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.

I agree with the Division II analysis. I guess it's impossible to see all the teams play so judges rely on points per game and they really miss the kids who really understand the game and really excel at all of the aspects. How can Ensworth not have a single player? That's a joke. Considering MBA's run and certainly Mobley had a tremendous amount to do with it but it wasn't a one player team either.

Anyone that saw BGA play last year could tell they did not play up to their potential. They were a lot better than a 5 win team but they were certainly not good enough to defeat an Ensworth or MBA. When I saw them early in the year I thought they might have a Father Ryan or a BA upset in them, but you could tell they had quit on themselves half way through the season. As far as next year goes, we can continue to expect Ensworth to reload and MBA has a ton of talent returning from their State Championship team. There is little or no opportunity for BGA to break through even if they had John Wooden as coach. I think Adam Sonn is a great coach and an outstanding man but I'm not sure this is the next move he is hoping for.

Certainly baseball is harder to predict than basketball and football, but is anyone still predicting MBA to be last? I believe they have only lost a single Division II game. I believe the new three game series format has benefited them. Having 8 good pitchers is better under this type of scheduling versus having a great #1 and #2 with nothing behind them. What does everyone else think?

I'm biased as well, but I believe MBA's Division II AA State Championship is pretty unbelievable. In the quarter finals, they had to travel to Memphis and play an MUS team that had a previous victory over Christian Brothers. MBA won by 29. They head to the final four which consists of three other teams that hold 4 of 5 of MBA's regular season losses. In the semifinal, MBA avenges two regular season losses to Ensworth and wins 84-80. MBA comes from 13 behind for the victory. MBA takes the lead for good on two free throws from Luke Colbert whose promising football career was cut short when he broke his neck against ironically Ensworth. In the final, MBA takes on Christian Brothers who holds the largest regular season margin of victory (13) over the Big Red. Like all of the state tournament games, MBA received great play from all of its players but it was especially great to see Co-captain and Mr. Basketball finalist Holden Mobley earn all tournament and MVP recognition. MBA's other co-captain Tyler Paslick earned all-tournament for his timely shooting and great ball handling but most importantly for his shut down defense on All-Region Corn Elder and All-tournament and Mr. Basketball finalist Frankie Bougher. MBA basketball is back. They have returning all-tournament David Howard and All-Region Austin Blackwell. They have a lot of talent to go along with them. I'm sure they will be one of the favorites to win it next year.

Fair to challenge the number of teams in Division II AA but not fair to challenge the quality. In the latest unapproved website State ratings, the final four teams were rated #16, #17, #20 and #33 in the ENTIRE state of Tennessee. That is out of the 408 schools rated.

I agree. Blackwell does a lot of things on the court that never show up in a box score. He now becomes their best defender (with Tyler Paslick graduating) and will draw all of the toughest assignments next year. He'll have to handle that responsibility along with his team needing hime to take over Mobley's role on the offensive side. Two big sets of shoes to fill but he is wonderfully talented young man who has an ever increasing understanding of what will make him one of MBA's greatest.

Congratulations to MBA for winning the Division II AA Basketball Championship. No one can say that this team took the easy road. Having had to play the play-in game and then travel to the always tough MUS in Memphis set the stage for a memorable final four. The other three teams (McCallie, Christian Brothers and Ensworth) accounted for four of MBA's five regular season losses. MBA was certainly fortunate to have a tightly called game against Ensworth but four key moments turned out to be the key. (1) Holden Mobley's three pointer when MBA trailed by 13 and were on the brink of letting the game get away from them (2) Luke Colbert's two free throws that gave MBA the lead in the fourth quarter (3) Tyler Paslick's three pointer that expanded the lead to four and (4) David Howard's 7 of 8 free throw shooting. Give credit to Tyler Paslick's defense of Corn Elder too. He was limited to a single field goal. Daniel McFadden was unbelieveable for Ensworth as he really put the team on his shoulders and almost carried them to victory himself. In the Championship game, MBA faced a team that had handed them their worst defeat of the regular season. Christian Brothers is so discplined and precise. No wasted movement just good old fashioned team basketball. It was a nip and tuck game the whole way. But key baskets by Tournament MVP Holden Mobley and All Tournament team David Howard and Junior Chase Owen keep MBA in the game. The game turns on a huge three pointer by Mobley, two great defensive plays by All Tournament selection Tyler Paslick and two tremendous tip outs of missed free throws and a last minute steal by Austin Blackwell. Congratulations to Coach Kevin Anglin and his staff. Coach Anglin's game plans for every tournament game were right on target and he masterfully orchestrated different defensive schemes (including a box and one) to keep Christian Brothers off balance. Similar to Elder, MBA was able to hold Mr. Basketball candidate Frankie Bougher to 4-15 shooting. Defense wins championships and MBA was able to get the job done especially well on that side of the court. But in the end it comes down to being a team. Coach Anglin's recent comments about the closeness of this squad was really the difference. When a team comes together to achieve something like this it is so special. Not because of the talent or skill but because of the special bond that forms between teammates. Thanks Coach Anglin and to a special group of young men for such a memorable weekend and season. Go Big Red - 2010 Division II State Basketball Champions.

In Division II AA, I think the most underrated PG who makes the biggest difference for his team is #4 - the Paslick kid for MBA. He absolutely disrupts every team they play and does what the best guards do and that is make everyone else around him better.

Responses to this emotional fan who made these outrageous (and downright inaccurate claims) . . . . well done! This is a great rivalry in sports and it's up to both sides to keep it that way! At half time, the student bodies were both having great fun together in the middle of the court and the game was played hard and with great intensity. I challenge anyone to find better basketball played in Middle Tennessee in these last 2 MBA-EHS games. Please enjoy . . . EVERYONE!

I've seen the BA, BGA and MBA quarterbacks play this season and believe that all of them will be difference makers next season. I think the BGA quarterback has the most lively and accurate arm. The BA QB certainly has the body. MBA's quarterback is a really smart player who just wins.