SOC 1 2023 LEAGUE PROJECTIONS

[AnkleBraces]

RANK EM

[N2Hoops]

I think with the exception of East & Clay the league is going to be very competitive.

[Lovehoops1]

RANK EM

Western
Symmes
NB
ND
ISJ
Green
Clay
East

[Real Time]

Western
Green
ISJ
Symmes
ND
Clay
NB
East

[Area51]

[quote=AnkleBraces post_id=2002948 time=<a href="tel:1656342724">1656342724</a> user_id=13418]RANK EM

Western
Symmes
NB
ND
ISJ
Green
Clay
East
[/quote]

Are you just throwing teams out there blindly? Symmes Valley lost nearly 10 seniors and their one returning starter just transferred, you have Green in the bottom 3 and they return some of the best talent in the league.

[Penguin]

Western will take a step back this year imo.

[Lovehoops1]

[quote=AnkleBraces post_id=2002948 time=<a href="tel:1656342724">1656342724</a> user_id=13418]RANK EM

Western
Symmes
NB
ND
ISJ
Green
Clay
East

Are you just throwing teams out there blindly? Symmes Valley lost nearly 10 seniors and their one returning starter just transferred, you have Green in the bottom 3 and they return some of the best talent in the league.
[/quote]

Wow it wasn't a personal attack on anyone just how I think it might go. Sorry it upset you so much.

[whynot?]

RANK EM

1. Ironton St. Joe
(lost three last season, but gained three very good players, former starter from Coal Grove, One from South Point and a former starter from Clay. But the main reason I am putting them here is depth. They will have 10 varsity guys and the five on their bench are all very capable players, some of them would start at other schools.)
2. Western
(graduated 8 seniors last season but still have Carter inside along Haggy and Janes as sophomores who are very good and other quality players)(starting five will be very very good, maybe the best in the league but won't be as deep this year).
3. Green
(Sampson will be impossible to stop, the brothers from Stockdale stayed are also very good, along with the young Kimbler who will shoot it from the volleyball line. Like Western, their starting 5 will be very solid but they will lack depth).
4. Notre Dame
(Lost Metzler to Ironton for football but return a few Senior contributors along with some very good Sophomores), they will compete.
5. New Boston Glenwood
(Lost a lot from last year but picked up three transfers who will be players. Beasley will lead the team to a better than average season and they will compete with 1-4 for the top spot).
6. Symmes Valley
(graduated 8 from last year I believe and lost Webb to Raceland, KY) That said, they will play physical and are well coached. They will compete with the top 5 every game).
7. Clay
(Graduated three, and lost a good starter to ISJ. They just don't have enough to crack the top 5 in this league this season).
8. East
(graduation and another transfer to New Boston hurts. They'll battle with Clay for the last spot I believe).

The top 5 or 6 will be very competitive and anybody can take the top spot this year among those 6. I watched about half of these teams over the Summer so we will have to wait and see. I gave the edge to ISJ because of depth and quality of their bench. This will be a strong and competitive league this year.

[BigBlueNation]

RANK EM

1. Ironton St. Joe
(lost three last season, but gained three very good players, former starter from Coal Grove, One from South Point and a former starter from Clay. But the main reason I am putting them here is depth. They will have 10 varsity guys and the five on their bench are all very capable players, some of them would start at other schools.)
2. Western
(graduated 8 seniors last season but still have Carter inside along Haggy and Janes as sophomores who are very good and other quality players)(starting five will be very very good, maybe the best in the league but won't be as deep this year).
3. Green
(Sampson will be impossible to stop, the brothers from Stockdale stayed are also very good, along with the young Kimbler who will shoot it from the volleyball line. Like Western, their starting 5 will be very solid but they will lack depth).
4. Notre Dame
(Lost Metzler to Ironton for football but return a few Senior contributors along with some very good Sophomores), they will compete.
5. New Boston Glenwood
(Lost a lot from last year but picked up three transfers who will be players. Beasley will lead the team to a better than average season and they will compete with 1-4 for the top spot).
6. Symmes Valley
(graduated 8 from last year I believe and lost Webb to Raceland, KY) That said, they will play physical and are well coached. They will compete with the top 5 every game).
7. Clay
(Graduated three, and lost a good starter to ISJ. They just don't have enough to crack the top 5 in this league this season).
8. East
(graduation and another transfer to New Boston hurts. They'll battle with Clay for the last spot I believe).

The top 5 or 6 will be very competitive and anybody can take the top spot this year among those 6. I watched about half of these teams over the Summer so we will have to wait and see. I gave the edge to ISJ because of depth and quality of their bench. This will be a strong and competitive league this year.

Metzler went back to Notre Dame.

[whynot?]

RANK EM

1. Ironton St. Joe
(lost three last season, but gained three very good players, former starter from Coal Grove, One from South Point and a former starter from Clay. But the main reason I am putting them here is depth. They will have 10 varsity guys and the five on their bench are all very capable players, some of them would start at other schools.)
2. Western
(graduated 8 seniors last season but still have Carter inside along Haggy and Janes as sophomores who are very good and other quality players)(starting five will be very very good, maybe the best in the league but won't be as deep this year).
3. Green
(Sampson will be impossible to stop, the brothers from Stockdale stayed are also very good, along with the young Kimbler who will shoot it from the volleyball line. Like Western, their starting 5 will be very solid but they will lack depth).
4. Notre Dame
(Lost Metzler to Ironton for football but return a few Senior contributors along with some very good Sophomores), they will compete.
5. New Boston Glenwood
(Lost a lot from last year but picked up three transfers who will be players. Beasley will lead the team to a better than average season and they will compete with 1-4 for the top spot).
6. Symmes Valley
(graduated 8 from last year I believe and lost Webb to Raceland, KY) That said, they will play physical and are well coached. They will compete with the top 5 every game).
7. Clay
(Graduated three, and lost a good starter to ISJ. They just don't have enough to crack the top 5 in this league this season).
8. East
(graduation and another transfer to New Boston hurts. They'll battle with Clay for the last spot I believe).

The top 5 or 6 will be very competitive and anybody can take the top spot this year among those 6. I watched about half of these teams over the Summer so we will have to wait and see. I gave the edge to ISJ because of depth and quality of their bench. This will be a strong and competitive league this year.

Metzler went back to Notre Dame.

Nice! They are right there with the other top 3 or 4 teams and makes this league that much stronger. Assuming everybody keeps who they got in the summer and nobody else leaves, this will be the strongest top to bottom that the conference has been for a while in my opinion. Five or six very solid teams at the top and Clay or East might surprise.

[sportsfan2244]

I heard Metzler is back now at ND. If true, I would move the Titans up a couple. Whoever had the Titans in the bottom half of the league. WOAH

[Real Time]

Metzler's social media pages has switched back to ND, If he is back at ND they will be at the top of the league. It should be a fun season, lets just hope everyone stays health during Fall sports season.

[Area51]

It is Westerns league until proven otherwise. They are well coached and return enough talent to repeat, but I wouldn’t be surprised if ND or Green finishes #1. I’ve heard of Saint Joes transfers but I’m going to have to see them play before I believe they could win the league.

[whynot?]

It is Westerns league until proven otherwise. They are well coached and return enough talent to repeat, but I wouldn’t be surprised if ND or Green finishes #1. I’ve heard of Saint Joes transfers but I’m going to have to see them play before I believe they could win the league.

I don't disagree with you about Western. As a follower of St. Joe athletics for the past 8 seasons, I have a good perspective on them. Two kids on the team (Hunter Staton, and Kai Coleman) were voted top 20 players at the Huggins camp, one missed going to Vegas by two votes (Coleman). The three transfers are for real. The two OVC kids, Staton and Jackson will be staples in their starting lineup along with Coleman. The kid from Clay (Balestra) scored 20+ in two quarters in a game. He and Staton bring a lot of length inside on defense as well (Not to mention the returning defenders in Wes Neal, and Zach Johnson). The three new kids plus what they have coming back with Kai Coleman, Brown, Johnson, Neal, Rowe, Aiden Deboard, etc.., they will at or near the top. They are just too deep. If nobody gets hurt and everybody stays/plays, they will be near the top.

[Real Time]

Western will return the best big man in the league and Haggy has the ability to be POY. Haggy took a lesser roll last season for the team, I look for him to get his points this year. They may take a small step back but the league still runs through Latham. Instead of beating SOC I teams by 40, they may only win by 5-10 this year. It doesn't hurt ISJ to dream.

[whynot?]

Western will return the best big man in the league and Haggy has the ability to be POY. Haggy took a lesser roll last season for the team, I look for him to get his points this year. They may take a small step back but the league still runs through Latham. Instead of beating SOC I teams by 40, they may only win by 5-10 this year. It doesn't hurt ISJ to dream.

I agree, it is Western's league until somebody knocks them off. I said in my projection they probably have the best starting 5 in the league. I think ISJ is the team that will knock them off but any of the top 5 can. I'll stick with my projection because I think depth matters and my friends and family would shun me. HAHAHA.

It is a shame we have to wait so long to see what happens. I hope all the kids have a safe fall sports season and will be anxiously waiting for basketball. Every team has that dream in the summer through the beginning of the season, it takes a while to fade or be realized. If ISJ stumbles and isn't as good as I think they will be, I'll be on here admitting I was wrong.

Regardless of what happens, this year SOC1 should be deep and will have a lot to be proud of with 5 or 6 teams that could potentially make good tournament runs. This will be an exciting season in SOC1 with a lot of great games.

[ptownfn76]

1. Ironton St. Joe
(lost three last season, but gained three very good players, former starter from Coal Grove, One from South Point and a former starter from Clay. But the main reason I am putting them here is depth. They will have 10 varsity guys and the five on their bench are all very capable players, some of them would start at other schools.)
2. Western
(graduated 8 seniors last season but still have Carter inside along Haggy and Janes as sophomores who are very good and other quality players)(starting five will be very very good, maybe the best in the league but won't be as deep this year).
3. Green
(Sampson will be impossible to stop, the brothers from Stockdale stayed are also very good, along with the young Kimbler who will shoot it from the volleyball line. Like Western, their starting 5 will be very solid but they will lack depth).
4. Notre Dame
(Lost Metzler to Ironton for football but return a few Senior contributors along with some very good Sophomores), they will compete.
5. New Boston Glenwood
(Lost a lot from last year but picked up three transfers who will be players. Beasley will lead the team to a better than average season and they will compete with 1-4 for the top spot).
6. Symmes Valley
(graduated 8 from last year I believe and lost Webb to Raceland, KY) That said, they will play physical and are well coached. They will compete with the top 5 every game).
7. Clay
(Graduated three, and lost a good starter to ISJ. They just don't have enough to crack the top 5 in this league this season).
8. East
(graduation and another transfer to New Boston hurts. They'll battle with Clay for the last spot I believe).

The top 5 or 6 will be very competitive and anybody can take the top spot this year among those 6. I watched about half of these teams over the Summer so we will have to wait and see. I gave the edge to ISJ because of depth and quality of their bench. This will be a strong and competitive league this year.
[/quote]

1. Ironton St. Joe - Transfer portal was good to them. A lot of depth. Hearing great things but did not get a chance to watch them this Summer.
2. New Boston - Seen one game, Beasley had about 40 against Greenup, hearing alot of size with the newest transfers. Cox will have them ready.
3. Green - TONS of talent. Sampson is tough, just hoping he stays healthy for his Senior year. Alot of pieces around him. Another tough Team.
4. Western - Concerns with depth and experience off the bench. But they are the Team to beat!
5. Notre Dame - Metzler is back. Big and physical Team. They will be in the mix.
6. Symmes Valley - Webb was a big loss, but they play hard will be ready.
7. Clay - Athletically they just can't compete this year. They will play hard to the buzzer.
8. East - Lost a Starter to NB which didn't help. They will play hard as well and it is a tough win for anyone at East. Not enough talent.

I was able to watch Green, East, Western and New Boston play this Summer. Sampson is unstoppable, Beasley is a stud and Carter is fundamentally fantastic. The top 5 can be ranked many ways but this will be an awesome group to watch! I hope all the kids stay healthy!!

[Pantherfan]

1. ISJ - If the coach figures out how to use the new players in combination with what he has returning, they will win the league. They have ten solid players that can all be varsity starters. They should have fresh and talented players on the floor every minute of every game.
2. Green - Sampson should be player of the year if he stays healthy. The McBees will provide plenty of support to keep Sampson from getting doubled.
3. Notre Dame - They have a lot returning with senior leadership, Metzler staying and a good group of underclassmen. That makes ND a contender for the top spot.
4. New Boston - Out with old, in with the new. The tigers lost a couple very good players to graduation but added some quality new faces. Beasley and company will compete night in and night out with anybody.
5. Western - Contrary to other posters' beliefs they lost too much. Losing 8 senior contributors is tough on anybody. Haggy and Carter are top shelf players but won't be enough. They will be in contention at the end of the season but won't win the league unless something crazy happens.
6. Symmes Valley - Same as Western, lost 7 or 8 seniors to graduation and lost their best returning player to transfer. They'll compete but won't win it without a lot of help.
7. Clay - The Panthers have 5 or 6 kids returning who played together since k-2 biddy ball and a good player who moved in from Portsmouth last season who didn't play at all last year due to injury. The Panthers will have a 6'5"+ center playing with four quality guards in the starting lineup. They return arguably the best freshman player in the league from last season at PG. And NONE of these starters will graduate this year. The only reason I don't have them above Symmes is because this group historically loses focus and motivation and underperforms. If the coaches can find a way to motivate this group of players they can win some games.
8. East - I don't know much about what they have coming back. I'll put them here since I don't believe they will beat anybody in league as strong as it is this season.

This league is deep and the top 5 teams should beat each other up a little during the season. I wouldn't be surprised if every team loses at least 4 league games.


POST YOUR TEAM'S PROJECTED LINEUPS FOR THE UPCOMING SEASON LIKE THE OVC GUYS ARE IN THE OTHER THREAD!! WOULD BE COOL TO SEE.

[HoopsCentral]

ISJ:

Erikai Jackson: 5’8 Sr
Kai Coleman: 6’0 Sr
Drew Brown: 6’0 Jr
Hunter Staton: 6’4 Sr
Zach Johnson: 6’1 Sr.
Wesley Neal: 6’3 So
Evan Balestra: 6’2 Jr
Brady Medinger: 5’8 Jr
Aiden Debored: 6’0 So
Landon Rowe: 6’0 So

[LABallers]

I too think the league is very even. I disagree when saying a team lost 8 seniors….just because as in Westerns case three of those seniors started and another shared 6th with a freshman. Another was 8th and the remaining two played some. The other two starters were a junior and freshman. So graduating a lot of seniors doesn’t always have the same meaning. I do think with Carter, Haggy and Janes they have a very good trio of very talented players. They may not have the bench depth but with the coaching staff they will have the team ready. Same with Symmes Valley, Green, ISJ and NDame. All have talented teams despite graduation. Should be a fun year to watch.