2019-20 6A Preview: Southwest Conference

The 2019-20 season is upon us and it’s time to take a look at the top leagues in the state. We conclude our previews of 6A with the Southwest Conference. 2018-19 Review It was a very competitive year in the Southwest Conference. The trio of South Eugene, North Medford, and Sheldon battled all season long and finished in a 7-3 tie for first, with Roseburg just slightly behind at 5-5. In the post-season, Roseburg and Sheldon both lost on the road to Tigard and Barlow respectively and South Eugene - which had their eyes on the Chiles Center after finishing the season on a tear - saw the bottom fall out in a first round playoff loss at Oregon City. North Medford won their first round game in thrilling fashion over Sunset, but bowed out the next game to eventual champ Jesuit, leaving the Southwest Conference without a state tournament appearance for the second year in a row. State Tournament Threats South Eugene – Head coach Dave Hancock has the majority of his team coming back, but there's no doubt the departure of Coleman McAninch (15.7 ppg, 4.2 rpg, 3.3 apg) leaves a hole offensively. Josh Paul (13.7 ppg, 7.2 rpg, .522 fg%) could be the plug. The 6-foot-4 senior swingman has the ability to score both inside and out and there were times this summer where he was absolutely dominant - a matchup against Crater and star big man Nate Bittle at Oregon Team Camp comes to mind. Speaking of big men, Aidan Clark (11.7 ppg, 7.5 rpg, 2.7 apg, 3.0 bpg, .588 fg%) is back for his senior season and the 6-foot-9 post is extremely motivated. He's always been a defensive stalwart - he led 6A in blocks last season - but Clark has also worked on becoming more of an offensive threat. Sam Harris (9.8 ppg, 3.4 rpg, 5.7 apg, 2.0 spg, .396 3pt%) is back to run the point and he's an extremely steady hand with a deadeye jumper. Bryce Boettcher (6.2 ppg, 5.1 rpg.558 fg%) will move into the starting lineup and is a key blue collar glue guy, while other returnees such as guards Dylan Edwards (1.3 ppg) and Oscar James (0.5 ppg) and forward Trey Nelson (0.4 ppg) give the Axe some depth. Post-Season Programs North Medford – There are some spots to fill but head coach Scott Plankenhorn has enough guys back for the Black Tornado to make another solid run to the playoffs. Things will all begin with Jett Carpenter (11.0 ppg, 5.4 rpg, .507 fg%) and a lot of North Medford's success will be dependent on the senior swingman. At 6-foot-4, he is a versatile offensive player who can create mismatches with his blend of size and athleticism. Victor Orozco-Bernal (5.5 ppg, 2.8 rpg, 1.8 apg) returns at guard, as does the talented junior tandem of shooter Nick Karrick (5.1 ppg, 1.3 rpg) and Landon Ellis (1.2 ppg), the latter of whom will have a much larger role this year. Brennan Stults will be the main guy off the bench and Plankenhorn is very high on sophomore newcomer Bryce Dyer as a contributor. Plankenhorn has been around for a very long time (since 2006) and will have his team prepared and ready to compete every night. Sheldon – It's a new era at Sheldon as ten seniors leave the program as does former head coach Dan Clark. The Irish kept some sense of continuity with the hiring of Eric Orton to lead the program, as he comes over from Springfield and has been successful in the Eugene area for years. Despite the fact much of the team will be new, Orton believes they have some depth. He's very high on one of the varsity newcomers, Nick Yakovich, who played JV last season. He's got good size at 6-foot-6 and is potentially a force down low. Seniors Dawson Prickel, Griffin Line, and Ben Gittins were role guys last year and should not only see more time but will provide leadership. Junior Nash Kuykendall is an athletic player who could surprise and other young players like Zack Carter and Derek Frey were on varsity last season. The Irish will get after it defensively and on the boards. South Medford – Injuries wrecked any chance for the Panthers to be competitive and coming off of only two wins, the proverbial there's nowhere to go but up certainly applies to South Medford in 2019-20. But head coach James Wightman certainly has quite a few guys back and the "up" could be a ton of improvement if things come together. Keegan Lisinski (11.1 ppg, 6.2 rpg) is the top holdover and the 6-foot-3 all-around forward is aiming toward having a big senior season. Sherman Hunter (11.8 ppg, 1.6 rpg, .393 3pt%) is the team's leading returning scorer and he's a marksman from long range. Wightman is very high on sophomore point guard Junior Sleezer (4.3 ppg, 1.9 apg) who gained valuable experience last year and others such as Ben Harmon (6.6 ppg, 2.4 rpg) and Payton Shepard (4.9 ppg) are also back. Up front, Jude Pannell (5.8 ppg, 3.1 rpg), Isiah Dye (1.4 ppg), and JV promotee Chase Cota will give the Panthers some size. In Transition Grants Pass – There's probably about 80 percent of the playing time and almost as much in terms of points scored from last year that needs to be made up for according to head coach Tyler York but he feels he's got some guys who can step it up. Senior Chase Coyle (2.9 ppg), the quarterback on the football team, is the lone returning starter and he'll be the key guy down low and junior Morgan Law (2.6 ppg) will add some offensive punch. Senior guards Anthony Maravilla (1.9 ppg) and Cade Anderson (0.4 ppg) are also back and will contribute. A key transfer from Grant High School in Portland is Cade Ealy (1.2 ppg, 1.6 rpg at Grant) who at 6-foot-4 will get physical in the post but also step out and knock down threes. Once again the Cavemen won't be terribly big but will try to get creative on the boards. Roseburg – Roseburg rose from the ashes in 2018-19, winning 15 games and capturing a post-season berth. But very little comes back from that team, with a big group of seniors led by 6A's leading scorer Collin Warmouth (27.9 ppg, .451 3pt%) moving on to Western Oregon and head coach Mike Pardon stepping down. New head coach Jordan Humphreys has plenty of energy will try to build things from scratch from what's left. Junior twins Jacob Parker and Matthew Parker, Zach Martin, and Attreyu Pinard are the main guys back from last year's roster, all of whom swung JV last season. With very little size, look for Roseburg to be a team that focuses on shooting the ball well. League Predictions 1. South Eugene 2. North Medford 3. Sheldon 4. South Medford 5. Grants Pass 6. Roseburg Player of the Year Josh Paul, South Eugene. Quite honestly there are several good candidates but in the end it may go down to who's the best player on the best team - and even that simple fact may be up for debate. But Paul is a talented inside-out scorer and he should pick up the offensive load and be South Eugene's leading scorer this season. All-League Predictions: Paul; Aidan Clark, South Eugene; Sam Harris, South Eugene; Jett Carpenter, North Medford; Keegan Losinski, South Medford Top Sleeper/Newcomer Carson Cota, South Medford. The name Cota is associated with football so it's no surprise Carson Cota is a football kid. But the 6-foot-4 post is also athletic and has some skill and should make an immediate impact for South Medford after playing JV last season. Head coach James Wightman is high on the junior's abilities and envisions him as a rim protector on defense. Outlook On paper, the Southwest Conference race is South Eugene's to lose. The Axe return four starters and appear to be the deepest and most talented and experienced team in the league. North Medford should be competitive with their returning players and others such as Sheldon and South Medford appear to have what it takes to make a good run at the post-season. Grants Pass and Roseburg have a lot to replace but will try to be competitive on some nights. It's the Axe though that seem like the league's best bet in 2019-20 to erase their drought of appearances at the state tournament.