<p>An early look at the top 10 teams to beat in Division 1 for the 2020-21 season...</p>
<p><strong>1. Brookfield Central</strong></p>
<p>If Central could have beaten Sussex Hamilton in the sectional finals, maybe the only thing stopping them from a three-peat was a national pandemic. The Lancers will return leading scorer and rebounder [player_tooltip player_id="804893" first="David" last="Joplin"] (23.2 ppg) as well as their leading facilitator [player_tooltip player_id="879980" first="Ben" last="Nau"] (5.2 apg), who also scored in double figures last season (12.5 ppg). There are some tough losses to overcome, including a pair of Division 2 recruits in the front line -- [player_tooltip player_id="935442" first="Eric" last="Radisevic"] and [player_tooltip player_id="553411" first="Malik" last="Abdul-Wahid"]. If Andrew Rodhe (8.5 ppg) makes the jump he’s expected to during his junior season, Central should be able to stay on top in Division 1.</p>
<p><strong>2. Sussex Hamilton</strong></p>
<p>Even though Hamilton and Central will be somewhat different in 2020-21, we’re still kind of splitting hairs here. The Chargers lose sharpshooter [player_tooltip player_id="811851" first="Carson" last="Smith"] to Northern Michigan, but they’ll have the Wisconsin version of the splash brothers in [player_tooltip player_id="544570" first="Patrick" last="BaldwinJr."] (24.3 ppg), who will be the frontrunner to win Mr. Basketball, and [player_tooltip player_id="879986" first="Tanner" last="Resch"] (14.1 ppg). [player_tooltip player_id="953956" first="Luther" last="Smith"], who played in spots as a freshman could give them something as well. However, the losses of [player_tooltip player_id="881007" first="J.T." last="Hoytink"] and [player_tooltip player_id="880980" first="Lucas" last="Finnessy"] is where you give the edge to Central. Those are two x-factors who provide toughness and energy that Hamilton just likely won’t be able to replace next season. </p>
<p><strong>3. Racine Case</strong></p>
<p>Would have liked to see how this team performed at the state tournament. The Eagles were probably still a year away from being a legit contender, but that won’t be the case in 2020-21. The reigning Southeast Conference champs will be one of the state’s most exciting squads. They’ll have to replace <strong>Jonathan Rankins</strong> and [player_tooltip player_id="881003" first="Nick" last="Fugiasco"], but Case has a dangerous trio in JaKobe Thompson (19.0 ppg), [player_tooltip player_id="865835" first="Terryon" last="Brumby"] (14.4 ppg), and [player_tooltip player_id="865834" first="Amari" last="Jedkins"] (8.5 ppg), who will now all be upperclassmen. </p>
<p><strong>4. Brookfield East</strong></p>
<p>The one thing you know about this program -- they don’t go away. No matter who they lose, nobody likes seeing <strong>Joe Rux</strong> and the Spartans on the opposite sideline, because they don’t beat themselves and they’ll put you in a fistfight for 36 minutes if they have to. </p>
<p>All-State guard [player_tooltip player_id="879993" first="Hayden" last="Doyle"] (21.0 ppg) returns. East will have to replace [player_tooltip player_id="880991" first="Sam" last="McGath"] (15.8 ppg) and [player_tooltip player_id="881031" first="Michael" last="Poker"] (13.5 ppg), but the Spartans will welcome in the No. 1 player in Wisconsin’s 2024 class <strong>Tayshawn Bridges</strong> next season.</p>
<p><strong>5. Milwaukee King</strong></p>
<p>King suffered its only loss of the 2019-20 season in the regional finals to Brookfield East as part of a loaded sectional that had five ranked teams in it. Leading scorer [player_tooltip player_id="879985" first="Quinton" last="Murrell"] (18.0 ppg), a first-team All-State pick is back for his senior season as is senior guard Rickey Bradley Jr. (11.7 ppg). The Generals do lose a lot of role players and will need junior Jayquon Hickles and senior Mohamed Niang to step up next season.</p>
<p><strong>6. Waunakee</strong></p>
<p>The Warriors went 19-6 last season and won the Badger North Conference. Waunakee will also get its top three scorers -- junior [player_tooltip player_id="761421" first="Andrew" last="Keller"] (12.7), senior Caden Nelson (12.2), and senior [player_tooltip player_id="880033" first="Jaxson" last="Zibell"] (11.0) back. A gritty, blue collar group that defends at a high level and can space the floor with numerous 3-point shooters, look for the Warriors to potentially repeat in the Badger North and make a deep run in March. </p>
<p><strong>7. Kimberly</strong></p>
<p>The losses of [player_tooltip player_id="544519" first="Jake" last="Buchanan"] and [player_tooltip player_id="935428" first="Logan" last="Pearson"] are going to hurt, but junior Jackson Pavaletzke is ready to be ’the guy’ and take over the Fox Valley Association. Averaging 13.1 ppg as a sophomore, Pavaletzke will likely be one of the biggest breakout performers in 2020-21. Senior [player_tooltip player_id="701973" first="Grant" last="Asman"] (9.5 ppg) will also likely benefit and flourish with more minutes and give the Papermakers a strong 1-2 punch. </p>
<p><strong>8. Arrowhead</strong></p>
<p>Wisconsin commit [player_tooltip player_id="544505" first="Carter" last="Gilmore"] is gone, but there’s still enough left in the tank to keep Arrowhead viable. Senior [player_tooltip player_id="804923" first="Sam" last="Hytinen"] (12.1 ppg) is one of the state’s best shooters and will get his due as a top 3-and-D talent in the state. Coming off a fantastic freshman season, [player_tooltip player_id="953945" first="Mac" last="Wrecke"] (11.4 ppg) will emerge as a force in the Classic Eight Conference as well. </p>
<p><strong>9. De Pere</strong></p>
<p>Perhaps the most interesting team right now is De Pere. The Redbirds went 16-8 and finished two games out of a very tough Fox River Classic Conference race. De Pere was led by a freshman in <strong>John Kinzinger</strong>, who put up 16.5 ppg in his first season. Double figure scorer <strong>Will Dehn</strong> (12.6 ppg) is also back. Aside from a blowout loss to Sussex Hamilton in the regional finals, this team had to be feeling good about themselves, winning seven of their last eight games before that point, including wins over conference leaders Bay Port and Ashwaubenon. </p>
<p><strong>10. Franklin</strong></p>
<p>A team that’s been slowly building, 2020-21 could be the year for the Sabres. Just about everything is back for a team that went 13-11 last season, including senior forward [player_tooltip player_id="804908" first="Carter" last="Capstran"] (19.8 ppg). Franklin will pretty much field the same group as last season, returning its top 10 scorers and could challenge Racine Case in the Southeast Conference. This group played well late, beating Kenosha Tremper in the regular season finale and then taking them down to the wire in the regional finals.</p>
<p><strong>Honorable Mention:</strong> Neenah, Hudson, Wisconsin Rapids Lincoln, Janesville Craig, Oak Creek, Menomonee Falls, Ashwaubenon, Stevens Point</p>
<p> </p>
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