Is
parity a prelude to a rare 2013 Overall Tournament?
Southern
Sports & Travel
Okay
let’s go ahead and get this out of the way. The defending 2012 Overall Champion
Starkville Lady Vols are on their way to becoming one of the very best girls
teams in the history of the MAIS/MPSA and currently hold down the state’s
longest winning streak at 41 games. Their stiffest completion could very well come
from two Class AA teams, Leake and Bowling Green.
Class
AAA girls play this season has been erratic to say the least with everyone
other than Starkville shuffling up and down within the top five rankings all
season and at this point MRA seems to be inching closer to a number two ranking
as the Lady Patriots have been playing exceptional basketball of late and are
sporting a 23-8 record.
In
Class AA girls it’s a two team race and there probably aren’t too many folks
willing to honestly debate that premise. Seven time defending champion Leake
shows no sign of slowing down and second ranked Bowling Green has mowed through
a murderous schedule that included the likes of MRA, Jackson Academy and
Presbyterian and their only defeat was a five point loss to Starkville early in
the season.
The
wildcard in Class AA girls will be third ranked Oak Hill who is capable of
playing defense with the best of them but eliminating Leake (32-0) and Bowling
Green (28-1) will be a tall order.
Now
let’s get to parity and why the 2013 Overall Tournament could be one to
remember.
I’ve
had several conversations with basketball coaches over the past month or so and
the prevailing wisdom is consistent, parity in Class AAA and AA boys basketball
is and will be a factor in chasing the Gold Ball.
Jackson
Prep, the defending Overall Champion, is the prohibitive favorites to repeat.
Prep head coach David Horner has done a masterful job filling the loss of three
starters from last season’s squad and the Patriots have arguably the best
player in the MAIS in Josh Williams.
Jackson
Academy has presented themselves as the biggest threat to Prep with regards to
Class AAA but here is where things get interesting. While Jackson Academy has a
firm hold on the number two ranking Magnolia Heights has shown that they’re not
far behind with an impressive 24-3 mark which includes a season split with JA.
Now
let me throw the proverbial “monkey wrench” into the whole Gold Ball chase, Class
AA Central Private and Marshall.
Central
Private and Marshall, ranked one and two in Class AA, have made prognosticating
how the Overall Tourney could play out a bit more intriguing, that is of course
if both advance to the big show.
Central
Private is the only MAIS team to earn a win over Jackson Prep this season and
Marshall delivered an 18 point home loss to MRA last week just as Coach Richard
Deuase’s squad looked to be shaping into form at the right time of the season.
If
that’s not enough it would unfair to exclude two Class AA teams that are
playing at a high level with tournament time days away.
Trinity
and Bowling Green both seem to be peaking at the right moment.
Trinity
sports a 17-5 record, a number three ranking and is coming off a four point
home win over district foe Brookhaven under first year head coach Edwin White.
Add
to the pot a Bowling Green squad that is fresh off a seven point win over Class
AAA fourth ranked Parklane and recent wins over Brookhaven and Central Private
and we could be in store for a wild ride.
Oh
and did I mention how dangerous Brookhaven has proven to be come post season
play?
In
two weeks Brookhaven will host the Class AA South State Tournament and while
the girls side could be lopsided the boys side could be what one coach recently
called a “bloodbath” as five of the top six Class AA teams will compete for
four slots to advance to the state tournament in Canton the following week.
Also
in the mix will be a Simpson team that has produced a 25-5 record and is coming
off a blowout win over Presbyterian.
When
the Overall Tournament gets underway Jackson Prep’s chances of repeating will
pose greater risks than that of the Starkville Lady Vols and that will be worth
the price of a ticket when the big show gets started on February 25th.
