I've been around. Trust me.
Game after game after game. I don't have to tweet a storm or take pictures to be present. I've been so focused on other business - namely, getting my basketball movement Empire State Takeover off the ground - that this fell back in importance. I've got some thoughts, though, and people have asked me if I'm going to post again, so here goes.
- This is the year of the Radz. Troy had some real turmoil to start the season, and it continued all the way through December. They've been turning around lately, and Zach is a huge reason behind that. He's really only had one bad game, and of course everyone & their sister took to the Times Union blogs and trashed him and the rest of Troy because people look for any reason to do that, but how did he respond? He had 20 against Canisius and a big 41 piece against Middletown. Both very strong AA schools. Both wins. Canisius tried like hell to get in his head. Didn't work. He's up to 32 treys on the season while shooting almost 88% from the line and averaging 21 per game. With all the other talent on the Flying Horses team, the one consistent piece is this particular Division I prospect.
- Poor Jahlil. I'm not going to get too in-depth with this one, but I watched Columbia play once. I almost feel bad for him. He's starting to catch an iffy rep with some people around the Capital district, but what more can he do? Defenses basically throw the kitchen sink at Mr. Nails, and the rest of the team normally can't do a good enough of job of capitalizing on their open opportunities. I'm not excited to see the Columbia boys program next year with him at Central Connecticut State.
- Will CCHS ever be able to gel? Between Division I prospect Anthony Mack, Division II Bloomfield College commit Raiquis Harris, explosive guard Brian Brooks, and other nice pieces, Catholic Central was a team people expected at the top of the food chain this year. They've looked anything but invincible most of the way, and although the guys have been together for a while, you sense a level of uncertainty watching them play... like they can't really figure each other out, what they can and can't do. If they gel, look out. If not, the crashing & burning could be extra fiery.
- It's the year of the one-man forces in the Adirondack League. The top 3 leading scorers in Section 2 (Joel Wincowski, Chris Boucher, Kobe Lufkin) are all from the Adk League, all 3 averaging over 30 points per game. Let's put those 3 along with 2 more Adirondack Leaguers, Shea Irish (Warrensburg, 11th in Section 2) and Tyler Mattison (Fort Ann, 12th in Section 2) on the same squad and see what happens. Congrats to Joel, who just hit point number 2,000. It might not take long for someone else to hit that, the way Kobe (a sophomore) has scored the last couple years...
- Speaking of up north... Joe Girard is averaging 19.9 points per game for Glens Falls. Wooo, big deal, right? Yeah, because the dude's in 8th grade. He had to pass a fitness and maturation test to play varsity, and he's dropping 20 on the regular. Don't make fun of him because he can't get into your R-rated movies, because he'll just drop some more points on you.
- No real clear-cut favorites for sectional titles. In Class AA, the Green Tech squad that no one was mentioning (for some reason) after winning states last year is right back in the mix. If you haven't checked them out yet, do it. They're tough. Shenendehowa is right there with them. Of course, the Huerters are there - with the younger one, Kevin, having 3 offers on the table and counting. Brandon Fischer is back to health and contributing (along with not worrying about where he'll go to school next year, LeMoyne snagged him up). Petar Bebic, a.k.a. Serbia's best export, also gives them solid all-around contributions. Don't forget about CCHS or Guilderland (Andrew Platek is 3 offers deep too, and the evolution in his game from last year made me sit back and pay attention). It's Scotia and Troy again in Class A with the usual suspects, and Averill Park also deserves some talk with Myles Joyce - or as I call him, Mr. Underrated - and Isaiah Moak & Ryan Bielawa. Class B will be a crap shoot. Broadalbin-Perth, Hoosick Falls, Schalmont, and Cohoes (especially if Brandon LaForest makes it back on the ourt in February) can all state their case. B-P and HF play balanced ball with no one getting the lion's share of the work load. Zac O'Dell's gotta have some of the broadest shoulders in show business to handle what he has to for his Schalmont squad. Lake George and Hoosic Valley have established themselves in Class C - the last 2 state champs, so I guess they've been established for a while. Germantown's been rolling in Class D, but Argyle's probably got the best player (and most fun to watch) in the class in Kobe Lufkin and Fort Ann's looking very tough, led by big numbers from sophomore Tyler Mattison. Let the fun begin.
- By the way, congrats to all the Section 2 boys hoopers who have commited to playing scholarship level ball next year. Those include Joe Cremo (Scotia/Albany), Jahlil Nails (Columbia/Central Connecticut), John Sica (Bethlehem/Columbia), Joel Wincowski (Lake George/UMBC), Raiquis Harris (CCHS/Bloomfield), and Brandon Fischer (Shenendehowa/LeMoyne).
Time flies, doesn't it? Sectionals in a month. Gear up...
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