E-town - Mechanicsburg preview
I did a little digging today and found out what I could on Mechanicsburg. Without further ado, here's my preview on tomorrow afternoon's big game. For those of you curious, if the Bears win tomorrow, they will qualify for the state tournament. If they lose, they can still get into states, but they'll have to win a couple more games. Either way, tomorrow is definitely not the last game of the season for either team.
Before we get into each team and what they run, here's a look at the common opponents both have played this year. Don't read too much into these numbers, but take it for what it's worth:
Mechanicsburg played Gettysburg and Middletown twice. The Wildcats went 2-0 against Middletown, beating them 62-45 and 71-61. They went 1-1 against Gettysburg, beating them 54-34 and losing 47-34.
E-town only played Gettysburg and Middletown once each, but the Bears went 2-0 in those games. As you might remember, they destroyed Middletown, 79-34 in their most lopsided win of the year. They also beat Gettysburg in the district play-in round, 60-45.
SEASONS AT A GLANCE
Mechanicsburg:
Mechanicsburg went 16-7 in the regular season, finishing second in their Mid Penn conference to Boiling Springs (who just lost to Hershey last night). They made the Mid Penn playoffs, but lost to Steel High by a point in the semifinals. They then beat Waynesboro by two points in the district play-in round before beating Red Lion by six last night in the first round.
Their losses this season are to Steelton, CD East, Gettysburg, Susquehanna Twp., Red Land, Trinity, Carlisle and Cedar Cliff.
E-town:
We all know the story of the Bears' season by now. Started 2-7 before coming alive to finish the regular season at 14-9. They went 12-2 in their last 14 regular season games, ending on an 8-game winning streak. They lost in the first round of the L-L playoffs to Columbia, but rebounded to beat Gettysburg by 15 in the district play-in round. They then beat Cedar Crest by eight last night. So all together, E-town is 13-3 since that slow start. Not too shabby.
HOW THEY PLAY:
Mechanicsburg:
The Wildcats play hard, but they are a very guard-heavy team. Only two players on the team are taller than 6-foot (all five of E-town's starters are at least 6-foot, with three of them 6'2" and one 6'4"). But they make up for their lack of size with physical play. Mechanicsburg will run a ton of four guard sets and will look to spread the floor on E-town.
Their top scorer is guard Jake Zeigler, who averages around 15 points per game. He is the only one averaging in double digits. The rest of their top scorers are: Greg Bretz (8.5), Chris White (8.3), Steve Edgar (6.8), Dylan Edgar (5.4), and Will Laubach (5.2). The Edgar boys are the ones that are taller than 6-foot, and Steve Edgar is the team's center. So expect a lot of four guards and Edgar on the court for Mechanicsburg.
E-town:
The Bears have a definite size advantage on the Wildcats. E-town is already a very good rebounding team, so the Bears will have plenty of chances to get offensive rebounds and have second opportunities on offense. If Mechanicsburg spreads the floor, E-town has the quickness to adjust and they also play good help defense, which will help them contain Zeigler.
The bottom line here is that E-town just has more weapons offensively. Their repertoire was on full display last night, as E-town had four players score in double digits and two more with seven points. If one of the Bears are having an off night offensively, E-town has more than enough talent to pick that particular player up. I'm not sure you can say the same about Mechanicsburg if Zeigler is struggling offensively.
E-town's starters will be Jordan Hallman, Kyle McNeil, Chad Styer, Quinn Cozzens and Nate Koach and when they are all on the court, they have shown that they can hang with almost any style of team. They can run, they can play half-court sets, they can shoot outside and bang bodies inside, they can press and they can rebound. It's a scary combination when they put it all together.
Mechanicsburg play excellent defense, so expect E-town to counter that by having Hallman, Styer, Cozzens and McNeil all bring the ball up to throw different looks at the Wildcats. And all four are good ball handlers.
If I were to pick out a player to have a stand-out game, I'd pick Koach. He's one of the hardest working centers you'll see, and if he has a size advantage, he's going to exploit it all night. He's not afraid of physical play, either, and if you foul him, he'll knock down free throws.
The Bears were certainly impressive last night. They didn't play their best game of the season, and still were able to beat a 4-seed. But both teams have a lot of momentum right now. Mechanicsburg is coming off of two HUGE wins itself, so they won't back down from the Bears, no matter what.
It's going to be a fast, physical game, but then again, they all will be from this point on. Both teams have a lot to play for, but I think that E-town just has too many weapons for Mechanicsburg, and I think they will be playing at the Giant Center on Tuesday night.
PREDICTION:
E-town 60 - Mechanicsburg 51.
Also, the winner of this game will take on the winner of Reading/York, which, barring an upset of Chaminade-Virginia proportions, will be Reading. (OK, maybe it wouldn't be THAT big of an upset if York wins, but you get the picture). If they Bears win, they will play at the Giant Center on Tuesday at 8 p.m. If E-town loses, they will play at Penn Manor at 7:30 on Tuesday night against the Reading/York loser.
Before we get into each team and what they run, here's a look at the common opponents both have played this year. Don't read too much into these numbers, but take it for what it's worth:
Mechanicsburg played Gettysburg and Middletown twice. The Wildcats went 2-0 against Middletown, beating them 62-45 and 71-61. They went 1-1 against Gettysburg, beating them 54-34 and losing 47-34.
E-town only played Gettysburg and Middletown once each, but the Bears went 2-0 in those games. As you might remember, they destroyed Middletown, 79-34 in their most lopsided win of the year. They also beat Gettysburg in the district play-in round, 60-45.
SEASONS AT A GLANCE
Mechanicsburg:
Mechanicsburg went 16-7 in the regular season, finishing second in their Mid Penn conference to Boiling Springs (who just lost to Hershey last night). They made the Mid Penn playoffs, but lost to Steel High by a point in the semifinals. They then beat Waynesboro by two points in the district play-in round before beating Red Lion by six last night in the first round.
Their losses this season are to Steelton, CD East, Gettysburg, Susquehanna Twp., Red Land, Trinity, Carlisle and Cedar Cliff.
E-town:
We all know the story of the Bears' season by now. Started 2-7 before coming alive to finish the regular season at 14-9. They went 12-2 in their last 14 regular season games, ending on an 8-game winning streak. They lost in the first round of the L-L playoffs to Columbia, but rebounded to beat Gettysburg by 15 in the district play-in round. They then beat Cedar Crest by eight last night. So all together, E-town is 13-3 since that slow start. Not too shabby.
HOW THEY PLAY:
Mechanicsburg:
The Wildcats play hard, but they are a very guard-heavy team. Only two players on the team are taller than 6-foot (all five of E-town's starters are at least 6-foot, with three of them 6'2" and one 6'4"). But they make up for their lack of size with physical play. Mechanicsburg will run a ton of four guard sets and will look to spread the floor on E-town.
Their top scorer is guard Jake Zeigler, who averages around 15 points per game. He is the only one averaging in double digits. The rest of their top scorers are: Greg Bretz (8.5), Chris White (8.3), Steve Edgar (6.8), Dylan Edgar (5.4), and Will Laubach (5.2). The Edgar boys are the ones that are taller than 6-foot, and Steve Edgar is the team's center. So expect a lot of four guards and Edgar on the court for Mechanicsburg.
E-town:
The Bears have a definite size advantage on the Wildcats. E-town is already a very good rebounding team, so the Bears will have plenty of chances to get offensive rebounds and have second opportunities on offense. If Mechanicsburg spreads the floor, E-town has the quickness to adjust and they also play good help defense, which will help them contain Zeigler.
The bottom line here is that E-town just has more weapons offensively. Their repertoire was on full display last night, as E-town had four players score in double digits and two more with seven points. If one of the Bears are having an off night offensively, E-town has more than enough talent to pick that particular player up. I'm not sure you can say the same about Mechanicsburg if Zeigler is struggling offensively.
E-town's starters will be Jordan Hallman, Kyle McNeil, Chad Styer, Quinn Cozzens and Nate Koach and when they are all on the court, they have shown that they can hang with almost any style of team. They can run, they can play half-court sets, they can shoot outside and bang bodies inside, they can press and they can rebound. It's a scary combination when they put it all together.
Mechanicsburg play excellent defense, so expect E-town to counter that by having Hallman, Styer, Cozzens and McNeil all bring the ball up to throw different looks at the Wildcats. And all four are good ball handlers.
If I were to pick out a player to have a stand-out game, I'd pick Koach. He's one of the hardest working centers you'll see, and if he has a size advantage, he's going to exploit it all night. He's not afraid of physical play, either, and if you foul him, he'll knock down free throws.
The Bears were certainly impressive last night. They didn't play their best game of the season, and still were able to beat a 4-seed. But both teams have a lot of momentum right now. Mechanicsburg is coming off of two HUGE wins itself, so they won't back down from the Bears, no matter what.
It's going to be a fast, physical game, but then again, they all will be from this point on. Both teams have a lot to play for, but I think that E-town just has too many weapons for Mechanicsburg, and I think they will be playing at the Giant Center on Tuesday night.
PREDICTION:
E-town 60 - Mechanicsburg 51.
Also, the winner of this game will take on the winner of Reading/York, which, barring an upset of Chaminade-Virginia proportions, will be Reading. (OK, maybe it wouldn't be THAT big of an upset if York wins, but you get the picture). If they Bears win, they will play at the Giant Center on Tuesday at 8 p.m. If E-town loses, they will play at Penn Manor at 7:30 on Tuesday night against the Reading/York loser.
Labels: boys baskeball
posted by Chris McCarthy at
2:00 PM
1 Comments:
Keep up the good work boys and Chris. Thanks for all your coverage and insite. papa bear
Post a Comment
Links to this post:
Create a Link
<< Home