2A-7 Conference Preview

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The high school basketball season is right around the corner in the state of Arkansas. Before the season tip-offs, I wanted to preview every division of every conference in the state. These will have player breakdowns, coach quotes, and more. It should be noted that almost all the stats, such as records or returning players, are from MaxPreps/Scorebook Live. I say this because records on scorebook live are not 100% accurate. With that being said, let's hop into conference 2A-7.<br><br></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading"><strong>Cutter Morning Star&nbsp;</strong></h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:heading {"level":4} --> <h4 class="wp-block-heading"><strong>2025/2026 Recap - 2026/2027 Preview&nbsp;</strong></h4> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Overall Record - 21-11</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Conference Record -&nbsp;13-1</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Home Record -&nbsp;14-6</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Away Record -&nbsp;7-5</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Season Finish - Lost in the First Round of the Regional Tournament (Poyen)</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Coach Q/A</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Who are one or two guys that will be x-factors this year for your squad?</strong> - <em>"This year Bentley Gigerich (141 made 3s in his career) and 2X all-state player and John Hooper, senior leader of the team, 2X all-state player."</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Going into the new season, what areas has this team made the most improvements in? - </strong><em>"We return every starter from a team that went 15-1 in league play, won a conference and tournament championship. We needed consistency from the guard position and more basketball IQ. We have worked hard at both of those things this spring and summer as well as building physical strength. There is a long way to go, but we feel good about the collection of pieces we have this year to be very competitive at the 2A level."</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading"><strong>England</strong></h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:heading {"level":4} --> <h4 class="wp-block-heading"><strong>2025/2026 Recap - 2026/2027 Preview&nbsp;</strong></h4> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Overall Record -&nbsp;29-7</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Conference Record -&nbsp;15-1</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Home Record -&nbsp;18-3</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Away Record -&nbsp;8-3</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Season Finish -&nbsp;Lost in the Third Round of the State Tournament (Barton)</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Key Players - Kevin Strong and Dallys Woods make up a strong 2029 class. The future is bright for England. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading"><strong>Magnet Cove</strong></h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:heading {"level":4} --> <h4 class="wp-block-heading"><strong>2025/2026 Recap - 2026/2027 Preview&nbsp;</strong></h4> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Overall Record -&nbsp;2-24</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Conference Record -&nbsp;2-14</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Home Record -&nbsp;1-11</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Away Record -&nbsp;1-13</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading {"level":4} --> <h4 class="wp-block-heading"><strong>Player Breakdown</strong></h4> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":["not_in_db"],"_player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_0_player_details_selected_featured_image":"","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_selected_featured_image":"field_62cca28ffa4e7","player_evaluations_0_player_details_player_name":"Isaac Tillery","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_player_name":"field_62aba4c9ecf2f","player_evaluations_0_player_details_graduating_class":"2027","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_graduating_class":"field_62aba4ddecf30","player_evaluations_0_player_details_height":"6'2u0022","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_height":"field_62aba4e8ecf31","player_evaluations_0_player_details_position":"77247","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_position":"field_62aba4f0ecf32","player_evaluations_0_player_details_school":"Magnet Cove","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_school":"field_62aba4fdecf33","player_evaluations_0_player_details_club_program":"","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_club_program":"field_62d20e723441a","player_evaluations_0_player_details":"","_player_evaluations_0_player_details":"field_62aba4afecf2e","player_evaluations":1,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-6aa595a7bd9f5"} --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"placeholder":"Add evaluation here...","className":"text-gray-700"} --> <p class="text-gray-700">Tillery is a strong forward who knows how to use his strength to his advantage on both ends of the floor. He's a hard-nosed driver who throws himself into others when finishing at the rim. Isaac is able to expand his game from the perimeter, where he showed last year that he could shoot off the dribble at a solid rate. He uses that same aggression on the boards and in the passing lanes. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- /wp:acf/evaluation-block --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading"><strong>Mountain Pine</strong></h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:heading {"level":4} --> <h4 class="wp-block-heading"><strong>2025/2026 Recap - 2026/2027 Preview&nbsp;</strong></h4> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Overall Record -&nbsp;5-21</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Conference Record -&nbsp;3-11</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Home Record -&nbsp;3-12</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Away Record - 2-8</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading"><strong>Ouachita</strong></h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:heading {"level":4} --> <h4 class="wp-block-heading"><strong>2025/2026 Recap - 2026/2027 Preview&nbsp;</strong></h4> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Overall Record -&nbsp;20-14</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Conference Record -&nbsp;8-8</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Home Record -&nbsp;12-6</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Away Record -&nbsp;6-5</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Season Finish - Lost in the Second Round of the District Tournament (Woodlawn)</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading"><strong>Poyen</strong></h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:heading {"level":4} --> <h4 class="wp-block-heading"><strong>2025/2026 Recap - 2026/2027 Preview&nbsp;</strong></h4> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Overall Record -&nbsp;21-9</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Conference Record -&nbsp;11-5</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Home Record -&nbsp;12-3</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Away Record -&nbsp;8-5 </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Season Finish -&nbsp;Lost in the First Round of the State Tournament (Sloan-Hendrix)</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading {"level":4} --> <h4 class="wp-block-heading"><strong>Player Breakdown</strong></h4> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":["not_in_db"],"_player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_0_player_details_selected_featured_image":"","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_selected_featured_image":"field_62cca28ffa4e7","player_evaluations_0_player_details_player_name":"Kaden Townley","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_player_name":"field_62aba4c9ecf2f","player_evaluations_0_player_details_graduating_class":"2027","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_graduating_class":"field_62aba4ddecf30","player_evaluations_0_player_details_height":"6'1u0022","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_height":"field_62aba4e8ecf31","player_evaluations_0_player_details_position":"77248","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_position":"field_62aba4f0ecf32","player_evaluations_0_player_details_school":"Poyen","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_school":"field_62aba4fdecf33","player_evaluations_0_player_details_club_program":"","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_club_program":"field_62d20e723441a","player_evaluations_0_player_details":"","_player_evaluations_0_player_details":"field_62aba4afecf2e","player_evaluations":1,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-6aa595a7bda5e"} --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"placeholder":"Add evaluation here...","className":"text-gray-700"} --> <p class="text-gray-700">Alongside Junior guard Smith, Townley is a key piece for a dangerous Poyen backcourt. Last season, he showed a versatile bag on offense. With a quick release, it doesn't take much for Kaden to get a shot off. He's a crafty finisher, using step-throughs and euro steps regularly. His senior season is shaping up to be a big scoring year for the guard. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- /wp:acf/evaluation-block --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading"><strong>Rison</strong></h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:heading {"level":4} --> <h4 class="wp-block-heading"><strong>2025/2026 Recap - 2026/2027 Preview&nbsp;</strong></h4> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Overall Record -&nbsp;1-17</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Conference Record -&nbsp;0-12</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Home Record -&nbsp;1-8</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Away Record -&nbsp;0-9</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Season Finish - Lost in the First Round of District Tournament (Dumas)</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading"><strong>Woodlawn</strong></h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:heading {"level":4} --> <h4 class="wp-block-heading"><strong>2025/2026 Recap - 2026/2027 Preview&nbsp;</strong></h4> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Overall Record -&nbsp;25-12</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Conference Record -&nbsp;12-4</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Home Record -&nbsp;13-7</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Away Record -&nbsp;8-4</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Season Finish -&nbsp;Lost in the Second Round of the State Tournament (Barton)</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading {"level":4} --> <h4 class="wp-block-heading"><strong>Player Breakdown</strong></h4> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":["not_in_db"],"_player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_0_player_details_selected_featured_image":"","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_selected_featured_image":"field_62cca28ffa4e7","player_evaluations_0_player_details_player_name":"Evan Donnell","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_player_name":"field_62aba4c9ecf2f","player_evaluations_0_player_details_graduating_class":"2027","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_graduating_class":"field_62aba4ddecf30","player_evaluations_0_player_details_height":"5'9u0022","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_height":"field_62aba4e8ecf31","player_evaluations_0_player_details_position":"77248","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_position":"field_62aba4f0ecf32","player_evaluations_0_player_details_school":"Woodlawn","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_school":"field_62aba4fdecf33","player_evaluations_0_player_details_club_program":"","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_club_program":"field_62d20e723441a","player_evaluations_0_player_details":"","_player_evaluations_0_player_details":"field_62aba4afecf2e","player_evaluations":1,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-6aa595a7bdaa4"} --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"placeholder":"Add evaluation here...","className":"text-gray-700"} --> <p class="text-gray-700">Donnell adds a different dimension to the Woodlawn offense. Coming off screens regularly, he's constantly on the move without the ball. He's a great shooter and keeps defenses honest, flashing some driving skills as a junior. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- /wp:acf/evaluation-block --> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":["not_in_db"],"_player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_0_player_details_selected_featured_image":"","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_selected_featured_image":"field_62cca28ffa4e7","player_evaluations_0_player_details_player_name":"Ethan Saeler","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_player_name":"field_62aba4c9ecf2f","player_evaluations_0_player_details_graduating_class":"2028","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_graduating_class":"field_62aba4ddecf30","player_evaluations_0_player_details_height":"6'3u0022","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_height":"field_62aba4e8ecf31","player_evaluations_0_player_details_position":"77245","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_position":"field_62aba4f0ecf32","player_evaluations_0_player_details_school":"Woodlawn","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_school":"field_62aba4fdecf33","player_evaluations_0_player_details_club_program":"","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_club_program":"field_62d20e723441a","player_evaluations_0_player_details":"","_player_evaluations_0_player_details":"field_62aba4afecf2e","player_evaluations":1,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-6aa595a7bdaf2"} --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"placeholder":"Add evaluation here...","className":"text-gray-700"} --> <p class="text-gray-700">Saeler has maybe the highest ceiling of anyone in the conference. In his sophomore season, Saeler flashed many different skills, showing he is a diverse player for Woodlawn. The 6'3 forward uses good athleticism and length to be an effective rebounder. He's great at working for position and is long enough to make up for when he doesn't get a proper box-out. When not attacking the boards, Ethan likes to get out and run. He seems to always be one good outlet pass away for an easy layup. In a half-court set, Saeler is a threat from three off the catch. As he gets older and continues to develop, I believe he has the skillset ot be one of the best players in 2A.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- /wp:acf/evaluation-block -->