SLEDGEHAMMER

When people start complaining about having to travel too far to a basketball game and think all games should be played in their home gym the next thing is they will want the all refs and scorekeepers to be from their hometown. And being "out in the middle of nowhere" is not so bad. It is harder to hear all the "whining" that way.

I believe Oliver Springs will scrimmage Van Buren this Saturday afternoon. Who are their best players? What style of game do they play?

It seems that some fans support their basketball teams when it is convenient. (home and local games only) Van Buren fans have always drove long distances to district and regional tournaments not to mention regular season games. It will be nice to have a district tournament in our "own back yard" We would love for the fans of all district teams to come visit during the regular season and tournament games. We plan to bring a lot of fan support to your gyms during the regular season. Come on out and make yourself at home. We'll leave the light on for you.

District Tournament will be held at Van Buren this year. Should be an interesting year for the V.B. Eagles. Coach Sullivan has made great strides the past 2 years. There was a sighting of a team playing defense and rebounding last year. We left a tough district and will be the new kid on the block this year. Hard to make predictions, but I like our chances with experience and good athletes returning from last year's team.

Friendship Christian played good enough to beat Westmoreland last night. The missed free throws in overtime was the difference. Can Van Buren beat Westmoreland? I will state this again. WHEN THE VAN BUREN EAGLES HAVE GOOD SHOT SELECTION AND TAKE CARE OF THE BALL THEY CAN BEAT ANYONE THEY PLAY IN THE DISTRICT. Will Van Buren beat Westmoreland? I call this game as a toss-up with the winning team hitting the free throws down the stretch. EAGLES BY 1 *If you are not sure which "Eagle" I am talking about, look it up in the history book under U. S. Presidents.

Van Buren won by 7! Eagles played well in spurts, but way too many turnovers. Great intensity and playing with heart won this game.

I just want to say thank you to the ballplayers, coaches, staff, school administration, and all others in making this basketball regular season very successful. The class and self-control of this year's team has been outstanding. As a fan I have enjoyed each game this regular season. All the fans need to turn out for tonight's district game against Mt. Juliet. Let's help the Eagles make the home court advantage a HUGE ADVANTAGE!

Should be a very competitive game. When comparing the two team's schedules and the win & loss records being almost the same it will come down to which team executes on offense and rebounds on the defensive end. If Van Buren shoots the ball as well as their last game (the result of great shot selection) Clay County will not be able to shut down their combination of inside and outside scoring. I look for a close game with the Eagles coming out on top by 5.

Being a good "basketball" coach has a lot to do with wins and losses. Being a good "coach" carries a greater responsibility than wins and losses. Great job this year coach. Our young men have not only had their share of wins this year but even more important have played the game with class and sportmanship while on the court. May the Eagles soar even higher in years to come.

It is really embarrassing how the Eagles have "struggled night in and night out". I just want to say thank you to the other teams for giving the Eagles a winning season with a opportunity for win #20 tonight. If the Eagles keep struggling like this, maybe next year they will "earn" a few of their victories. Some posters need to understand a MVP candidate and the team he plays with (notice I did not say plays on") may struggle but at least most of our struggles have been wins.

When two teams end up with the same disctrict records, what is the determining factors in deciding how the teams will be seeded for the tournament?

Mt. Juliet Christian is a quality basketball team. Van Buren Eagles need to continue to bring their "A" game or they might have another Watertown experience. The return of Stewart will be interesting to watch. From what I have seen the last two games, the Eagles are playing more consistant. Don't expect Mt. Juliet to just show up and go thru the motions. No one is ever impressed by what you done in the past. They only remember how you played today. Eagles, take care of business tonight like you are capable of and it will be a pleasant ride back to the mountain. EAGLES BY EIGHT! Fan support has been great at away games all season, let's all get out to Mt. Juliet tonight.

Allen Rigsby is all the V.B. Eagles have? To the posters that made this statement please send your vote for class A player of the year in immediately. He just beat the Friendship Chistian team single-handed. Since you finally figured out he is a great ballplayer, I seriously hope you can see this "amigo" has 14 brothers and each player adds to this team. If what I saw play Fri. night was an average team, what do you call a team that the Eagles beat twice? I will make the statement once again, WHEN THE VAN BUREN EAGLES PLAY TO THEIR ABILITIES THEY CAN BEAT ANY TEAM ON THEIR SCHEDULE. Eagle fans, let's show strong support for the last 3 regular season games and pack the gym for the district tournament game. Who knows, maybe our "average team" will pull off another upset. Excuse me, I meant win.

Being consistant. When the Van Buren Eagles conquer this task they can not only play with anybody they can beat anybody they play. The average loss this year has been 5.5 points. In each of these games they had a 2 or 3 minute span where either unforced turnovers, poor shot selection, lack of intensity, or a combination of these three has sealed their fate. If they play smart for 4 quarters they will win 95% of the games. If they play smart and with intensity they are capable of beating anyone. Tonight, the Eagles will bring their A game. Eagles by 7!

I agree with eaglebro. The two freshman made some big plays. Tough interior defense and rebounding made the difference. Big win against a AA school. Should be a great game this Fri. against Friendship Christian. Must avoid a slow start in this game.

EAGLES MUST RULE THE BOARDS AND PLAY HELP DEFENSE TO CONTROL THE INDIANS INSIDE GAME. I LOOK FOR THE BIG FRESHMAN POST PLAYER TO HAVE A BIG GAME. EAGLES BY 3.

SHOULD BE A COMPETITIVE GAME. EAGLES NEED TO SHOOT BETTER THAN GAME AGAINST WESTMORELAND. THE WINNER WILL BE THE TEAM THAT CONTROLS THE BOARDS. EAGLES BY 6.

COMMENT TO MJCA00. IT IS NICE TO HEAR FROM A BASKETBALL FAN THAT GIVES REASONS FOR THE TEAMS THEY PICK. LOGIC AND SENSE ARE SUCH RARE QUALITIES THESE DAYS.javascript:emoticon('thumb')

BOTH TEAMS HAVE TALENT AT THE JV LEVEL. SHOULD BE AN INTERESTING GAME. THE TEAM THAT PLAYS WITH THE MOST INTENSITY ON DEFENSE AND REBOUNDS WILL WIN. VAN BUREN BY 3 IF THE GUARDS TAKE CARE OF THE BASKETBALL AND CAN BE A SCORING THREAT. javascript:emoticon('%3C_%3C')

Willie C says we don't have a chance, I believe Van Buren will show up for this dance, 8Abball thinks this will be a Westmoreland blowout, This proves about basketball he does't know much about, When the last whistle has blown, and all is said and done, Van Buren will have a victory, My prediction, by one.