Believe it or not, sectionals in High School Basketball are only about three weeks away. Where did the season go? The Suburban Council will make up the majority of the AA playoffs, and this is the most wide-open it has been in years. Here’s a quick check-in on the league’s top eight teams coming into the week.
#1: Saratoga Springs, 10-1 league, 10-2 overall
This is a team that has been absolutely clicking the past few weeks. After dropping their first two games of the season, the Blue Streaks have not missed a step and have counted off 10 straight wins since then. The two-headed monster in sharpshooter AJ Lawton and interior guy Brian Hart have been big for the team, but they have other key pieces in Nick and Nate Chudy, Matt Larkin and Aidan Holmes off the bench. They are coming off back-to-back eliminations in the sectional quarterfinals, but there is no reason to believe that they won’t get further this season.
#2: CBA, 9-2 league, 11-2 overall
The lone Suburban Council team to beat Saratoga, the Brothers are having another fantastic season. Jordan King has been an absolute liability for them after sitting out last year due to transfer rules, averaging 15.5 points per game this season, and have other key pieces such as Drew Signor (14.3 points per game) and Pryce Wasula (10.6 points per game). They have won nine of their past 10, and look poised for a deep sectional run under Dave Doemel.
#3: Shenendehowa, 8-2 league, 11-3 overall
This team came into the season with a bit of a chip on their shoulder this season after they lost Luke Hicks midway through last year and fell victim to a playoff upset at the hands of La Salle in the quarterfinals. The Plainsmen are back and looking strong once again, even without a league superstar. With that, the duo in Chris Hulbert (14.2 points per game) and Abbas Merchant (13.9 points per game) have filled the void nicely. This team, however, preaches their defense, allowing just 45.6 points per game and have held opponents to under 50 points 10 times, and under 40 four times. They have a tough stretch in early February (at Shaker on 2/6 and vs Saratoga on 2/9), so those will be two tests to see what they will be like in sectionals.
#4: Colonie, 9-3 league, 10-3 overall
This team has arguably the league’s best player in Isaiah Moll, and he has shown why he is a Division I commit, with his size at 6’7″ and with his stats, averaging 24.7 points per game. However, what has done them in a little bit is that they are kind of a one-man show on offense. If he has an off-night, it may do the Raiders in. However, he tends to not have off-nights, which is key in bringing them to a 9-3 record so far this year, including a statement win against Shen on Friday. They made it to the sectional final last year, and they have the team this year to make a deep sectional run again.
#5: Bethlehem, 8-3 league, 8-6 overall
This team has been without star Michael Ortale since a Christmas tournament, and has missed the team’s past six games. However, Erik Salo has picked up the slack nicely in his absence, even leading them to an impressive win over Troy on January 5, and the team is 4-2 in the six games that Ortale has missed. They have two tough games until the end of the season (at CBA on February 3 and at Colonie on February 9). It is still unknown if Ortale will return before season’s end, but if he does, Bethlehem’s sectional seed may be hurt a little bit but coming in as defending sectional champions, they could too make a deep run.
#6: Shaker, 7-3 league, 9-3 overall
This team came into the season as arguably the favorites to win the section this year. They have Division I-caliber talent in Sloan Seymour and Jake Cook as a piece to help him out. Seymour has had a very solid season, with 17.8 points per game, but it is not exactly the season that was expected out of him. Still, they have quietly crawled to a 7-3 league record, but they have struggled in games against higher-caliber teams, with a record of 1-3 against teams with a league mark of over .500 as of 1/22. They can beat the lower-level teams rather handily, but it’s difficult to see this team make a deep run, especially considering how many good teams there are.
#7: Troy, 7-4 league, 7-5 overall
Troy is a squad that can be very dangerous come sectionals. They are fast, athletic, and can score points in bunches quickly. First-year head coach Greg Davis’ new style of play is working to a tee, and they have been led by a three-man deep offensive attack of Nazaire Merritt (15.2 points per game), Latyce Faison (14 points per game) and Alonzo Alexander (11.3 points per game). Their record may not show it, but they can win any game against any team, and they have not lost any game by more than eight points all season. If they can keep a game close, they can win it.
#8: Ballston Spa, 6-5 league, 8-6 overall
Don’t look now, but the Scotties are having one of their best seasons in recent memory. They have been long been an afterthought in basketball, but they have a real chance to win a playoff game in a few weeks. Junior Luke Alteri and senior JJ Turner have quietly made themselves one of the better scoring duos in the league, and this team’s strong play has made them an intriguing Cinderella pick for February. They are coming off two straight strong performances over Guilderland and Albany at the end of last week. They have perhaps the toughest part of their schedule coming up with road games games against Troy (1/26) and Shaker (1/30) followed by a home game against Shen (2/2). If they can at least keep those games close and even win one of two of them, it would be an interesting shake-up at the end of the season.
