Pandemic Concerns and St. Louis Public High School League Prognostications 11/09/2020

 I wish I could be more positive about the future of high school basketball this winter, but I am getting discouraged.  There was a big celebration this weekend after four years of divisive leadership and it felt  like 1989, when the Cold War was over and the Berlin Wall came down.  This is a time of continued tumult and, while we can be hopeful, we need to maintain our guard.  While I have hope for a better future, the pandemic numbers make me fearful.  Fearful that this basketball season may be delayed or might not happen at all.

First off, we are getting three times the cases and covid deaths than we had in the Spring when everyone hunkered down, masked up and self-isolated.  We could have half a million dead by the time the new president is inaugurated.  This administration has no unified plan and, in fact, is letting the pandemic run its course.  Older people will become the victims.  The senior high rise next to our church now has many confirmed cases and I am afraid we will lose a lot of our parishioners from this outbreak.

It is not just the elderly we have to worry about.  A 13 year old boy died last week in Jefferson County.  Schools are reporting cases and moving back to virtual learning.  Teachers and school children are getting sick or being quarantined.  It is dangerous out there and there are still parents ignoring social distancing, refusing to wear masks and their kids follow their parents example.  Wake up!

If there is going to be a high school basketball season this winter, everyone has to hunker down and become Spartans.  Everyone will need to wear masks, avoid congregating, follow protocols for exposure and self-quarantine when they suspect exposure.  If we don't get serious about this pandemic, high school basketball teams will get exposed, have to quarantine and have their season cancelled.  This pandemic is not a political issue.  This pandemic is not about your rights.  Wake up people.  Be responsible.  We need to be spartans for the next six months or more.

Enough lecturing.  

I took a look at the St. Louis Public High School league.  It's not a First Look, as Godfrey, er I mean Earl Austin, Jr, has already published his preview of the PHL over at Prep Hoops.  You should take a look.  I tried to forget what I read so it didn't impact my team rankings.  I will go back and look after I publish this blog.

Vashon leads the pack in the PHL and in the state.  They play a high powered national schedule but only had three games in the league last year.  Miller Career Academy has a strong program and will be even stronger this year.  They may not challenge the Wolves but they will give many teams fits around the area.  The rest of the PHL is up for grabs.  For some teams, I could not get good data on stats or graduating class, so I am pulling up Hudl, MaxPreps and the Prep Hoops rankings to evaluate the teams.

Here's my ranking of the PHL large and small school teams combined:

1. Vashon

2. Miller Career Academy

3. Soldan, Gateway STEM, McKinley

6. Sumner,  Roosevelt

8. Gateway Science Academy, Metro, Medicine and Bioscience, Northwest Academy

13. Cleveland, Carnahan 


Check out other conferences at:

Yellow Suburban - https://gramps2021missourihoops.blogspot.com/2020/10/first-look-st-louis-red-conference-boys.html

Red Suburban – https://gramps2021missourihoops.blogspot.com/2020/10/first-look-st-louis-boys-basketball-red.html

Blue Suburban – https://gramps2021missourihoops.blogspot.com/2020/10/first-look-st-louis-blue-suburban.html

Green Suburban – https://gramps2021missourihoops.blogspot.com/2020/10/first-look-st-louis-boys-basketball.html

GAC North, Central and South – https://gramps2021missourihoops.blogspot.com/2020/11/mark-twain-on-turning-70-outdated.html

Metro Catholic Conference – https://gramps2021missourihoops.blogspot.com/2020/10/night-i-posted-rankings-of-all.html

Archdiocesan Athletic Association - https://gramps2021missourihoops.blogspot.com/2020/10/godfrey-cat-rickmas-eve-and-aaa.html

Here's my returnee analysis:








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