It's tough to decide between Northside and Fayetteville on top but here is my top five:
1. Fayetteville
2. Northside
3. Little Rock Christian Academy
4. Conway
5. Bentonville
Pre-season I would have had North Little Rock ahead of Bentonville. But NLR is off to a very poor start. Nettleton is undefeated and would be another potential top five team but I haven't seen them play this year.
Quote from: ozarkansas on December 18, 2018, 01:03:43 pm
It's tough to decide between Northside and Fayetteville on top but here is my top five:
1. Fayetteville
2. Northside
3. Little Rock Christian Academy
4. Conway
5. Bentonville
Pre-season I would have had North Little Rock ahead of Bentonville. But NLR is off to a very poor start. Nettleton is undefeated and would be another potential top five team but I haven't seen them play this year.
I haven't seen any girls games outside of the Northeast quarter of the state, but I'd have to assume Nettleton's girls are up there. Watched them a couple days ago at the NEA tourney, and they aren't human. Simply incredible athleticism with that group.
I believe Nettleton can play with any of these teams
After tournament results this past week including a very impressive showing by Conway in Sandra Meadows Classic in Texas and a poor showing there by Fayetteville, I would revise as follows:
1. Conway
2. Northside
3. Little Rock Christian Academy
4. Fayetteville
5. Bentonville
Northside is undefeated but they haven't played the same caliber schedule as Conway. Nettleton is no longer undefeated and has not beaten anyone of note, so I do not think they warrant inclusion in the top five.
Quote from: ozarkansas on December 30, 2018, 08:58:19 am
After tournament results this past week including a very impressive showing by Conway in Sandra Meadows Classic in Texas and a poor showing there by Fayetteville, I would revise as follows:
1. Conway
2. Northside
3. Little Rock Christian Academy
4. Fayetteville
5. Bentonville
Northside is undefeated but they haven't played the same caliber schedule as Conway. Nettleton is no longer undefeated and has not beaten anyone of note, so I do not think they warrant inclusion in the top five.
I think you should flip flop Fayetteville and LRC since Fayetteville has handed them their only loss, both very good teams though.
Quote from: Flobbito on December 30, 2018, 07:58:16 pm
I think you should flip flop Fayetteville and LRC since Fayetteville has handed them their only loss, both very good teams though.
Yes, that is a fair point. But LRCA beat Conway in OT. And Conway did much better in the SM Classic than Fayetteville. So I think you have to look at the whole of the schedule and not just head-to-head. Regardless, I agree you could justify flip-flopping FHS and Conway. You could also justify putting Northside on top. But Conway has much more impressive wins albeit with two losses compared to none for Northside.
I would have to have said Greenwood would be in the mix, but with Coach Reeves out they are questionable!
Nettleton is the awfully good! Best girls team I have seen! 18-1
You have to put Batesville on the list. They handed Nettleton their only loss. Sadly Batesville has a weak conference, but they should respond well to real competition at regionals.
Quote from: RunninJoe on February 01, 2019, 09:17:12 pm
You have to put Batesville on the list. They handed Nettleton their only loss. Sadly Batesville has a weak conference, but they should respond well to real competition at regionals.
I agree Batesville is legit
Vilonia girls are now 19-1 and 8-0 in the 5A West, earning 10 tie breaker points in every conference game except one (6 point victory at Greenwood). Only loss was by one point to Wonderview in the Morrilton Tournament on December 4th.
It's hard to compare teams in different classes because there isn't enough cross-over play and the strength of schedule can be quite different. A win here and a loss there can be a combination of luck, specific match-ups, player health, etc. The refereeing can play a big role also. The more aggressive defensive teams, or teams with a strong starting unit but weak bench, can be really hurt if they draw referees who call every ticky tack foul. I've certainly watched many games where I thought the referees had a major impact on the outcome not because of any favoritism but simply because of the approach by which they called fouls.
I'm mostly familiar with 6A girls teams and more in NW Arkansas than Central. Clearly in 6A West, Fayetteville and Bentonville are head and shoulders above the rest. In 6A Central, Northside and Conway are on top but NLR is picking up steam. For 5A, in my limited viewing, it seems like Nettleton, LRCA, and Vilonia are the teams that could potentially compete with the best 6A teams.
Perhaps it's not practical, but I think it would be more interesting if the state tournament combined some of the classes (e.g. 6A and 5A).
I think you could take the top 3/4 teams in 6a-4a and 3a-1a throw them each in their own tournament and it would be very entertaining.