by Bill Turner
High school basketball is in full gear with non-district play continuing through the end of the month, and several holiday tournaments worth a look taking place between Christmas and New Years.
It’s time for the first Wild Bill “Big-11” Top-5 picks among our local teams, so let’s take a look at the inaugural group that leads the pack.
#1-Patrick Henry: The Patriots take down the top spot after improving to 4-0 Tuesday night with a 29-point win over Martinsville. PH has size and quickness that should make them the team to beat in the Western Valley District. A big test comes tonight, where they meet undefeated Salem on the Spartan’s court.
#2- Salem: The Spartans check in at 4-0 and may prove to be a factor in the always-tough River Ridge District. The schedule maker may have stacked the cards against Salem. They must travel to scrappy Lord Botetourt Thursday night before returning home 24 hours later to find Patrick Henry invading the Spartan gym. We’ll see who’s in shape in a hurry.
#3- Cave Spring- The Knights have opened at 3-1, with their only loss coming on the road at Radford. Impressive was their 17-point fourth quarter comeback to defeat James River in overtime. With the addition of 3 players from the state semifinal football team, Cave Spring looks to get better.
#4- Hidden Valley: The Titans always start slow and finish big. Last year’s run to the state final in Richmond was a prime example for a squad that was shaky in December and sharp in March. Never underestimate a Troy Wells-coached team. It’s a sure way to get you a peg in the loss column.
#5- William Fleming: Are the Colonels a early-season blur or does Mickey Hardy have a giant to unleash? Fleming has started 2-1, including a win at powerful R.E. Lee of Staunton. If the Colonels young group gets in a groove, opponents will have their hands full. A good look Friday night comes when Cave Spring visits the Colonel gym.
Salem’s number-one tailgate party, the Stagg Bowl, moves to prime time this Friday night when the NCAA Division III championship airs on ESPN2 at 7:00 pm. Mount Union and Wisconsin-Whitewater will tangle for the seventh straight year in Salem Stadium. Both teams are 14-0.
The Stagg Bowl is a Wild Bill five-star recommendation as it is always a first-class event put on by the City of Salem and the ODAC. Great location, two great teams and a major-bowl championship atmosphere. Plus, after attending the last six games, split 3-3 by the two teams, I can firmly vouch that the game will be worth the price of admission. See you there!
Finally, we close with Wild Bill’s Sugar Bowl update. It seems, as predicted in this column last week, ticket sales for the Sugar have been less-than-stellar on the VA. Tech side. As of midweek, Tech reported they had sold just over half of their 17,500 allotment, and orders had slowed to a snail’s pace.
Granted, this does beat the 2009 Orange Bowl sales, where Tech only sold 3,342 of its allotment, and took a $1.77 million bath in unsold tickets.
Is it my imagination, or weren’t we told that the Sugar Bowl bid was based on Tech “traveling so well”? Sorry, guys – this is like traveling in a covered wagon. I hope the Hokies can right the ship before the Jan. 3rd matchup in New Orleans against Michigan.
Watch for next week’s Sugar update. Until then, send your questions to: [email protected]