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Pacific SportsBlogOkinawa-based sports reporter Dave Ornauer on military-related sports in the Far East. |
Pacific high school basketball ratings, season's-over edition
Posted February 26th, 2008 by Dave OrnauerSure had fun with this. We'll do the same with soccer ratings, starting at the end of March.
Here's the last of the basketball ratings:
Boys
1. Seoul American, 50-7. Twelve-game winning streak to close season with third Class AA title in six seasons.
2. Kadena (Okinawa), 36-14. Closed 10-1, only loss in the Class AA championship game.
3. Yongsan International-Seoul, 20-8. Closed with an 8-1 rush to seize Class A title.
4. E.J. King (Japan), 25-8. Tired legs kept Cobras from finishing Class A title climb.
5. Faith Academy (Philippines), 23-9. Couldn't bring fourth the Class A title, but still a great four-year run for Vanguards.
6. Seoul Foreign, 28-10. Losing point guard just before Class AA tournament hurt.
7. St. Mary's International (Japan), 19-16. Strong finish to capture third at Class AA.
8. American School In Japan, 15-6. Fourth place at Class AA, shared Kanto title with St. Mary's, Zama.
9. Zama American (Japan), 29-8. What a two-year run this was for the Trojans.
10. St. Paul Christian (Guam), 14-3. Can they make yet another island championship run?
Girls
1. Faith Academy (Philippines), 39-4. Lost once after Hong Kong tournament, won 36 of their last 37; captured eighth Far East tournament title in 12 years.
2. Kadena (Okinawa), 27-10. Second straight Class AA title, third since 2003.
3. Seoul American, 34-4. Once more, only loss to a high school team came against Kadena, this time in the Class AA tournament final. Last hurrah for longtime coach Charlotte Hicks.
4. International School of the Sacred Heart (Japan), 22-2. Again, only losses of season came at Faith's hands in the Class A tournament.
5. Yokota (Japan), 22-8. Came up short against Class AA powers, ISSH.
6. E.J. King (Japan), 19-7. Last hurrah for the Suriben sisters resulted in fourth-place Class A finish.
7. Hong Kong International, 25-7. We'll miss you, Coach Price.
8. John F. Kennedy (Guam), 5-2 at Far East. Best Class AA run since finishing second in 2003 and '04.
9. Seoul Foreign, 18-6. If only the Crusaders girls got a chance to play at Far East, as did the boys.
10. St. Paul Christian (Guam), 24-5. If only Guam's season didn't end two months before Far East.
There you have it. And remember, you've entered THE "No-Hate Zone." *smile*
YIS-SFS
Even though what YIS did down the stretch was very impressive, head to head Seoul Foreign school was the better team. Winning all of their matches between the two teams.
Season over ratings
Dave,
How can you possibly rank Faith over the Lady Panthers in your final poll? Both teams had great seasons but when all the teams were in Hong Kong at the start of the season, Kadena and Seoul were much better than Faith. No way they are better than the 2X Class AA Far East Champs.
Re: Season over ratings
Panther Pop:
Nothing but love here for the Panthers, who stood tall once more on their home turf before the loud and proud adoring masses and added to the ever-growing Kadena hoops legend.
A coach once told me after one of his players came on late in the fourth quarter to pull out a victory, "It's not so much the points; it's when the points are scored."
While Seoul American and Kadena opened strongly, while Faith languished at mid-pack in Hong Kong, the Vanguards finished a robust 39-4 and only lost once after Thanksgiving weekend.
That's 36 wins in their final 37 games.
Faith twice beat an International School of the Sacred Heart team that was the best in Japan the last two years. Faith also handled the two-time Western Japan Athletic Association champion and last season's DODDS-Japan champion E.J. King Cobras.
All that taken into consideration, balanced by the fact that Kadena handled teams of equal pedigree, Seoul American, John F. Kennedy, Christian Academy In Japan, Yokota, etc., but the Panthers endured something of a slump in late January during the Okinawa-American Shootout.
That said, as Myra J puts it on the Tom Joyner Morning Show, "It's all about love." Congratulations!
Season over ratings
You make some valid points but really there is no way to truly say which team is the best unless they play head to head. Kadena did hit a lull but the losses they suffered were against the top Okinawan teams on the Island. I have no way of knowing how well the teams on your schedule play and I don't believe we have any common opponents so we will just agree to disagree. It would be nice in the future if the Class A Champion and AA Champion could meet after each team finishes their Far East championships in a true Far East Championship. What do you say Dave can you make that happen?
Re: Season over ratings
It would be nice, just as would pitting the Europe Division I and Division II champions against our Class AA and Class A champions for a DODDS worldwide championship.
Season Over Ratings
Maybe we are on to something, it would be great to have it in a Final Four concept in the boys and girls. Say Pacific Class AA vs Europe's Class A and Pacific Class A vs Europe's Class AA and then the winners meet for the DODDS Worlwide championship. I wonder if anyone else is interested?
Re: Season Over Ratings
Play the Class A champion at the Class AA champion, the Division I at Division II champion and the Europe winners at the Pacific winners the first year. Reverse the process in the second year. And make sure the worldwide championships are held at a major venue, such as the Chamsil Students Gymnasium in Seoul.
Maybe an airline, a soft-drink manufacturer or a sports apparel outlet would be interested in sponsoring. United, Coca-Cola or Nike interested?
zama
we got surprised in the tournament by yokota but we still beat asij twice, ej king the one time we played them, seoul the one time we played them, and we beat sfs pretty easily.
keeping it in perspective...
Zama played well; however, they stumbled aginst Kinnick in poll play and then lost to Yokota twice in the bracket play. Zama averaged 47 points per game in the tournament and gave up an average of 43 points per game throughout the tournament. Zama rallied to beat SFS. The officiating, at the "unofficial" Seoul @ Zama game played by Seoul enroute to the Yokota Classic, was from what I was told was terrible. But, a win is a win and a loss is a loss. From what I saw at the tournament, ASIJ is a pretty good team, so if Zama beat them twice during the regular season, then that's saying something, because ASIJ did finish fourth at Far East and could have taken third if they shot better from the free throw line down the stretch. ASIJ lost the third palce game by one point to St. Mary's, but shot 2 for 8 at the line in the last 1:20 of the game. Good job Zama.
yokota
I think the ratings should b ranked by the outcome of the tournament...yokota beat zama twice( once rite after playing seoul)...took seoul into overtyme and onli lost by three with bad officiating. They also beat SFS. They got 5th in the tournament so they should b fifth
Ratings
To the person a few comments above me who says Zama beat Seoul during the regular season because of officiating is absolutely crazy. Not only did Zama have a much high foul count, but one of the officials was Seouls assistant coach. So that should settle that arguement. But, hats off to seoul american for winning this year...they probably were the best team and they got hot at the right time. Personally I thought Kadena was going to win...look for them next year.
Wow!
Ok, I know this is a DoD paper but...
on the Girl's side
I dont see how John F. Kennedy makes it just to 8
Yakota is 5th!
and CAJ doesent make the list;
That is JFK clearly earns its entry with the posted results that I have seen from far east.. 3rd; CAJ finishes 2nd behind ISSH in the Kanto; Beats Yakota in the tournament and finishes 4th!, Yakota Finishes 9th losing to CAJ and Southern Guam with neither even make the list...
Boys Side... 57 games for Seould American!? is there a cap on how many games schools can play? but seems somewhat accurate...
sorry if sounds like hate...I guess the Yakota is all that doesnt seem to fit...maybe they have that UNC/DUKE rep and just stay there, but you have to agree the tournament was a big disappointment for them 9th!? they were a top seed right? did i read that right? anyway correct me if I am wrong somewhere..If they were "Stopped by AA powers" why arent those teams in the list!?
thanks for keeping us posted throughout all the tourneys!