is the returning conference player of the year for the Six Rivers East.
6. McDonell Central- Should be battle tested after playing the likes of Fall Creek and Eau Claire Regis during conference play.
7. Catholic Central- Another private school that should benefit from a very tough conference schedule.
8. Wausau Newman- Privates always seem to have the edge come playoff time in the lower division and should be no different with Newman.
9. Green Lake- 6'5 senior Brad Brooks is a star and should be tested after getting a chance to play Randolph in the regular season.
10. Suring- Eagles look to return to state behind 6'4 junior Chad Strehlow who averaged 19 points a game a year ago.
HM
Seneca
Cochrane-Fountain City
Well that concludes my preseason division rankings. Next few days I'll be focusing on the Big Eight and South Central conference which are the two conferences that I follow closely. Prior to the start of the actual season, I'm not sure what other posts I might come up with. My first game will be next Saturday as I'm planning on heading over to Baraboo to watch their Thanksgiving tournament and get a chance to see Josh Cameron and Racine Park play.
This year is no different then the past 10 years or so in the fact that Randolph is one of the top teams in D4. Unlike the past though Randolph isn't a clear cut favorite, there are two other teams that are right there with them. The other two teams are Benton who won the division a year ago and then Sheboygan Christian who actually defeated Randolph in the playoffs a year ago. All three teams bring back big contributors from a year ago and should be a great three team race. Outside of those three teams no one else really has a huge shot to win it all, at least as of right now. The one problem with this is that all three of these teams come out of the same sectional and only one of these three teams will make state. Randolph and Sheboygan Christian should meet in the fourth round, the sectional semi final, with the winner facing Benton in the next round, the sectional final.
1. Randolph- Coaching and 6'9 senior Kyle Kelm gives Randolph the edge here.
2. Sheboygan County Christian- Eagles bring back three starters from a team that beat Randolph in the playoffs a year ago.
3. Benton- Three of their top six players return for the defending state champs.
4. Luck- Should benefit greatly from dropping down a division this year.
5. Barneveld- 6'3 senior Logan Johnson who is the returning conference player of the year for the Six Rivers East.
6. McDonell Central- Should be battle tested after playing the likes of Fall Creek and Eau Claire Regis during conference play.
7. Catholic Central- Another private school that should benefit from a very tough conference schedule.
8. Wausau Newman- Privates always seem to have the edge come playoff time in the lower division and should be no different with Newman.
9. Green Lake- 6'5 senior Brad Brooks is a star and should be tested after getting a chance to play Randolph in the regular season.
10. Suring- Eagles look to return to state behind 6'4 junior Chad Strehlow who averaged 19 points a game a year ago.
HM
Seneca
Cochrane-Fountain City
Well that concludes my preseason division rankings. Next few days I'll be focusing on the Big Eight and South Central conference which are the two conferences that I follow closely. Prior to the start of the actual season, I'm not sure what other posts I might come up with. My first game will be next Saturday as I'm planning on heading over to Baraboo to watch their Thanksgiving tournament and get a chance to see Josh Cameron and Racine Park play.
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