Talented teams make EM Class D boys’ crown a toss-up in 2006

Once again, the Eastern Maine Class D boys tournament appears wide open with an abundance of teams in the tourney field sporting impressive win-loss records.

There is no shortage of worthy challengers to defending champ Central Aroostook of Mars Hill as every round, from the quarterfinals to the final, seems well-stocked with tough adversaries.

“Looking up and down the list, even in the prelim games, you have a lot of good teams that are involved, and I wouldn’t be surprised if you see some upsets even that early,” said Deer Isle-Stonington coach Glenn Billings. “If anybody has a bad night anywhere along the line, they’re going to be out heading out the door.”

Katahdin of Stacyville coach Bill McAvoy, the only coach to grab a win over the CAHS Panthers in their first 17 games, expects a lot of teams on the outside looking in.

“There are eight spots, so there will be at least two good teams who won’t make it,” said McAvoy.

So let’s take a broad overview of the vast contending field.

Schenck of East Millinocket has thrived with overall balance, depth, and athletic ability.

“They have three or four good players and a great halfcourt game to go with their size,” said McAvoy. “They have [Chris] Byron and [Nick] Bishop, who play bigger than 6-2. … The thing about Schenck is they also have four guys who can take it off the dribble.”

Deer Isle-Stonington is versatile, deep, and experienced despite graduating six seniors from last season’s squad and having a lot of juniors in the current lineup. The Mariners are making their third straight tourney trip and many of the current players on the team helped lead the school’s baseball team to a state championship.

“I think we have to come out and push the ball as much as we can in tempo, and if we get in the halfcourt set, be more patient,” said Billings. “Our defensive intensity is better and we like to run traps and press all over.”

Katahdin features depth and several scorers, so it’s hard for teams to key on any particular one or two players.

“In a lot of ways, our team is like Schenck in that we have four good scorers and the difference, I think, is we play seven or eight players and they can all be top scorers on any given night,” McAvoy explained.

The Cougars have a solid group around 6-foot-4 center Jared Anderson and lots of quickness in their backcourt.

Bangor Christian suffered a late-season loss to Deer Isle-Stonington, which dropped them down a bit, but the Patriots have a talented nucleus of players led by 6-1 senior guard Brock Bradford, one of the headiest, savviest players in the entire tournament.

“Anytime you have a Bradford on the floor, you have to be a favorite as well,” said Billings. “He makes everyone else better.”

“If it’s close in the fourth quarter, he can take a game over by himself, and I’ve seen him do it,” said McAvoy.

Lee Academy has been playing as good a brand of basketball as anyone in Class D and appears to be peaking at the right time.

“Lee had the toughest schedule around, so I wouldn’t look past them, and CAHS has just one loss,” said McAvoy. “They’ve beaten the top four or five teams at least once, as has Schenck, Central [Aroostook] and us.”

Ah, Central Aroostook… It took this long to get to the defending champions?

“Hardly anyone’s talking about CAHS, who’s 16-1 and only the defending EM champion!” Billings said with a chuckle. “They have one of the best players in the tournament with [Andrew] York.”

McAvoy calls York one of the tourney’s elite players.

“The first time we played Central, we beat them with York in the frontcourt. The next time he was at point and he created things for himself and his teammates,” said McAvoy. “They’re a much better team with him at point.”

Who’s left? Well, Van Buren won 14 of its first 16 games, Jonesport-Beals is a perennial power that nobody in the top half of the standings wants to draw in the quarterfinals, and Greater Houlton Christian Academy features a very effective starting five.

“Van Buren is a real legit team and could knock somebody off,” McAvoy said. “Houlton Christian has had some inconsistency, but they’re a good team.”

Jonesport-Beals’ Royals feature one of those difference-makers in 6-3 senior forward Ross Griffin.

“If Griffin can get free inside, he’s a tough matchup for anyone in Class D,” said Calais coach Ed Leeman. “He’s rugged and he can move and I think he could be the most athletic guy in Class D.”