| 09 January 2012
O'Dea guard Sekou Wiggs defends Seattle Prep forward Mitch Brewe in Friday's game. Photo Credit//Kevin Culala
After a long winter break, Metro basketball finally resumed last week in exciting fashion. Lakeside pulled off the upset against a surging Eastside Catholic team; the Lions are moving up in the rankings after winning six of their last seven games. (post the link to the article) Seattle Prep and O’Dea turned in another classic rivalry game. Prep dominated the first half, but O’Dea’s Sekou Wiggs took over and helped the Irish come with in one point entering the fourth quarter. The Panthers bounced back in the fourth quarter came out on top (49-46) over the Irish.
CHECK OUT MY POWER RANKINGS, PLAYER OF THE WEEK AND PREDICTIONS FOR WEEK 6 AFTER THE JUMP!
Player of the Week: Anrio Adams, Rainier Beach
It is about time that the No.1 player in the state gets this honoring. Adams played exceptional basketball, scoring 20 plus points in each of Beach’s three games last week. Adams’ biggest moment of the week came when he scored 24 points on the road against a very good Eastside Catholic team. He’s averaging 21 points this year.
Power Rankings:
1. Rainier Beach (11-0) The Vikings did what they had to do this week to remain undefeated; blowing out West Seattle (76-54), Eastside Catholic (76-60), and Cleveland (97-56) all on the road. Beating West Seattle and Cleveland by that large of margin isn’t a surprise, but defeating the Crusaders by that many points is impressive. I picked Eastside to beat the Vikings, which backfired on me. I don’t see this team losing the rest of their regular season, but they could get tripped up in the playoffs.
This Week: Beach hosts Blanchet (1-11) which will be an easy victory, but Friday’s game against Franklin will be a no piece of cake. Franklin is undefeated in Metro and will give it their all against the Vikings. Beach is the hottest team in the league right now, and will beat Franklin in a close game.
2. Seattle Prep (9-2) Prep took care of Cleveland without breaking a sweat (72-50). They did survive a thriller against O’Dea (49-46), blowing a seventeen point lead and got bailed out again from G Ryan Caindec, who knocked down the biggest shot of the night; a three pointer to put Prep up 48-41 with less than a minute left. The Panthers need to learn how to finish out games when their up by a large number of points. I do like G Jackson Clough’s scoring ability; with his offense along with D.J. Fenner and Mitch Brewe, Prep could make a deep run in the playoffs.
This Week: The Panthers have an average schedule this week as they host both West Seattle (6-5), and Chief Sealth (9-2). Prep will win against West Seattle and Chief Sealth, but they should not look past the Seahawks.
3. O’Dea (8-5) The Irish were triumphant against Bainbridge (76-64), and could have won against Seattle Prep if they didn’t start off slow. O’Dea was able to win against Nathan Hale (62-55), but had to play catch-up the entire game and finally found themselves in the fourth quarter, outscoring the Raiders 24-6. Dana Abe came up big in that game scoring 31 points, and Jalen Ward continues to make these incredible no look passes that I just can’t explain. In order for O’Dea to make a run for a Metro Title, they need to start games off strong and get more help from their sophomores and juniors.
This Week: The Irish play only one game this week on Friday against Ingraham (5-6). Learning from last week, O’Dea will come out firing in the first half and not look back from their, blowing out Ingraham.
4. Franklin (10-2) The Quakers move back to the fourth spot after winning out last week against Blanchet (58-23), Ingraham (91-83), West Seattle (74-49). Franklin is still undefeated in Metros this year along with Beach. They haven’t played a tough schedule so far, and will get their opportunity to prove themselves this week.
This Week: The Quakers face Chief Sealth (9-2), and Rainier Beach (11-0). Franklin wins a close one against Sealth, but loses to Beach in a thriller. G Arell Hennings and G Cody Russell will need to play the game of their lives for the Quakers to knock off Beach.
5. Chief Sealth (9-2) Sealth had an easy schedule last week, beating Cleveland (57-43) and Blanchet (55-39). Sealth has impressed many people this year, but many of their wins have come against easy opponents. This team still has the talent to earn a bid to state this year.
This Week: The Seahawks have their biggest test of the year this week as they face two of the top five teams in Metros (No. 2 Seattle Prep) and (No. 4 Franklin). Sealth will give Franklin a run for their money, but comes up short against the Quakers. Prep will be too much for the Seahawks to handle, but Sealth does have depth and don’t be surprised if they turn some heads this week.
6. Eastside Catholic (9-5)
This Week: Bainbridge (5-6)
7. Lakeside (6-6)
This Week: Cleveland (2-8), Blanchet (1-11)
8. Nathan Hale (7-4)
This Week: Ingraham (5-6), West Seattle (6-5)
9. Ingraham (5-6)
This Week: Nathan Hale (7-4), O’Dea (8-5)
10. West Seattle (6-5)
This Week: Seattle Prep (9-2), Nathan Hale (7-4)
11. Bainbridge (5-6)
This Week: Eastside Catholic (9-5), Cleveland (2-8)
12. Cleveland (2-8)
This Week: Lakeside (6-6), Bainbridge (5-6)
13. Blanchet (1-11)
This Week: Rainier Beach (11-0), Seattle Prep (9-2)
Game of the Week: Franklin (10-2) at Rainer Beach (11-0), 8:00 p.m. Friday:
This game features two of the top players in the state, G Anrio Adams (Beach), and G Arell Hennings (Franklin). Both teams love to push up the floor and score on the fast break. Expect a high scoring game that could come down to the wire. Adams will get his points and score at least 20 points, but if Hennings puts up big numbers, the Quakers have a chance of beating Beach. It is a small one but we’ll see come Friday. I predict Beach wins by seven or less points.
--Evan Baron (@BaselineBaron09)
