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Pre-Season Varsity Boys Predictions
 
LHAC Section 1
Forest Hills
Bishop Carroll
Bishop Guilfoyle
LHAC Section 2
Richland
Johnstown
Bishop McCort
Championship
Forest Hills vs Richland/ Winner: Richland

WestPac North
Ferndale
North Star
Conemaugh Township
WestPac South
Shade
Berlin
Rockwood
Championship
Ferndale vs Shade/ Winner: Shade

Heritage “ Not sure how the conference breaks down”
Ligonier Valley
Purchase Line
Homer Center
United
Championship

Ligonier Valley vs Purchas Line/ Winner: Ligonier Valley

Section I of the LHAC seems like it could be a lot like how Section II was last year in that, 4 teams could win it, even 5.

I'd project them this way

1. Bishop Guilfoyle - Ruggery and Labriola is a tough 1-2 punch
2. Forest Hills - They have size and some athletes, they'll be pretty good.
3. Penn Cambria - They have everyone back from a .500 team last year.  I think they can be 4-5 wins better.
4. Central Cambria - UPJ recruit Matt Holsinger should carry them to a big year, but a small step backwards from last year.
5. Bishop Carroll - They'll be better than the 7-8 wins they had last year, everyone is back.
6. Cambria Heights - had a rough year last year, don't see that changing.

Section II
1. Richland - All 5 starters back, and I'd argue Tyler Zimmerman is the best player in the league.
2. Johnstown - 3 starters back, plus they got Britt from McCort and Chatman from Ferndale.  Keyon Gause is legit.
3. McCort - Petrosky is the only  starter back, but look for Seidel to have a big year.  They'll still compete, but losing Britt hurts.
4. Somerset - 3 of their top 5 scorers are back, should be a bit better than 10-13 this year.
5. Westmont - Will be a brand new team. Lost all 5 starters.  Should have good size however.
6. Bedford - Going to be one of the best teams in the league soon, still a year away. Their freshmen team last year was fantastic.

What are you smoking prophet? CC will have a different identity but no way is BC number 2 or better than CC and BG. They lost Bopp but have Alex Persio back and Josh Persio transferred back from BC as well as Holsinger and Bennett back. Their outside shooting will be much more of a threat. Forest Hills will be solid but Central Cambria will be up there. Richland is the team to beat as they lost no starters from last year's runner up team. 

I watched BC play everyone very tough last year and they return everyone. Also CC lost Bopp and Gillum. Don't forget it took CC overtime to get by BC last year. I expect them to take a major step back this year.

They will take a step back and have a different identity but will still be solid. They will have 4 kids that shoot as well as Gillen did from the 3 and Holsinger underneath. Last year their 5 man in Davis was a solid defender but not a shooting threat. This year they will have 5 legitimate threats from beyond the arc and will be athletic 

So Ferndales coach goes to Jtown and takes a player along? Interesting.

CCDevil2012 wrote:They will take a step back and have a different identity but will still be solid. They will have 4 kids that shoot as well as Gillen did from the 3 and Holsinger underneath. Last year their 5 man in Davis was a solid defender but not a shooting threat. This year they will have 5 legitimate threats from beyond the arc and will be athletic 

Only one of those four aforementioned “kids that can shoot” ( L.B. ) can defend anyone on the perimeter. M.H. will defend the post admirably, but other than L.B., those other 4-5 guards are very weak defensively guarding the perimeter, stopping the dribble/drive and denying the opposite side cutter. The team will be at a considerable height disadvantage ( sans M.H. ), and other than M.H., they team is not physical. They shy away from physical contact, and have little physical strength.  Teams will double down on M.H., and they will not win many games firin’ from beyond  the arc - there are no Steph Curry’s on that squad, and none of those current guards can shoot with any pressure in their face like Gillen was able to. As a good example, CC will be slightly “bigger” than BC as a team, but BC will shut their guards down with ease ( BC can play some D ).

I think Richland and Central Cambria should be pretty prepared for one another come District championship time. A lot of quality teams for the LHAC fans. WestPAC North will be between Conemaugh Township (may be a year away with 4 juniors starting), North Star and I will roll with the darkhorse of Blacklick before Ferndale. South will be Shade and Berlin as the front runners.

LHAC Section 2 thoughts...this is going to be a great section again this year.

Richland: They are going to be fantastic. From a starters point of view, they don’t have a weakness. My only question is how much depth do they have. I’m calling that they will be district champs.

Johnstown: They will be a close second in the section. If Chatman can make the transition to the LHAC, they can be great too...with Britt and company playing on the outside, he could be the missing piece.

McCort: They will definitely take a step back, losing as much as they did, but their guard play will still be solid. I think they go as Seidel goes.

Bedford: They are going to be the darlings of the section, and be a little better than they should be. They have a good new coach coming in, which will make them better. They also have some decent upperclassman,along with he best freshman in the conference Steven Ressler.

Somerset: With 3 of their top 5 scorers back, they should compete, but they are a bit overmatched in a strong section this year.

Westmont: This is going to be a rough year on the hill. After losing all of their starters, this year’s upperclassman group is, on paper, not real strong, with them not getting much playing time last year.

Should be a great year in Section II. Can’t wait!

You heard it from me first.  Blacklick Valley will win the WestPac