'18-'19 Suburban League American

[Yappi]

Congrats to Revere and Copley for their tremendous seasons. Two district champs in one year is quite an accomplishment for the SLA.

Now that the season is over for the SLA, what is the outlook for the 2018-2019 season?

[FootsWalker]

This past season was about as senior-laden as I can ever remember this league, so it's gonna be wide open. Kent looked pretty young, so maybe this is their chance to make a move up in the standings? Aurora played a few younger guys as well. I would guess that Revere returns the most in the way of starters, as i think 3 were underclassmen? Copley, Tallmadge, and Barberton all return 2-3 guys that played significant minutes, with at least 1 starter in that group. Like I said, pretty wide open.

[Yappi]

Tallmadge will have 5 players back that played Varsity only and were in the rotation:

Sam Seeker 6'2" (rising Senior) (Starter)
Brandon Heigelmann 6'4" (rising Junior) (All-Inland Honorable Mention) (not a starter though)
Nick Hussing 6'2" (rising Senior)
Jason Grassie 6'4" (rising Senior)
Lucca Passarelli 5'10" (rising Senior)

Others that dressed varsity for the tournament:
Sean Ambrose 5'8" (rising Senior)
Luke Thomas 5'9" (rising Junior)
Danny Kurko 6'5" (rising Junior)

Seeker started. Hussing and Heigelmann played alot of minutes. Hussing started at least a couple of games. Heigelmann may have started a couple but not sure. Grassie will be the force in the middle. Passarelli was a defensive specialist.

Tallmadge also has a number of rising Seniors that some dressed Varsity but played mostly JV. Zappola, Heller, Zesiger, Gardella, Tokash, and Joyner.

[SLAGuy]

Revere will lose 5 Seniors. Nance being the one that is irreplaceable. Two others were starters. The other two didn't play much.

They will be competitive next year with Albert, Leyden, Drenth, and Richardson back who were arguably their top 4 players outside Nance.

Copley will be a wild card again depending on who moves in. Highland might be down. Barberton loses a ton but brings back Soyars. Aurora and Kent probably bring up the rear again but could be more competitive as their rebuilding will be in their 2nd or 3rd years. Tallmadge will be in the hunt for the league title.

[Yappi]

It will be interesting to see how Revere plays next season without Nance. He was definitely a big part of the team and a couple players will have to step up to fill his shoes.

As for Tallmadge, the Blue Devils lose 4 solid Seniors. Francesconi was the leading scorer the last two years but they have some upcoming Seniors and Juniors that are capable of putting up big offensive numbers. I suspect they will be in the mix again next year. They were 9-3 in the league two seasons ago and 6-6 this past year. That is the range that I expect them in next year too.

Copley didn't appear to have the great JV team this year that they have in the past. Losing a chunk of Seniors will make it tough to replace them all. Still, I expect them to compete for the league because they have a solid program and it will be next man up for them.

[SLAGuy]

No real favorite right now. A very early prediction:

1. Tallmadge
2. Copley
3. Revere
4. Barberton
5. Highland
6. Kent Roosevelt
7. Aurora

[Yappi]

Who are the top players coming back for the SLA season next year?

Tallmadge: Heigelmann and Seeker
Revere: Drenth and Albert
Copley: Emich
Barberton: Soyars
Highland: ??
Kent Roosevelt: ??
Aurora: ??

[Football Fan 1]

Vann Aubrey Thomas transferring from St V to Copley to play basketball next season

[Look Ma No Hands]

Originally Posted by Football Fan 1

Vann Aubrey Thomas transferring from St V to Copley to play basketball next season

Holy crap.
Copley keeps getting ... transfers.

[Amigo]

Any other "commits"?

[Rusty Anchor]

Originally Posted by Football Fan 1

Vann Aubrey Thomas transferring from St V to Copley to play basketball next season

His commitment picture/post was the best.

[Yappi]

Tallmadge hired Bill Johnson. He's been a varsity girls head coach at Tallmadge and Lake. Coached freshmen boys at Cuyahoga Falls.

Not sure of the style that Tallmadge will play but there is quite a bit of familiarity with Johnson in Tallmadge basketball. Hopefully by getting this hiring done, it will give the kids a chance to get good work in during the Summer and Fall.

[BlueDevil Backer]

Originally Posted by Yappi

Tallmadge will have 5 players back that played Varsity only and were in the rotation:

Sam Seeker 6'2" (rising Senior) (Starter)
Brandon Heigelmann 6'4" (rising Junior) (All-Inland Honorable Mention) (not a starter though)
Nick Hussing 6'2" (rising Senior)
Jason Grassie 6'4" (rising Senior)
Lucca Passarelli 5'10" (rising Senior)

Others that dressed varsity for the tournament:
Sean Ambrose 5'8" (rising Senior)
Luke Thomas 5'9" (rising Junior)
Danny Kurko 6'5" (rising Junior)

Seeker started. Hussing and Heigelmann played alot of minutes. Hussing started at least a couple of games. Heigelmann may have started a couple but not sure. Grassie will be the force in the middle. Passarelli was a defensive specialist.

Tallmadge also has a number of rising Seniors that some dressed Varsity but played mostly JV. Zappola, Heller, Zesiger, Gardella, Tokash, and Joyner.

Early word is Grassie is not playing to focus senior year on football. However, Josh McGhee is back out after taking a few years off.

[Yappi]

That's a shame about Grassie. Good to hear about McGhee. Not sure how long it will take to pick up basketball again after taking the last two years off.

[FootsWalker]

Don't know any details, but Copley went to the Ohio University team camp last weekend ( June 22-24) and had a pretty good showing, as the Vars won the tourney and the JVs lost in the tourney final. Apparently a number of pretty solid teams from Ohio, PA, and WV. The Indians have done fairly well there the past couple of years but I think this is the 1st time they actually won it.

[cinco]

Well it appears Dente will bring in anybody and everybody...lots of rumors floating around about who could be coming. Don't think that's a reputation you want to have. He's not short on confidence either!

[bass10]

Originally Posted by cinco

Well it appears Dente will bring in anybody and everybody...lots of rumors floating around about who could be coming. Don't think that's a reputation you want to have. He's not short on confidence either!

Yeh getting kinda ridiculous but if that's how you gotta win??

[SLAGuy]

Now that school has begun, any newcomers to a school in basketball in the SLA? Any major defections?

[SLAGuy]

Wanted to ask a quick question of all the SLA fans on here.

If the SLA took the best players from the SLA and formed an all-star team at the end of the year to enter it into the tournament, do you think they could win the DI title? DII title?

This league is a solid league but doesn't have the freaks that the basketball powerhouses have. Could a super team from the SLA compete with these basketball factories?

[PlayerCoach]

I think we get too caught up in the rumors. I personally don't think that it's fair that private schools can recruit and give kids scholarships to their schools while the same doesn't go for public schools.

if I were on the OHSAA board, I would push for private schools to have their own division. It just doesn't make sense for a public school that doesn't recruit or have open enrollment to play a private school that does. *just a thought*

[SLAGuy]

Pete Nance could hold his own against any private schooler in the state. After that, the SLA doesn't have many D1 or D2 talents. I watched the Revere/StV game and Nance was the best player on the floor. After that, the next best 5 were all were green.