GCBA Conference Preview
We are approaching the new year in the college basketball season, which means we have almost two months of results (including the first few games of the conference slate) to see how the Power 6 conferences are shaping up this year. Most of the top recruits have also done the hat dance and selected their school for 2021, so it’s time to make some projections for conference standings, tourney berths, and if the school in question is trending up or down going in to next year.
Big 7 Conference
1st Place: Greenbriar Tech Techies (7-1, 1-1)
The polls have Greenbriar at the top for a reason, as they boast a veteran starting lineup with multiple first-round prospects and enviable depth at every position but point guard. The Techies are 2nd in the nation in points allowed, continuing a longstanding program tradition of having great defenses. They are tops in the Big 7 in margin vs. opponents in points, assists, steals, blocks, and turnover differential. PF John Adams is their lead scoring threat- averaging 17.6 points and 8.8 rebounds- and is one of the most capable inside scorers in the nation.
Looking Ahead: By my count, Greenbriar has 4 scholarships to offer and could get up to 6 if they cut two walk-ons. They don’t currently have anyone signed, and with 3 senior starters as well as Adams expected to be moving on next year, depth will immediately become an issue unless they rectify that fast.
Chance to win Big 7: 65%
Chance to play in GCBA Tournament: 99%
2021 Trend Arrow: Way Down
2nd Place: Lone Star State Cowboys (9-2, 1-1)
Lone Star might not be the 2nd most talented team in the conference, but their starting five are another veteran group who has played together for a while and do a lot of the small things well, such as currently leading the nation in free throw percentage. C Jerrell Lor has been a 4 year starter and anchors a strong interior defense. The Cowboys struggle with rebounding and turn the ball over more often than any other team in the Big 7, but do already have a head to head win over conference favorite Greenbriar that could prove valuable down the stretch.
Looking Ahead: With 5 seniors set to graduate, the program needed to come up big with quality and quantity, and looks to have done just that in signing 5 top 100 overall prospects, one at each position. #2 overall recruit SF Bobbie Davis is the headliner of the class, but blue chip juco PG Eric Aguila may be the most immediate contributor. Lone Star State looks to be set up to experience a period of prolonged success.
Chance to win Big 7: 20%
Chance to play in GCBA Tournament: 85%
2021 Trend Arrow: Way Up
3rd Place: Blue Grass University Blue Jays (7-6, 2-1)
The Blue Jays have one of the strongest frontcourts in the nation, with presumptive top 5 pick Ike Swift averaging 15.5 points and 9.2 rebounds so far in his freshman season and fellow blue chip prospect Jim Morgan leading the team in +/- ratio. However, Blue Grass University doesn’t seem to be playing up to their talent level, particularly on the defensive end. Senior PG Ronald Lavender was a hometown hero in Kentucky as the state’s Mr. Basketball and High School All-American, but he hasn’t carried that glory to the college level for his state.
Looking Ahead: Swift will be gone to the draft but Morgan, new juco SG Branden Gwinn, and sophomore SF Mason Byrd should all return and be top end players in 2021. They could be joined in the starting lineup by two five star recruits, PG James Rodarte and juco C Harold Conner. The Jays are front runners for two other blue chippers in C Hoyt Belt and yet-to-qualify SF Ronald Budde who would all but guarantee them the #1 recruiting class; there are also numerous talented underclassmen on the bench. Blue Grass is looking primed to be a national title contender next year
Chance to win Big 7: 10%
Chance to play in GCBA Tournament: 55%
2021 Trend Arrow: Way Up
4th Place: Waco University Warriors (8-2, 2-0)
The Warriors have jumped out to the lead in the conference and had an impressive 20 point win over Yellowhammer State in their place early in nonconference play, they are yet another veteran heavy team in the Big 7 with a lot of starting experience. Junior Chris Thrift and senior PG Bubba Thomas are right behind Greenbriar Tech’s Asher Irving and Chris Rainbolt for best guard duo in the conference.
Looking Ahead: Waco had 3 scholarships to offer and zeroed in on some smart targets. #72 overall Edison Smith is a sleeper with 3 point stroke, and they also seem to be the last horse in the running for #52 overall SF David Fortune, who would definitely see minutes as a freshman. With plenty of big man depth already on the roster, the Warriors look primed to be competitive in the Big 7 for the forseeable future.
Chance to win Big 7: 5%
Chance to play in GCBA Tournament: 45%
2021 Trend Arrow: Way Up
5th Place: El Paso State Gauchos (8-3, 2-1)
The Gauchos have had a strong start to their season, outdoing rival Waco by beating Yellowhammer State twice in nonconference play. Timothy Jerome and Lee Schneider are a capable pair of junior guards, but senior C Mario Wilt is the only other good player on the team. If there’s a team I’m wrong about here it’s El Paso State but my eyes tell me that they’ll falter against the upper echelon of their conference.
Looking Ahead: El Paso haven’t used any of their four scholarships and aren’t in the running for anyone major. It’s a bold move, Cotton. Let’s see how it pays off.
Chance to win Big 7: 0%
Chance to play in GCBA Tournament: 5%
2021 Trend Arrow: Way Down
6th Place: Williams University Warthogs (7-4, 1-2)
A broken foot suffered by starting shooting guard Jake Laliberte is going to put a major damper in the Hogs’ chances of doing well in the conference this year, as they have turned to sophomore power forward George Delorenzo to fill the void. Depth is a major problem for Williams, no sane coach would want any of their backups to see minutes for his team.
Looking Ahead: Five-star SG Dorian Davis is a big ticket commit for the Warthogs, he will help and even possibly move to small forward and start. They have only signed one other player with two scholarships outstanding, Williams needs to use those other offers and procure some depth or they’ll have the same problems next year.
Chance to win Big 7: 0%
Chance to play in GCBA Tournament: 5%
2021 Trend Arrow: Down
7th Place: Port Chester University Pirates (2-9, 0-3)
Port Chester has been the doormat of the Big 7 for years, and that looks to be well on its way to continuing already. They have the 3rd worst point differential in the nation and the worst field goal percentage margin in the nation. PG Brian Freeman masquerades as the Pirates’ best player but in reality brings them down with his awful shooting.
Looking Ahead: No signings, not much hope to climb out of the gutter.
Chance to win Big 7: 0%
Chance to play in GCBA Tournament: 0%
2021 Trend Arrow: Down
Big 7 End of Regular Season Review: Lone Star State rode a 3-0 head to head sweep over Greenbriar Tech to a tiebreaker victory for the regular season title. The Cowboys are just on the cusp of being considered a premier program and a good tournament result to pair with this trophy would bounce them up as high as #6 in the prestige rankings. Waco seemingly iced a GCBA berth with a 6 game winning streak in their last round through the field.
Central Athletic Conference
1st Place: Columbus Poly University Corsairs (8-3, 2-1)
Getting an impressive 80-54 road win over #2 ranked Lake Crystal University early in the conference slate could be key for the Corsairs’ conference hopes and for morale, as Poly had dropped their first two matchups against top 10 teams in Jersey State and Mid-Atlantic of the GEL. SG Sammy Pitcher is recovering from an early season shooting slump and sophomore SF Don Johnson is having a breakout season from behind the arc. The Corsairs lead the conference in most statistical margins, including points, rebounds, assists, and FG% but lack the veteran presence of some of the other conference frontrunners. They already have perhaps the most depth in the conference but await the return of two top reserves from academic probation.
Looking Ahead: Columbus only had 1 scholarship to offer, but they netted their first #1 overall recruit since current WBA superstar Lonny Jordan with in-state SF Emmett McKoy. Freshman PG Roland Julien is already looking like a top end 4 year starter. With only Pitcher possibly opting for the pros this year, expect the Corsairs to be in the running for the national championship in 2021.
Chance to win CAC: 40%
Chance to play in GCBA Tournament: 95%
2021 Trend Arrow: Way Up
2nd Place: Lake Crystal University Knights (10-1, 2-1)
Expectations are high for Lake Crystal, who returned 4 quality starters and added a star center from the junior college ranks in Chauncey McCrory, a possible first round pick. They lead the nation in steals and forced turnovers overall. Senior SG Rico Kamp is a 4 year starter with great size at 6’8, his 20 points, 4.4 rebounds, and 2.3 steals per game will most likely earn him the nod as CAC Player of the Year. The Knights are one of two teams never to have won the conference and this is their best chance in recent memory.
Looking Ahead: LCU signed a couple 4-star prospects who specialize in shooting threes in #48 overall SG Cameron Irwin and #70 overall SF Thomas Davidson. They have capable players waiting in the wings at those positions as well in Francis Longmire and Donte Seay, but they probably won’t wholly fill the shoes of the 4 year starters departing those positions. PF Carl Bruton and PG Garth Garcia will likely both return and help the Knights continue to be a threat in the CAC as well.
Chance to win CAC: 35%
Chance to play in GCBA Tournament: 95%
2021 Trend Arrow: Neutral
3rd Place: Milwaukee Tech Bulldogs (8-4, 1-2)
The Bulldogs are a well-constructed team, with two defense and rebounding oriented big men in Damian Hann and Justin Wellman and two deadeye shooters at guard in Corey McNeil and Gerry Jackson. The problem in the lineup is small forward Carter Dufour, who is bringing the team down with his shooting slump, averaging 35% from the field and a miserable 24% from 3 on 11+ shots per game. Milwaukee lands near the middle of the conference in most statistical categories, but has the talent to hang with anyone.
Looking Ahead: Milwaukee filled both their scholarships, getting #25 overall SG Andrew Conroy and #33 overall PF Sal Lee. The Bulldogs will miss Hann but the rest of their lineup will continue to develop and help them hang near the top of the CAC.
Chance to win CAC: 15%
Chance to play in GCBA Tournament: 70%
2021 Trend Arrow: Up
4th Place: North Illinois State Eagles (10-2, 1-1)
North Illinois State was possibly the most unlikely power conference winner ever last year, breaking a string of 4 straight years finishing .333 or worse in the CAC and securing their only berth in the major year end tournament to date. With 4 seniors in the starting lineup it wouldn’t be unthinkable to see the Eagles catch lightning in a bottle twice and make a play for the top of the conference again, but their record to date has been bouyed by pillowfights against the dregs of the mid major conferences.
Looking Ahead: The Eagles have up to 6 scholarships to offer, but thus far are primed to come away with only two prospects. Both are guards near the bottom of the top 100, which is actually pretty good for NIS, but considering how many minutes they’ll graduate this year a return to the lower echelon in the conference is almost certain.
Chance to win CAC: 5%
Chance to play in GCBA Tournament: 45%
2021 Trend Arrow: Way Down
5th Place: Detroit Lutheran State Chargers (6-4, 2-0)
A strong start gave way to a 4-game losing streak for Detroit, who righted the ship just in time to start conference play 2-0. The Chargers are stocked with capable players but nobody capable of putting the team on their back and featuring in a starring role. Even projected lottery pick PF Allen Donaldson is still a raw prospect who has never seen the starting lineup. DLS currently has the worst field goal percentage in the conference and struggles to keep opponents off the glass, but they have enough overall talent to hang around against most teams.
Looking Ahead: Detroit Lutheran has 3 signings under their belt, including in-state Mr. Basketball PG Ken Medina, who could be one of the biggest sleepers in the entire class. With their graduating seniors representing less than 1/5 of their minutes, the Chargers are another team looking to make a step back up the ladder in 2021.
Chance to win CAC: 5%
Chance to play in GCBA Tournament: 35%
2021 Trend Arrow: Way Up
6th Place: Larry Bird University Legends (8-4, 0-3)
The Legends seemed primed to defy expectations starting the season 8-1 with only a loss to top-ranked Greenbriar, but an injury to freshman SG Jeff Heflin just as conference play opened knocked them into a hole it may be tough to get out of. Sophomore PG Rick McKeever is already one of the best players in the conference, and C Tommie Timberlake is panning out nicely for a deep 3* prospect, but Kory Eichler and Broderick Fogg are subpar starters no matter how you slice it.
Looking Ahead: LBU has commitments from a couple 3 star forwards in juco Winfred Jackson and PF Thomas Bixby. The program is in solid position to land #78 overall SG Rudy Spriggs, who looks to possess an excellent jumper and a knack for getting steals. This is still going to be a team with a lot of flotsam at the bottom of the roster but they will bring back presumably all their starters and could start getting back into tournament contention next year.
Chance to win CAC: 0%
Chance to play in GCBA Tournament: 1%
2021 Trend Arrow: Up
7th Place: Bloomington College Bears (3-6, 1-1)
Aside from pulling an upset on Columbus Poly for the lulz, it hasn’t been that great of a start for the Bears, who on paper were as good as they’ve been since the halcyon days of Llewellyn Broermann. However, Bloomington is having trouble scoring, defending, and rebounding, which is typically a bad combo. Center Matthew Gardner is a defense and rebounding specialist who will miss the next month with an injury.
Looking Ahead: The BC Bears signed their best commit in years, #40 overall SF Burl Bybee. They will be losing 3 year starter at PG Blair Martindale, nominally their best player, but it’s hard to find much of a reason to put this roster ahead of any other in the CAC.
Chance to win CAC: 0%
Chance to play in GCBA Tournament: 0%
2021 Trend Arrow: Down
CAC End of Regular Season Review: The Corsairs breezed to the program’s 7th regular season conference title, breaking a tie with Greenbriar for the most overall. Northern Illinois followed up last season’s win with a second place and almost surely a tournament berth, cementing their senior class as the most successful in school history. A disappointing 5th place finish and 8-10 record in the CAC may leave Milwaukee Tech as the first program on the outside looking in for the big dance.
Collegiate West Conference
1st Place: Great Plains University Bobcats (7-3, 3-0)
These aren’t quite the supersized, Final 4 Machine Bobcats of the past 4 years but they still are the best team in the CWC by a fair margin. SG Duncan Grover is 3rd in the nation in scoring with 23.5 ppg, and should win Conference POY. Junior PF Kim Freeland is a solid all around player and rebounding specialist who is about the closest thing to a coin toss draft entry as the 2020 class has at the moment. Five star juco PG Lyndon Thelen might already be the second best player in the conference behind Grover.
Looking Ahead: Great Plains wisely focused on their bigs in recruiting, with the headliner being 5 star juco J.C. Glasper, a near certainty to be a one-and-done but lineup ready. #45 overall C Danial McCray is the other signing, and he looks to be a fine developmental prospect. Bobcat fans can get ready to go deep again in 2021, ruling over the CWC will just be a bonus.
Chance to win CWC: 90%
Chance to play in GCBA Tournament: 99%
2021 Trend Arrow: Way Up
2nd Place: Chaco Canyon University Desert Eagles (9-0, 2-0)
The Desert Eagles took the SEC approach to scheduling, pounding out a collection of small conference dunces with a combined record of 27-63 to this point en route to the nation’s best point differential at 19.7 per game. Junior PG Jordan Bullington is having the most award-friendly season of the team, averaging 17.8 points and 4.3 assists. If they can beat the teams they should beat in the CWC, they will more than likely cruise into the tournament with a pretty decent seeding.
Looking Ahead: This is a relatively young team, starting 3 sophomores, a freshman, and a junior. They only pulled the trigger on 1 of their 3 open scholarships, signing #107 overall SF Taylor Dilfer. If they finish ahead of the #3 team in these rankings this year, they would be favored to do so again next year.
Chance to win CWC: 7%
Chance to play in GCBA tournament: 70%
2021 Trend Arrow: Neutral
3rd Place: Des Moines University Vipers (7-2, 2-1)
Des Moines returns 4 starters from last year’s 2nd place team, and sophomore C Morris Click is possibly the best player outside of Great Plains in the conference, averaging a workmanlike 9.0 points, 7.2 boards, and 2.1 blocks per game. SG Jose Deese is the weak spot in the starting 5, currently shooting an unimpressive 38% from the field and YMCA ball level 21% from 3 for the second consecutive year.
Looking Ahead: Senior PG Philip Leroy will be graduating but is more replaceable than he looks. The Vipers grabbed two forwards from the back third of the top 100. My scouts have #73 overall SF Michael Masse as a bust but #87 overall PF Horace Hoffman looks like a strong defensive contributor with a hint of a jump shot that has range out to the 3 point line. Just like in nature, the Vipers and Desert Eagles will be waging war out in the west for the forseeable future.
Chance to win CWC: 3%
Chance to play in GCBA tournament: 50%
2021 Trend Arrow: Up
4th Place: West River College Wolves (6-4, 1-2)
With 80% of the starting lineup in their last year of school, the Wolves are hoping this class gets the program’s 3rd .500+ record in history (to go along with the first two in 2017-18) and possibly another minor tournament berth. West River’s strength is rebounding, their biggest weakness the sloppy defense of their starting backcourt.
Looking Ahead: West River will be losing 6 of their top 8 players and replacing them with one 3-star SF in this year’s class. This is an easy down arrow.
Chance to win CWC: 0%
Chance to play in GCBA tournament: 0%
2021 Trend Arrow: Way Down
5th Place: Mountain State Broncos (6-4, 1-1)
Once the powerhouse basketball program west of the Mississippi, Mountain State is resulting to starting a pair of one star recruits this year. Their point guard play in particular is awful, as evidenced by the team being last in the CWC in assists and turnovers, and you can keep on going to fouls and field goal percentage. The only real bright spot on the roster is sophomore PF Gerald Robichaux, one of the most dangerous low post scorers in the nation. It would be a surprise of the Broncos were able to keep their record over .500 for the year.
Looking Ahead: Help is finally on the way- Mountain has signed three top 100 recruits so far this year, it’s safe to say that both #30 SG Edward Pritchet and #86 PG Trenton Alberto will be pressed into immediate action. There’s still a hole at small forward, but it would be realistic to expect an end to the backslide the program has been in seemingly since their championship in 2012.
Chance to win CWC: 0%
Chance to play in GCBA tournament: 0%
2021 Trend Arrow: Up
6th Place: Great Basin State Miners (3-7, 0-3)
On paper, the Miners look like a respectable team chock full of returning starters in their senior year. Nevertheless, they have been getting blown off the court recently and have the worst point differential in the conference. Head Coach Richard Jacks is a certainty to be fired at the end of the year.
Looking Ahead: Will cause a Miners fan to crack a cold one. No commits for next year, nobody even particularly interested at the three star level. If the Miners don’t get 7th this year, they will next year.
Chance to win CWC: 0%
Chance to play in GCBA tournament: 0%
2021 Trend Arrow: Way Down
7th Place: Scottsdale University Bulls (3-6, 0-2)
The Bulls have enough good players to fill out an NBA Jam roster, but they get stretched a little thin going up to 5 on 5. Sophomore C Adam Ingraham is a great building block for a roster and should develop into a WBA player eventually, but the rest of the team is mediocre at best.
Looking Ahead: Scottsdale has commitments from a couple three star small forwards, but nobody that moves the needle for them much.
Chance to win CWC: 0%
Chance to play in GCBA tournament: 0%
2021 Trend Arrow: Neutral
CWC End of Season Conference Review: As expected, Great Plains dominated the league and won their 6th conference title. Des Moines and Chaco Canyon are both hanging out near the cut line, making their first round conference tournament game one of the most important games left in the season. If both teams end up dancing it would be a welcome surprise for the conference.
Great Eastern League
1st Place: Mid-Atlantic University Panthers (10-0, 2-0)
What sets this team apart from a talented upper class in the GEL is the amount of capable scorers, as 4 of their starters average in the double figures. 3 point specialist Stephen Devoe leads the team at 17.1 ppg, while undersized sophomore PF Joshua Hughley is netting 14.7 primarily from the inside and shooting 57%. C Dominic James completes the package with his dominant rebounding (11.5) and shot blocking (2.7). Depth is an issue and any injury could prove costly to this team’s hopes of going far in the tournament.
Looking Ahead: Only one of Mid Atlantic’s starters is a senior and none have generated much draft buzz, so it’s highly likely that they will return intact. The Panthers also nabbed 3 very nice recruits in the 29-43 range that should add depth to their overall roster. Point guard will be a slight question mark but this has the look of a program ready to embark on a golden era.
Chance to win GEL: 50%
Chance to play in GCBA tournament: 95%
2021 Trend Arrow: Way Up
2nd Place: Philadelphia State Warriors (8-2, 3-0)
It was a tough pick between the Warriors and Chesapeake for 2nd here, but the fact that Philadelphia State already went into their house and won is a nice tiebreaker. Their best player and potential top 5 pick PG Scott Farmer is set to return from an academic suspension in January, at which point the Warriors will have all 5 starters from last year back on the court again. This team’s strength is also its weakness, as they rank first in the GEL in most shooting metrics but last defensively in all shooting metrics.
Looking Ahead: Though they had the good fortune to return all 5 starters this year, the Warriors will be replacing all 5 starters next year. They put in big work on the recruiting trail and especially the juco market to ensure they don’t miss a beat. In particular I see #23 overall SG George Miller and #34 overall PG Theodore Sherman jumping right into the starting lineup and becoming huge stars right out of the gate. I had my doubts that any team could challenge Mid Atlantic for the conference title next year before I saw this haul, which will certainly be a top 2-3 overall class.
Chance to win GEL: 25%
Chance to play in GCBA tournament: 85%
2021 Trend Arrow: Way Up
3rd Place: Chesapeake University Blue Rams (7-3, 1-2)
My biggest problem with the Blue Rams right now is that I think their best player is riding the bench. Top-10 recruit John Skaggs has a noticebly better 30 minute average +/- than any starter and is nearly leading the team in scoring. If it weren’t for Quinn Girard averaging 12.2 points, 9 rebounds, and 3.9 blocks (good for 4th in the nation) I would be sure Skaggs is their best player.
Looking Ahead: 3 of Chesapeake’s 7 worthwhile players are seniors and two more are expected to be lottery picks, so they needed to put together a solid recruiting class and managed to do just that, highlighted by #6 overall juco Jeremy Bono, who looks to be a dangerous scorer. Even still, it’s hard to see this much talent departing and be optimistic.
Chance to win GEL: 15%
Chance to play in GCBA tournament: 75%
2021 Trend Arrow: Down
4th Place: Harlem University Heat (8-0, 2-0)
The Heat are one of the most top-heavy teams in college basketball, with three star players and not much backing them up. Center German Jacks is an elite rim protector, forward Joseph Chalfant is a reliable inside scorer who has averaged 17 points or more for the past 4 seasons, and guard Noble Kenyon is the outside shooter and ballhandler. They currently lead the nation in rebounding and points allowed, but a lot of that can be attributed to a creampuff starting schedule. Aside from an out-of-left-field GEL title in 2016, Harlem has never been a factor in the conference standings down the stretch and this year should hold to the pattern.
Looking Ahead: Kenyon is the only one of Harlem’s stars who is not a senior, but they did find a trio of 4-star reinforcements for him in recruiting. Forwards Stephen Wilkie and Freddie Diaz were ranked 42nd and 44th overall, respectively, and PG Joshua Lett was the #65 overall recruit. They’ll probably end up as close to a top-10 class, but the Heat will still most likely cool down for a year in 2022.
Chance to win GEL: 5%
Chance to play in GCBA tournament: 30%
2021 Trend Arrow: Down
5th Place: Jersey State University Falcons (6-3, 1-2)
Perhaps no team in the nation is as short on big men as Jersey State. Chris Grayson is a former 4 star recruit who is a little raw, but decent, then it falls off a cliff to walk-on Jonathon Berry and 6’5 frosh John Starkey. The Falcons play at a glacial pace to try to keep the rotation as fresh as possible, but there just aren’t many workarounds to such a deficiency.
Looking Ahead: #28 overall C Seth Davis is a mortal lock to be starting for the Falcons next year, but currently stands as their only signing. Sophomore SF LaBradford Stone may go pro, but Jersey’s best scorer Freddie Johnson would move from 6th man back into the starting lineup if that happened and it likely wouldn’t make much difference. I could see this team improving slightly next year as they have no graduating seniors, but nowhere near being able to contend for the conference title.
Chance to win GEL: 0%
Chance to play in GCBA tournament: 5%
2021 Trend Arrow: Up
6th place: Appleby University Apples (7-6, 0-2)
The lone bright spot on the team is former 5* SF Gerry Pike, who is Appleby’s best offensive and defensive player. The Apples will get a slight boost from the return of Stuart Roche from academic suspension as they are relying on two senior walk-ons at the starting guard positions, but will still struggle mightily to defend the paint.
Looking Ahead: The Apples have more walk-ons than scholarship players on their roster, it’s pretty difficult to have a good team with that setup. Their only signing so far is #96 overall SF John Creek, who will most likely spend a year behind Pike. Appleby desperately needs a couple of talented guards and a rim protector or they will continue to fall in the GEL.
Chance to win GEL: 0%
Chance to play in GCBA tournament: 0%
2021 Trend Arrow: Down
7th place: Ithaca State Bombers (7-6, 0-3)
7’2 center Robert Endsley is the only returning starter for Ithaca State, who eked out winning records overall the past 2 years but hasn’t been above .500 in the GEL since 2009. The Bombers aren’t terrible for a cellar dwellar, they just can’t attract the same talent level as their power conference brethren.
Looking Ahead: Ithaca’s top 2 players are set to graduate and they have no signings in the top 200 thus far. 2021-22 will be another year at the bottom of the pack for this team.
Chance to win GEL: 0%
Chance to play in GCBA tournament: 0%
2021 Trend Arrow: Way Down
GEL End of Season Review: Aside from sorting apart the top 4 and the bottom 3, my predictions here sucked. Harlem, who I gave only a 5% chance to win the conference to, snuck away with the regular season title by sweeping out Philadelphia State. Even so, I stand behind my analysis as things were wide open all year and RPI again declared the GEL the nation’s strongest conference. They look primed to be the only outfit sending 4 teams to the top tournament this year and any one of them could run the table.
Power West Conference
1st Place: Berkeley Tech Golden Bears (12-1, 3-0)
Berkeley boasts one of the most complete starting lineups in the nation, having 3 seniors with starting experience, junior inside scoring specialist Bryant Ferraro at PF, and blue chip frosh Chris Forsberg stepping right in and pulling his weight at shooting guard. They lead the conference in points, rebounds, assists, steals, fewest turnovers, and field goal %. Their only weakness is from beyond the arc, where they shoot below 35%. I could still see this team going far in the tournament and being a dark horse national title contender.
Looking Ahead: The Golden Bears signed a top 10 recruit in undersized PF Sammy Murphy and California’s Mr. Basketball, #53 overall SG Brian Towe. They have some depth players on their roster who could step in and be pretty good, but their senior class will be tough to replace right off the bat. I don’t see them being quite as good next year, but they should remain near the top of the PWC.
Chance to win PWC: 70%
Chance to play in GCBA tournament: 99%
2021 Trend Arrow: Down
2nd: Place: Westside University Bandits (9-2, 3-0)
Though he isn’t scoring at a high rate yet, last year’s #1 overall recruit SG Thomas White has made a big impact for the Bandits with his thievery, averaging 2.1 steals already. Aside from White, Westside is an offensive minded team and the entire starting 5 has a spot on the floor they are dangerous from. They should be able to shoot their way through most teams in the conference, but mediocre defense and rebounding will hamstring them against the GCBA’s most elite squads.
Looking Ahead: Aside from starting C Daryl Whisenant, the only player who may bail is White. However, he isn’t getting the same level of draft hype as a typical top prospect and may be better served staying in school for a year. If he does, watch out for Westside next year as they aren’t resting on their laurels in recruiting this year either. They’ve pulled in the #56 and 57 overall recruits, SF Johnathon Smith and C Virgil Whisenhunt. The gap between Berkeley and Westside may close to a near 50/50 race for the PWC title next year.
Chance to win PWC: 25%
Chance to play in GCBA tournament: 65%
2021 Trend Arrow: Up
3rd Place: Midwest State Owls (5-5, 2-1)
The Owls have had some terrible outcomes in close games so far this year, losing by 1 point thrice already. They have a talented trio of seniors leading the way for them, with SG Tony Wright pacing the team in scoring at 17.7 ppg, 6’11 C James Dixon patrolling the glass for 8.1 rpg, and PF Eli Leduc contributing in multiple ways and leading the team in blocks with 2.1/game. They have enough talent to get hot, win the conference tournament, and dance but overall are a class below the top two teams in the PWC.
Looking Ahead: #80 overall PF Jeffrey Cyrus is Midwest State’s top recruit so far. He will see minutes and possibly start next year. 3* international freshman Chris Turnbull is looking like a diamond in the rough who will develop into an offensive ace for Midwest State, but he may not get there until his junior year. Midwest will lose some talent, but could still be a slightly better team overall next year.
Chance to win PWC: 5%
Chance to play in GCBA tournament: 25%
2021 Trend Arrow: Up
4th Place: Portland A&M University Ducks (3-3, 1-1)
Aside from a weak spot at power forward with former 1 star Charles Maria, the Ducks field a capable roster with depth at guard and small forward. Portland A&M’s shooting woes so far this year have been a surprise, as they are sitting at under 30% from beyond the arc. Fortunately for them, shooting is one of the few talents that can run hot and cold so things should turn around for them as their 2 talented freshmen, Chris Davis and Matthew Standridge, acclimate to the college level. A&M struggles to keep opponents of the glass and I think that is what will eventually land them in 4th.
Looking Ahead: The Ducks will be graduating 4 rotation players and thus far haven’t grabbed any top 100 recruits to replace them. I think next year’s team will have more talent at the top but less depth, and be roughly as good as this year’s.
Chance to win PWC: 0%
Chance to play in GCBA tournament: 5%
2021 Trend Arrow: Neutral
5th Place: Billings A&M University Bison (4-6, 0-2)
Billings is another team led by a trio of seniors with plenty of experience, in fact all of their current starting 5 also started at some point last year. However, aside from SG/SF Linwood Lawrence’s 3 point shooting, none of them would grade out as elite in anything. The Bison have finished within 2 games of .500 for the past 5 years and it would come as no surprise if they made it 6.
Looking Ahead: With no commits in the top 200 and their best 3 players graduating, prepare for the bottom to drop out on the Bison. They will be fighting to stay out of the basement of the conference next year.
Chance to win PWC: 0%
Chance to play in GCBA tournament: 0%
2021 Trend Arrow: Way Down
6th Place: Heavenly Holy Academy Angels (4-8, 0-3)
The Angels have had a fall from grace since their last tournament appearance in 2017, and just appear to be starting to get the pieces put back together. After a devastating injury to blue chip sophomore PF Alexis Kirby that will end his season, their starting lineup consists of 2 mediocre seniors and 3 young, raw players. Sophomore PF/C Garry Sitton is developing into a force on the defensive end and classmate Paul Sloan is showing the potential to become an excellent scorer from the point guard position. Heavenly currently has the best 3 point shooting percentage in the conference but only ranks 6th in attempts, they may want to give Sloan more of a green light.
Looking Ahead: HHA’s trio of sophomores will be joined by another trio of top 100 recruits in the class of 2021, led by #10 overall PG George Weigand, who has the potential to be a defensive ace. This is a team I could see improving by 10 wins next year.
Chance to win PWC: 0%
Chance to play in GCBA tournament: 0%
2021 Trend Arrow: Way Up
7th Place: California A&E University Hornets (4-4, 0-2)
Senior SF Roderick Coles is a talented two way player and Junior SG Jeromy Sutton can shoot, but the Hornets are one of the many teams facing a big man shortage. Sophomore SF Vito Sanchez is undersized but doing an impressive job working as the 4, so much so that he has some draft hype, but Fabricio Pardo is possibly one of the 3 worst starting centers in a power conference. California isn’t the bottom of the barrel team some conferences have, but somebody has to be last.
Looking Ahead: Nobody in the top 100. This thing has gone too long to go digging deep on a team such as this.
Chance to win PWC: 0%
Chance to play in GCBA tournament: 0%
2021 Trend Arrow: Way Down
PWC End of Season Review: The Power West went about as expected, with Berkeley taking the conference and Midwest State looking like a contender for a GCBA tournament berth. The bottom 3 teams were all clearly a cut below the rest of the field and finished in a tie for last. This year’s results along with recruiting should be the start of the Golden Bears pulling away from the field and starting to dominate this conference.
South 7 Conference
1st Place: Bayou Academy Wildcats (9-3, 1-2)
Academic suspensions have impacted the start of conference play in the S7, with C Herbert Damato being Bayou’s trouble student. His return will give the Wildcats a potent 7 deep, with senior SG Jamie Lynch hoping to return from a ruptured achilles in time for the big dance. In terms of the players on the court now, junior SG Daniel Jones is drawing the most headlines averaging 21.3 points per game, but I can’t help but notice classmate and last year’s starter George Tipton having a much better +/- in reserve minutes. Bayou is 4th in the nation in scoring on the 4th best FG%.
Looking Ahead: Blue chip juco PF Justin Crites is expected to be drafted in the lottery, so he’ll be gone. SF Gavin Persons is graduating and may not last too long after him. Junior C Jed Hollingshead has 2nd round buzz and may move on after starting for 3 years. The Wildcats got 3 very nice recruits in the top 100, but they were a PG, SG, and a SF. Size could start to become an issue next year, particularly if Hollingshead declares.
Chance to win S7: 40%
Chance to play in GCBA tournament: 85%
2021 Trend Arrow: Down
2nd Place: South Beach University Pirates (6-4, 1-2)
The defending national champs have struggled without 6’10 SF Jerry Laskowski, another academic suspension due to return in January. The 2019 All-American is hoping to average another double-double this year. Sophomores John Houston at PG and Daniel Wright at PF both currently carry first round grades, it’s surprising that their classmate at C Tyler Peterson doesn’t as well. Once the Pirates get the utterly mediocre senior Wilton Cade out of the starting lineup they should be a formidable team once again.
Looking Ahead: The draft will take a lot from South Beach and they don’t have the scholarship ammo to remedy that this year. Their only top 100 recruit is #69 overall SF Kevin Tran, who fits a need for them but the shoes he’ll be stepping into may take some time to fit.
Chance to win S7: 35%
Chance to play in GCBA tournament: 80%
2021 Trend Arrow: Way Down
3rd Place: Yellowhammer State Mammoths (8-4, 2-1)
Yellowhammer’s top 8 includes two people in each class, a testament to their balanced yet dominant job in recruiting. The Mammoths’ scoring is also balanced, with 4 players in double figures led by junior SF Richard Nicholas at 14.7 ppg. The team is 5th in the nation in turnovers. losing only 10.9 per game, but struggles to rebound in a break from program tradition.
Looking Ahead: On paper, it was another banner year for the Mammoths. #3 overall C Daniel Eleredge and #5 SF Alton Campbell lead the class, with #49 PF Jackie Freund and #67 PG Oliver Bates as nice complementary pieces. My scouts weren’t as high on their blue chips but rankings that high are usually pretty safe bets. The problem for Yellowhammer is how much they could lose to the draft. Nicholas is almost certainly gone, sophomore PF Bruce Gee might be a 50/50. There is enough talent here to reload instead of rebuild, as freshmen guards David Blair and Tony Pulver would start for 80% of teams already.
Chance to win S7: 20%
Chance to play in GCBA tournament: 65%
2021 Trend Arrow: Neutral
4th Place: University of Gatlinburgh Hilltoppers (7-5, 1-2)
With 3 of the giants of college basketball looming in their conference, Gatlinburgh has never had the oxygen to flourish in the S7, never having made the big tourney. This year’s Hilltoppers have a good crop of players, with junior C Paul Lutes averaging 11.6 points and making a name for himself on defense and freshman SG Donald Edge impressing on offense with 12.1 ppg, 6th best among his class. They don’t have the five star level talent of the teams above them, but have a puncher’s chance in the conference tournament.
Looking Ahead: The Hilltoppers had 3 offers to make and came away with only #124 overall SF Eric Montague. Lutes has a 2nd round draft grade, I could see him returning to try improving that to a first and that would be very helpful to this team, as there is no depth behind him. If he stays, Gatlinburgh has (a little) better than a puncher’s chance at the dance next year.
Chance to win S7: 5%
Chance to play in GCBA tournament: 10%
2021 Trend Arrow: Up
5th Place: Devi State University Cardinals (5-5, 2-0)
Devi has two talented guards on the Academic probation, junior PG Joseph Keck and freshman Wilburn McCutchen. If both come back the Cardinals will be set with the smalls but still in a concerning position with their bigs. Former #429 overall 1 star Thomas Gallegos is starting, and though he’s proving to have a knack for rebounding, averaging over 10 per game, he’s not an inspiring choice on offense or defense. His partner in the frontcourt Donato Farfan is an even deeper 1 star, #821 overall, but the scouts must have missed the boat on him as he’s averaging 14.3 points, 7.5 boards, and 1.9 blocks.
Looking Ahead: So far Devi has only landed #41 overall PG Lawerence Samora. He looks like a nice player but about the opposite of what they needed. The entire team should return so by default they are a riser.
Chance to win S7: 0%
Chance to play in GCBA tournament: 0%
2021 Trend Arrow: Up
6th Place: Gainesville University Gators (4-6, 2-0)
Losing sophomore C Scot Workman for the season to a torn MCL was a blow, but at least it happened early enough that he was eligible to be redshirted. Gainesville starts 4 seniors, but PG Timothy Dewberry is the only one who could be called an above average player, and that only on defense. Junior SG Gerald Tilton is the team’s best shooter and leads the Gators in points with 12.2 per game. One of the team’s main weaknesses is struggling to share the rock, as they only average 10.9 assists per contest.
Looking Ahead: #111 overall PG Thomas Williams is Gainesville’s only signing thus far, and even though he looks like a diamond in the rough Gainesville will be an extremely shallow team next year.
Chance to win S7: 0%
Chance to play in GCBA tournament: 0%
2021 Trend Arrow: Down
7th Place: Savannah Poly Tech Tigers (7-4, 0-2)
The Tigers are coming off the first season in nearly a decade where they weren’t the doormat of the S7, and return two starters from that glorious triumph. 6’10 senior Andrew Fouts is a respectable rim protector, and classmate Otis Everett is a steady hand at PG. The rest of the team is flotsam, and their record is a result of creampuff scheduling that will be unraveled in conference play.
Looking Ahead: #58 overall juco SG Kyle Kappe is the Tigers’ top commit. He and last year’s #58 overall recruit, C Shawn Dvorak, will have the unenviable task of trying to get Savannah back out of the cellar.
Chance to win S7: 0%
Chance to play in GCBA tournament: 0%
2021 Trend Arrow: Down
S7 End of Season Review: Picking Bayou over the team that bested them in the championship last year proved to be a foolish move, as getting SF Jerry Laskowski back was a critical element to South Beach’s success and they pulled away from the pack. The rest of the South 7 was stuck in a vicious cycle of cannibalism as teams struggled to separate from each other, most likely costing the conference some tournament berths. 4 teams finished the year at 16-13 and two at 14-15, definitely not the kind of record that convinces anyone to give you a tournament berth.