BlackAndBlueDevil

This is the one everyone's been waiting for. Or at least Andrew Donald and myself. There is something about Siegel. I don't know. Aside from their talent, something different seems to be there; the intimidation factor, maybe? The Stars seem to have been the one team all season that scares us a little. Maybe it's just me. I don't want to speak for the team. Fact #1: Lebanon has gotten closer every time. The first game wasn't close despite the score, the second game featured that huge comeback by LHS, and the third game was incredibly close the entire way. Are the Devils due? Fact #2: Lebanon's perimeter shooters will have to be on for the Devils to have a chance. They don't have to jack up threes at every opportunity, but the ones Cross, Presley, Johnson, (and Hall) take will have to be good ones. Fact #3: Siegel will punish LHS if they forget about Ross and Cutter. Too many times Lebanon has let the "Ninja" or "Macaulay Culkin" spot up for a momentum-changing three. Fact #4: Barring an unforseen collapse, neither team will roll. Obviously Lebanon expects a dogfight if they want to win, but by now the Stars should also realize that LHS will give them a battle. Fact #5: I love my alma mater. I live and die with every game this team plays. No matter what happens tonight, I have the utmost respect for every single member of that team. I will always bleed Blue. You want it; now go get it, boys.

Good job Devils. I know you didn't play your best, but maybe you got that out of your system for tomorrow. I thought the game could have been called better, but I think the bad calls pretty much evened out. I want to send a special congrats to Freddie Hall. Probably the most selfless PG I know, before tonight I hadn't seen him take one shot in at least a month. Tonight he went 3-4 on 3-point FGs and hit several clutch FTs. Way to go Freddie. Congratulations to Shelbyville on a good season. We got our revenge, now let's get ready for the big boys.

Thanks, Hoolie, for supporting your district. Good luck to you too I honestly don't know enough about Shelbyville to take a stab at how this will shake out. It would be nice to a see a 7-AAA sweeep, though. It's a tall order, but it can be done. More importantly, with Bradley's loss, how about two Region 4 teams in the big dance? Good luck Blue Devils. I will be there cheering you on.

Thoughts on this game? Pretty evenly matched? Let's hear it.

I'm a Lebanon fan, and I'm going to post. And if you take a look back, I don't talk trash. Before or after a game. Siegel is a better team. No shame in admitting that. The refs were horrible both ways. If Lebanon is decent from the line, this game is a tad more interesting. As it is, all that's left to do is give credit to the Stars for winning and to Lebanon for playing hard and deserving a win. I can't wait for Riverdale.

Congratulations to Siegel. Though I am a Lebanon fan, I have to give props to the Stars. I thought this was a great game in terms of competition. Neither team looked their best, but it was entertaining. I bet the Nation didn't think we could hang with them. After watching the game, some thoughts: 1. The referees did their usual shoddy job. It went both ways, this isn't complaining about the officiating. 2. I know both Siegel and Lebanon are capable of better games. 3. The better team won tonight. Which is not to say Lebanon cannot beat Siegel. 4. A lot less scoring than I anticipated from these two. 5. I want to see the Devils get the Stars again this season. 6. LHS HAS TO HIT FREE THROWS. It is painful to watch. They hit a few here or there, it''s a different ballgame. They can't even hit 50%, and a lot of those misses are front ends of 1-and-1s. Good luck tomorrow, Stars. And of course, Go Big Blue.

LOL.... rhatchez, appreciate the support but let's not get carried away here, mmkay? Siegel should win on paper by about 7-10. But that's why they play the games.

I assume, Hoolie, that you are referring to which team you'd rather play in the consolation game, right? I would much rather see LHS play Riverdale. Whether it's in the championship or the third-place game.

If you are going to complain about a goaltending call, at least know what the heck you are talking about. The shot in question was not even close to being in the cylinder. The ball was pinned against the backboard, not even in the square. Goaltending? Probably. But don't let your imagination run away with you. I can only imagine what we'll be hearing next... "As he was shooting the ball, Donald punched him in the nose and denounced the moral fiber of his mother. Despite that, the ball passed completely through the net, after which a Lebanon player threw it back up through the net, and the referee made no call."

Hey now, dawbsitw, don't ever, ever knock tennis. I played for LHS (not that I was great or anything), and I know Hoolie is awesome. I love that sport. Back off

It could have happened. I just didn't see it, that's all. Just because a lot of fouls are called doesn't mean they aren't deserved. Anytime there is a high number of fouls, people automatically complain about bad officiating. If Cookeville fouled Lebanon seven times in the first three minutes then so be it. I'm not wearing the stripes, so I can't say. Give credit to Cookeville for being a good team and having a good season. Give credit to Lebanon for outplaying them and moving on. Now let's talk about Thursday.

Here we go again. I was at the game. How many of you were? I thought the number of fouls called was a bit excessive, but not unfair one way or the other. I don't remember anyone from Lebanon taking the ball out of the cylinder. I do know that Cookeville's coach deserved what he got. He was acting like a child out there. I thought the Cavs showed a lot of heart coming back the way they did. The game could have probably gone either way. However, regardless of how you feel the game was called, who was the better team on the floor last night? If you think with your head and not with your heart, I think you'll figure out it was the Devils. Again congrats Cavs on a great season. We will do our best to represent the district well. Siegel, you're next. Our next opponent, at least.

This is a great matchup. For some reason, Cookeville is just one of those teams the Devils don't match up particularly well with. I think the sharpshooters on both sides (Presley and Cross from LHS, Hennigan and Hill from CHS) will negate each other, unless one or the other has a terribly cold night. I agree that the x-factor will be the play of Donald, and to a lesser extent, Britton Winfree and Nick Payne. If Lebanon grabs the offensive rebounds I believe they will win. In the end, however, this seems to be one of those contests that will boil down to something mundane. A few free throws here or there, how a team responds to a scoring run, careless ballhandling, time management. The list goes on. No matter how the regular season goes, Lebanon always seems to pull it together in the postseason. Not to take anything away from the Cavs; they are a great squad and would represent our district well. I just think Keil will have the boys ready. Lebanon by 4. Until I change my mind.

1. Andrew Donald 2. Devin Boyd 3. Jimmy Oden 4. Keith Ramsey 5. Ben Sneed 6. Todd Cross 7. Chaisson Allen 8. Taylor Stearman 9. Ryan Denney 10. Kevin Smith

I saw those numbers on Presley as well. Write in for JP. Just seeing this and the MVP poll I am reminded of how great a district we have.

At this point I'm not altogether sure any path in the tourney is easier than another. Getting Warren in the first round helps, though. But 2-7? Not a ton of difference there.

I feel that Siegel has a better team and deserved to win tonight. Lebanon played well and deserved to win as well. Except for the fact that they can't pull it out in crunch time. I love Coach Keil and this team but there is something going wrong in their heads. If it's a close game you might as well forget it. I really hope that the Devils can find it in them to perform in the clutch. A few observations from the game: 1. Siegel is tremendously talented. Their ball handling and movement is excellent. And Ramsey shoots threes? Holy crap. Let's not even talk about how much bigger they are than LHS. 2. Lebanon has tremendous athletes, but is incredibly streaky. Presley was lights out tonight, but so was most of Siegel's team. 3. The Siegel Nation is simultaneously the most annoying and interesting part of 7-AAA hoops. As a fan of the other team, I wanted to punch every single one of them in the face, but that means they are doing their job. Props from me. Jerks 4. I'm going to say this, and I know I'll hear from all you Siegel folk, but I was not pleased with the way this game was called. I know I hate to hear fans of another team blame officiating after a loss, so I'm hesitant to discuss this. But... #20 (Oden?) pushed off big time just about every trip down the floor. In the second half there were some ridiculous touch fouls called on LHS before the ball even got past halfcourt in a nonfouling situation. The first score of the game is a great example of the way this game was called. Anybody with eyes to see (and who can be at least partially objective) saw the Siegel player (I think it was Oden) take waaay too many hops on his way in. It was blatantly obvious to even those who don't know basketball. But... you are right in saying the refs did not score 91 points for the Stars. As I said before, they deserved the W. All we can do is look forward to the tournament. I think Siegel will probably lock up 1st and WC is definitely 8th. Every other matchup is wide open. Anyone can beat anyone. It'll be a fascinating tourney. I just hope the Blue Devils can learn something from all these heartbreakers. I know my heart's broken.

I think the point you are referring to as "slim shady" is John Presley. I think it's great because he looks so small and young, but the kid can play. Can't make a prediction. I hope it will be a close game, but I don't know how many more close losses I can take. If Lebanon will play for the full 36 they can win. They always seem to be very streaky. Siegel is not the kind of team you can take quarters off against. Good luck to both teams. And go Blue Devils.

Blackman is one of the best 3-6 teams you will see. They can play with anyone; they just need to figure out how to win close ones. Nobody has run away with 7-AAA yet. With the exception of WC, generally everyone plays everyone close. A few more wins and Siegel's got it, but there's a lot of basketball left. 2-7 are certainly up for grabs.

Congrats Lunn. I grew up playing ball with the guy, and he's the epitome of a student-athlete. Good luck the rest of the way.

No, Andrew didn't dunk, but Britton Winfree (41) threw down nasty a minute or so into the game, and Sneed had a nice jam in the second half. Great game. I have the utmost respect for Blackman. Turnham is a good coach, and he has his boys play their hearts out even when they appear to be outmatched. They will be a dangerous team come tourney time; they can play with anyone. Lebanon pulled it out when it counted. Consistency (and FTs) are the main ingredients missing from this team. If they can improve those, they will be one of the district's best. Good luck Blaze. And of course, to the Devils as well.

Great effort by both teams. Oakland was strong in the 1st half and the Devils fought back. LHS had a couple of chances to win it in regulation and OT, but could not convert. Another tough loss for a talented team. I was at the game, and didn't think the officials were that bad. Just because team fouls was 9-3 doesn't mean the officiating was terrible. Ever think that maybe OHS committed more fouls? There were some Patriot parents sitting in front of me that were completely classless. I would be ashamed if I was their son. They let me announce the starting lineups last night. I realized how much I missed doing the announcing. Maybe next year if my schedule permits. You have the talent, Devils. Just keep working.

How deep does Lebanon go? Umm, no disrespect to the girls, I love them all. But you probably shouldn't worry about depth when you still have issues with getting five players on the court.

Wow, those are huge numbers. I'm really impressed with Clark. Any word on where she's going to go to college?

I think a 7-AAA all-star team could hang with anybody in the state. I'm not sure if Hennigan belongs though. No knock on him, but I feel like there are better players at that position.