bulldogplayermom

I don't understand how Coalfield was the second best team if they didn't get the second place trophy. Regular Season isn't really worth anything if you aren't in the #1 spot when it's over. I feel like Oneida had a very good season and should be very proud of what they did. I was at the Wartburg vs. Meigs Co. Game and talked to coach about it and he was not happy that Grace had won. Said they (Oneida) could've gone a long way. I agree. But, with one point Oneida lived off Wartburg and O.S. being down quite a bit this year. They didn't really have anyone to challenge them. Coalfield is good but doesn't usually bring the D in tournaments that O.S. and Wartburg are known for. Wartburg was up 2 with about 4 minutes left in the 3rd quarter. Meigs is a good team but Melton for the Lady Dogs should have shot 20 free-throws herself. Not saying that was the difference but it was a key point. Wartburg needs a point guard, they haven't had one since Phillips graduated and will not return to the Region Semis until one shows up. Really poor second half to the Lady Dog Guards and it ended in a 22 point loss. Keep in mind with 11 minutes left they had the lead! I guess it's on to next year. Hopefully with my job changing I'll be able to make it to more games next year. Have a great off season 4A best of luck to everyone.

Thank you Kazam37 for constantly implying that somehow the first Wartburg game was a fluke. You can't help but give bulletin board material can you? I am sure that Wartburg is kicking themselves for getting down by 20 in the first quarter then outscoring the Lady Indians by 10 the rest of the way. Hopefully the girls will get serious and maybe the two teams can meet again but we in the burg understand that if wartburg wins it will only be due to an Oneida lapse or lack of execution. You could argue that Wartburg would have won the district title if injuries hadn't hurt them. Carter was the best all around player in the district this year. Best Coach is Christopher Best Player is Twin - O.S.

I think Oneida will be really good this year. I also don't think you can count Wartburg out of the Region or District either. They had Grace down over 20 points at MTSU and simply played everyone the remainder of the game. According to those at the game Grace only took the lead late 4th quarter vs. Wartburg's Bench. Wartburg also played Jackson Co. to overtime at MTSU. The Lady Bulldogs also return 4 starters from last years team and return 6 of their top 8 in the rotation, they have 2 really solid soph. players a guard and a post that look to add to their depth. It's going to be a fun year to watch. Makes me wish mine hadn't graduated. I would say that Grace, Wartburg, Oneida, and Meigs are the best in the Region and any one of the 4 could win it! I'm not trying to take anything away from any team. It looks like this Region is going to be very strong this year and next. I don't know how you can have a top 5 in district 4 and not list Phillips from Wartburg. She is a 2 time District 4A Tournament MVP and averages over 15ppg.

Kazam, If it helps everyone in district 4A on the girls side sleep better to assume that moving the tournament will change the champion let me break down the numbers thrown out by hooters earlier. The 6 teams that the Lady Dawgs have lost to over the past few years on neutral or away courts were all top 10 teams with 2 ranked in the top 3 in the AP poll. They included 1 state champion and 3 final four teams with one other finishing in the runner up position. My point should be obvious but I'll spell it out for you. Wartburg lost those games because they played vs. better and in some cases much better teams. The teams that my daughter played on that went to North Green and Hampton were lucky to even be in the sub-state. The O.S. game at Harriman has been the exception in the 6 teams I really feel that our team matched up well with them. I think we were something like 1-17 from the three point line and that won't get it done for a team that averages making 6 or 7 three's a game. I wish Big D would put our 3 point percentage up for the season I would think that this team was one of the poorer shooting squads he has had over the past few seasons. Good Luck to the Lady Cats and I hope that you can bring home the regional title!

Kazzy said that Wartburg didn't have enough athletes to pull this off but last night I thought they were the more athletic team. When you look at Carter, Phillips, and Hamby you see players that can do many things very well, throw in the size and strength of Laughter and you have a tough team for anyone to play. Looking back on the year I think Wartburg actually played below their ability in the first 2 games with the lady indians. I think wartburg should have won at least one of those and maybe both. They were the second best team on paper in the district see the poll on this thread. Many people thought they would win.

Wartburg is 16-2 but you have to remember some of those have been satellite games with jellico, they earned those games at home in the first round of Region and District so I don't know how you hold that against them. Goose would this be an issue if wartburg was finishing 4th every year? This Wartburg program has done things the right way and always is competitive this time of year. No debate here they are the best program in the district in the last 6 years they have played for 5 4A championships and 4 substates, 4 regional championships, winning 3 in 4A, 2 Regions, and 2 Sub-states. Can we just let these kids enjoy what they've been apart of and stop trying to say that the games being at wartburg is the only reason they are good. There is something special going on here and that should be seen as an accomplishment.

That's true if O.S. had played Wartburg in the cafeteria they would've won. It's about the size of their home court.

Kazzy, You may be right about the Lady Dogs but I think they are getting better on the bench and have been getting solid minutes from one soph and two freshmen over the last 10 games. They are also 8/10 in that stretch. I think O.S. is going to win but feel that the Lady Dogs are getting a chance to grow up in the next two weeks. They return almost everyone from the 8 or 9 they play. I won't predict the score but wish Coach and the Girls the best of luck against a very good O.S. squad! They will not back down from O.S. and will make it a game.

I feel up and down with Wartburg. They are going to be very good in the future next 2 years I just feel that this season the team hasn't had an identity to speak of. When they get back to running Coach Davis's defense in the coming years and to their usually excellent motion offense they will be fine. This year they play much of the time with 1 Jr. 1 Freshmen, and 3 Soph. on the floor at a time and sometimes 2 Freshmen. They only lose 2 Seniors so I think this year has been one where growing up has had to happen. Not making an excuse but stating a fact. Wartburg has had 3-6 seniors per year over the last few seasons that played and led. This year only 2 and it makes a difference. Good luck to everyone going in to the tournaments!

Wartburg has a good post and a good point player that haven't played. They could give 6-10 ppg between them and that would change things for wartburg an awful lot. To dispute that is kinda dumb. As for who the best coach is, Davis has done more than any in his 5 years, but West, Christopher, Snow, and Hines are all very accomplished. I'd say the district has good coaches in 5 schools and that is good for those kids. No best coach but many schools cold do worse than the names found in this district. Nobody want's to debate anymore because all simply want to be nasty with comments. It's better when it's quiet.

I agree with you G-pride, only thing is I feel Wartburg still needs to be watched they are shooting right now in the teens from the floor and I just don't think this is something that these kids have done over their playing careers, I'd look for them to gel after christmas and become a threat in the region following some more growing up. They are still one of the biggest teams in the region and once they figure it out could be a matchup problem for most teams.

Most teams I've seen look about as expected. I think that Wartburg, O.S., and Oneida are the top three and right now I'd say O.S. is the best of the bunch. Oneida will be good and Wartburg has a really good starting 5 but they have no experience off the bench. From what I heard they wouldn't have lost their greenback game if they hadn't made several late game mistakes. I know they were up 6-8 points late after trailing by about 10 and lost, that's not usually what they do in close games. So I'm going to make predictions for the top three O.S. will go undefeated in the district reg season 12-0 (Looked really great only time I've seen them) Unlike Wartburg they O.S. looked like they were ready to win big now. Oneida will lose 2 games in the district 10-2 (West has them looking like Oneida again and I think they have a slight edge on the Lady Dogs because of their post game) Wartburg will finish from 7-9 district wins It looks like they are playing 6 or 7 underclassmen in their rotation and it will take time to become great again. Still 8-4 in district wouldn't be awful. Before the faithful start fighting over me picking someone other than wartburg for the reg season just remember tournaments may be a different story. That has been our history around here lately. I just think from the game I've seen them play 32-29 Sweetwater they were sloppy.

Wartburg may fall off more than just to the middle of the pack. Mine doesn't play anymore so I'm a little out of the loop but I'm hearing that the team is having some internal problems. But that's usually what Davis is good at handling so we will have to wait and see. I wouldn't want to be those causing issues on the team if he is like he used to be they won't be there very long. I would say that the Wartburg girls need to be very thankful for their good luck the last few years and keep a great work hard and don't complain attitude. Right now I'm hearing they arent. If that is true Wartburg will be 4th or 5th this year regular season come tourney time who knows.

She's a great player and kid! Time to move on!

They hired a former college coach to head up their girl's team. I doubt they will go to the middle school ranks to fill the boys post. I would think Layne would be a good hire for Kingston and I think he would do a good job there. I also think he will do a great job if he stays at Wartburg. How do you leave a school where you can dominate for one that you will be lucky to finish in the top 3 in the district?

The highlight of my fan season in basketball was watching our fans heckle Davis during the second OT in the sub-state. Needless to say it wasn't a real intelligent fan but it was still funny. Lady dogs win district, district tourney, and regional tourney and this parent was just letting JD have it. It seems hard to make people happy. If I was a coach I would never talk to anyone that didn't play for me including the WECO crowd. But that's just my opinion. Coaching is not very respected.

I'm looking forward to seeing how JD puts next years team together. I think he is looking to play bigger with Hamby, Laughter, and Carter on the floor together. They would be a difficult matchup for other teams if they did that. But they would have to run different offense and defense than they do now. I think the biggest problem for east tn teams is they don't have your annual teams in the boro like Dist. 7. Region 1 and 2 always beat each other up in sub-state with no region having an advantage over the other. Players that have played good minutes that return are P- Laughter Started All Games but 1 P - Carter Played in every game P - Hamby Played in every game and started a couple G- Hurtt Played in all games G - Phillips 4A MVP and is only a Jr. next yr. Wartburg's issues come from the bench, that could be a really solid starting 5

I thought the coaches and players did fine in those games. The team just didn't shoot well, but to win in a tournament is to play well imo. Wartburg has Laughter 6'1, Carter 5'11, Hamby 5'9, Davidson 5'9, and Phillips is about 5'6 on the wing, they play 8 players but can go to 9 if necessary. They are all built like basketball players and are not super big. Wartburg plays however they need to at a given time to win that game. Some games they press every possession, others it is more a 1/2 court game. They have been in 3 sub-states in the last 4 years so they are used to big games and have won their dist the last 2 years. I think each team in this contest is to be respected for making it this far and I feel that this will be a good contest for both teams. I can see how each team could blow the other out Wartburg with balanced 3 point barrage like they hit Tellico Plains with and UC with Amber Fair running wild. In reality though I think it will be somewhere in the middle with one team winning by 8-10 points. Whoever that team is who knows..

All the talk about how good Tellico is over the season and how we couldn't beat them if we try ended up a 20 point win for the Lady Dogs! Tellico has a great team, but last night Wartburg had one of those signature games where a team really places itself in the zone! All players and coaches did a great job. Classic Davis not taking the timeout when TP made that run in the second! Great Stuff! What happened outlaw to the post she only had 4 points!

bitterfan your name says it all! I only said that was a stupid post and it was! I never said JD was the best coach in the dist or that christopher was a bad one. Both have positives and negatives. jacketfan seems to be on point. I am not arguing the point but a head to head comparison between os and wartburg shows them to be pretty close to equal since 07-08 From Coacht Schedules 07-08 WB Region Champs State Tourney Rd. 1 OS Dist Champs State Tourney Rd. 1 advantage - even 08-09 WB Sub State 2 A runners up OS 4A and 2A Champs State Tourney advantage - OS 09-10 WB 4a and 2A runner up Sub-State OS 4A Champs out Region 2nd Rd. advantage - WB 10-11 WB 4A champs out Region 2nd Rd OS out in 1st rd of district (put out by Wartburg) advantage WB 11-12 WB 4A Champs 4A reg season champs OS 4A runner up advantage WB...so far

This may be the stupidest post in the history of CoachT.com! 90% of the time he is talking to Thomas Davis the head coach at central middle and who is a part of the program and helps in practice and with scouting. TD is like an asst. coach. If I were going to criticize JD it would be for being overly controlling. He calls every offense and defense, handles his own substitutions, and keeps up with time outs and fouls basically himself. When we sit behind the bench it's crazy.

Jellico playing close with wartburg when the starters only played a little over 1/2 the game. is laughable and I'm sure they played better against OS as well, but Wartburg has a Soph and 2 Freshmen playing as does every other team in 4A. If everyone from the other teams graduated it would be different, but they don't. Jellico didn't seem to do anything but foul and play dirty when we were up there. In a tournament you cant get away with for instance pinching opposing players during free-throws. We will see what they have because they are going to get wartburg or os in a tournament and both won't be playing to get healthy or rest for the next game. They will be playing to win! It's kinda like this sometimes returning a bunch of players isn't always a good thing. However, I think teams will have to actually plan to play jellico next year so that is some improvement.

Generally that's one of Wartburg's team goals in late season. They usually make more free throws than the other team shoots due to their 1/2 court D smart and not too apt to foul. It's crucial that they play tough and guard without fouling. I really didn't see them do much that should've resulted in a foul, while oneida was extremely aggressive trying to block shots. When you block shots you usually foul more. I am betting that the player in question used the wrong vocabulary in showing her displeasure with the call. That is usually what warrants a tech from that distance away. You have got to remember Wartburg was 13-16 last year and won the dist. these kids have been in more close tournament type games than almost anyone in 4A. I thought it was experience that was the difference between them winning and losing. Oneida will be there in the end, I believe the lady dogs will as well.

Wartburg was ahead by 4 after fighting back from a 12 point deficit when their Point Guard went down with some sort of knee injury. Most at the game believed it could be a season ender for this young lady. I was astonished to hear the Oliver Springs student section heckle the young lady as she sat on the floor crying with a possible torn ACL. Their antics over there will get them in trouble some day. TSSAA needs to do something before a brawl breaks out! Wartburg will still be a good team, but you have to move them to 3 or 4 due to the loss of their sparkplug at the point. That young lady only scored about 4 ppg, but she was their best handler and defender! On a side note where has #24 gone for the lady dogs she is averaging single digits for the lady dogs and plays completely lazy! I'm shocked Coach D hasn't sent her to the bench! Any Ideas Thrilla?

Wartburg didn't play well until the last 4 minutes of the game and then whoa! They played lights out! A comment on Oneida, they are going to be right there come tournament time. Well coached and really good size. Wartburg has got to work harder early in games to avoid needing the late game heroics that were necessary last night. But Good win! Lets keep it going!