Who deserves to make All-Centercourt?

i must have seen over 75 games this year
and enjoyed them all
most of these kids that will make these lists
i have seen played for the last 7-8 years at jv and varsity games,gloria j park league , north buffalo league,summer pal league,boys club and even traveled with them to many aau tournaments over the years i know they are all great basketball players but more importantly they are good kids
very proud of all of these teamates over the years
percy bryant
zak ciezki
howard washington
cam lewis
chris miner
donte williams
billy brooks
laterence reed
josh huffman
tc brown
matt cieslik
jordan summers
tyree tyson
latrell tyson
jaun toliver
asad myles
damone brown
zach panebianco
johnathon lewis
stafford trueheart
pasquale scaife
kenny white
kyle davis
thanks
for the great season

Stats?

It’s not just about stats.
Player A 400 pts 40 assts. 140 RB 30 steals
Player B 397 pts 67 assts. 133 RB 24 Steals
Player C 361 pts 84 assts. 200 RB 85 stals
It is about who you play and who you play with and the teams over all record. Can you pick the past POY, the can a date for this year POY and the one who might make the top 25 list?

Brian Smith

Being a coach for Lancaster we had the challenge of trying to stop 3 of the best players in WNY, Taplin,Funk, Panebianco. I can tell you that out of those 3 Panebianco was by far the hardest to contain. Taplin is a great player and can get to the rim whenever he wants. His outside shooting is hit or miss which aloud us to play off him a little bit. Funk is an excellent shooter but we found that you were able to contain him and limit his touches just by using a box and 1. Panebianco however, can shoot from anywhere in the gym so you are forced to have a man pick him up as soon as he crosses halfcourt. He also can blow by defenders going to his right and left. Once in the paint he has a nice high tear drop shot which allows him to shoot over taller defenders. It didnt matter what we tried defensively against him it didnt work. Just my opinion on those 3 players.

bballfan

Why do you put jake haights stats as player C. What are you implying and what does it matter?

andy

Chad can you facebook me I want some info abou.t glenns falls . Andy Sweeney

Russel

And also players like Lenard Morris & Stewart from Mck took big roles this year in leading there team to regional in nobody new these kids name in December they definitely deserve spots they all averaged atleast 15or more and beat teams like east once will north cheektowaga & Lenard holds taping to 4pts in the 2nd half off a game

guest

Why would a coach from ECIC 1 put down players in his own league? What comes around goes around. All three are good players. Sounds like sour grapes!! Since Lanacster lost all their games to these three teams. I understand Lancaster has some pretty good players coming up and had a solid JV team. Maybe the North and Clarence coaches will put their two cents in in a couple years. Actually I doubt it, Those two handle things with class. Disappointing comments………

Jimster21

These are the guys that should make
1st team:
Bathurst (olean) (poy)
Taplin (w.north)
Williams (timon)
J.lewis (east)
Pannebianco (jamesTown)
These guys are top 5 in wny !
I’ll put up the 2nd, 3rd , 4th & 5th
Teams later stay tuned !

Jimster21

Bathurst can hurt you so many ways he’s strong
Going to the basket he’s improved his jump shot
Can rise above defenders and has great hands !

Jimster21

Taplin is also a dangerous player he has some of
The best court vision I’ve ever seen he gets to
The basket and finishes and most important he’s
A team player and he gets his team involved

Jimster21

Williams is one of the best scorers I’ve seen in
Hs bball he’s long slinky and has some impressive
Bounce he gets to the basket whenever he wants
And has a pretty touch on his jumpshot

Jimster21

J.lewis is hands down to me the best all around
Guard in wny he is relentless and hungry on
Both ends of the floor the whole entire game
Has impressive handles and lightning speed
He can guard your best player and contain them
Just ask Bathurst and has the most heart for a
5’7 guy

Jimster21

Pannebianco has a very impressive game and
Can get hot in the matter of seconds and when
He does it’s trouble for the opposing team just
Ask Greece Athena he’s on target from anywhere
On the court and knows the right plays to make

CoachWP

I agree with @jimster21….. nice breakdown
On the players that would be my 1st team
As well

Wnybball

Sterling Taplin is a great player, dont get me wrong, but he is VERY overrated. He dosent deserve to be on first tesm b/c he fosent win big games or even games that matter. I feel like he is so boosted just b/c he has D1 offers. Anyways, Bathurst or Panebianco should get POY and LeeYaw is underrated, kid has a motor

CoachWP

I hear what your saying about taplin that’s
The one of the things he needs to work on
Is closing out games and lee yaw does have
A motor but to me is a second team player

Jochen Hecht

Taplin is overrated? By who exactly? All I’ve heard for five years is people trying to cut him down and I’ll never understand why. Is that why he has DI offers and has started for five years at the varsity level in ECIC I? I’m sure you are aware that he is the school’s all-time leader in points, assists, & steals right? Every team Will North faced game planned specifically around him. Against Clarence at Buff State, he was suffocated the moment he stepped over half court, yet still managed a team high 18 points. If he’s overrated, it’s because idiots assume that when you start as an eighth grader, that translates to major DI and anything less is a failure. Get a life. He has been a pleasure to watch and is a great kid. Switch Taplin in for Bathurst and I suspect Olean is still heading to states. Does that mean Taplin is the POY? No, but it also doesn’t make him overrated. At least he’s rated. Are you? Doubt it.

fullcourt1

I think TAPLIN is the best player in WNY right now and the most fun to watch; having said that; it is disappointing that WN never made it past the Section 6 Finals or beyond.

Brian Smith

I was not putting any players down, my opening statement was that they were 3 of the best players in WNY. I have 2 of them on my 1st team and the other on my 2nd team. I was stating my opinion on why I would give the MPV to panebianco over the other 2. I felt like for us he was the hardest to game plan for and stop (we didn’t stop any of them) but he was the hardest to contain. I am not sure how you got that I was putting them down by that.

Jayhawks

No knock on Taplin but he doesn’t have any big time offers just has offers from small schools and I think he is kinda overrated how many times did he lead his team to Glenn falls ? Ill wait for that answer

over rated

Let’s see: McDonald’s all American nomination: gatorade player of the year nomination:finalist for Mr basketball ny:ranked 43 by ESPN for his position: selected to play in the Jordan classic:3 time selection to all wny:the list goes deeper of yeah Creighton, BYU,QUINNIPIAC,A AGAIN the list goes deep and someone says over rated tell me some one else here in Buffalo with that back ground I’ll wait

KW Hoops

Noah Whalen of Kenmore West has to be a part of this discussion. He put together a great senior season, averaging 20 points a game and had a few thrilling last second shots against NT and Joe’s that resulted in KW victories. Best player on KW all season, no question, no one else even close. NFL All-Star. KW was not a very deep team this year but they still managed to capture a share of the title. I believe there are many deserving players who go unnoticed and overlooked due to the league they play in or team they play for. He definitely deserves to be in this discussion.

Jayhawks

if Taplin was as good as people over hyped him he would of lead his team to Glenn Falls and is he playing in a McDonald all American game, is he Mr Basketball for NY, Is he ranked in the ESPN 100 is he a state champion in high school and he has been on varsity for how many years 4? and when he gets a offer from a ACC Big12 Big Ten PAC 12 yeah no big offers just small school offers so get your information together and he is overrated and WNY isn’t a popular area for basketball recruits so of course he is going to make the first team

ECICfan

Agreed on the Section VI website not being updated fully which makes it difficult to do an objective comparison when you can’t follow all teams. It is a shame lazy coaches penalize their players by not doing the most rudimentary updating of stats.

From the North

The section 6 web site is great I don’t understand why they don’t make it mandatory. Can anyone answer that I’d love to hear why not. The MMA should also have to submit its stat’s also.

overated

@Jayhawk first things first its Glen falls and you need to pick up a paper or find another source for information. Nominated for the McDonalds game and yes he is ranked in the top 100 for his position by ESPN and if you have Mid Major or ACC Big12 and so on its the scholarship that is important. I think you are just one of those haters that have no clue who that kid is and obviously you don’t know his stat line.

overated

@Jayhawk by the way are you familiar with EYBL??? I’ll wait….

Jayhawks

Yeah his position a lot of people get that but he is not ranked in the top 100 overall and I’m not a hater I’m just tired of these kids from these bigger schools getting all the attention over guys from smaller schools that are just as good. There are players at smaller schools that had a better senior season then him. And to me he is overrated stats mean nothing it’s all about the wins and I just haven’t seen him lead his team far, and if he was as good as you say he would lead his team far enough said

Jayhawks

@overrated yeah AAU Summer league watched a couple Kansas commits play in it Cliff Alexander and Kelly Oubre

overated

@jayhawks you have to read more carefully no one said he was in the top rank 100 over all not me anyway. Stats do mean something you are starting to show your true colors that you have no basketball knowledge at all. If stats did not mean anything then why waste the time. He is that good pay closer attention to the fact that without him do they win that many game, let me help no they don’t. You are a frustrated non athlete.

buffs best

I think Taplin is a good player low to possibly mid level D1 .Which is a great accomplishment.He was overhyped by this area for years , which makes some casual fans think he can play at a ACC, PAC 10 Big East Level.Our area rarely produces those players .So when we have a good player they become overhyped.
But for ppl to think its is a disspointment to play any level D1 they are mistaken , it takes alot of talent and hard work. With that being said i think he is most talented kid in WNY but not POY , I would lean to Zach or Bathurst.

centercourt

Jayhawks –
If you want some credibility, earn some. Don’t come on here saying there are kids from small schools who had better seasons. It’s way too ambiguous. Be specific – which players are you talking about?
You can’t just start taking shots at Taplin and say kids are better. “Kids” have names – spell it out for us. Put yourself out there. Enlighten us.
I got your tweet telling me not to forget about the small schools when doing my teams. Thank you. Did you read last year’s All-Centercourt team? Were there enough kids from small schools on there for your liking? In your opinion, how many kids from the top 60 should be from small schools? Should there be a set number, or do we just honor the 60 best seasons?
While I’m asking you questions, are you a well-rounded hoop viewer at the high school level? Did you get to watch Taplin play this year? Did you see a variety of teams, or just follow Lackawanna?
I think you have made yourself out to be a very knowledgeable hoop follower, so please back it up with your teams. Show everyone how much you know and give us all your five teams, along with 35 Honorable Mentions. Just don’t forget about the large schools.

Jayhawks

@overrated stats will always be stats but wins are more valuable. People remember wins longer then they remember stats. And if he was as good as a player that you say he is he would of carried his team in playoffs, that’s when the good players show up and he failed to show up. And what makes him such a good player? He failed to win in the clutch. And I’m a frustrated athlete, I’m just giving my opinion that I think he is overrated you must feel some type of way and I have no basketball knowledge? Feel free to follow me on twitter @JayhawkRecruits and I’ll give you a whole book on basketball. Just get over the fact that he is overhyped and failed to show up in the clutch.

hoopster

Taplin is a great bball player. Period ! End of discussion. He may not be POY and if not it won’t be that he doesn’t have talent or didn’t have a great year. No doubt you put him on any other team that won a sectional title and that team would be as good if not a whole lot better.
Too many people on here talking him down. Celebrate his season and fantastic 5 year varsity career. It was special and one we won’t likely see soon enough again.
And congrats to all title winners!!
And yo Zach great job in the sectional final. You were fantastic, great shooting, driving, passing and D. Just loved watching you play.

centercourt

buffs best –
When you say Taplin “was overhyped by this area for years”, who are you referring to?
The reason I ask is I hear that a lot. It can’t be from me. Everything I’ve ever written is archived on this site. Use the site’s search engine and type in the word Taplin. Or you could click on ‘Williamsville North’ in the cloud of schools on the right hand column. either should show you just about everything that’s ever included his name. I’ve certainly given him his deserved, positive press, but I’ve never hyped him and definitely never over-hyped him.
The Buffalo News wrote its first feature on the five-year starter and ran it on the Monday of Buff State week. People have called him over-rated & over-hyped since long before that.
I think if people really chose their words carefully, the worst thing you could really come up with to say about Taplin is that you thought when he was a varsity starter in eighth grade, you thought it would translate to more team success in recent seasons and that he’d have a full ride to Kentucky by now.
Sterling Taplin is not over-hyped. He’s over-scrutinized & over-criticized. As someone who loves to follow the local scene, I can honestly say I will really miss watching him play next year. He is more talented and played the game at a higher level than over 99% of the high school players in this area. For that, I am grateful to have had the opportunity to watch him play, not eager to hit him with a negative label for only projecting as a mid major. Will Regan started at Virginia and has since transferred to UB, a mid major, where he is thriving. Regan was a three-time first team selection by the Buffalo News from 2008-2010. Was he over-hyped also? No, he was just a heck of a player who is still playing the game he loves at a high level.

From the North

I’m only guessing that the list of people qualified to even make a list wouldn’t fill the first team roster. That is why I believe section six needs to mandate the coaches submitting their stats. However stats don’t give you a clear picture its just a snap shot. I also don’t believe you can blame one player on a teams success or failure. I’ve never seen Taplin play but would venture to guess he is pretty good being how he is talked about.

Jayhawks

@centercourt When I said don’t forget some of the smaller school guys I was referring to Johnathon Lewis from East, Dylan Dussault from Alden, Clay Lewis from Holland, Jeremiah Jones, Larry Fields, and Darius Cleveland from Lackawanna, Bradley Palmerton from Eden, Percy Bryant from East, and Jacob Haight from Barker.

Jayhawks

I think Johnathon Lewis made a strong case for POY this season with the year he had. He had a great game against Olean scoring 24 points and keeping east in the game at the end, also a strong showing against Aquinas With 32, 33 on middle early, 27 against Timon, 18 against McKinley, 17 against Hutch Tech. With the senior year he had he deserve to be on the First Team, I think he earned a spot on the first team.
First Team
Jonathan Lewis
Zack Panebianco
Will Bathurst
Donte Williams
Tyree Tyson
Second Team
Sterling Taplin
Sam Eckstrom
Howard Washington
Percy Brant
Ryan Funk
Third Team
Quinn Lee Yaq
Lester Diaz
Jake Haight
Tc brown
Stafford Trueheart
Fourth team
Cam Lewis
Nick Schmidt
Chris Miner
Kevin Briggs
Tyler English
Fifth Team
Larry Fields
Colin Dougherty
Dylan Dussault
Clay Lewis
Bill Brooks

PJB

Panebianco (POY)- Was stellar all season , especially in Far West Regional
1st Team:
Bathurst- Close second in POY
Williams- Carried team entire year
J. Lewis- Picked up team when Tyson was not 100% or out
Trueheart- Best player on CHS this year. Dominated paint and rebounded to get break going, scored with very few touches in the offense
2nd Team:
Funk
Taplin
Eckstrom
Lee-Yaw
B. Brown
3rd Team:
Morris
English
Ry. Richards
Dougherty
C. Lewis
4th Team
Washington
T. Brown
Ciezki
Jost
Cheatom
5th Team
Briggs
Brooks
Hollins
Lenard
Haight
HM: Miner, Diaz, Morrison, Welch, C. Williams, Bowen, Tyson, Cieslek, Bryant, J. Jones, Castranova, Whalen, Lawrence
My one disclaimer is that I don’t see very much Southern Tier or N-O games, so I don’t see very many of the small school kids.

@4TheRecord

1st Team
Will Bathurst, Sr. Olean
Sterling Taplin, Sr. Williamsville North
Bri’an Brown, Sr. Middle College
Donte Williams, Sr. Timon-St. Jude
Zach Panebianco, Jr. Jamestown
2nd Team
Jonathan Lewis, Sr. East High
Kevin Briggs, Sr. Middle College
Quinn Lee Yaw, Sr. Jamestown
Sam Eckstrom, Sr. Olean
Ryan Funk, Sr. Clarence
3rd Team
Nick Schmidt, Sr. Olean
Billy Brooks, Jr. Silver Creek
Howard Washington, So. Canisius
Chris Miner, Jr. Nichols
Cam Lewis, Jr. Nichols
4th Team
Dylan Meyer, Sr. Fredonia
Bryan Jost, Sr. Clarence
Phil Bowen, Sr. Iroquois
Jake Haight, Sr. Barker
Stafford Trueheart, So. Canisius
5th Team
Tanner Schmit, Jr. Nichols
Lester Diaz, Sr. Lafayette
Tyler English, Sr. St. Mary’s
Zak Ciezki, Jr. Cheektowaga
D’Andre Steward, Sr. McKinley

From the North

Well it’s time to wake up this blog with my pick for POY and why. He lead his team to the NO League championship, the last time that was done was 1945 Barker is the smallest school in that league. He holds the school all time scoring record at 1338 points. His stats are on par with past POY picks. I know stats don’t count I’ve been told that many times on this blog. Finally his team was the only undefeated team in section six. Had a team from Buffalo done that it would of been front page news! I’m so proud of my son as I’m sure most of you are Good Luck Jake down the road Love Dad!

Trenton White

This list is not correct at all there are not many Public School kids…It’s not fair and not justified. My boy plays in the suburbs and I cover a lot of city kids. They get screwed every year it’s wrong.

Joel paki

1st team
Wil Bathurst
Johnathon Lewis
Donte Williams
Zach panebianco
Sterling taplin
2nd team
Quin lee yaw
Sam eckstrom
Stafford trueheart
Bri’an brown
Ryan funk
3rd team
Cam Lewis
Percy Bryant
Nick Schmidt
Howard Washington
Billy brooks
4th team
Chris miner
Kevin Briggs
Jake haight
Tyler English
Justin hollins
5th team
Zak ciezki
Lester Diaz
Dylan Meyer
Tc brown
Dylan dussault
These are my teams for all-centercourt from
What I’ve seen this whole year …..

buffs best

Centercourt, Not referring to you at all in saying he is a bit overhyped. I spend alot of time around bball fans and hear alot and have for years about Taplin. I knew the kid was very good and was a mid major to low D1 kid.
Most people you talked to in area would think he is a major D1 talent, because of the lack of major D1 talent in the WNY area. Therfore they dont understand what or who is a major D1 recruit.
and to answer your question yes Reagen was overhyped for same reason, i told everyone under the sun Virgina was over his head and he would be back at a local college..these kids are very talented as I stated about taplin, but people around the WNY area don’t understand that it is a completely different level to be a “high major” guy. Therfore for those reasons I do think the kids were over hyped.

Jayhawks

A lot of the players in WNY look good simple because the talent and competition is dried up. If you ever been to a game in New York City our New Jersey you can see how good there players are compared to WNY players. There just isnt any great players in WNY. Howard Washington is good but do you think he would be as good if he played in a state that produce a lot of talent. I’m a fan of his but we shouldn’t over hype him cause he got scholarships to a couple small schools

overated

@Buffs Best, so if Reagen and Taplin would have never had one write up about them not one and they had the same numbers stats wise, then what would people say?? So overhype is a term used by whom?? So as sports writers should we not say a word of an athlete that plays well, because fear of being “overhyped”. Its almost like putting these kids in a catch 22, for being good these are the things that go along with being good (overhyped). Major D1 or Mid Major D1 if you have an offer and will go and be able to compete in the class room and on the court and your PARENTS don’t pay the bill, then what is overhyped!!!!

Jayhawks

@overrated overhyped when basketball fans in the area think there great and they Are the greatest young talent out there in the nation. Not saying you said that but from what I heard people saying that’s why I said he was over hyped because of that and people think he could do that on good competition like for example he had a good game against Timon but if he was to face someone more challenging like Christ The King from NYC our the Patrick school from New Jersey he wouldn’t put up half the numbers he do in WNY he would just be a average player in New Jersey and New York City

buffs best

Overhyped , in my mind is projecting guys at a higher level than they can compete. As i mentioned both guys are very talented .i have heard the kid is being recruited by Kentucky by USC by other countless big name schools everywhere I go. And I dont think sportswriters overhyped the kids as I mentioned earlier.Its the fans in the area and even the coaches to an extent that buy into this madness
Its when poeple and alot in in this area believe that these kids are going to huge powerhouses, and are able to compete at top level of D! ball and I hear that everywhere I go. I have always played the voice of reason to naive fans and parents alike.
So again i will state these kids are very good players but for these guys to get the hype that surronded a Jonny Flynn type player is a joke.Therfore I will state again these guys are all good players , it takes a ton of talent and hard work to get to any level of Division 2 or 3 bball let alone D1.But why hype a Taplin so much comapered to a say Panebianco. This kids is terrific but I dont here people saying he is going to Kentucky USc etc. etc..Dontay williams is a unbelievable talent I dont hear him mentioned in th same breath. Even Bathurst who is a D1 guy gets half the hype of Taplin.

The comments on this board are getting baffling. Kentucky and Christ the King are now the only bench marks for local HS players. Panibianco is great because he exceeded expectations, but Taplin is overhyped because he didn’t meet the expectations of apparently the fans and coaches.

Steve