So the moment of truth has come. In Public School Girls High School basketball, we have O'Connor vs Schertz Clemens and Brennan vs Wagner tonight at UTSA in a double header.
Is this a surprise to anyone? The teams have been playing the best basketball all season especially down the stretch (last 2 months) and are in position to advance to the coveted Final 4, here in their own hometown.
Clemens has gone 14-2 since December 9, 2014. That is well over 2 months of playing basketball. And by the way, Clemens only losses have come to Wagner.
Wagner has gone 16-1 since mid December and have only one loss to the hands of Euless Trinity.
Brennan has gone 14-2 since mid December, with their only two losses to O'Connor.
O'Connor has gone 19-0 since early December and has not lost to any team in the Alamo City all season long.
Down the stretch, it was evident by their play that these 4 teams were going to rise to the top come playoff time.
You have 4 capable strong teams coming out on top, each with their own distinct way of playing the game.
O'Connor has to be the most underrated team in quite some time. They have quietly and efficiently been taking care of their opponents. Big Challenge in front of them tonight, no doubt. Clemens, of all the teams remaining, rely more on one player to get them going not just offensively but defensively as well. Thats a huge load to carry on ones shoulders. But if there is anyone that can do it, its Kyra Lambert. On O'Connor side of things, they have the players, guards Amber Vidal, Victoria Pena, Kasey Saldana, that can create havoc on defense and put up points on the offensive side. Team ball is their game. Moving the ball on offense is key.
COMPOSURE might play a pivotal part on the games outcome. It is a long game, which team is going to stay consistent the longest?
Brennan has been the deepest team inside and out all year long. They are going to need to utilize their overall team play to offset Wagner's Amber Ramirez amazing scoring spree. Wagner has more weapons like guard Kianna Williams that can turn out to be the difference. It's interesting how this plays out. Can Brennan control the boards on both sides of the court and can their guards play aggressive and hit outside shots? One advantage Brennan has, if one player is struggling, plenty of other players are capable of having huge nights. For Wagner, Amber Ramirez needs to do what Amber does, score.
And the beauty of all this, if all 4 teams played again tomorrow, totally different outcomes might occur. It's that wide open. Anything can happen. Anyone can step up. Nothing is set in stone!
In private School action, both Antonian and Incarnate Word go to College Station this weekend with high hopes to get to the Final 4 after it's all said and done.
Anonian Prep has gone an amazing 18-2 since early December. It's only two losses have come to the hands of Incarnate Word.
Incarnate Word has gone 12-2 since late December with one loss to Manvel, defending State Champ in highest classification from last year. They have an outside chance of getting to the State Finals because of stingy overall team defense and offense led by PG Alexia Torres and freshman Sophia Ramos. Add scorers Analisa Narro and Jenna Villarreal with feisty guards that can score as well in Brooke Orme and Analisa Hebert, the team has a fighters chance to do well.
Antonian is as deep as any team in the city. They have a talented shooting team with plenty of players in their roster that can hit it from down town. They also have a very stingy defense that can pose problems with teams that are not familiar with their style or that don't have many ball handlers.
Is it any surprise that all above 6 mentioned teams are still alive? They have been playing some good basketball especially down the stretch.
At this point you don't need Rankings to bolster how good your team is, you team just needs to Win!
Don't blame the refs, don't blame the ball, don't blame one play.
Make your layups, make your free throws, take care of the ball, take good shots, control the boards etc..
On the hand........ sometimes, just sometimes, its just better to be lucky than good!
GO SUPPORT GIRLS BASKETBALL!!!!
Tuesday, February 24, 2015
Thursday, February 12, 2015
TOP 10 TEAMS HIGH SCHOOL SA GIRLS BASKETBALL 2-12-15
The regular season for HS GBB is over and now let the real games commence.
In the end, Reagan and Smithson Valley didn't have enough to get in the playoffs. Perennial powers like Stevens and Jay are also out. I thought MacArthur was going to make some noise in District. They showed promise in early in non district but nothing materialized when it mattered.
Southwest seemed to be struggling in Non District play to only get some momentum in District play especially with a big win over CC Carroll.
That being said, Southwest vs Brandeis should be interesting to see how it unfolds. Southwest likes to run, press and shoot the long ball. Brandeis has some good Posts and strong PG play
Clemens vs Churchill matchup should be intriguing. Two senior guards going at it and giving it their all should make it a fun game to go watch.
Roosevelt is the only team in the big schools in San Antonio that I haven't seen personally. But I know they can provide a scare to Wagner in the right scenarios. Wagner's lack of depth was exposed early in the season especially because of injuries. Wagner has plenty of momentum going into the playoffs. They will be hard team to stop.
Clark vs Carroll. Is this the game Clark comes to play like they are capable of playing on paper? If they don't, there will be a lot of what ifs in their season as they go home for good. They have as much chance of any team in San Antonio to beat Carroll with their depth.
Brennan vs CC Ray. Brennan has a lot of options and is deep. Ray has potential to stay close but depend too much on two players for their consistent scoring. Ray would need kids to step up across the board to try and pull it off. Brennan just needs to do what they do best, nothing fancy.
Johnson vs Judson. I have seen Johnson when they are rolling and I've seen them when they struggle. They have weapons that can match them up with about any team in the City. But first things first, they need to take care of Judson. Judson needs to make this an ugly game to pull it off.
Madison vs Steele. Madison has had a great season overall. They definitely have shooters. Madison PG can make things go on both ends. Steele is at their best when they play with intensity on the defensive end creating easy buckets. This is a toss up in my eyes if both teams bring their A game.
O'Connor vs East Central. O'Connor should just keep on doing what has worked all season. Team defense, great ball movement, trust in each other etc. O'Connor is the only team in the city that hasn't lost to any other team in the City. Of al the match ups in the first round, O'Connor should be the most heavy favorite to move on. They are sitting in a very good place in the overall Bracket.
In my Rankings, O'Connor biggest threat comes in their bracket is at the hands of a 6th seed or latter.
Whereas, the other Bracket has my #2, #3, #4, #5 teams duking it out to see who advances.
For my Rankings, I eliminated all teams that didn't make the playoffs. If a team lost to a non playoff team, then that loss was posted. Only wins against playoff teams were posted.
1. O'Connor: Wins- Johnson, Madison, Steele, Brennan (Twice), Brandeis, Clark. Losses-
2.Brennan: Wins- Wagner, Madison (Twice), Steele, Johnson, Brandeis, Clark. Losses- Reagan, O'Connor(Twice)
3. Wagner: Wins- Johnson, Brandeis, Schertz Clemens(Twice), Steele (Twice) Losses-Brennan, Madison, Antonian, Reagan
4. Johnson: Wins-Brandeis (3 times), Stevens, IWHS, Brandeis, Churchill, Madison. Losses- O'Connor, Wagner, Carroll, Brennan, Antonian, Churchill
5. Brandeis: Wins- Antonian, Clemens, Clark(Twice) Losses-Churchill, Johnson (3 Times), Steele, Madison, Wagner, Madison, Brennan, OConnor, Jay
6. Schetz Clemens: Wins-Steele( Twice), Roosevelt. Losses- Brandeis, Wagner(Twice)
7. Madison: Wins-Wagner, Brandeis, Stevens, IWHS, Churchill. Losses-Brennan, Clark, O'Connor, Johnson(Twice), Reagan, Roosevelt
8. Clark: Wins-Madison, Churchill. Losses- Brandeis (Twice), O'Connor, Brennan
9. Churchill: Wins- Brandeis, Roosevelt, Johnson. Losses- Clark(Twice), Antonian, Johnson, Madison, Roosevelt, Madison
10. Roosevelt: Wins- Churchill (Twice), Antonian, Madison. Losses Clemens, Churchill, Johnson, Smithson Valley, Reagan
Honorable Mention
Incarnate Word, Southwest, Steele
OK, Rankings are one thing, throw them out the window. Who is gonna bring it in the playoffs? That's all that matters now. Win and move on. Lose and go home.
Only 1 team is going to win 5 games to move on to State!
Will a team from Corpus steal the Glory. Only time will tell.
GO SUPPORT HS GIRLS BASKETBALL!!!!!!!
In the end, Reagan and Smithson Valley didn't have enough to get in the playoffs. Perennial powers like Stevens and Jay are also out. I thought MacArthur was going to make some noise in District. They showed promise in early in non district but nothing materialized when it mattered.
Southwest seemed to be struggling in Non District play to only get some momentum in District play especially with a big win over CC Carroll.
That being said, Southwest vs Brandeis should be interesting to see how it unfolds. Southwest likes to run, press and shoot the long ball. Brandeis has some good Posts and strong PG play
Clemens vs Churchill matchup should be intriguing. Two senior guards going at it and giving it their all should make it a fun game to go watch.
Roosevelt is the only team in the big schools in San Antonio that I haven't seen personally. But I know they can provide a scare to Wagner in the right scenarios. Wagner's lack of depth was exposed early in the season especially because of injuries. Wagner has plenty of momentum going into the playoffs. They will be hard team to stop.
Clark vs Carroll. Is this the game Clark comes to play like they are capable of playing on paper? If they don't, there will be a lot of what ifs in their season as they go home for good. They have as much chance of any team in San Antonio to beat Carroll with their depth.
Brennan vs CC Ray. Brennan has a lot of options and is deep. Ray has potential to stay close but depend too much on two players for their consistent scoring. Ray would need kids to step up across the board to try and pull it off. Brennan just needs to do what they do best, nothing fancy.
Johnson vs Judson. I have seen Johnson when they are rolling and I've seen them when they struggle. They have weapons that can match them up with about any team in the City. But first things first, they need to take care of Judson. Judson needs to make this an ugly game to pull it off.
Madison vs Steele. Madison has had a great season overall. They definitely have shooters. Madison PG can make things go on both ends. Steele is at their best when they play with intensity on the defensive end creating easy buckets. This is a toss up in my eyes if both teams bring their A game.
O'Connor vs East Central. O'Connor should just keep on doing what has worked all season. Team defense, great ball movement, trust in each other etc. O'Connor is the only team in the city that hasn't lost to any other team in the City. Of al the match ups in the first round, O'Connor should be the most heavy favorite to move on. They are sitting in a very good place in the overall Bracket.
In my Rankings, O'Connor biggest threat comes in their bracket is at the hands of a 6th seed or latter.
Whereas, the other Bracket has my #2, #3, #4, #5 teams duking it out to see who advances.
For my Rankings, I eliminated all teams that didn't make the playoffs. If a team lost to a non playoff team, then that loss was posted. Only wins against playoff teams were posted.
1. O'Connor: Wins- Johnson, Madison, Steele, Brennan (Twice), Brandeis, Clark. Losses-
2.Brennan: Wins- Wagner, Madison (Twice), Steele, Johnson, Brandeis, Clark. Losses- Reagan, O'Connor(Twice)
3. Wagner: Wins- Johnson, Brandeis, Schertz Clemens(Twice), Steele (Twice) Losses-Brennan, Madison, Antonian, Reagan
4. Johnson: Wins-Brandeis (3 times), Stevens, IWHS, Brandeis, Churchill, Madison. Losses- O'Connor, Wagner, Carroll, Brennan, Antonian, Churchill
5. Brandeis: Wins- Antonian, Clemens, Clark(Twice) Losses-Churchill, Johnson (3 Times), Steele, Madison, Wagner, Madison, Brennan, OConnor, Jay
6. Schetz Clemens: Wins-Steele( Twice), Roosevelt. Losses- Brandeis, Wagner(Twice)
7. Madison: Wins-Wagner, Brandeis, Stevens, IWHS, Churchill. Losses-Brennan, Clark, O'Connor, Johnson(Twice), Reagan, Roosevelt
9. Churchill: Wins- Brandeis, Roosevelt, Johnson. Losses- Clark(Twice), Antonian, Johnson, Madison, Roosevelt, Madison
10. Roosevelt: Wins- Churchill (Twice), Antonian, Madison. Losses Clemens, Churchill, Johnson, Smithson Valley, Reagan
Honorable Mention
Incarnate Word, Southwest, Steele
OK, Rankings are one thing, throw them out the window. Who is gonna bring it in the playoffs? That's all that matters now. Win and move on. Lose and go home.
Only 1 team is going to win 5 games to move on to State!
Will a team from Corpus steal the Glory. Only time will tell.
GO SUPPORT HS GIRLS BASKETBALL!!!!!!!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)