Play 4 Fun

I am also watching this thread to see what responses it gets! I have always said the same thing. My absolute favorite though is when they have to take their headbands out "because they tie in the back." Headbands and under clothes...whyyyyyyyyy is that even an issue!?

We should know a whole lot more about where the teams in 8AA fall after this week. Macon at Clay tonight and at York on Friday night should show us if York is a serious threat to the top 2. 

Cannon has underperformed so far this year according to their scores, so it will be interesting to see how this district looks 1-2 weeks from now after a few district games are played. 

A couple that I have watched that I felt were instant classics were LA vs Station Camp when Chase Dunn and John Jenkins were both juniors. At this time, that was the Region Semifinals. Dunn ended the game with 49 points and Jenkins ended the game with 38. 

Another classic was the very next year AT Upperman when Jenkins, as a senior, led Station Camp in the region semifinals against a really good Upperman team, led by Dustin Baxter and Carrin Nash. I can't remember the numbers on that game, but it was close throughout and standing room only at the U that night. 

Pretty amazing that Station Camp had what might be one of the top couple shooters from the state of Tennessee all time and never had a region finals appearance. Speaks to the level of play in 8AA at that time as well. 

Moore County will NOT be a pushover for anyone in our district. Anyone who thinks they will may have a long ride home from Lynchburg after a sub state loss. Dekalb was NOT a quality win. PC is very good, but the season is wayyyyyy too early to be picking state tournament champions and all that. A lot of stuff still has to play out. Clarkrange is very good! Jackson County is strong again. Anyone who thinks this district will be a cake walk is crazy....and the coaches and players (the only thing that matters) know this is not going to be an easy year. Come to think of it....getting to Murfreesboro never is. 

Wayyyyyyyyy too early in the year with NO tests for any team yet really to be flag waving and trophy counting. 

Adjusted predictions after week 1 and seeing some of these teams play: 

1. Upperman

2. Macon County

3. Cannon County

4. York

5. LA

6. Smith Co.

7. Dekalb Co.

8. Watertown

Honestly 5-8 could go either way any given night. I think 3-4 could go either way. There is much bigger gap between U and Macon County than I thought there would be based on scores from week 1. 

LA did NOT have their football players and beat Clay by 2. Clay led the entire game with LA taking their first lead on an offensive rebound and putback with 33 seconds left. 

York travels to Monterey

LA Travels to Clay County

Clarkrange travels to Macon County

Not sure of the others, but I know those three are going on in the UC tonight! 

RBS got a significant transfer....they will be considerably higher than #7. I am betting they contend for the top 4. Clarkrange will be extremely small, but I would not be surprised for them to be in the conversation for 3-5 as well. They always seem to play good when it matters. 

On 11/6/2017 at 10:02 AM, gomocs0811 said:

Also want to point out that Lakelyn made Preseason all Conference team at UTC.  Should have a breakout Sophomore Campaign.

Exactly. And the night Pickett routed them there in the substate, she kept em in it for as long as she could. Had dang near 30 and fouled out before the end of the third quarter. 

The next year as a senior, they returned that entire roster so it wasn't like that was an easy opponent. 

On 11/3/2017 at 5:00 PM, bobcatfan300 said:

That was a Jackson County team that Pickett County had just beaten 61-20!!! Van Buren barely squeaked by them. Your statement fails.

No, the statement stands as said. Anyone with half a brain and ONE eye knows Jim Brown didn't have a chance to beat Pickett that night and did't do anything/show anything to keep it close...knowing that it was possible they could meet again in Murfreesboro. 

Coach Smith done the same thing in 2009 when Pickett beat Jackson in the region semis go home game. Pickett lost two weeks prior in their last regular season meeting 84-44 or something similar to that. It was never close. 

If you go to comparing scores, you won't win any argument here. I promise. Matches dictate that. Anyone that thinks Van Buren wasn't an extremely talented opponent that year has lost their mind (also look up that Jackson had beat VB twice in regular season as well). Lakelyn Bouldin makes any team a capable opponent. Its naive to think otherwise. 

22 hours ago, attila said:

Moore County should win the whole thing. They may not lose looking at their schedule during the regular season. The upper Cumberland teams will be much better than the teams they will face during the year but they are better than Pickett, Clarkrange and JC this year. All seniors and the best team in southern middle Tn this year.

Moore County will win their region but it will be a steal if they beat Jackson, Pickett or Clarkrange even with one of those 3 traveling to Moore County for the substate. 3 of the top 5 teams in Tennessee in Single A may be in the same district this year, and coaching will probably make the difference for those 3 as they leave their regions and move toward that state tournament. EXPERIENCE IS KEY!!! (both in being in that situation- which most all of the Pickett and clarkrange kids have been), AND in coaching, where all three of those schools have coaches that have been at the state tournament level for several years now. 

47 minutes ago, bobcatfan300 said:

Pickett County beat Van Buren  in the Substate when Van Buren did have Bouldin by a score of 95-65...AT VAN BUREN.

Yeah...I realize that. Seen it. However, Lakelyn was ill that night and fouled out in the third quarter. I am not saying the game was close as it was 20 when she fouled out and likely would have stayed there, but it wasn't like PC knew we would be able to waltz in there and roll. 

Now, the same VB team beat Jackson County the very next year...So, my statement stands as I said before stands, the new substate matchup with Moore County's region will be much tougher than it has been for the UC teams (with the exception of the Bouldin led teams her last two years). 

On 9/22/2017 at 5:11 PM, repoman said:

Ah boy here we go ! Carter vs Levy? Carter is great, Levy  is better. Hurst vs Bullington ,Hurst at 5 11 much more diversified can play post and shoot threes advantage  Hurst. And freshman Macon middle had three losses to whom? Upperman. Not an Upperman  fan folks but let me tell ya they are loaded 9 th grade 8th grade and 7 th.  Will Macon  beat upperman possibly but Upperman  not going away!!

 

They are loaded up with good 9th and 8th graders. They have two good 7th graders..not sure if that is loaded or not in that grade? However, they will be around to stay for the next 5 years at least. 

Macon may have the better team this year, but the best player in the district may be enough to put them over the top. I am gonna go Upperman 1, Macon 2 until Macon proves otherwise. I think it is a LARGE falloff from those two back to the field though. 

I will go Cannon/York 3-4, but I believe York has the tools to be the 3, but not sure yet they will do it. Again, they have to play their way into that conversation and they haven't done that yet. Haylee Johnson and Harli Smith will be a handful for the entire district from YAI and they may be 2 of the best 3 players on the floor every single night in that district. 

5-8 I would go with what Hoosier said...I could see Coach Riddle moving LA up the rankings some, but they are not what they have been in the past few years. It will be interesting to see how they respond to being doubted, which could be the best fire starter for LA this year. Sometimes not having the pressure to perform makes things come easier....I guess we will see.

1 hour ago, goladygovs13 said:

Pretty sure MC traveled to Summertown for SubState this past season.

I think you may be correct. That should have said the state tournament...kinda surprised that they didn't make it to the state tournament. Moore County will be a much tougher matchup (especially on the road) than the UC teams have faced lately (with the exception of Van Buren with Bouldin). 

MC will be loaded up again this year...but they have been for the last couple of years as well. At this point, the only thing left to see is for them to get to the sub state. Honestly, I thought they were good enough two years ago to be at the State tournament and missed a great opportunity, and they were good enough a year ago to be in the substate (even with the injury)...was kinda surprised they didn't get there either year. 

3 hours ago, NOMOSHOW said:

I don't know though, it really puts all the pressure on the coach. It sounds like he was directing the whole thing and he got everyone involved. So now everyone involved in it is looking at him. If TSSAA had came down on them then possibly all the freshman wouldn't have got to play. Then all the freshman parents would have went crazy on him. Could have cost him and a couple more their job after barely a year. Cleveland dodged a big bullet, sounds like. Now the EYE is on them. Only 1 team in Bradley County can get away with it and it ain't Cleveland or Walker Valley. 

First smart comment of the whole thread possibly...haha. 

My point wasn't taken the way I meant for it to be taken. My point is that these kids (all kids) need good coaching. Fundamental coaching. Usually, high school coaches are high school coaches because they are good at what they do. I am saying that if they were allowed to coach AAU programs then it would help because the kids would be getting better coaching and therefore the game would be better in my opinion. 

Now, to address other issues such as recruiting. High school coaches all over the state of Tennessee are running middle school/elementary school programs. They are putting in a lot of work with a lot of kids (not just the kids that attend their own schools)...so to say that they would recruit them in 9-11 is naive. If they are recruiting, I promise it is being done at a much younger age than that! High school coaches are usually good coaches. That was my point. Therefore, them getting to coach the kids during travel ball would help kids be better players, thus improving their chances of playing at the next level and improving what it should be all about. THE KIDS.  (3 kids per team is not a good idea, I see your point. BUT...if they have kids from 4-5-6 etc different schools on their team and can't have one of their own??) 

I have no ties to Cleveland at all by the way. Just pointing out observations. There has to be a better way! Think about this....high school coaches are deeply involved in AAU programs, especially at the younger levels. BUT, at the big aau programs across the state, high school coaches ARE COACHING high school teams (but they CAN NOT have their own players on those teams). Think about that....they are allowed to coach other high schools' players, but can't coach their own. Completely legal, but makes no sense at all....am I the only one that sees it that way? 

Just to clarify...high school AD could not coach 9th and up. That is a violation. However, the coach himself would be absolutely allowed to coach any 8th grader in AAU...for examples just in this past year alone of high school coaches coaching 8th graders (which will attend their high school), you can look at TN Flight. A couple of their coaches coached 8th graders until they graduated middle school (at that point, they are not allowed to coach them any longer). 

However, one can look at any big name AAU program across the state and see high school coaches DIRECTLY coaching their players whether it be at practices or games. It happens all the time. Honestly, this rule only hurts the people that are trying to abide by it BECAUSE most of the bigger name coaches have influence on their kids aau programs but it is never mentioned and they know for the most part they will get by with it. 

To say that TSSAA should drop the hammer on Cleveland is naive considering how widespread it is. Honestly, for the coaches that don't care to work (as a lot of em would NOT), I wish TSSAA would consider changing their AAU policy. Let high school coaches coach AAU programs with the requirement that more than 50% can't be from their high school IF they coach high school age groups. Don't take the better coaches out of the AAU ranks. Some of these kids need that coaching and it would improve the overall product that the game is producing in my opinion. 

13 hours ago, whoop said:

Cleveland high Assistant AD was coaching 8th graders and high school player in aau tournaments in March and April as the fast break select team. Major violation!

They would be allowed to coach 8th graders up to the point of graduation, but would not be allowed to coach any current HS player I don't believe. 

The only way that it would be a violation would be if he coached 9th graders or up. He would be allowed to coach 8th graders up through the point where they graduate 8th grade according to the rules. 

I never seen any Fast Break Select teams that were that age. 

Middle school play day on September 30th at Pickett County.

Free to enter

2 game guarantee per team

We will have 5/6th grade division as well as 7/8th grade division in both boys and girls and always have a solid turnout of teams.

If interested, please contact Matt Ferrell at 931-510-8835.

Also, if anyone knows of any other middle school play days or tournaments, please post below. Thanks!

I would definitely agree with that!

On 8/19/2017 at 3:20 AM, cradle2thegravelakersfan said:

OK, so Pickett beat Clarkrange in district AND at regions, but Clarkrange got the last laugh by playing in the championship game! And Pritchett can have district & regions MVP because Meadows beat her when it counted most, MISS BASKETBALL !!

Actually, most would argue that this is not the case. Miss Basketball is mostly a newspaper award.... Pritchett I can almost bet would not trade the 2 MVP awards for that because those 2 MVP awards meant that they actually beat CR head to head. Just my two cents on that. 

Secondly, CR got an easy draw at the state tournament two years out of the last three. That's a fact Jack. Had they drawn SG twice, or middleton 3 years ago, they would have been ousted in the first round. That being said, the draw is part of it. Ya gotta be a little lucky to win one  of those things. 

Last, Clarkrange will be better this year than last. They will play a different style. They replaced Meadows with more speed and athletic ability. The Monday twins will make an immediate impact. Pierce, Howard, and Pyle will also contribute, but not as much as the twins. They will try to play a faster pace, which will make it interesting when they play Pickett because those girls have played that way for a long, long time....

Reality, the best two teams in the state may be from the same district this year. Jackson County will also be better and will be dangerous. Gonna be a fun year. 

I have had the chance to watch most of the Upper Cumberland teams. I will try to give some info on most of them below. 

Pickett and Clarkrange looked by far better than anyone else I got the opportunity to watch. Clarkrange playing two freshman a lot and played a lot of five in, five out. I am sure that won't happen during the regular season, but the Monday twins are going to make an immediate impact in District 6A (so wrong----should still be District 7). Pickett has looked like a well oiled machine so far in camp from the games I have seen. Bilbrey is a huge compliment to an already star studded team returning 4 of their top 6. Pickett will have 8 players that can play any given night, AND 8 players that could play almost anywhere else in the UC! 

Stone Memorial has the chance to be a contender in AAA out of that district. I see them being the host of a sub state game. They are young but very skilled and well coached. The two freshman that will play the most will make an immediate impact for Stone. 

Upperman is going to be very good again, but obviously miss their many losses from a year ago. Levy will be fantastic and Hurst will be very good as well. How the rest of their girls step up will write the story for them next year. 

Cumberland County, I only watched once, but it was a nearly 40 point drubbing to Pickett County. I think they have several pieces to be very solid, but looked way outgunned that day. 

Jackson County looks to be much improved with all their kids back and a year of experience under their belt. Their story for this year will be written by Heady and Pippin, but they have to find a way to knock off PC or CR when it counts. I see them winning 20 games or more. 

Livingston Academy is suffering from losses across the board. 3 seniors returning with not much more than limited playing time meant they struggled in the games I watched. However, they played a lot of kids and I am sure that Coach Riddle was just seeing what all she had. When it gets GO time, I bet they end up being better than they looked at camp. 

York looked and played YOUNNNGGGGGG. Harli Smith is a phenomenal player that will be a handful for any team in the district. Freshman Haylee Johnson will be the 1 and will make an immediate impact for them. Their ship will run as Smith and Johnson run, and they may have the most full plate in the district. For York to win games, those two will have to be at the top of their game EVERY night. 

RBS is young and small, but they have solid guard play and their guards can score the basketball. They can shoot the 3 and shouldn't turn it over much. The test for them will be returning to the most powerful district in the state. 

Clay County will be solid, but will miss Jada Kerr. By all indications, she is not playing this year and that hurts them. However, returning Strong, Arms, and Boone means that the nucleus returns, but also means young players will have to play a deciding role in their ability to compete in the district. 

Gordonsville looked young and they are going to have a really tough go at it in the new district. I see them getting beat up on early and often in district play. 

Those are the ones that I remember the most about. Hopefully everyone enjoys the summer and November/basketball season can't come soon enough! 

Taylor Lamb and Bralyn Wykle will both have to be in the discussion as well from South Greene...especially if they tear through their regular season schedule like they have been in Single A.