Next Year...

[DrewVT6]

Who wins the ACL next year? Whitesville loses two extremely good players can they compete for top spot? What about Fillmore, Genesee Valley?

[BBalla32]

I think both DI and DII are gonna be very competetive this upcoming year...
Here's what DII looks like to me:

Both Scio and Friendship were senior plauged, but Scio returns big man Chris Roberts and guard Justin Faulkner who can be a good drive and dish duo.

Belfast returns Jordin Fuller and Ryan Paulsen. They could have been alot better this year, but I felt like they didn't use Paulsen inside enough. I think they could be deadly inside outside combo if that's the way they play.

Whitesville can never be looked over because their defense shows up every night, and it seems they always find a way to win. Look for Coley-Lewis Ellison and the Stevens brothers (Brett and Brad) to pick up some of the scoring slack.
Finally... my choice for top two...
Though Andover looses Ryan Shay and Josh Baker, they have a strong JV team coming up and younger players who know how to play the game. Leading assist man Seth Shay and streaky shooter Josh Brubaker will most likely do the scoring, as the quick Ron Schettine and big man Greg Starks look to make the transition into the varsity game.

I think Houghton looks like they're in the best shape right about now, losing only 3 players to graduation (2 who actually played significantly). They competed with every team they played (with exception to Finney and once vs. Fillmore) for at least a good part of the game. They bring back leading scorer and rebounder Greg Wright, who can be an explosive player and a dead-eye from behind the arc, that is if he continues to improve his game and add the strength element. Leading assist man Jake Merrill comes back looking to have a strong season, hopefully learning from his first year. Trent Shatto and Jimmy Estruch are both players who can spot up and get hot from 3 point land.
My Predictions for DII:
1. Houghton
2. Andover
3. Whitesville
4. Scio
5. Belfast
6. Friendship

Here's my outlook on DI...
You cannot replace and Aaron Martin, but on the bright side, Fillmore brings back 3 out of 5 starters, including Ryan Campbell and Devon Martin who look to do a lot of the scoring... look for James Rhett showed he can play defense inside and rebound, taking on the task of guarding the 6'7" Pat Wright from Prattsburgh in sectionals.

Genesee Valley loses point guard and team leader Austin Kelley and swingman Ethan Burt, losing Christian Reynolds will be a big loss inside, but that slack should be picked up by big man Brian Fanton. Genesee Valley always plays tough defense, which definately helps in winning games.

Bolivar-Richburg looks decent coming back, returning point guard Nate Shively and sharp shooting swingman Caleb Pruch, they seemed to put things together at the end of last year, hopefully that will carry over for them.

Finally, Cuba-Rushford looks good coming back, losing Derek Edwards and Chad Francis to graduation will hurt quite a bit, losing that leadership and scoring and rebounding. Nolan Searl has shown he can score, and Brad Donahue is a workhorse who will do what needs to be done to win. Sharp shooting guard Jay Ronan should look to score more and that could be a deadly combo. Also, Coach Wight is unarguably one of the best coaches in the league.
DI Predictions:
1. Fillmore/Cuba-Rushford
2. Bolivar Richburg/Genesee Valley
(definately able to have a 3 or 4 way tie for either spot)