POWER RANKINGS 11/12

By Matt Brown - Over the last couple weeks the league has nearly fully developed. Front-runners have appeared, while others have fallen to the back of the pack. Meanwhile, I sort of dropped the ball on writing about it. But I promise improvement from here on out. Here it is… about 2 weeks late.
1. Spurs (7-2)- The Spurs have been beaten in only 2 of their 9 games. Both losses have come to the Lakers, so in reality they really have only lost to one team. The combination of Eric Walsh, a great guard, and a plethora of tall players is a huge matchup problem for every defense, whether they chose to attempt a man or zone front. Much like his Blue Wave Football season, senior Harlan Smith’s (pictured) last year of House Ball has been a break out of scoring. Right next to him is senior Tim Brickman who is also turning heads around the league. All the Spurs have to do from here on out is maintain this level as play… And beat the Lakers. Pictured is Harlan catching a football because it just shows his raw athleticism.
2. Nuggets (6-2) – The Nuggets are a cohesive unit that is coming together after a pretty slow start. Senior Nicky Neville is the biggest playmaker for these guys but he is certainly not alone. Senior Tommy Nicholls is one of the most underrated offensive players in the league, holding a great shot and a surprising driving ability. Junior Patrick Reilly is also pretty cash if you give him an open jumper. The paint is dominated for these guys by seniors Reed Coots and Bryan Sullivan. Basically, every member of this team has a role and does it well, which I think gives them staying power atop the rankings.
3. Suns (6-3) – The Suns are a very solid team. Senior Bobby Minion and junior Jack Sherwood both confront little obstacles when trying to light up the scoreboard. They have also had very good wins against solid teams like the Rockets, Spurs, and Grizzlies. However, they have also had questionable loses. It is hard to tell which direction the Suns are headed in, and the main reason they hold the third spot is because of their two victories over the Rockets, the 4 seed.
4. Rockets (6*-3) – The Rockets are a pest to play. Their offensive attack is one of the best in the league. Senior Russell Palmer and junior Jackson Whiting are a dynamic duo. In addition, they have help from all over the court from juniors Pierce Whiting and Ben Highton (where has he been?). The area of the game that might do the Rockets in is defense. They openly focus much less on D then they do the offensive end of the court. However, they have shown a great ability to win close games which is necessary in a league where so little separates each team. Plus, you can’t leave senior Gabe Wade unguarded. He will hurt you. I promise.
5. Grizzlies (5-4)- The Grizzlies are perhaps the best team in the lower tier of teams that these rankings begin to enter at the 5 spot. Senior Luke Osherow is a truly great basketball player and senior Scott Plank is still making it rain. They have beaten almost all of the teams that they should have beaten, but have lost to almost all the teams ranked above them. For the Griz to be considered one of the elite teams in house, they must begin to find ways to beat the elite.
6. Kings (4-5) – Despite a recent bad loss at the hands of the Nuggets, the Kings have not been bad overall. Much like the Grizzlies, the Kings have been winning the easy ones and nearly inept against stiffer competition. This leaves the Kings as strictly mediocre. I wouldn’t call them bad, but they are clearly below everyone 5 and up.
7. Mavericks (3-6)- The Mavs have the roster to turn this season around coming into the final stretch. The backcourt, of senior Matt Pik and junior Spencer Mcmullin, is a collection of some of the fastest students in the entire high school. In the frontcourt, senior Sam Gillespie may be the hardest man to get a rebound over in all of House. Nonetheless this squad is on a two game skid and needs a win Wednesday night against the Suns.
8. Lakers (3-6) – The Lake Show is in the midst of a three game freefall. I do not know if they have the talent needed to pull themselves out of this rut and learn how to play as a cohesive group instead of just individuals. There Is little excuse for the Lakers being here in the standings and hopefully they can throw one more W or two in the Win or Lose column before the season ends.

Last: My Thunder (2-7) and the Trailblazers at (2-7) are definitely the two worst in the league. I cannot hold back my excitement for playing them. I like to think that it isn’t me and my team that is worst in the league, but instead it is our shooting, passing, rebounding, and dribbling. As for the Trailblazers, here is senior Jay Alter on why his the Blazers are struggling. “We just can’t finish. We are in every single game but just lose by two, three, or four. We play hard and have some really solid players. We will be shocking the world come playoff time.”