AA: Region IV Preview

<!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">TEAMS</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Buffalo, Poca, Roane County, Clay County, Sissonville, Scott, Logan, Wayne, Charleston Catholic</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Preseason Player of the Year</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='2694392' first='Lucas' last='Lambert']</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Lambert is a prolific shooter and scorer returning for the Wildcats and is only a sophomore. At 6'3" 215lb he doesn't get bullied or let contact at the bucket affect his game. He's a fearless shooter from deep and usually a huge mismatch for opposing defenders. In a region full of young players and being relatively wide open competitively speaking I think Lambert is clearly the best player in the region heading into the regular season. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Top College Prospects</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='2436136' first='Andrew' last='Dotson'], [player_tooltip player_id='2694392' first='Lucas' last='Lambert'], [player_tooltip player_id='2444054' first='Landon' last='Preece'], [player_tooltip player_id='2444055' first='Colton' last='Preece'], [player_tooltip player_id='2724465' first='Jace' last='Watts'] [player_tooltip player_id='2434994' first='Noah' last='Evans'], [player_tooltip player_id='2375690' first='Ivan' last='Miller'], [player_tooltip player_id='2908205' first='Jakob' last='Potter']</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">State Tournament Qualifier Prediction</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Logan: the Wildcats lost some huge pieces including some key senior leadership, however, the cupboard certainly isn't bare and in fact could just be reloading. I don't think anyone would argue they're the best team on paper in the preseason and look to return to Charleston as they are one of the more historic programs of the state tournament and Mark Hatcher has rekindled that fire in the bellies of the Logan community. Returning from a state tournament appearance a just eight months ago the Wildcats bring back the aforementioned Lambert, [player_tooltip player_id='2375690' first='Ivan' last='Miller'], 6'2" 2027 wing [player_tooltip player_id='3150538' first='Colten' last='Green'] and 2028 [player_tooltip player_id='3150536' first='Bentley' last='Williamson']. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Buffalo: Looking for a return trip to Charleston, this Buffalo squad returns everyone from last year's team but two players and has added fab frosh [player_tooltip player_id='2637485' first='Brody' last='Shockey'] who impressed in August's BlueChips Nation Hoop Summit. Buffalo could be poised to string together multiple appearances on the civic center floor with the youth on their roster. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Darkhorse</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The favorite here is definitely Wayne and coach Meddings. They return some great inside presence as well as the return of do-it-all guard [player_tooltip player_id='2436136' first='Andrew' last='Dotson']. Those three pieces alone could be enough to justify a tournament run. On the other hand, the Scott Skyhawks have had a short absence from the state tournament however I think they have the key pieces coming back this year to make that run to Charleston a reality once again. Coach Shawn Ballard has been there and led deep runs in Charleston and seems poised for yet another. Returning a talented 2028 wing/forward in [player_tooltip player_id='2724465' first='Jace' last='Watts'] who'll be a matchup problem for most defenses. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Regional Roundup</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>A crazy stat for this region, 7 out of the 9 teams have a player playing collegiately. Isaac McNeely, Poca (Louisville), Max Moore, Sissonville (Salem), Zayden Sherod, Logan (Davis &amp; Elkins), Jay Turner, Charleston Catholic (University of Charleston), Tyler Walls, Scott (Waynesburg), Curtis Litton, Clay Co. (WV Weslyan), Jackson Tackett, Logan (WV Tech)</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Ranking the Region</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:list {"ordered":true} --> <ol class="wp-block-list"><!-- wp:list-item --> <li><strong>Logan</strong></li> <!-- /wp:list-item --></ol> <!-- /wp:list --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>2. </strong>Buffalo</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>3. </strong>Wayne</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>4. </strong>Scott</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>5. </strong>Charleston Catholic</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>6. Sissonville</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>7. Poca</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>8. Clay Co.</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>9. Roane Co.</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->