2021 6A Preview: Mt. Hood Conference

<p>The season is about to start and without a true state championship, much of the pride in 2021 will ride on who brings home the league titles. Initially the Mt Hood Conference planned on playing a full round-robin schedule but already some early games have been canceled. This could potentially lead to some non-league games - which weren’t happening before. But given what we have, here’s how we see things turning out this year in the Mt Hood Conference.</p> <p><span style="text-decoration: underline;"><strong>League Predictions</strong></span></p> <p>1. Central Catholic<br /> 2. Clackamas<br /> 3. Gresham<br /> 4. Barlow<br /> 5. David Douglas<br /> 6. Sandy<br /> 7. Reynolds<br /> 8. Centennial</p> <p><strong>Player of the Year</strong>: [player_tooltip player_id="855925" first="Darius" last="Gakwasi"], Central Catholic</p> <p><strong>All-League Predictions</strong>: Gakwasi; [player_tooltip player_id="965072" first="Ryan" last="Lewis"], Clackamas; [player_tooltip player_id="861087" first="Esyah" last="Pippa-White"], Gresham; [player_tooltip player_id="857368" first="Connor" last="Hills"], Barlow; [player_tooltip player_id="1069459" first="Tanner" last="Brewster"], Sandy</p> <p><strong>Top Sleeper/Newcomer</strong>: [player_tooltip player_id="1079527" first="Malik" last="Rose"], Central Catholic</p> <p><span style="text-decoration: underline;"><strong>Analysis</strong></span></p> <p>Central Catholic seems to be the team to beat in the MHC, and that’s with losing three guys to the NCAA D-I and D-II levels. A lot of it has to do with how much is still coming back and that starts with [player_tooltip player_id="855925" first="Darius" last="Gakwasi"] (16.3 ppg, 6.1 rpg, 4.0 apg). The Princeton-bound senior is one of the most versatile players in the state and he’ll be heavily counted upon not only on the court but off the court with his leadership. A couple of new point guards in [player_tooltip player_id="1079527" first="Malik" last="Rose"] and [player_tooltip player_id="865367" first="Sean" last="Chris Tresvant"] will trigger head coach David Blue’s attack, [player_tooltip player_id="857346" first="Luke" last="Johnson"] (11.3 ppg, 6.0 rpg) will man the middle and Aiden Slater (6.2 ppg, .450 3pt%) will be the sniper on the wing. If not for the early graduation of [player_tooltip player_id="606247" first="Ben" last="Gregg"] (21.4 ppg, 9.4 rpg, 3.1 apg, 2.0 bpg), Clackamas could very well have been the favorite. The senior quartet of [player_tooltip player_id="965072" first="Ryan" last="Lewis"] (11.6 ppg, 5.7 rpg), [player_tooltip player_id="965073" first="Damon" last="Erickson"] (7.6 ppg, 2.9 rpg, 2.7 apg), [player_tooltip player_id="1069456" first="Izzy" last="Baker"] (8.6 ppg, 3.2 rpg), and [player_tooltip player_id="855976" first="KJ" last="Horsley"] (5.3 ppg, 2.7 rpg) make head coach Cam Mitchell’s team one of the most experienced in the state. Gresham will also challenge with as head coach Erik Lyslo’s backcourt tandem of senior [player_tooltip player_id="606261" first="Elijah" last="Munyan"] (11.9 ppg, 6.4 rpg) and sophomore [player_tooltip player_id="861087" first="Esyah" last="Pippa-White"] (10.4 ppg, 5.8 apg) a tough matchup for any team. Nate Caro (5.6 ppg, .417 3pt) and [player_tooltip player_id="855957" first="Drew" last="Larsen"] (4.8 ppg, .455 3pt) will provide plenty of shooting to make up for the Gophers relative lack of size.</p> <p>Barlow takes a step back a little with as graduation of [player_tooltip player_id="796229" first="Jesse" last="White"] (24.8 ppg) and [player_tooltip player_id="625622" first="Evan" last="Inglesby"] (20.9 ppg) leaves some big holes to fill but the dean of all 6A coaches, Tom Johnson, will have his team competitive as always. Junior [player_tooltip player_id="857368" first="Connor" last="Hills"] is the one to watch at the point guard spot and the Bruins got a lot of experience playing together in AAU tournaments this off-season. David Douglas as always will be an under-the-radar threat under head coach Chad Reeves. [player_tooltip player_id="855946" first="Trent" last="Templeton"] (9.0 ppg, 2.7 rpg), who’s committed to Division III Hamline in Minnesota, will be the top returning Scot to watch. Sandy loses some key contributors but has a new coach with fervor in former assistant Brock Mueller and a big returnee in 6-foot-6 senior [player_tooltip player_id="1069459" first="Tanner" last="Brewster"] (11.7 ppg, 7.4 rpg). Reynolds, also led by a new coach in Terrance Dickens, is building from scratch and head coach John Poetsch continues to pick up the pieces at Centennial.</p> <p><strong>Best Non-League Game</strong>: TBD, Jefferson vs. Central Catholic</p> <p><strong>Best League Game</strong>: 6/2, Clackamas at Central Catholic; 6/19, Central Catholic at Clackamas</p>