Conference Preview: Corner

<!-- wp:paragraph {"fontSize":"medium"} --> <p class="has-medium-font-size"><strong>The Teams</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Bedford (22-2, 26.8% of scoring returning): </strong>Bedford was dominant last season, with the 6th best scoring offense in 1A (71.4) and second best scoring defense (39.3). They lose the top three scorers from that group, and five of the top seven from the rotation, but do bring back a pair of key contributors in junior Quentin Dalton (9.0) and senior Hayden Riedel (7.4), giving them a solid foundation to build this year's roster around. Dalton figures to have the ball in his hands quite a bit as a playmaker and perimeter scorer, while Riedel should patrol the paint. A well-coached, tough, athletic team, they're always going to play strong defense and limit mistakes on their end, making teams beat them rather than beating themselves. Despite losing a ton of production to graduation, Bedford will still be in contention in the Corner.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>East Mills (18-6, 41.2%): </strong>The Wolverines have been consistent winners over the last seven years, winning 18-21-21-18-15-19-20 games during that stretch. With perhaps the best player in the league returning to lead the way in junior [player_tooltip player_id='2906418' first='Mason' last='Camden'] (15.6), they should continue to add to that great success. Camden is a versatile scorer, playmaker, and defender who can do a little bit of everything on both ends of the floor. He'll be reliant on a few sophomores - Mitchell Stoakes (6.4), Zayne Graybill (1.8), and Gabe Blanton (0.8) - to step into bigger roles alongside him. This team is going to go as Camden goes, and the program has proven capable of finding role players to contribute to winning teams. The Wolverines are the team to beat.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Essex (4-19, 60.0%): </strong>The Trojans won just four games last season but bring back arguably the most fun player in the league in senior forward [player_tooltip player_id='2731804' first='Isaiah' last='Sholes'] (20.2, 13.3 rebounds, 5.2 blocks), an explosive, athletic forward who dominates the painted area on both ends of the floor. There isn't much coming back alongside him, and they really need to find some guards who can protect the ball, but Sholes should put up some huge numbers again this season.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Fremont-Mills (4-17, 98.2%): </strong>The top five scorers, and all but one player who scored, return for the Knights this winter, so there is nowhere to go but up. Senior forward Mason Reed (13.2, 8.9 rebounds) is a nightly threat to put up a double-double, a physical and athletic big man who pounds the glass hard on both ends of the floor. Rowen Howe (7.6, 5.6 rebounds) is another active, physical rebounder, and Sawyer Forney (9.2, 2.6 assists) and Chance Ewalt (3.1, 2.2 assists) are both capable of running the offense. This is a group that struggled to score last season, averaging just 39.4 points per game, but they should be improved in that regard this year with everything they have coming back. They'll be improved, but it's a stretch to expect them to contend for a league title.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Griswold (8-14, 13.0%): </strong>The Tigers were hit hard by graduation, losing their top five, and seven of their top eight, scorers from last year's team. Senior Brayden Lockwood (4.6) is the lone returnee who saw playing time last season and he'll be asked to carry the load this season. Losing so much production from a team that finished under .500 last season, it's hard to imagine Griswold contending in the Corner this year. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Hamburg (5-16, 93.9%): </strong>The Wildcats won just five games last season, but they bring back a pair of good scorers in senior Keith Thompson (15.0, 3.8 assists, 3.9 steals) and junior Gabe Staley (13.5, 9.7 rebounds), giving them a solid one-two punch to build around. The top five scorers from last year's team return, and they should be a bit more competitive on a nightly basis this year as a result. They'll need to focus on locking in on the defensive end if they want to make a big jump.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Sidney (16-8, 9.2%): </strong>It will be an almost entirely new-look team taking the floor this year for Sidney, with less than 10% of last year's production returning. That said, in the Bound era, they have just two seasons finishing below .500, so don't expect the bottom to fall out here. This is a community and a program that has consistently won in this league, and despite junior Carter Jorgenson (3.0) being the only returnee with much experience, they'll continue to be a factor.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Stanton (11-12, 15.1%):</strong> In a similar vein as Sidney, Stanton is a program that consistently wins in this league. Over the last 11 years they've posted 11-13-12-15-12-19-21-21-19-22-11 wins. They lost their top three, and six of their top seven, scorers, leaving senior forward Brodee Sowers (7.4, 6.9 rebounds) as the lone returnee with experience. He'll be asked to do a lot, and Stanton isn't going to contend for the league title, but they'll be competitive.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"fontSize":"medium"} --> <p class="has-medium-font-size"><strong>Projected Order of Finish</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>1. East Mills<br>2. Bedford<br>3. Sidney<br>4. Stanton<br>5. Fremont-Mills<br>6. Hamburg<br>7. Essex<br>8. Griswold</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Analysis: </strong>The usual mainstays in the league stay at the top again this year, headlined by East Mills and [player_tooltip player_id='2906418' first='Mason' last='Camden']. Bedford's strong defense will keep them afloat, and traditionally strong programs Sidney and Stanton will remain factors even with almost entirely new faces.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"fontSize":"medium"} --> <p class="has-medium-font-size"><strong>Preseason Player of the Year</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>2027 [player_tooltip player_id='2906418' first='Mason' last='Camden'] (East Mills): </strong>Despite losing a lot of production to graduation, it looks like East Mills may still be the favorite in the league, and Camden is quite clearly their best player. He does a little bit of everything on both ends of the floor and looks primed for a big junior year.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"fontSize":"medium"} --> <p class="has-medium-font-size"><strong>Players to Watch</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>2027 [player_tooltip player_id='2906418' first='Mason' last='Camden'] (East Mills)<br>2028 Mithcell Stoakes (East Mills)<br>2026 [player_tooltip player_id='2731804' first='Isaiah' last='Sholes'] (Essex)<br>2026 Mason Reed (Fremont-Mills)<br>2026 Sawyer Forney (Fremont-Mills)<br>2026 Rowen Howe (Fremont-Mills)<br>2028 Broden Zimmerman (Fremont-Mills)<br>2026 Keith Thompson (Hamburg)<br>2027 Gabe Staley (Hamburg)<br>2026 Noah Kimpel (Hamburg)<br>2027 Quentin Dalton (Bedford)<br>2026 Hayden Riedel (Bedford)<br>2026 Brodee Sowers (Stanton)<br>2026 Brayden Lockwood (Griswold)</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->