Division 2 Basketball

[TheEgoHasLanded]

Harding lost to Briarcrest at home.

 

Father Ryan lost to Brentwood Academy at home.

 

The two top teams in Division 2 lost to teams that they probably should have beaten. I heard that Harding did not have Trey Williams and Ryan was also missing a player. Briarcrest has now beaten St. Benedict (who was number 8 in the state polls) as well as Harding...even though they have a losing record, they are leading D2 West Large.

 

Lausanne and Bishop Byrne must have played a heck of a game Friday night. The two teams went to double overtime with Gasol getting 41 and Charles Hampton getting 46. Lausanne pulled it out in the end.

 

There may not be a clear cut winner in Division 2. Brentwood Academy has the size to cause any team trouble on any given night. Josh Suddath and McCallie are dangerous and are well coached. USN has picked it up this year. ECS has a great scorer in Josh Meeks (he's scored 38 points this year in a game). Lausanne is dangerous with Gasol and Carlos Taylor. Bishop Byrne relies on Charles Hampton. CBHS seems deeper then usual and is playing well. St. Benedict has fielded their best team in at least 3 years. Briarcrest has already beaten two of the top teams in D2. Harding and Father Ryan are both very dangerous as well and probably the two best teams in the state. Adarius Bowman and Notre Dame are dangerous as well since many teams do not have a center as athletic as him.

 

Going to be a lot tougher to get to sectionals this year then people imagined.

 

My picks for Mr. Basketball are very simple...

 

Marc Gasol-Got invited last year...the media will really favor him, he is one of the best centers in the state...

 

Josh Suddath- Because of the Chattanooga/ East TN connection...this might really favor him by the press. He was averaging over 40 points a game so it is very hard not to have him on the list. Been playing well since leading McCallie to state as a 10th grader...if it hadn't been for injury last year...he would really be on the map.

 

The third spot will either go to Trey Williams of Harding or to one of the boys at Father Ryan...There are probably a few other people that reserve recognition and might make all state(in no particular order)...

 

1-Adarius Bowman (ND)

2-Charles Hampton (Byrne)

3-Carlos Taylor (Lausanne)

4-Josh Meeks (ECS)

5-Ryan Baum (MUS)

6-John Bradford (MHA)

7-Everett Bills (FR)

8-Dylan Lynch ? (FR)

9-Joe Thompson (FR)

10-King Dunlap (BA)

11-Brandon Wright (BA)

 

 

I really think they will go with one person from the east, one from the west, and one from the middle...thats why I picked those individuals.

[Edited by TheEgoHasLanded on 1-18-03 11:44A]

 

[baller69]

Zach Monroe is the best player in the state.

[gomab2]

D-II ball is definitely wide-open this year, and not as strong as last year..... I love Father Ryan, but after watching them at their own tourney in late December, they are a good team, nothing more... But there is not another D-II team in the state that wants to step up and esteblish themselves as a Favorite.....

[TheEgoHasLanded]

who is zach monroe.

[mhalionboy03]

Division II really is wide open this year. Harding can still roll through district if they go undefeated and assuming that Briarcrest is going to lose to an MUS, ECS, or CBHS. Harding really should be able to go undefeated, even without Trey Williams. They had a pitiful showing against Briarcrest. If Harding can go 9-1, they'll probably end up playing St. Benedict in Region 1/4s instead of BCS, since BCS beat SBA. And about Briarcrest: they have zero-talent level. 0! First year coach John Harrington, who was a long-time assistant to Hubie Smith at Bartlett, is doing a phenomenal job. I sat behind their bench in the Lausanne game, which they lost, and he really does a good job in the huddle. By beating Harding they have already proven to be a threat in any game. There is so much parity this year in the West Division. Harding beat Bishop Byrne, who takes Lausanne into double OT, Lausanne schooled Briarcrest, who socked it to Harding. Two very important games will take place Tuesday. Harding/MUS and Briarcrest/ECS. You could be looking at the Region Semi-Finals if Lausanne and Bishop Byrne get eliminated. It even stretches to the Middle, where Harding crushed Brentwood Academy, who beat Father Ryan, who beat MUS by two, who will be playing @ Harding Tues. All of the polls, rankings, stat sheets, line-ups, match-ups, and predictions can be thrown in the garbage right now. Division II is going to be a free-for-all, knock-down, drag-out battle. With the favorites losing early, every game is now crucial to Region seedings. The talent in DII is really spreading out making it very competitive. If parity is a good thing, DII will be by far the best league in the state this year.

GO LIONS!!!

[Opperman]

Zero talent?

 

Not even close. They have some pretty good talent, but it's pretty much all sophomores. Lampkin and Berry are one of the better soph guard tandems in the city. Not the best, but they're on the list.

[baller69]

who is zach monroe. do you follow basketball. how can you not know who zach monroe is.

[TheEgoHasLanded]

This is a serious basketball thread...I have never heard of this individual, and he is not on Gomab's list...at least not at the top. If you are going to continue to make comments like that, at least make them funny...otherwise they will be deleted.

[mhalionboy03]

Zero talent was just in comparison to some of the better teams I've seen. Lampkin and Berry have good potential, and with Harrington at the helm will be very good. But, at least early in the season, they showed no talent. Teamwork and good coaching are winning games for Briarcrest, because they do not have the talent to beat very many teams. I wasn't trying to offend any of them, and I'm sorry if I did. It was meant more than anything as a compliment to Coach Harrington.

GO LIONS!!!

[TheEgoHasLanded]

Not you lion, the individual who posted right before me lol.

[Opperman]

You're confusing talent for current skill. They have the talent, but they do not have the skills right now to be as good as some other ones you've seen. They're fine. As for the rest of the team, there's not a ton of talent there, but remember, we're talking about a glorified JV team playing varsity. All things considered, they're doing a pretty good job.