bball1984

"So called Big Man?" That kid is easily the best player in the state in his class, and could be one of the best ever to come out of Tennessee. You don't see too many 6-10 big men who can dribble it up the floor and nail a pull-up three. I thought he did pretty well today. I will also congratulate UC, they played well, and were clearly the better team. Weddle is a solid player as well.

I will say that I have been impressed with the overall shooting at the state tournament so far. Usually, shooting gets worse inside the Murphy Center b/c people aren't used to shooting in an open space like that. Several teams have shot the ball well today. Maybe we are getting back to the fundamentals finally!

The West did have a good showing today in A ball. It helped that UC played Cloudland, who was easily the worst team I have ever seen in the state tournament in my years of attending. I believe Cosby is a bit overrated from what I had been told they were. However, don't want to take credit away from UC and Humboldt. Both teams looked very tough today, and I expect the two teams to meet in the finals. I do think Humboldt will get more than they expect from Grace on Friday though. UC should roll over Wayne Co.

You "asked" someone from East Roberson? Does that imply that you did not even attend the game? At any rate, I went to see for myself and came away VERY impressed with the McMasters kid. He did miss a couple layups at the beginning, bt it is not like they were uncontested. He caught passes in the air from teammates and bobbled them. I thought he just looked nervous in the beginning. Once he settled down, he probably had double digit blocks and rebounds. He also showed a very good shooting stroke, knocking down a three and a couple pull up jumpers. He took the ball the length of the floor off several rebounds and made some nice passes for layups. I thought he was an incredible talent, and was the clear difference in the game. He saved grace at least 10 points off blocked layups alone, and even blocked one of East Robertson's dunk attempts. I saw the UC game, and their sophomore is good, but not anywhere near the talent level of McMasters. He is going to be SCARY good if he continues to improve. I was sitting in the general vicinity of several college coaches, and as they all kept saying, you can't find a big man with his skill set too often.

I agree. They won't have a cakewalk on Wednesday, though they are the superior team. Friday they will probably be facing the best team they have seen ALL season, and they don't play zone, so it could equal big time trouble. Here's hoping they can pull it off though!

I agree. Whoever you are Grace Golden Eagles, you are making a complete fool of yourself and your school.

Final score: Grace 71, CSAS 57

Score update?

Quite surprised that Seth Skogen was a finalist...

Grace could probably win 3 out of 10 against McMinn. Their styles of play clash a little bit, and McMinn's athleticism would cause Grace problems. They would be very entertaining games though!

Best team in city limits is Red Bank. Best team in immediate area is McMinn Central.

I don't think Coach Henry is a problem. He is one of the best coaches in the state.

Look, here is my point. I have no personal vendetta against Grace, I like the school and the team. I am not affiliated with them either. I do enjoy good basketball, and part of good basketball is good coaching and effort from players. It is frustrating and disappointing to watch a team that has superior talent lose games to inferior teams because of coaching, lack of hustle, etc. What I have seen (with the exception of the Dilts and Van Horn kids) is a team that is lazy defensively, and refuses to play a zone, which is trouble. They also have (supposedly) the best sophomore forward in the center, but play him at the free throw. When the offense does allow him to post up, his teammates are too busy pulling jumpers from forty feet out to pass him the ball. So, his teammates AND coaches take him out of the offense. I know people were excited two years ago when they had a miracle run to the title game, and it was a crowning achievement. However, this year's team could and should win a title, but as it looks now that won't happen. They don't even run an offense!

Well, whichever one you are, how can you not be dissatisfied with the job he is doing there? Having a 6-8 kid play offense at the free throw line, and repeatedly losing to more athletic teams that can't shoot because he doesn't play a zone? I guess Grace has a program that is satisfied with making it to sub-state or state but always coming up empty-handed.

I believe if I were a Grace parent/booster, I would be calling for a change in coaching. They have too much talent and ability to lose games against teams like Ooltewah ( a traditional power, but weak this year), Central, and Notre Dame. I did not even see the game, but imagine that Grace played nothing but man and Ooltewah used their athleticism to blow by them to the basket. It is not a mistake to use a zone when the situation warrants...

I think so. Grace is more talented than ever, but most teams (see Howard, Brainerd, McCallie, Temple, Baylor, CCS, Lookout Valley, Ooltewah) that are usually very strong are unusually weak. I am not saying Temple is bad, because they are one of the top teams in the city, but they are much weaker than usual. East Ridge is improved this year, Grace is solid, and Red Bank is solid as well.

Me too. If you wanted just a straight top 10 list in A ball, it would have Middleton, Union City, Lake County, and Humboldt all ahead of Grace and Temple.

Yep, man-to-man 24/7 is not smart against teams that are more athletic than you, and will cost them in Murfreesboro against someone like Middleton or Union City.

No, but they will be in for a rude awakening at State. To me, they just are not anywhere near as good as they should be. I managed to make it to the first McCallie game that Grace won, and it was obvious that McCallie had superior coaching. I figured that Grace would lose the second matchup simply because the McCallie coach would have more time to prepare for their matchup. I was not there to see the game last night, but imagine that Grace simply got outcoached. You Grace diehards are blind to what is happening. This is the least talented team Temple has had in probably six years, but they compete with Grace because of coaching and minor details like running an offense.

As I've said on here before, you have to question what is going on at Grace. Is it coaching, selfish players, something else? Because the times I have seen them play, McMasters plays offense at the free throw line. He can't go to the offensive boards from here, nor can he post up down low. I understand that he can hit the outside jumper, but he is also 6-10, and no one in the entire state in A ball can matchup with that. It is like having Shaq and taking him away from the basket on offense. I hope their coaches are not that bad....

Unless Grace or Temple plays exceptionally poorly, they lose both by double digits.

I understand that he plays with 6 seniors, but if I were one of those seniors I would realize that it is best for the team if he gets touches in the post.

I agree about Grace's coaching. No offense to any Temple fans on here, but Grace's coaching allows Temple to keep these games way too close. Grace runs NO offense, and I am sure it kills a good coach like Wadley to lose to a team that refuses to even set a play. Grace is wasting McMasters in the middle. Why does he start at the free throw line on offense? They completely keep him from hitting the offensive boards or posting up. Although, even if he did post up, it seems his teammates (except the Van Horn kid) would not even give him the ball. It amazes me that they keep winning forcing up as many bad shots as they do. However, they are talented, and McMasters is a player. It is a tossup as to whether Skogen or Van Horn was the best player on the floor. I think Van Horn pretty much carried Grace down the stretch, he is a player! Skogen hits some tough shots too.

I agree. They need to have McMasters under the basket. Grace played together this tournament, and it showed with them winning the title. I will stick by the statement that Grace is twenty points better than Temple. I think they have that much better of a team than Temple, but coaching on both sides helps Temple keep it close.

SoccerPop, you are correct, the fans come out ahead in this series. It is a joy to watch. As for not playing their "A" game, I think Grace played far below their potential against Notre Dame and Central. They played solid, but not great, against Temple. In my opinion, Grace should have won by about 20. As for Temple, they obviously don't have the talent Grace has and don't match up well with them. However, Temple is much better coached and more disciplined, so they will be in every game against Grace. If Grace's coach ever lets McMasters post up, Temple won't have much of a chance. Temple's only true scorer is Skogen (and boy did he hit some tough shots against Grace Saturday!). Unfortunately for Temple, Skogen will have to play at least that well EVERY game for them to have a chance. Overall, a great series to watch and you always get your money's worth!