Friday, November 16, 2018

2018 Boys Basketball Preview.

Written Friday November 16th at 9:40 PM

We are two weeks away from the start of Boys season. Here is my insight heading into the season.

INSIDE THE OAA TOP 10:

1. Clarkston
2. West Bloomfield
3. Lake Orion
4. Adams
5. Oak Park
6. Farmington
7. Oxford
8. Ferndale
9. Avondale
10. North Farmington

Red

Clarkston will be different this season as they have a new coach in Tim Waslik whom takes over for Dan Fife whom retired after 37 years behind the bench and two State titles. The Wolves will have a blend of youth and experience back in Matt Nicholson, Cole Donchez, Keegan Wasilk, Fletcher Loyer, Desmond Mills Bradley, and Jake Jenson. Clarkston will be a team to keep an eye on this season and see how they will jell with Waslik now coaching the team.

West Bloomfield has nearly everyone back for coach Jeremy Dehna. The Lakers have Donovan Moore, Tre Mosley, Robert Johnson, Chase Glover, Sterling Miles, and Tarron Carter back. The question is will Donovan Edwards come back after getting hurt in football season. If Dehna can get Edwards back and healthy then West Bloomfield with all that talent and athleticism will be a force to be a recon with.

Lake Orion moved up from the Blue to the Red this season and have a ton of experience back for coach Jim Manzo. The Dragons have Nate Talbot, Drew Van Heck, Jack Cummings, Kyle Loken, Hunter Sites, and Jake Rydquist returning from a team that won 17 games last season. Lake Orion will be an interesting team to watch this season as they have a ton of talent back.

Oak Park has a very talented team returning for coach Bobby Thompson and they moved up from the White to the Red. The Knights are led by Malik Carr, Dovante Edwards, Fred Garland, David Cotton, Jaylen Fisher, Marcell Carter, Jaylin Mines, and KeVon Kyle. Oak Park is a darkhorse candidate as well in the postseason. The Knights will be a team to watch.

Troy has two elite guards coming back for coach Gary Fralick in Clay Sebastian and Brody Parker but the interior players like Matt Johnansson will likely see time at forward this season among others. The Colts will rely on Parker and Sebastian to carry them this season. Troy is an underrated team that will always be tough and scrappy to handle, they always are.

North Farmington should be much improved this season for coach Todd Negoshian as they have a lot of talent coming back led by Justice Sallaam, Yusif Jihad, Jamal Hayes, Bashir Jihad, Deon Hayes, and Harrison transfer Eddie Linton. The Raiders had trouble scoring last season but this season they shouldn’t have that issue now. It will be interesting to see what happens.

Bloomfield Hills will be very young but they did get momentum after upsetting West Bloomfield in the pre-district last season. They have improved as the process has gone along. Blackhawks coach Phil Kurajian has a strong group led by Mason Canfield, Collin Hecker, Ben Mutz, Alex Higley, Ari Singler, and Alex Igwe. Bloomfield Hills has an interesting non conference schedule which could give them confidence heading into league play.


White

Adams will have a lot of talent back for coach Brad Crighton led by Ethan Emerzian, Jake Schuler, Jake Emerzian, George Gurraj, and Peyton Preiskorn. The Highlanders added Gunner Walters to the program which is a huge addition but lost Carter Farris to an injury during football season. Adams had a rough year two years ago but had a bounce back season and won a district last season. The Highlanders will look to make up some more stride and madness this season.

Farmington will have a ton of experience back for coach Terrance Porter in the form of Jared Atkins and Tariq Humes. The Falcons added Tariq Sheppard to their group from Detroit East English Village Prep. Farmington has some questions in the interior which is a huge concern for Porter and his team this season even though they added a California transfer in Bakyne Coly. The Falcons will rely on their strength of guards to carry them this season. They will be one of those teams to keep an eye on.

Avondale is a darkhorse contender this season. The Yellow Jackets have a ton of talent back led by Derrick Hinton, Ezekiel Ringstaff, Kobe Anthony, Donovan Bowers, Jaden Turner, and Daniel Hughes for coach Tim Morton. Avondale has a favorable non conference schedule which should get them some momentum heading into league play. It will be interesting to see what the Yellow Jackets have this season.

Southfield Arts and Tech has a new coach in Darryle Buchanan and a ton of experience coming back led by Cameron McEvans and Terrell Humes. I’m curious to see how the transition shapes up as the Warriors will need to adjust to the new coach’s style and mindset. It will be interesting to see what Southfield Arts and Tech has this season to say the least.

Groves could be a team that could be in the discussion. They have a new coach in Benny White. The longtime coach will have an athletic team coming back led by Daniel Lee, Grant Gilbert, and Rogers Motley. If the Falcons can adjust to White’s system then Groves could be a dangerous team going forward.

Stoney Creek should be an interesting team to keep an eye on this season with a blend of youth and experience. The Cougars have some young talent to work with Griffin Bears, Alex Reiter, and Trevor Smith. If coach Steve Norgrove can get a big season from Pat Galy in the interior then Stoney Creek will be dangerous this season. The Cougars non conference schedule is very manageable which helps. Stoney Creek will be a team to watch this season.

Troy Athens will be very young for coach Dave Scott led by Alex Sidorwictz, Andrei Tipuria, Josh Seifert, Ethan LaBay, Dylan Manos, and Jacob Thorton coming back. The Red Hawks lost a lot of experience last season which they could take some lumps in the non conference but they could be a player later in the season. Troy Athens will be an interesting team to keep an eye on.

Rochester lost a ton of talent when you look at LaMarko Gulledge and Hunter Schalater accounting for nearly all of their points last season graduating. The Falcons for coach Vance Kirkwood will have to rely on Cam Caggins, Corey Gulledge, and Drake Reid to carry them this season. Rochester could be in for a rocky road this season.

Blue

Oxford has a ton of experience returning led by Michael Rasich, Grant Kornberger, Tre Townshed, Zach Townshed, Nolan Hiller, Connor Nicholson, and D’Wayney Turner for coach Steve Laidlaw. The Wildcats had a tough season last year and moved down from the White to the Blue which will help them win more games. Oxford will be a player in the Blue race this year and their non conference schedule looks favorable as well.

Ferndale has a new coach in Juan Rickman whom comes over from Detroit East English Village Prep. The Eagles should be loaded with talent and athleticism led by returning players Brian Polozo, Teonah McKeithen, and Keelan Lucas whom played under former coach Tom Staten but it's what Rickman brought in that has Ferndale becoming a serious contender not only in the Blue but also in Division Two. The Eagles have five transfers in Jayshawn Moore, Collin Gholson, Simon Wheeler, Sidi McEroy, and DeAnthony Hamilton. The five incoming transfers played a ton of minutes for Rickman at Detroit East English Village Prep last season and will look to contribute for their new team in a new league. Ferndale has a lot of people in the media hyping them up but the OAA is a lot different than the Detroit Public School League however they will win a lot of games this season.

Royal Oak could very well be a darkhorse team in the Blue with their size and defense as coach Aaron Smith wants to turn the Ravens into a modified version of the Detroit Pistons which Smith works for in his free time. Royal Oak should be a defensive first team led by Jonvan Martin, Toby Adensyna, and Joe Binkowski and incoming players whom was also very talented and hardworking. The Ravens non conference schedule is manageable but wondering if it is tough enough for Smith’s team this season which it will help them going forward.

Pontiac is another darkhorse candidate in the Blue to watch out for. They have a lot coming back for coach Josh Schroeder led by D’Quarion Cole, Daveaun Cole, Keyshawn Shelmonson Bay, Kenyatta Green, William Avarex, Devonta Green, Ernesto Simpson, and Dominque Stovall. The Phoenix have also toughened up their non conference schedule which always helps if they want to be a contender in the Blue this season. Depth will be an issue for Pontiac this season though but the talent might make up for the lack of depth that they have.

Berkley has a nice blend of youth and experience led by Christian Talley, Jackson Sewell, and Ari Yaker but they have a ton of youth that are ready to make an impact in Arshad Walker, Charlie Serwa, and Angelo Evanhoff. The Bears who is coming off a tail of two seasons as mentioned will be young but competitive for coach Joe Sermo. Berkley even though is young could be a deep sleeper to keep an eye on this season.

Seaholm will be an interesting team to keep an eye on this season but they will be very young this season for coach Mike DeGeeter. The Maples will have some trouble as they are young as mentioned and don’t have a lot of size but if they grow quick enough then Seaholm could surprise some folks this season.

Harrison as their final season as a school will be in an interesting spot as they don’t have a lot of talent coming back and their best player Eddie Linton transferred to North Farmington. It will be interesting to see what the Hawks and coach Jerrell Hogan have this season.

Hazel Park had a ton of changes this offseason after a disappointing district semifinal loss to Detroit University-Detroit Jesuit and is in their final season in the OAA. They lost their coach Brendan Barrett whom is now coaching at Detroit Collegiate Prep and a ton of talent in Carl Bow, Devin Pettis, and David Hearns now the Vikings have one returning player and a new coach in Stefan Wilson whom has an OAA background coaching at Harrison. It could be a tough rebuild for Wilson to rebuild Hazel Park.

No comments:

Post a Comment