Finishing Touches

Tonight the 2016/2017 high school basketball regular season comes to and end and it is  rival night finishes off the season as teams prepare for that last ditch effort to improve their playoff standings and for some next week brings and end to the season unless they find magic that they have lacked all year.

This computer world we live in there are preseason polls post season projections and projection don't mean a hill of beans if a team doesn't keep winning.  Highschoolot.com has released their playoff projections and the Big East will get four teams in the playoffs.  The Boys of course Northern Nash, Nash Central, Fike and Rocky Mount.  The girls playoffs looks like Rocky Mount, Nash Central, Fike and Hunt.  Any member left off this list will have to win the tournament next week to shake the seedings up.

The only two teams unbeaten in conference play will be in the same house Rocky Mount High school tonight but will not be playing each other.  Rocky Mount girls 9-0 and 17-2 collide and this years Gryphon girls team has blossomed due to defense.  They give up just 34 points per game while Northern Nash 2-8 8-15 score only 35 per game.  Assuming Northern scores somewhere around 35 points can their defense slow Rocky Mount down to hold them to less than 35?

Northern Nash boys 9-0 21-2 have not lost in 2017.  They have really peaked playing well in conference play.  Rocky Mount 4-5 8-10 now has all their team together as the football players round into basketball shape.  The Gryphons almost clipped Northern at Northern and of course this is a rival game so any thing can happen. Northern is the top scoring team in the league  at almost 72 per game so this could be a high scoring game.

Nash Central Lady Bulldogs 6-3 tied for second and second gets a first round bye in next week's tournament host Southern Nash 0-9 3-17.  Sure looks like the Lady Bulldogs should get to 7-3 and scoreboard watch in Wilson to see Fike's score at Hunt.

Nash Central 6-3 14-6 boys have a leg up on second right now and they host Southern Nash 0-9 5-18 who has played everybody close but no conference wins.  Remember just last year they were in the Pent House as conference champs and how quickly life changes.

Fike Girls 6-3 16-6 still has every reason to claim second.  Hunt 4-5 16-6 you wonder with their overall record why have they fallen to fourth having lost 5 of their last 7.  This will be no gimme for the Lady Golden Deamons.

Fike boys 5-4 15-7 with their loss Tuesday has to have a lot to fall their way in order to claim any part of second.  First they have to beat rival Hunt 2-7 6-16 on Hunt's home floor after having won by only two at Fike two weeks ago.  Then they have to hope Southern Nash winless helps them out by beating Nash Central.  Long shots at best.

Before the light of day on Saturday we will know where everyone stands and their schedule for next week.