Tom’s PIAA 2A Pre-Season Top 5

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>This is my pre-season top 5 for PIAA 2A Classification. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong><em>5. OLSH</em></strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>After a 21-8 season last season OLSH looks to build off what they accomplished last season.<strong><em> [player_tooltip player_id='2965058' first='Tiernan' last='McCullough']</em></strong> looks to make a big jump this upcoming season and should be one of the best perimeter marksmen in the WPIAL. <strong><em>[player_tooltip player_id='3033223' first='Austin' last='Avsec']</em></strong> runs the show and has an elite pulse on the game. <strong><em>[player_tooltip player_id='3033229' first='Jake' last='Johnson']</em></strong> has a versatile offensive game which can open the floor up for others. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong><em>4. Old Forge</em></strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong><em>[player_tooltip player_id='3033256' first='Logan' last='Fanning']</em></strong> is one of the key returners on a senior heavy team that made it all the way 2A quarterfinals. While <em><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='3033272' first='Cam' last='Parker'] &amp; [player_tooltip player_id='3033273' first='Ryan' last='DeMarco']</strong></em> add experienced guard play that has playoff basketball on their resume. Old Forge should be one of the best small school programs in eastern Pennsylvania.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong><em>3. Jeannette</em></strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>A football heavy squad plays a grit and grind style of basketball and wears teams downs with their strength, depth, and athleticism. They do not have the most size but play a lot bigger than their heights listed on the roster. <strong><em>[player_tooltip player_id='2877435' first='Markus' last='McGowan']</em></strong> is the X-factor for this group and I think he takes them as far as he can go. <strong><em>[player_tooltip player_id='3033183' first='Jayce' last='Powell'],</em></strong> <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='3033184' first='Kymone' last='Brown']</strong> add depth in the backcourt and have seen many minutes at the varsity level. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong><em>2. Linville Hill Christian</em></strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Linville returns a majority of their team from the defending state championship group. They went 29-3 last season and should have duplicated success. It's next man up with the only returning starter being <strong><em>[player_tooltip player_id='3033344' first='Drew' last='Tibbins']</em></strong>, while <strong><em>[player_tooltip player_id='3033327' first='Josh' last='Stoltzfus']</em></strong> &amp; <em><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='3033337' first='Emerson' last='Westfall'] </strong></em>should see an increased role this year. They should be the favorite to win district 3 2A classification</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong><em>1. Sewickley Academy</em></strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Probably the deepest team in all of 2A Sewickley has amazing depth in the frontcourt with <strong><em>[player_tooltip player_id='2809899' first='Adam' last='Ikamba']</em></strong> &amp; <em><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='2809891' first='Mamadou' last='Kane']</strong></em> who compliment each other nicely with their skill and athleticism respectively. <em><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='2729533' first='Jamere' last='Guyton']</strong></em>, <em><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='2793278' first='Drew' last='Steals']</strong></em> and<strong> [player_tooltip player_id='2966166' first='Lucas' last='Grimsley']</strong> provided depth to a Panthers squad that seems to get deeper as the years go on. I think their Achilles heel for Sewickley can be their guard play and they can struggle when they have to play against teams with a nice core of guards who apply resilient ball pressure. They are my early pick to win the state title for the 2025-26 season.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->