Friday, January 30, 2015

Memorial survives a scare

Within the same week that I talked about Madison Memorial appearing poised to win their 12th straight conference title they nearly lost one to Sun Prairie who has been heading in the opposite direction. Sun Prairie looked like the better team throughout the game and if it wasn't for some late game heroics and a bit of a Cardinal collapse Memorial would of lost this one.

Sun Prairie came out in a 2-3 zone defense which stymied Memorial a bit early on. On the offensive end I really liked that what Memorial did with their leading scorer 5'10 senior Shareef Smith. Smith would bring the ball up the court and then once he passed the ball off he go to the base line and run the base line behind the zone defense. Memorial really looked for Smith and even though he wasn't scoring much he would fine team mates cutting to the hoop in his three seniors 6'0 Koko Songolo, 6'3 Henry Houden, and 6'5 Brett Tauber. On the other end Memorial was running a man to man defense but, they were switching on everything so it really was more of a zone defense. This defense really opened up a lot of threes for Sun Prairie as 6'1 senior Malik Robinson hit a three right off the bat but, things when south until 6'4 junior Rod Johnson came into the came. Johnson hit three threes fresh off the bench and 6'5 senior JT Ruffin chipped in a three which forced Memorial to switch into a more traditional man to man defense. Sun Prairie had a three point lead at the half.

In the second half Sun Prairie continued to maintain their lead but, Memorial continued to hang around by pounding the offensive glass as always and force feeding the ball into their big man Brett Tauber. Tauber score three straight buckets in the second half. For Sun Prairie Johnson continued his hot shooting from the outside and Ruffin used his athleticism to score around the Memorial big man. In the fourth quarter Houden started to get going offensively driving the ball to the hoop and getting some second chance buckets while Songolo was dropping the threes from the outside. Sun Prairie seemed to put things out of reach after back to back threes from the corner from Johnson and Ruffin and I believe with about three minutes left in the game were up by nine. A three by Songolo and then an and one basket by Houden combined with a Malik Robinson missed free throw set the stage for the ending. Songolo drove to the hoop shot the runner which came off the rim and Houden tipped the ball back in the hoop with three seconds left and Sun Prairies half court heave banked of the backboard and off the rim to give Memorial the one point win 53-52.

Top Players 
Henry Houden 6'3 senior Madison Memorial- Had the game winning basket but, played a great all around game throughout. Was able to drive the ball to the rim, hit the mid range shot, knocked down a couple threes and was all over the glass all night. He's their glue guy and he can really score at times.

Koko Songolo 6'0 senior Madison Memorial- Was the guy consistently hitting from the outside. Had a hot streak midway through the second half where he just couldn't miss. Missed a lot of driving runners in the lane but, drew the defenders and allowed team mates to get the rebounds.

Brett Tauber 6'5 senior Madison Memorail- Had the one very strong run there but, was really a force in the paint at times both scoring and rebounding. Also does a nice job of getting the ball in the high post and finding the open team mate.

Rod Johnson 6'4 junior Sun Prairie- Huge game with 19 points off the bench. When he's given the open spot up three your very surprised when he misses. Also has the ability to put the ball on the floor and score.

JT Ruffin 6'5 senior Sun Prairie- Stepped out and hit the three point shot, battled for rebounds, and used his quickness and finesse to score on the inside.

Box Score
MM- Houden 19 Songolo 17 Tauber 9 Smith 6 Jason Weah 2 Jake Ferguson 0 Billy Wilson 0
SP- Johnson 19 Ruffin 15 Sam Kerr 9 Robinson 6 Ben Hauser 3 Deshawn Black 0 Nate Verstegen 0

I will remain with my statement that Memorial is a team to beat in the Big Eight. Memorial is just finding a way to win even when they don't play great now just like the old Memorial teams and they get a ton of rebounds and their playing some pretty god defense right now and it really was Sun Prairie's three point shooting that put this game where it was. For Sun Prairie they seem to be finding themselves since the lose of Noskowiak. Things will still be tough when their struggling to find someone to put the team on their back and will them to a win.

Tuesday, January 27, 2015

WBCA Shootout

Eau Claire Regis 80 Columbus 57
I really thought that this game was going to be closer with how good Columbus looked the last time I had seen them play. Columbus came out running early led by their leading scorer 6'2 senior Kyle Geiger and jumped out to the early 9-2 lead but, really after that point things went down hill. After the first Regis was up one, at half up 14, after three up 19 and then the final of 23. Regis's D1 recruit 6'6 senior Billy Wampler started off cold, which led to the slow start but, he got going midway through the first and scored 19 points in the first half and it was kind of nice to see him have a good game after all the talk I've heard about him and how cold he was the last time I saw him. Columbus really cooled off in the second quarter then in the second half the turnovers started and the run outs began for Regis which really made things get ugly. Had it not been the clearing of the benches with about four minutes left in the game this would of been much uglier. Highlights of this game was the three point shooting of Wampler hitting deep threes with someone in his face and the dunk attempt of 6'1 senior Brady Martin. Martin missed the dunk but, I give him credit for going for it. Not much else to say in this one. Early on it was Regis's size on the inside and outside shooting, in the second half it was the defense leading to easy offense. 

Top Scorers 
Regis- Wampler 27 Logan Rohrscheib 24 Brady Martin 12 
Columbus- Geiger 19 Tanner Perry 11 Alec Archambault 8 


Stevens Point 71 Middleton 55
This game was over very early and Middleton was lucky it was as close as it was. Stevens Point was just far bigger and quicker then Middleton. Middleton looked extremely small on the court and their not a huge team but, their really not that small either. Signifying play of this game was the two junior stars hooking up on a big dunk. 6'2 Trev Anderson got a steal and found a streaking 6'6 Sam Hauser for a thunderous dunk. In the first half it was Anderson driving to the rim and scoring and Sam Hauser with the finesse game hitting the outside jumpers. In the second half Anderson was a one man wrecking grew driving the length of the court time and again and creating contact and going to the line or finishing at the rim. Stevens Point has a big front line starting three 6'6 players with Sam Hauser, senior Andrew Ruzek, and freshmen Joey Hauser. When point went to the 1-3-1 zone defense with Sam Hauser out top things completely shut down for Middleton. Middleton's primary ball handlers are all about 5'9 and they had a very tough time looking over and around the 6'6 defender. Middleton plays a ton of players subbing similar to Kentucky with five in five out but, they don't have that kind of talent, but who does. Middleton just doesn't have a star and has 10-12 players that are all very similar skill wise and I guess the constant subbing always their plays to be fresh and be able to play extremely hard at all times. Middleton does play very hard throughout and shoot a lot of threes but, those threes weren't falling tonight. Middleton did hit some threes late to get this game somewhat respectable as Point had gotten the lead to 24 point at one time and where up by 20 much of the game. 

Top Scorers
SP- Anderson 31 S Hauser 23 J Hauser 7
Midd- Tyree Eady 22 Tyler Ballweg 9 Ian Hokanson 5 

Top Players
Billy Wampler 6'6 senior Regis- Was money shooting from the outside tonight. Really can elevate over the defender even if they are right in his face. Forces things at times and would like to seem him driving to the rim a little more. 

Logan Rohrscheib 6'2 junior Regis- Just a tireless worker that always plays extremely hard and gets a large portion of his points from hustle. Can really shot the three as well. 

Kyle Geiger 6'2 senior Columbus- Guy that can really score when he's given space. Very versatile playing outside primarily but, can play in the post using his strength. 

Tyree Eady 6'3 sophomore Middleton- A superb athlete that uses his length to get to the hoop and score and really got it going from the corners nailing four threes in the game. 

Trev Anderson 6'2 junior Stevens Point- Just so strong with the ball in his hands. I said it last time I saw him play and he truly can get to the rim anytime he wants and can knock down the three. Also went 13-14 from the foul line. 

Sam Hauser 6'6 junior Stevens Point- Very smooth player. Doesn't need much room to get his shot of with his size and has a really nice fade away in his arsenal as well. Helps when your 6'6 and can run the court. 

Eau Claire Regis seems poised to make a run to state but, there is no one in D4 that can play with Dominican sadly. Columbus will have a pretty good record this year and just play a tough brand of basketball but, I just don't think they have the athletes to go super far. I like Geiger and point guard Coughlin but, if they aren't both clicking things good be hard. Middleton will live and die by the three. If their hitting they could be tough and if their not anyone could beat them. Stevens Point is the odds on favorite to win it all and they are the best team I've seen this year and I've seen most of the top teams. There's not many 1,2 punches that match Anderson and Hauser. 

Monday, January 26, 2015

Madison Memorial continues Big Eight dominance

This was finally going to be the year that Madison Memorial's streak of 11 straight conference titles was going to end. Sun Prairie was the odds on favorite to win conference led by Marquette recruit Nick Noskowiak. Sun Prairie was the leader of the pack until Noskowiak left the team and school dealing with some personal issues and I wish him the best in dealing with these issues and hoping he can get past these issues. Sun Prairie hasn't been able to find their footing since losing Noskowiak. Then Middleton was the top team and Memorial promptly bet them by 20. Madison East was the next team to step up until Memorial took them down by 20 as well. Middleton is now still top in the standings but, with the way Memorial is playing that doesn't appear to be long lasting.

Friday decided to take in the Memorial vs La Follette game. It's been a little while so honestly I can't remember a ton about the game after taking in two games. Some lastly impressions was the lack of La Follette offense in this game. I believe La Follette was running a dribble drive offense but, it just seemed to be a lot of one on one ball with whoever had the ball would just drive to the hoop and try to score. This offense ended up with a lot of forced wild shots in the lane that just weren't falling. Also noticeable in this game was the play of their star 6'1 senior Darold Thomas. I know Thomas has just recently missed a handful of games for whatever reason and he just didn't seem himself. Thomas appeared to be in some pain on the court and spent a good deal of time on the bench. Normally Thomas plays with a pretty high energy and is pretty aggressive on the court but, tonight Thomas seemed a little passive on defense and offense, where his game was mostly launching NBA threes and missing them. 5'11 Quinten Shere did his best to keep La Follette in this game but, he just couldn't get any help.

For Memorial I was hoping to see their leading scorer 5'10 Shareef Smith have a big game but, Smith got in early foul trouble and didn't even score in the game. Smith did have some nice assists but, never got in the flow of the game shooting the ball. Memorial didn't shoot the ball particularly well but, as usual they did dominate the glass and got second and third opportunities all game long. No one really stared for Memorial and it truly was a team effort as they had four players score at least 10 points. 6'0 senior Koko Songolo was the leading scorer but, he really got the bulk of his points shooting free throws late. Wish I had more to say about Memorials game but, I don't recall a lot and there wasn't anything that impressive other then the pounding of the glass by Memorial, which has gotten to be the norm for Memorial.

Top Players
Quinten Shere 5'11 senior La Follette- Kind of street ball game with lots of dribbling and going to the hoop hard. Has that real nice floater in the lane and just plays extremely hard.

Henry Houden 6'3 senior Memorial- Just the ultimate glue player. Does a little bit of everything and really battles on the glass. Showed a real nice step back jumper from 15 feet.

Brett Tauber 6'5 senior Memorial- Another guy that really control the glass and the paint on the defensive end. Showed a nice offensive touch and even stepped out and hit a three point shot.

Box Score
MF- Shere 18 Cortez McCree 13 Thomas 6 David Turner 4 Tommy Green 3 Travell Ewing 2 Elias Sobah 1 Kian O'Brien 0 Tom Bartz 0 
MM- Songolo 15 Houden 13 Tauber 12 Jake Ferguson 10 Travis Lindquist 5 Billy Wilson 3 Smith 0 

It appears these two teams are going in the opposite direction. Memorial appears to be clicking at the right time and are my pick to win the Big Eight conference. La Follette just can't get things going at all and just can not consistently score and get beat on the offensive glass. Hopefully for La Follette's sake Thomas and company can get back on track.

Sunday, January 25, 2015

Week Eight Rankings

Another week of the is in the books and here is another round of my weekly state rankings. D1 seems to be a five team race with the top five but, Stevens Point is the favorite. D2 the story is can anyone catch Kaukauna. D3 and D5 seem to be completely up for grabs with no clear cut favorites and a lot of teams in the running. In D4 can anyone play with Dominican, in watching #2 Regis yesterday I would say no.

Division One
Minimal changes this week. Neenah lost to top D2 team Kauakauna whose taken Kimberly's spot in beating everyone now. Sheboygan North lost to a very good Ashwaubenon dropping to 14. Burlington lost to Waterford and barely hang on to the rankings at 15. Racine Horlick lost to Riverside who should of beaten them and being that Horlick just beat Case I couldn't justify dropping Horlick below case and have them go up to nine now.

1. Stevens Point
2. Milwaukee King
3. Germantown
4. Milwaukee Riverside
5. Kimberly
6. Muskego
7. Superior
8. Kenosha Indian Trail 
9. Racine Horlick
10. Racine Case
11. Neenah
12. De Pere
13. Milwaukee Marquette
14. Sheboygan North
15. Burlington

Division Two
Another division that remained fairly stable. Rice Lake lost to Eau Claire Memorial and fall to seven because I couldn't drop them below Menomonie a team they just beat. Luxemburg Casco lost to Seymour a conference rival and are sandwich between Seymour and Shawano conference opponents. Stoughton destroyed Sauk Prairie who calls to 14. Port Washington lost to Germantown and Homestead two extremely good D1 teams and stay in the rankings at 15.

1. Kaukauna
2. Milwaukee Pius
3. Seymour
4. Luxemburg Casco
5. Shawano
6. Wisconsin Lutheran
7. Rice Lake
8. Menomonie
9. Mount Horeb
10. Stoughton
11. Milwaukee Washington
12. Milwaukee Messmer
13. La Crosse Central 
14. Sauk Prairie
15. Port Washington

Division Three
Brookfield Academy lost to Kettle Moraine Lutheran and drop a couple spots to 10. Lake Mills lost to Poynette who I've neglected a bit in the rankings and have Poynette jump to 13 and Lake Mills falls to 15. Brown Deer lost to a good D2 Milwaukee Washington team and fall to 11. Southern Door lost to Luxemburg Casco no surprise and fall to 14. Valders lost to St Mary Central and Laconia and fall out of the rankings. Arcadia is a team I really want to rank but, just can't find a spot for them.

1. Prescott
2. GET
3. Kettle Moraine Lutheran
4. Freedom
5. Watertown Luther Prep
6. Ripon
7. Laconia
8. Marshall
9. Roncalli
10. Brookfield Academy
11. Brown Deer
12. Waupun
13. Poynette
14. Southern Door
15. Lake Mills

Division Four
Cuba City lost to Darlington, Brillion lost to Roncalli, and Lourdes lost to Algoma with all teams checking in just behind Darlington at 8,9, and 10. Fall Creek lost to Regis and drop just one spot to 12. Blair Taylor lost to Arcadia and just couldn't keep them in the rankings anymore. Phillips and St Marys Springs are new to the rankings as I also had Frederic ranked in D4 when they are actually D5.

1. Whitefish Bay Dominican
2. Eau Claire Regis
3. Mineral Point
4. Marathon
5. Unity
6. Racine St Catherines
7. Darlington
8. Cuba City
9. Brillion
10. Lourdes
11. Amherst
12. Fall Creek
13. Iola Scandenavia
14. Phillips
15. St Marys Springs

Division Five
Had a few big changes in this one with Fredric getting moved to the correct division and then Wausaukee lost to Wabeno/Laona, which left a dilemma. Do you drop Wausaukee all the way to 15 or move Wabeno/Laona up, which typically I don't do. I moved Waubeno/Laona to three, Fredric four, and Wausaukee to five. Gilmanton lost to Cochrane-Foutain City and Necedah lost to Bangor dropping them to 9 and 10. New Auburn lost to Gilmanton, falling to 11. Potosi lost to Shullsburg and Seneca lost to La Farge, dropping them both from the rankings and Shullsburg jumps into the rankings at 15.

1. Randolph
2. Port Edwards
3. Wabeno/Laona
4. Fredric 
5. Wausaukee
6. Bangor
7. Cameron
8. Gresham 
9. Gilmanton
10. Necedah
11. New Auburn
12. Central Wisconsin Christian
13. Hillsboro
14. Wausau Newman
15. Shullsburg

Saturday, January 24, 2015

Poynette over Lake Mills

Tuesday night didn't have anything going on so decided to take in the Poynette verse Lake Mills game. This was a Capitol North Conference game which in my opinion might be one of the best medium size conferences in the state. Its a six team conference and all of the teams are division three. Poynette, Watertown Luther Prep, and Lake Mills have all spent time ranked in the top 10 and Columbus has just been on the fringe of being ranked all year. Lodi had recently been the power team as they have gone to state the past three years but, are down this year and Lakeside Lutheran had been at state three years ago I believe but, they are also down as well.

Coming into the game I had seen Lake Mills play and was fairly impressed with them and they are fun to watch playing an uptempo game and shooting a lot of three pointers. They are pretty young as they only have two seniors on the team and their top four scorers are all juniors and sophomores. For Poynette they started the year ranked very high in the state but, a couple bad losses early in the season knocked them down. Poynette gave Lodi everything they could handle a year ago and lost only one contributor from that team.

Early on Lake Mills looked very good as 6'6 junior Simon Lensmire scored the first six points of the game to jump out 6-0. Lake Mills hit seven three pointers in the first half led by 5'11 sophomore Brady Wagner and 5'9 senior Brian Nelson who combined on five of those threes. Poynette weathered the first half flurry of threes and just kind of slowly worked their way back into the game and after being down 10 after the first led by three at half. Poynette is a veteran team that never seemed  to panic and always seemed to be in control. What really changed the game was Poynette went to a diamond press and fell back into a 1-3-1 zone defense. 6'1 senior Jacob Reddeman came off the bench and really created difficulty for the smaller Lake Mills guards. Reddeman created some turn overs which led to easy Poynette buckets and layups for Reddeman. The zone didn't allow the open looks that Lake Mills was getting early on. In the half court Poynette's leading scorer 6'3 senior Tanner Bruchs couldn't find his shot but, fellow 6'3 senior Riley Lytle came up big getting the ball at free throw line and just going to work. Poynette also took advantage of their overall height advantage going to 6'5 senior Ben Lattimer who was being guarded by a 6'1 player.

In the second half Lake Mills just seemed wore down by the Poynette zone as the threes weren't dropping and many of the shots weren't even close and they only hit two threes in the second half. Poynette had the depth and height advantage which led to numerous offensive rebounds and second chance buckets. Lensmire may be 6'6 but, the rest of the team is about 6'0 and under and they don't have the bangers as Lytle had a field day on the offensive class and Lake Mills was continually one and done on offense. Lake Mills lived by the three in the first half and in the second half they died by the three. The depth and size advantage were the differences in this one.

Top Players 
Riley Lytle 6'3 senior Poynette- I would take this kid on my team anytime. He knows his limitations and doesn't try to do to much. He handles the ball a lot but, doesn't take outside shots his game is from 15 feet and in. Works extremely hard and goes to the hoop hard and can finish with either hand. His hard work gets him a ton of rebounds.

Jacob Reddeman 6'1 senior Poynette- Really was the reason that Poynette won coming off the bench. Played the top of the diamond press and 1-3-1, which is really one in the same. Reddeman forced numerous turnovers and really took the Lake Mills guards out of their comfort zone.

Ben Lattimer 6'5 senior Poynette- Really improved since last year. Showed a nice post game finishing over the smaller defenders. Missed some easy shots but, will really help Poynette in making a deep playoff run.

Simon Lensmire 6'6 junior Lake Mills- Moves extremely well for a big kid. More of an offensive player then defense but, really has a nice game playing more like a wing. Solid rebounder as well which he has to be because of the teams lack of overall size.

Box Score
Poy- Lytle 19 Bruchs 13 Lattimer 8 Reddeman 8 Bradley Smith 3 Jacob Krumberger 2 Tyler Klink 1 Scott Lenius 0 Brennan Pederson 0
LM- Lensmire 14 Alex Ranney 9 Wagner 9 Nelson 9 Nick Anderson 5 Collin Moen 0 Ben Dunkleberger 0

This was a pretty fun game to watch as Lake Mills took the big lead and then Poynette battled back and then extended their lead in the second half. I think the better team won as Poynette is the veteran team and has nice size overall to battle most D3 teams. Lake Mills is probably a year away from being the state contender but, if they hit their threes they can beat anyone.

Thursday, January 22, 2015

Midwest Players Classic

Has been five days since I attended the players classic but, going to do my best to do a recap of the games at the players classic up in La Crosse. For starters the La Crosse Center is a great place to host an even like this and not sure what we can't get tournament games there for sectionals like they do in other places. This year the event didn't have the teams of the past but, this is because they are looking to keep the Showcase more centralized to the La Crosse area and when teams are down in the La Crosse area games may get a little rough.

St Croix Lutheran MN 58 La Crosse Aquinas 21
Aquinas just isn't a very good team this year. Aquinas looked like they had some athletes but, they just couldn't drive the ball to the hoop and couldn't hit any outside shots and took a lot of bad shots. SCL was actually a pretty good team and I was fairly impressed with them. They had a lot of guys between 6'2 to 6'5 that could all do a little bit of everything. Two guys I really liked was juniors Aage Rovney and Ade Lamu. Rovney really drove to the hoop well but, didn't force things and picked his times to drive. Lamu really didn't shoot a ton but, he's a tremendous athlete that probably had 15 rebounds and got the bulk of his points on second chance buckets.

East Ridge MN 66 West Salem 33
This was another game that was over fairly quickly. West Salem plays very hard and is disciplined but, just didn't have the athletes or the size to battle East Ridge West Salem's top scorer, senior Bailey Williams really struggled with East Ridge's length and physicality that East Ridge brought and the refs let them play. West Salem was able to get some rebounds early on to keep things close but, then deep threes and turnovers led to some run out buckets.

Waverly-Shell Rock IW 57 Caledonia MN 54 
This was a battle of top teams ion their division in each of their states. Really was a fun game to watch. Not a fast pace game but, was just a very fundamentally sound game. Both teams really did a nice job of working from the inside out and they didn't take bad shots. Caledonia probably had more athletes and were the better team in my opinion but, Waverly's Jake Velky wouldn't let his team lose and made big shot after big shot. WSR jumped out early play Caledonia climbed back into and took the lead in the second and never looked back until WSR finally got the lead for good when Velky hit a three at the buzzer to win it. Both these teams would be very tough to beat in division three or four in Wisconsin which is where they would fall here I believe. Shell Rock had a pair of kids around 6'10 but, outside of them Caledonia was the bigger team and the two big kids never played together. Depsite the height differences by both teams it was negated by the strength and smart play of both teams.

Rice Lake 62 Rochestor John Marshall MN 51
This game was no where as close as the final score shows. This game was all about the Henry Ellenson show. Ellenson had his normal game. The outside shot wasn't falling for Ellenson but, everything else was and he really had a chance to show off his ball handling skills. The play of the game had to be when Ellenson brought the ball up the court and crossed over and then finished off with a big two handed dunk. For anyone that has never seen Ellenson play I always compare his game to Dirk Nowitzki. Ellenson is 6'10 but, really plays more like a wing and rarely post up. I think his skills will help him more as he moves up in the levels but, right now he's 6'10 and should just park his butt in the post. John Marshall's Michael Hurt held his own very well against Ellenson scoring 21 points and playing a tough man to man against him. Hurt is about 6'6 or 6'7 I'd guess evidently is going to Minnesota which may be a bit of a stretch for him but, I did like his play so who knows.

La Crosse Aquinas girls won big over La Crosse Central. Didn't keep score so no idea what the final was but, it wasn't good. 

La Crosse Central 70 Sioux City North IW 67 
Easily the game of the day with entertainment value and closeness. Central starts four sophomores and I was very impressed with them. Central is a quick long team and I have no idea how they have lost four games this year. This was the coming out party for sophomore Kobe King for Central. King can jump out of the gym, drive to the hoop, and can hit the three. In my mind right now King is the top Sophomore I have seen this year. King had a monster put back dunk to go along with 31 points. This game looked like a run away at one point as they were up by 20 at one point until North's Daniel Tillo started lighting up from down town. Tillo shot a lot in the first half but, they weren't going but, in the second half they started to fall. Some poor free throw shooting by Central gave North an opening and missed a desperation three at the buzzer when they couldn't get the ball in Tillo's hands.

Top Players Didn't have heights for players
Aage Roveny junior St Croix Lutheran- Could really get to the hoop and score and also had the outside jumper in his arsenial as well.

Ade Lamu junior St Croix Lutheran- Guessing he was 6'4 or 6'3 but, dominated the glass on both ends. Most of his points off of transition or offensive rebounds. Athlete describes him perfectly.

Sid Tomes senior East Ridge- 6'4 point guard and he was every bit of a point guard. Could really score but, really looked to set up his team mates. Had a handful of passes that made you want to stand up a cheer.

Seth Green junior East Ridge- Another long athlete. Green did a great job of guarding West Salem's Baily Williams and did a little bit of everything as a glue guy.

Kyle Sorenson senior Caledonia- A perfect high post player at 6'7 passes very well and can hit the mid range shot. Runs the court well as well.

Justin Burg senior Caledonia- Did a very nice job guarding the 6'10 Austin Phyfe and was able to score in the post.

Jake Velky senior Waverly-Shell Rock- Sharpshooter from the outside and had a very nice step back jumper which he used to hit the game winner. Very strong player with the ball in his hands.

Austin Phyfe sophomore Waverly-Shell Rock- Big man with a very nice touch around the rim and has a great game with his back to the basket.

Henry Ellenson senior Rice Lake- Everyone knows about Ellenson already but, just think Dirk Nowitzki. One of the fastest players on the court at 6'10, handles the ball, and does everything. Had six dunks in the game.

Michael Hurt senior John Marshall- Moves really well for a kid his size and showed the ability to hit the three. Would be a good role player at the next level.

Kobe King sophomore La Crosse Central- Already said everything earlier. Might be the best leaper in the state and he's a big time player just waiting to blow up.

Daniel Tillo senior Sioux City North- Sharpshooter and shoot he does. When he's able to step into a three the shot it going to fall.

Top Scorers
Kobe King Central 31
Daniel Tillo Sioux City 29 
Henry Ellenson Rice Lake 25
Michael Hurt John Marshal 21 
Seth Green East Ridge 16
Bobby Remke East Ridge 16 
Jake Velky Waverly-Shell Rock 16 
Ade Lamu St Croix 15












Sunday, January 18, 2015

Week Seven Rankings

Once again its Sunday and another week is completed and another round of rankings for myself. Again these are solely my rankings and are purely for the fun of myself and to compare my thoughts to what the actually rankings are.

Division One
Kimberly lost to a very very good Kaukauna team and drop to five. Racine Case lost to Racine Horlick and drop all the way to 13 mostly because I feel Horlick and Kenosha Indian Trail are teams that have been over looked and should be in the rankings. De Pere lost to Ashwaubenon and drop to 14 mostly because the two new teams. Milwaukee Marquette lost to Whitefish Bay and Germantown but, hang on the rankings at 15. Sun Prairie lost to Madison East and Lafollette fall from the rankings and will have a hard time getting back into the rankings with Nick Noskowiak out for the foreseeable future. Homestead lost to Whitefish Bay and also fall from the rankings but, in my mind are sitting at 16.

1. Stevens Point
2. Milwaukee King
3. Germantown
4. Milwaukee Riverside
5. Kimberly
6. Muskego
7. Neenah
8. Superior
9. Sheboygan North
10. Burlington
11. Kenosha Indian Trail 
12. Racine Horlick 
13. Racine Case
14. De Pere
15. Milwaukee Marquette

Division Two
Like every year Division Two is appearing to be a mess. Seymour lost to West De Pere and drop to five. Milwaukee Pius lost to Germantown a very good team and drop only a spot to four. Wisconsin Lutheran lost to Hartford and dropped down to #7 followed by Menomonie who lost to Eau Claire Memorial and Rice Lake. Stoughton lost to Monona Grove and dropped a couple spots to 10. Sauk Prairie lost to Mount Horeb but, hold at the same spot at 11. Port Washington lost to Germantown and drop one spot to 14. Surprising Milwaukee North and Whitefish Bay, who has been beating some very good teams as of late, are just outside the rankings.

1. Kaukauna
2. Rice Lake
3. Luxemburg Casco
4. Milwaukee Pius
5. Seymour
6. Shawano
7. Wisconsin Lutheran
8. Menomonie
9. Mount Horeb
10. Stoughton
11. Sauk Prairie
12. Milwaukee Washington
13. Milwaukee Messmer
14. Port Washington
15. La Crosse Central

Division Three
Division three remained very stable with only two teams having lost. Waupun lost to Beaver Dam and Valders lost to Brillion, knocking both teams to 14 and 15. Poynette is a team I would love to put into the rankings but, just didn't have anyone to knock out.

1. Prescott
2. GET
3. Kettle Moraine Lutheran
4. Freedom
5. Watertown Luther Prep
6. Ripon
7. Brookfield Academy
8. Lake Mills
9. Laconia
10. Brown Deer
11. Marshall
12. Roncalli
13. Southern Door
14. Waupun
15. Valders

Division Four
St.Cats lost to Dominican which is always a hard one but, dropped them to nine just ahead of Darlington lost to Mineral Point but, staid at the same spot. Auburndale lost to Wausau Newman and fell from the rankings being replaced by Fredric. Blair Taylor lost to Gilmanton and hang on to the 15 spot, while Bonduel lost to Stevens Point Pacelli and are replaced by Iola Scandinavia.

1. Whitefish Bay Dominican
2. Eau Claire Regis
3. Mineral Point
4. Cuba City
5. Marathon
6. Brillion
7. Lourdes
8. Unity
9. Racine St Catherines
10. Darlington
11. Fall Creek
12. Amherst
13. Fredric
14. Iola Scandenavia
15. Blair Taylor

Division Five
Central Wisconsin Christian lost to Randolph and Lourdes two very good teams but, had to drop them to 10. Sheboygan Lutheran lost to Sheboygan Christian and Cedar Grove-Belgium and fall from the rankings and are replaced by Wabeno/Laona. Gresham lost to Port Edwards but, held on to the same spot at #9.

1. Wausaukee
2. Randolph
3. Port Edwards
4. Gilmanton
5. Necedah
6. Bangor
7. New Auburn 
8. Cameron
9. Gresham 
10. Central Wisconsin Christian
11. Hillsboro
12. Wausau Newman
13. Potosi
14. Seneca
15. Wabeno/Laona