catuballer

I would agree. However, I do think Bradley Central has more talent. They either got out coahed or there are some teamwork issues at Bradley Central. Also, Greeneville has to be preety good to beat them.

Earl Anthony III - 234 Johnny Petraglia Jr. - 225

Oak Ridge by 15

Does he play AAU ball? What team?

My top three: Charging: If I were a high school coach in TN, I would teach my team how to take a charge and spend a lot of time doing it. Acting lessons wouldn't hurt either. Refs love to call the offensive foul. As soon as somebody drives to the basket, get a player to just run under him and fall and the call will go the way of the defender 80% of the time. I think refs get a power trip when they make the offensive "Push"/"Charge" call. Always will be a tough call to make, but the refs in our fine state definitely need a clinic on this call. 5 second count: Watch a lot of refs. Their 5 second count is very inconsistent. Especially if a team is coming back or there is excitement around the score. The count wil speed up (I have seen a 5 second count in 3 seconds or less). Some refs start the count when the defender is 10 feet away, others will not start counting until the defender is 3 feet away. "Palming" or "carrying" - This is a point of emphasis at the pro and college ranks, yet I am not seeing it in high school. Kids are not taught good fundamental ball handling. Their are point guards that carry the ball every time down the court and get by with it. There is a major unfair advantage for those who get by with it - especially on crossovers where a player will start one way with their dribble and then change direction by cupping the ball (practically catching it with their same hand).

Do you really think that being #54 on Andre's list makes you better than someone who is ranked #55? If Andre was that good at ranking palyers, he would be a very rich man. If you ask 10 different experts on high school basketball in TN to rank all the players in the state, they would all come up with vastly different rankings. Upton is a totally different player than Barnes. Barnes has a nice shot and is a good player. Upton is a great floor leader and penetrator. Who is better? I would go with Upton. My guess is that Andre will move Upton up considerably when he updates the rankings, because he will give a lot of credit to the motor that keeps the engine running of one of the top 10 teams in the state. Barnes is good, but unfortunately, he will probably not move up unless he starts putting up big numbers. And do points really matter? Points do not define a player, but when you are ranking players and can't watch every game, you do have to rely on scoring averages, etc. Barnes may be a complete player every game and hitting a very high percentage of shots, but at White House, he will not get any credit unless he puts up 20 per game. You realize, Andre has to think that if Upton scores 10 points a game on Antioch, then he would score a lot more on a White House team with half the talent. Not meant to bash your boy, just the way it is.

How tall is he?

1. RE 2. White Station 3. Whites Creek 4. Antioch 5. Oakland 6. Hamilton 7. Greeneville 8. Bradley Central Others....... Clarksville, Craigmont?, Bolton?, Other Memphis teams??? ? Drop off from here............

I've seen Jennings play 3 times and he is not that dominant of a player. He is very good and he will play at USC in two years, but he isn't what y'all think. Their post play is what will make the difference. They are too strong.

You are correct about Clarksville. I should have them in there. Instead of top 4 teams being in a class of their own, I should have said 5 and Clarksville would be one of the 5.

Don't want to get on the bad side of White House fans, but I would have to agree. They may beat AAA Smyrna, but look what Smyrna is doing this year. Not living up to there potential. Beech is not that good and White House may beat them, but I doubt it. Put White House up against any of the top 10 AAA teams in the midstate and they would get drilled.

He is about 6'6. Not a true big man. He is a 3 in college. Very versatile. Can play inside and out. Good defender.

Both of them need to cool their jets. Both are acting like children. Based on the posts, BigChief is the one who called out BigDoug. (maybe they are both big?) Anyway, that behavior should not be displayed on this site - nor tolerated. Grow up and focus on the sport and commentary on the players, games, etc. No need to attack individuals.

Internal bickering? Whites Creek or Antioch? You have to be talking about Antioch. I think it is safe to say that the best 4 teams in the Mid-State are Whites Creek, Antioch, Oakland and Brentwood Academy and then it drops off from there. Any of the top 4 teams can beat anybody. After that, it will take a really good game by any other team to knock one of these teams off - or a really bad game by one of the top 4. Beech is not that good. Whites Creek must not have played well.

And I forgot to mention that they have the best 5'2 guard you will ever see. He is so good that he may get a D-I scholarship. If not, he will play in college somewhere and will get playing time.

Good at every position. They have good shooters, they are quick and they are athletic. You better have a good team, if you want to beat them. They have a minimum of 3 D-I players and may have as many as 5. Two 6'6" players that can play and 2 good guards. A twin of one of the guards is barely 6'0 tall, but can rebound with anybody in the state.

Someone needs a reality check

Siegel looked pathetic last night. No defense. We try to block shots, reach, and simply do not play with good defensive fundamentals. Most players don't even attempt to stop a player driving to the basket when it is not their man (although we took more charges than ever last night). When we were in a zone, you would have thought it was the first time we ever played one. Nobody knew who to guard or where to be. McGavock played well and shot much better than expected, but most of those shots were uncontested. No teamwork. Some players think that they have to shoot every time they get the ball. They don't look for the best shot for the team. They look for any shot they can get off and as a last option, they will throw a pass - which usually ends up as a turnover. Poor Rebounding. We don't box out. We turn and jump. McGavock was more athletic than we were, but you can overcome that with good fundamental blocking out. I am sure I am not saying anything the coaches aren't telling the team. It just comes down to execution, playing unselfishly (which means playing defense and passing the ball), and playing with heart. They need to quickly regroup and figure out what they did right against the two decent teams that they beat (Wilson Central and Beech). I know we have only lost one game, but this will be a long season if we do not make some changes real fast. Have not seen Oakland play yet, but based on the fact that they are only giving up around 34 points a game, it may be beneficial for our team to go watch them play and learn what it means to play good defense.

Here is my list of top point guards in the mid-state. Chaisson Allen - Oakland - Long for a point guard, great finisher, good defender, winner's mentality, can shoot the 3, but is more effective from 17 feet and in. (Can play 1 or 2) - Signed with Northeastern Cass Barnes - Tullahoma - Good athlete. Good shooter and leader on the floor. (Can play 1 or 2) - Potential D-II/NAIA Tyrone Caldwell - Clarksville - Great penetrater, good court vision, good passer, good defender, strong, shot is a little suspect (PG only) - Possible Mid Major or higher Tyler Cutter - Siegel - Great court vision. Excellent shot, good ballhandler, good passer, unselfish and has eyes in the back of his head, leader on the floor (Can play 1 or 2) Possible Mid-Major or higher Chase Dunn - Livingston Academy - Quick, good ball handler, passer and defender, can create his own shot and penetrate (PG only) - College material - too early to tell Taverres Jefferson - Ensworth - Second quickest of the bunch, excellent passer (but can try to get too fancy at times), good scorer, yet distributes the ball well, can defend well, but needs to be consistent (PG only) - Mid to high major, but looks like he will be short. May end up Mid-Major Jon Primm - Dickson County - Good defender, decent ball handler, great hustler and intensity (Can play 1 or 2) - Possible NAIA/D-II to Mid Major Gerald Robinson - MLK - Quickest of any of the point guards, scrorers mentality, decent shooter, unlimited potential on offense and defense (Obviously he can do everything - including score 64 points in a game) Signed with Tennessee Tech Josh Slater - David Lipscomb - Some think he is a spot up shooter (which he can do very well) but he can penetrate and create his own shot. Good defender, good passer. (Can play 1 or 2) - Signed with Lipscomb K.J. Stripling - Smyrna - Good ball handler, good pull up and spot up shooter, good penetrater, needs to take more of a leadership role on his team. He does not reealize how good he can be (Can be 1 or 2) - Possible NAIA/DII or higher if he starts playing to his potential. Kyle Upton - Antioch - Good ball handler, good penetrater, good passer, decent shooter, but does not have great 3pt range, team player (PG only) - Possible NAIA/D-II DeMario Williams - Culleoka- Quick on quick, great size for a point guard, unselfish, good passer, good shooter, great defender (Can play any position in "A" ball, but in college he could play 1 or 2) - Probable High Major

Beech got beat by Siegel. Siegel is not a strong team this year. Gallatin and Mt. Juliet are legit, but I don't think they are better than LaVergne. I like Smgielski and Jefferson. They also have a decent supporting cast. They just don't have any bigs. They are used to having a 6'10" player in the middle and they will be missing that this year.

Carter has a nice shot, but was a little weak this summer. He is the type of kid that can hit 5-6 3's in a row on you. Has he put on some weight? He is one of the better shooters in the area, but did not seem to have an all around game. Has that changed?

I think White County does have a chance. Not that strong of a region this year.

After further investigation on Whites Creek, I agree that they are better than Antioch. I do think Antioch is very good. If they can keep their attitudes in check and don't trash talk and can refrain from acting like thugs, they are for real. Revised List.................... 1. Oakland 2. Whites Creek 3. Antioch 4. Clarksville 5. Brentwood Academy 6. LaVergne 7. Independence 8. Gallatin 9. Franklin 10.White County A great game to go to tonight would be at Clarksville. They play University Heights (KY). They are supposed have the best player in KY. They have another player that can get it done as well. Of course, Clarksville has a couple of good players themselves.

I meant to say Gerald is NOT the only reason his team is losing.