graceseeker

I thought the starting point guard at MBA lived in Lebanon/Mt. Juliet.

I believe mid-state Division II basketball is blessed with a lot of really good coaches. Anglin, Bowers and Bontrager understand the game as well as anyone and demonstrate on a consistent basis the ability to coach up athletes. I believe each of them have their athletes best interest always at heart. They are all off the chart competitors but are also good men that teach life lessons.

Should be a barn burner next Tuesday when Ezell Harding plays MBA. MBA beat previously unbeaten FRA last night in their opener and it looks like both teams will be undefeated when they play.

Division II AA has been very exciting for the last couple of years. Just when you think you know who is going to come out on top, then there's a surprise. MBA goes to the final four with 4 of its 5 losses against the other three final four teams and comes out the State Champion. There are lots of reasons to like MBA. Impressive front line lead by 6'7" David Howard (an All Tournament selection). I hear the MUS transfer is very good as well and then you add 6'5" Jojo Guirre and that's an impressive front line. What is even more interesting is that none of these guys play football and are busy in the gym already. You add a front court of Chase Owen and Aaron Simonis and you have a tandem that plays great defense and can put their share of points on the board. The X factor is Austin Blackwell. He could become one of the very best to ever play at MBA if he stays focused on being a complete basketball player. His last minute of play in the state championship was one of the most unbelievable you'll ever see. He doesn't need to lead the team in scoring to be the team's most valuable player if you know what I mean. While they are more talented than last year's team, the challenge will be (1) who replaces tough guys Colbert and Bars? The big guys are all a bit more finese than bruisers and every team needs one or two. And (2) who replaces the leadership of captains Mobley and Paslick. In the big games, it was this pair that either made the big shot, pass, rebound or stop. Those are the questions that will need to be answered if they are to repeat.

With football winding down, any new thoughts, comments and opinions on basketball?

You may be right. BGA certainly underperformed last year especially down the stretch. They looked like they just wanted the season to be over. While they should have been able to make more noise than they did last year, I think it is fair to say that John Wooden couldn't have guided them past MBA and Ensworth. They may be further up the pack than was listed but it will be a real surprise if they can compete against those two schools (and McCallie). Just my opinion.

I agree with your assessment. It's hard to imagine that MBA could be as good after losing such a talented senior class, but this team may actually be more athletic and have a skill level that could easily eclipse the state champions. The challenge for MBA will be to discover leadership that can replace Mobley/Paslick, the toughness of Bars/Colbert/Seitz and the team orientation of Apple/Lowe. There was a lot of magic amongst those seven but I've heard that Howard is lean, mean and ready to dominate. The MUS transfer has looked great and you add them to Guierre and you have a tremendous front line. Owen and Simonis will provide solid guard play and I believe we'll see Blackwell deliver the shooting touch of Mobley and the defensive skill of Paslick.

MBA wins a mistake filled game 21-14.

This is awesome. Orleans is a class act and deserves everything he has worked so hard to achieve.

Last time I checked MBA was the Division II defending champion and they have demonstrated an equal amount of dominance this summer. While they will miss their senior dominated team, thay also have a ton of fire power for the upcoming season.

Even with his injury many MBA insiders wondered secretly why they didn't go to Simonis earlier last year. MBA has a funny way of respecting who is "in line" to accept responsibility for a position. There is one thing no one can deny and that is he is a winner. Aaron Simonis has the "it" and is just a plain, good ole winner. He just does what it takes. I predict he may go down as one of the absolute best. Go get a few Dominican Nuns across the street to block for him and he'll do a lot of winning.

Congratulations Big Red. Led by a senior class that never gives in (regardless of sport aka football, basketball, cross country, swimming, etc) these guys never cease to impress.

I don't believe anyone is "hating" on BGA. The point being made is that the gap they are facing right now isn't fixed alone by a new coach. The new coach is going to need several years to build a program and he'll need some guys to step-up big time if they are to make progress. I also think this is a tough Division to break into from a coaching perspective. It's hard to beat the coaching at Ensworth, MBA, Father Ryan and BA. All seasoned coaches who do a really good job of getting the most out of their teams. I'm not sure I'd want a son playing in the chinese fire drill rotation at Ensworth but can't deny that Ricky gets maximum contribution out of his players. I think Anglin is the best X and O guy of the bunch. I love how the Father Ryan coach teaches defense and tenacity and BA's coach does a real nice job of getting kids to play together as a team.

I believe BGA's talent was significantly better that their record last year. With that said, they couldn't beat MBA or Ensworth next year if they had hired John Wooden.

I have always admired the assistant coach at Brentwood Academy - Brandon something. Good man who believes in teaching the game the right way. takes every loss like someone shot his dog. His first name is Brandon but I'm not positive about his last name.