Arby's Classic

[MentorFan]

Mentor is a very good team but their season low of yesterday can largely be contributed to their opponent. You could tell they were a little taken aback at how good DB is. DB stayed right there with them throughout the game. Honestly, at halftime, I thought the teams were evenly matched but it looked like DB was going to come out with the W. I don't think Mentor has played much if any competition yet like they will play here at the Arby's. They had trouble with DB yesterday so it would be very interesting to see how they faired against teams like Southwind and Gatlinburg-Pittman(who according to most fans I talked to was the best team there yesterday). We might get the opportunity to see that soon enough.

 

I am up in Ohio, so my view is very narrow. But I don't think Mentor hasn't seen a team the likes of Dobyns-Bennet. Ohio is just as good, if not a better basketball state than Tennessee and Mentor routinely plays some of the better teams in the the state year in and year out. This year, Mentor has played Warren Harding and Cleveland Benedictine. Both have at least two Division I caliber college basketball players and both teams are considered the top 10 in Ohio for their respective division.

 

I feel confident Mentor can win this whole thing, but they will need to play at or at least near the top of their game. They have great guard play, a pretty difficult offensive system to match up against, and have an x-factor few teams can match. Their ability to hit the three ball can be an equalizer when giving up height.

 

I look forward to seeing some potential improvement in Mentor's game tomorrow.

[AlumnI01]

I am up in Ohio, so my view is very narrow. But I don't think Mentor hasn't seen a team the likes of Dobyns-Bennet. Ohio is just as good, if not a better basketball state than Tennessee and Mentor routinely plays some of the better teams in the the state year in and year out. This year, Mentor has played Warren Harding and Cleveland Benedictine. Both have at least two Division I caliber college basketball players and both teams are considered the top 10 in Ohio for their respective division.

 

I feel confident Mentor can win this whole thing, but they will need to play at or at least near the top of their game. They have great guard play, a pretty difficult offensive system to match up against, and have an x-factor few teams can match. Their ability to hit the three ball can be an equalizer when giving up height.

 

I look forward to seeing some potential improvement in Mentor's game tomorrow.

 

 

I'm sure Mentor has seen a team like DB before they got here. There are hundreds of DB's in this state so I'm sure there are plenty of them in every other state as well. DB is a good team, a solid team, but they aren't a great team. Southwind is a great team. I somewhat doubt that Mentor has played anyone like Southwind to this point. I could be wrong but it's just a hunch I have. Southwind is definitely one of the best teams in this state. They play in one of the best basketball cities in this country. Memphis is LOADED with talent. Being one of the best teams in Memphis says a lot. Not only that, but they have one of the top 10 Sophomores in the country playing for them. The kid is an absolute beast. I've watched most of the teams play in the tournament and the Williams kid from Southwind is easily the best player I've seen. He is that X factor that no other team in this tournament has. I watched Mentor play, and yes they are a good team. However, I can tell you they would have to play their absolute A game, I'm talking best game they could possibly play, to beat this Southwind team. Good luck to both teams moving forward.

[GCPioneer]

Keep in mind, Southwind isn't even the best team in Memphis.

[Memphis89]

Hold on GC, I don't think there is a clear cut best team in Memphis, though I do think Southwind has all the ingredients. They have an inside presence in J3 and KD who cause matchup problems, and have solid guard play with Jajuan Johnson, Looney, and Denzel hardy. Keep in mind Darious Paige, 2nd leading scorer from last year has been having a lackluster year. They also have depth and enough experience.

 

Melrose still has the most talent to me, but they lack an inside presence and PG.

 

White Station has Andre Hollins, but his sidekicks are inconsistent as of now.

 

Central has a solid starting 5, but lack a bench IMO.

[GCPioneer]

Hold on GC, I don't think there is a clear cut best team in Memphis, though I do think Southwind has all the ingredients. They have an inside presence in J3 and KD who cause matchup problems, and have solid guard play with Jajuan Johnson, Looney, and Denzel hardy. Keep in mind Darious Paige, 2nd leading scorer from last year has been having a lackluster year. They also have depth and enough experience.

 

Melrose still has the most talent to me, but they lack an inside presence and PG.

 

White Station has Andre Hollins, but his sidekicks are inconsistent as of now.

 

Central has a solid starting 5, but lack a bench IMO.

 

I think Southwind is ONE of the best, but not THE best. I still believe Melrose is the top dog in Memphis. I said it on another post, but Melrose is missing Nate Rucker bad. Adonis is having to play out of position which takes away from him being able to do more of what he could do.

 

It sure would be awesome to see a Memphis all-star team, lol. There's no doubt in my ry.mind they could/would play with anyone in the country.

[coleslaw]

Great game tonight. Southwind is a great team and I expect them to win the tournament. Science Hill played hard. When they got the lead down to 7 to start the 4th I thought they had a real good chance at a comeback. The big crowd was certainly behind them. The Williams kid is very impressive. He's going to be one of the best in the state for years to come. He is definitely the best player in the tournament thus far. Hale for SH played OK. He had 11 points I believe. It was far from the best I've seen him play. He needs to put a little more muscle on to really be that dominant force inside. The good news for SH is he's only going to get better. Allen played the best I've seen him play all year. He had 20 points. They were really the only 2 players from The Hill that impressed tonight. Where were the 2 Will's(Carter and Adams)? Where was Leaveau in the first half? I noticed he didn't play any in the first half but came off the bench in the second to score 7 points. Why didn't he play earlier? All in all an exciting, fun game to watch. Good luck to Southwind the rest of the way.

I agree on all points you made. The Williams kid is the REAL deal (and a sophomore to beat!!) On a scale of 1-10, if Hale is an 8, then the Williams kid is an 11. Sorry... he's that much better. Jaylen Allen really stepped up and played great. Leaveau played well during his time. The reason he did not play the first half is beacause he was late to practice. The Southwind press made SH look like they were playing their first game of the season. I would like to prematurely congratulate Southwind on winning the 2010 Arby's Classic.

[etownsparky]

I am up in Ohio, so my view is very narrow. But I don't think Mentor hasn't seen a team the likes of Dobyns-Bennet. Ohio is just as good, if not a better basketball state than Tennessee and Mentor routinely plays some of the better teams in the the state year in and year out. This year, Mentor has played Warren Harding and Cleveland Benedictine. Both have at least two Division I caliber college basketball players and both teams are considered the top 10 in Ohio for their respective division.

 

I feel confident Mentor can win this whole thing, but they will need to play at or at least near the top of their game. They have great guard play, a pretty difficult offensive system to match up against, and have an x-factor few teams can match. Their ability to hit the three ball can be an equalizer when giving up height.

 

I look forward to seeing some potential improvement in Mentor's game tomorrow.

I have seen most of the teams play now and I would have to say that Southwind is the best team in the tournament. That doesn't mean they will win, but it's likely their's to lose. I saw Mentor play and was very impressed. They are the kind of fundamental team that most basketball enthusiast (like me) want to watch, i.e. play hard, shoot well from field and free throw line, minimal turnovers, etc. However, from a size and athletic standpoint, they don't compare to Southwind. D-B gave Mentor all they could handle. On a neutral court Science Hill is 15 points better than D-B. Southwind handled SH in a game that really wasn't as close as the final 14 point margin in my opinion. It's hard to rain three's with long athletic defenders guarding. I think Mentor will get by an athletic Mill Creek team today because they shoot the ball much better, but I would be very surprised if they win the whole thing (although I would like to see it). Just my two cents...

[90warrior]

southwind would kill mentor. i think gat-pitt would handle mentor.

[MMcCroskey]

southwind would kill mentor. i think gat-pitt would handle mentor.

 

Question is, can we handle Columbia lol? I asked on the other thread, and I will ask here: do we have anyone from GA to give us some local insight to how Columbia is regarded so far this season in GA? Not much said about them here, and would love to hear from anyone in GA that knows anything first-hand about them.

[uknoit2]

Well, I reckon my Hampton Bulldogs are finished in the Arbys.....They sure weren't blown away by anyone.....They played right with The Hill, just like I said they would! Not bad for a lil 1A school

 

You wont find many games where our Ward has only ONE point in a half!

Edited December 29, 2010 by uknoit2

[MMcCroskey]

Well, I reckon my Hampton Bulldogs are finished in the Arbys.....They sure weren't blown away by anyone.....They played right with The Hill, just like I said they would! Not bad for a lil 1A school

 

You wont find many games where our Ward has only ONE point in a half!

 

Scores of today's games so far?

[coleslaw]

OK...Halfway Arby's Final predictions. Lets have 'em. Here's mine:

 

CHAMPION Southwind

2nd PLACE Mentor

3rd PLACE Gat-Pitt

4th PLACE Urspring

5th PLACE Columbia

6th PLACE Science Hill