Pfloyd's Elite 8 of Southern/SouthEast Ohio - Preseason

[pfloyd]

... with the end of the Foundation Games/Scrimmages ... league Previews in the books after last night - it's time to look at the Opening Week of the 2008-09 Campaign ...

... the menu of games for the upcoming weekend of action in the SEOAL ...

Friday Night (12/05)

Marietta vs Cambridge
Jackson @ Minford
Logan vs St. Chuck's ... to open the Jim Myers Memorial Gym

Saturday Day/Night (12/06)

Jackson @ Chillicothe Showcase Event vs Southeastern
Ironton vs Ashland Paul Blazer HS (KY)
Gallia Academy @ Rock Hill
Chillicothe vs North College Hill
Portsmouth @ Chillicothe Showcase Event vs Greenfield McClain


... Coaches from both Warren - Coach Maddox & Coach Duckworth - and Gallia Academy - Coach Oz - were in the house at the Athens Preview to take in a few of the TVC teams (Belpre/Meigs) ... Sportfolio and 93bulldog were busily doing the "napkin stats" for today's Athens Messenger ... gotta love high school hoops season Below the Lancaster-Dixon Line ...

[pfloyd]

... what does the rest of the 1st weekend of hoops action look like in Southern/Southeastern Ohio ???

[salemcat]

Minford plays at Eastern Pike on the 6th also.

[pfloyd]

... as I posted the results of the Shriner's Preview in Athens Friday on another thread - I attended the 43rd Annual event to get a look at the biggest share of the TVC ... I don't put much in the outcomes of Preview games BUT these games can give you an idea of individual talent, an idea of "fundamentals" of lack there of , where teams are in terms of TEAM , depth - jotted down a few "pfloyd imo's" on what I saw from the cheap seats ...

Nelsonville 22
Southern 46

... let's start with Coach Kline's crew at Nelsonville ... lot's of work needs to happen down in Buchtel ... not sure where the scoring is going to come for the Buckeyes ... NY lacks size, for the 2 quarters I saw no one was willing to crash the boards ... Conner Bunting, Michael Barrick, Tyler Gooden led the way scoring wise for NY with both Gooden/Barrick hitting from behind the arc ... looks to be a long season for the Buckeyes ... the 20 point deficit will be the norm for NY ...

... Southern - the Tornadoes of Coach Caldwell had 4 players knockdown 3's last night with 6-2 senior Weston Roberts hitting for 14 points - 3 treys ... plenty of help from the perimeter Brad Brown/Dustin Salser/Bryan Harris all with 3 pointers for SHS ... the majority of the Tornado offense comes from the perimeter (and they are a good perimeter shooting "team" - more than one threat) ... SHS lacks size, didn't show any physical presence on the boards - even against an undersized/not physical NY team ... we'll have to watch the perimeter show of the Tornadoes as the season progresses - tough to live by the trey vs teams that pressure the shooters on the perimeter - we will be watching from the cheap seats to find out ...

[pfloyd]

...

Trimble 34
Belpre 24 ...


... Trimble was one of the surprise teams imo Friday night ... I was impressed with the Tomcats overall depth, team speed/quickness on defense - the guards made any marginal pass a turnover - good ball handling in the back court for THS - Taylor Russell, Joey Reitano both showed the ability to get to the rim AND get to the line ... 6-6 Noah Guthrie showed me he was willing to go to the boards hard along with the perimeter people for Trimble ... will be following the napkin stats on the Tomcats to see where the perimeter scoring will come from - Friday night Joseph Dunlap was the only Tomcat to launch it from behind the arc ... Coach Koons boyz put a lot of pressure on the ball forced over 15 TOs by BHS in the 2 quarters of play ... Trimble showed me more than I thought they had Friday night ... a good showing for the Tomcats ...


... Belpre ... Coach Plummer's team disappointed me ... I know these games mean nothing BUT .... 15+ TOs in two quarters, very sloppy with the ball ... on the flip side of the saying ".... or you die by the three" - the Golden Eagles died by the lack of hitting a 3 ball ... defensively Belpre was beaten repeatedly by the Trimble guards as Trimble was able to get into the paint or to the rim AND to the line ... on the positive side - Belpre is very athletic , look to be able to go 8-9 deep ... Markie Tate had a tough offensive night from outside along with all the perimeter people for BHS - Tate needs to be able to use his quickness to get into the lane/get to the line when the 3 ball isn't falling ... Jared Azar was a bright spot offensively for BHS - at 6-3 he was very effective in the paint AND showed he could hit the medium range shot as well ... overall Belpre looked like a team that has the potential to be a good ball team - speed/quickness , athletic talent, ability to pressure the ball - going to have to learn that ALL possessions are important - TO's take away shots on goal and give the opposition points ... 15 TOs in 2 quarters equals 15 less shot attempts for your side and 15 more for the opponent - the math isn't in the Golden Eagles favor if they can't take care of the ball ...

[pfloyd]

...

Meigs 32
Wellston 29 ...

... Coach Derrow's Wellston Rockets ... have Casey Love AND the brightest dress shirt & tie combinations in the state of Ohio - wow! sunflower yellow !!! ... on the court for the Rockets? it would appear that WHS will go as far as Love will take them ... without Love the Rockets will struggle ... even WITH Love WHS had difficulty finding anyone to handle the ball, run the offense ... on the UP side for Wellston I DO see potential - lots of youngsters that WILL be good ballplayers imo - Jaylen Prater, Ty McNelly, Cody Wilkett - ALL Freshmen that will be contributors down the road ... it would appear that Coach Derrow is willing to keep Casey Love on the perimeter - imo in order for the Wellston "Team" to have a successful season the big man WILL have to leave the 3 point line and take "a game" into the paint where his 6-8 advantage will help TEAM giving players like Jeff Matteson, Slone Cales, and Ryan Darnell opportunities to shine ... if not - look for Love to have a good year but not so for the Rockets ...

... the Meigs Marauders of Coach Ewing will be very competitive this season ... I liked the physical play of Damian Wise and Jacob Well at both ends of the floor especially on the boards ... J Well did a nice job in guarding Casey Love holding Love to "0" fgs for the 2 quarters ... a couple of good ball handlers in both Jeremy Smith and Gabe Hill - Hill had 10 points in 2 quarters of action for MHS ... lots of room for improvement of course BUT Meigs has the makings of a good ball club imo ...

[duke]

OVC Previews are Monday night at South Pt. High School.

On Friday, Fairland is on the road to play West Union...dragons vs dragons!

[93Bulldog]

Pfloyd - just to keep in touch buddy and to let you know how my first official assignment after being BCS certafied is going ... I thought I would fill you in on some stuff.

First of all ... I have already watched 25 TEAMS play! 25 my man. 24 at the girls and boys preview and I had to attend the Alexander-Logan Elm girls game Saturday ... That's 25 total teams I have seen in action thus far. BTW, our girl Grinstead is coming along nicely for the Spartans. Still only a soph. she plays a well rounded game. Katie Smith she is not. But still a good player.

But im going to go ahead and give you a taste of what the OL DOG has witnessed.

My 'sexy' pick for the 'small school division' has to tbe the Southern Tornadoes! They boast a 6'6 wide body that moves well underneath and have 2 really nice swingmen in Weston Roberts and Bryan Harris, both 6-foot-2. Roberts was first team all district and all league while Harris averaged around 12 pts per game last season. They also have senior leadership at the point with Brad Brown and have wilcards in the fold with Dustin Salser (2 3-pointers Friday Vs Nelsonville-York) and sophomore Zach Manuel, a 6'1 wide body with nice post moves. Through in playmaker Cyle Rees and you have yourself one nice team from Racine!

Don't forget I told you so Floyd ... The Tornadoes will be at the convo in the D-4 districts!

[pfloyd]

...

Vinton County 24
Federal Hocking 22


... Coach Combs' Vinton County boyz are not last years VC boyz - I wouldn't expect them to be ... this years Vikings sport a good, athletic group of starters in floor general Andy Grillo, back court mate Ethan Allen, Jake Prater, first year starter Taylor Reed, and wide body Dylan Guthrie ... overall team quickness is outstanding ... at their best and in their comfort zone when in transition - ahrd to find a duo much better than Allen and Grillo both go to the rim and get to the line ... in the preview no one stood out as a threat on the perimeter from 3 point range ... will be interested to see how VC looks in the regular season - rebounding is spearheaded by Prater and the guards (Allen/Grillo) ... although in the preview Coach Combs didn't do much with his offense other than motion, back door cuts - VC WILL show lots of motion on the offensive end while sporting a tough man to man on the defensive end where they can score in transition ... lack of depth will hurt VC this year , VC will need to establish an inside presence on the boards to be successful in the 08-09 season ...

... Federal Hocking under new management in Coach Ellcessor showed much of the same qualities that we have come to expect out of a Fed Hock squad - patience with the ball, TEAM ball, good athletes at all positions ... senior Grant Smith will be the leader of this years Lancers squad along with fellow senior Justin Stanley ... from there the Lancers show youth in juniors Brendan Torrence, sharp shooting Tyler Thompson, Dewayne Clark, Evan McCune, Lance Sharp, Aaron McPherson ... look for Fed Hock to get stronger as the 2008-09 campaign unfolds ...

[Hitchbone64]

hitchbone64 checking in.....and yes, "I have a Basketball Jones".

The regular season is about to jump off this weekend and I am glad to see that pfloyd is back at it again.

As for my beloved Chillicothe Cavaliers, it will be an interesting season. As, noted by DJ3, we may struggle a bit out of the gate. Football guys playing 12 weeks and just getting into it. Young kids coming up and learning the system and yes replacing three studs. In any event the Cavs will come out and play Defense come Saturday night at the "Hat". I love what these kids have learned in the past 3 years and they are buying into the system.

Look for the 4 key seniors to step it up big time. Dawes, Knights, Smith and Benson are all superb athletes and extremely knowledgeable about the game. They flat out have learned how to win. Dawes and Knights are both 4 year Varisty starters and major keys to the State Championship last year. Smith played an excellent 6th/7th man role last year and Jordan Benson is extremely versatile and will surprise some people.

Add to that a young group at guard coming up and I like our rotation. Mike Turner played significant minutes in many of the blow out victories last year. As a junior and his third year up on varsity (split time as a freshman). He will need to come up big this year (in terms of ball handling and pressuring the opposing teams guards). We also have junior Dante Thompson returning to the squad and looking explosive with the ball. He can get to the rack and is strong. He will wreck havoc on the defensive side of the ball. We have two sophs playing up this year in Brandon Beverly and Jalen Ragland. Look for both of these young men to see the floor from time to time and help out. Ragland has tremendous range on his jumper and know at about 6'3" and growing he will be able to shot teams out of zones.

Back in the front court we have Greg Vanbocklinburg and James VanVorris (6'5 and 6'4). Greg is long and athletic and will hit the boards and run the court. James can step out and knock down a jumper and will help us in the 4 spot.

There are others, but this group is very interchangeable. Dawes, Benson and Smith can move all around. Knights can go from the 1 to the 3. With that nucleus of 4, we will put the other youngsters and veterans around them.

I really like this team. It will be different then last year (more balanced and probably more patient).

Do we deserve the top billing in the Elite 8??? My initial response is no, but I understand that when you become the king, you need to get knocked off the hill. Early December matchups will be very interesting as we open with perienial Cincy North College Hill on Saturday and then after a delay go on the road to Gallia Academy and Ironton (league matchups on a Tues/Friday deal). After that we have a big non-league matchup and revenge game against Logan Elm, who probably should be ranked higher the my beloved Cavs out of the gate. That game will be a sell-out.

I will also post a separate thread on this weekends Chillicothe Hoops Showcase (Fri/Sat).

GO CAVS!!! 2008 STATE CHAMPS!!!

[pfloyd]

...

Alexander 37
Eastern (Reedsville) 19


... Eastern Reedsville under veteran coach Coach Howie Caldwell ... the Eagles have only 2 seniors on the squad (Jordan Kimes and Zach Hendrix ... Coach Caldwell has one of the better junior classes around led by PG Jake Lynch (still recovering from knee surgery BUT playing) , Kelly Winebrenner, Mike Johnson, Andrew Benedum, Tyler Carroll ... add to the mix sophomores Devon Baum, Branden Pratt, Tyler Hendrix ... size or rather lack of size is the biggest issue for EHS this season AGAIN - the Eagles will have to rely on their quicks on defense to score in spurts in transition and perimeter shooting in the half court ... although with EHS's speed, ball handlers the Eagles will get to the line as they can and do get to the rim ... Eastern won't be a team to take lightly but i see Lynch & Co. being a year away from challenging in the TVC ...

... the Alexander Spartans of Coach Gabriel - by far the most polished TEAM at the Preview ... this years AHS team has it all including senior leadership - with 8 seniors on this years team led by versatile guard Greg Frost, Kyle Barnhouse, Eric Tolar, Jake King, Matt Sheets, Josh Morrtiz, Zach Crabtree, Tyler Gillete ... juniors - Wes Meadows,Jake Hendrick, Zach Bobo, Ethan Williams ... sophs - Cody Lawson, Michael Chapman ... add all of this talent up and you have the best team in the TVC imo ... the senior experience shows in the discipline the Spartans show on the offensive end of the floor ... the team as a whole is physical with and without the ball , the quickness of the perimeter people combined with the strength/physical play under the basket make Coach Gabriel's boyz THE TEAM to beat in the TVC this season ...


... there you have it - what I saw from the cheap seats last Friday night at the Shriners' Annual hoops get together in Athens ... didn't stay to watch the Athens vs Miller contest ...

[pfloyd]

... hitchbone thanks for the run down on the Cavs - looking forward to seeing them this Saturday - should be a great day/night of hoops at the Hat ... Coach K will have the boyz ready for the January - February "sprint" to the 2nd season ... as you pointed out - Chillicothe WILL have to grow and find themselves with THIS group BUT the senior leadership of Knights/Dawes will make that transition a successful one ... imo the biggest key to the early success of the Cavs will be that ALL of this years players know that "defense" IS the key to W's ... they are now a program that HAS BEEN THERE and have been left standing when the smoke cleared - this attitude will be an edge to build on for the Cavs as they grow into themselves as their own TEAM this season...

[Hitchbone64]

pfloyd...your a wise man.....I am glad the kids have bought into it. I was at the JV practice late Friday night and they are doing nothing but working on defense. One weak link in the chain breaks the chain. A team will not always win championships and go the high levels, but if one plays "D" they will always compete.

We look forward to a good weekend. After all the hard work, I get to run around and do more on Saturday.

[ZvilleBlueDevil]

Pfloyd:Make up for scrimmage against Logan Elm is the 12-3 wed not sure of time i would say around 6 630.

[93Bulldog]

Floyd ... No comments on the Tornadoes eh?

Do you not have faith in the 'Dog anymore or what? lol

BTW ... Trivia question for ya ... WHAT IS THE MOST WINNINGEST BASKETBALL PROGRAM 'ALL-TIME' IN SOUTHEAST/SOUTHERN OHIO?






ANSWER - THE SOUTHERN TORANDOES! Unbelievable eh? They lead POrtsmouth by like 4 wins or something ... Check it out, you will probably be a sshocked as I was to find out such strange facts. lol

[pfloyd]

... 93dog - Southern will be a handful when they are hitting the 3 ball - that's for sure ... hard to live by the 3 ball - somewhere they need to find an inside game - not just inside scoring but inside board work at both ends of the floor - not sure I saw that from the Tornadoes or the potential for that - 2 quarters of a Preview definitely doesn't tell me the whole story - I will for sure see the Tornadoes - the winning'est" team in Southern Ohio hoops in a "real" contest this season ...

[93Bulldog]

Floyd ... I agree Southern did in fact hit 10 three pointers in the preview ... BUT ... That is because they were facing a 2-3 zone defense, what else were they supposed to do? They have the 'gunners' to launch the three, so if a team is gonna pack it in against em, why not eh?

10-for-18 behind the arc isn't to shabby in just two quarters of play, but I do in fact see the tornadoes having rebounding capability. 6'6 Brauer, 6'2 Roberts and 6'2 Harris is PLENTY of size in the TVC-Hocking ... And they are not 'skinny' 6-footers either ... they all had strong looking upper bodies. The younger Manuel, #34, the kid that hit the last bucket on a strong post move looks as if he can help out on the boards as well .. He's only 6'1 but a very strong and wide upper body 6-foot-1.

BTW .... As part of my new gig this winter, I get the opportunity to speak with coaches after games and you will never guess how my experience with the legendary Howie Caldwell went last Friday ... lol ... Once I filled him in on me being 93Dog, he was very excited to chat with me ... said "Hey, you were that guy that posted the 'Top 8 in southeastern Ohio' on jjhuddle." I said, yea that was me ... "You and that Pfloyd fella, you guys did a great job," said Howie.

LOL .... Kind of funny how more people read posts than you would think, eh floyd? I was quite stunned to hear from Howie how delighted he was to meet me! lol ... It shoould have been the other way around! I was tickled pink to be interviewing one of the best coaches in the Southeast district the past 10-20 years ... lol

[pfloyd]

... sounds like a great gig you got going 93dog - I'm jealous !!! LOL ... there is "soft" size and then there is "physical" size - I didn't see a physical group out there - at least not in the Preview - like I posted - a Preview isn't going to tell me everything about a team - got to see 'em during show time AND as I said "pfloyd will get to a Tornado regular season game" ... you need to keep bringing up Pfloyd's name when you talk to all of these coaches !!! - just to humor an old Pink Floyd fan - I bet Howie is a Pink FLoyd fan ! ...

[93Bulldog]

You may be right floyd about physical size and size in general but you gotta remember they won 46-22 ... when your up by that much, you don't really put forth a 'tough' effort when your already killing a team ... lol ... and they still outrebounded NY 19-15 and forced 12 turnovers in 2 quarters which tells me they played somewhat 'aggressive'.

Being in Divsion IV and playing in the Hocking division, their size (height) and athletic ability will be enough to garner wins and rebounding advantages ... I mean, Eastern had no player over 6-feet tall ... Southern will be able to just stand in the paint and out rebound the Eagles ... Miller has no size, Fed Hock has only one player at 6'3 and one at 6'2 and Trimble only has one player over 6'4.

Lets see what the Tornadoes do against Meigs on Jan. 6th or how about their game @ Chesapeake on Jan. 24th ... that should give us some more insight.

In the TVC-Ohio - I like the Alexander Spartans. - Their deep, athletic and they like to run and hit the three. With VC not being as dominate, look for the Spartans to finally gain that elusive TVC-Ohio trophy.

[Foxworthy]

One of the reasons teams such as Southern and Portsmouth may have such long winning histories is their lack of recent consolidation. There aren't too many schools around that were not affected by massive changes in the past 35 to 40 years. In the recent Waterloo Wonders story, so well done on WOUB, Greenfield McClain was listed as a school district back in the Wonders day. How many schools around now can say that?

So, when was the last time Southern and Portmouth were affected by a consolidation and does the winningest team designation take that into consideration?

Just a thought, not taking anything away from Southern's or the Portsmouth Program; but there have been some great tradition that go "lost" or "put to sleep" during consolidation that's a part of many schools today, you just can't find it because the names have changed.

Take the Federal Hocking District for example, they are the consolidation of Ames-Bern (Greenies), Rome-Caanan and Carthage-Troy School Districts in the late 60's. Ames Bern was coached by gentleman such as Al Bowen and Charlie McAfee and had great success. These were all winning, competitive programs but they are now part of a bigger school district so it's hard to track them out.