Thursday Thoughts is back for another week with Power Rankings for all four divisions and a recap of where each division currently stands as of today. 

 We will be covering four games tonight and tomorrow 

Tonight on the boy's side, Dave Haley and Jennifer-Chick Ruth take a trip to Coe-Brown as the Bow Falcons come to town for a matchup with Jen's Coe-Brown Bears  

Jennifer Chick-Ruth and I have a good one on Friday night when Brianna Fillion and Newmarket travel to take on Emy Plage and Derryifeld in a great Division IV showdown. 

Dave Haley is back once again on Friday night when he takes a trip to Belmont where the Red Raiders host Winnisquam in Division III boys basketball action. 

Pete Tarrier and Collin O'Neil will bring you all the action for a big one in Division II boys basketball when Hollis-Brookline and Pelham go to battle on Friday night.

 

 Today's column is brought to you by Mosquito Joe! Mosquito is currently servicing from Bow to Pittsburg, The Lakes Region to Sunapee, and up to Hanover. Give a call to their office at 603-484=8557 or email them at cbrown@mosquitojoe.com for a quote today!

 

Division I 

Division I standings, Gold Level Coaches & Top 20 Scoring Leaders

 

Power Rankings 

1. Bishop Guertin- The Cardinals continue to roll and are the favorites until proven otherwise.  

2. Bedford- A much-anticipated rematch with BG got canceled due to snow. That game would have told us a lot about where both teams are at. What we do know is Isabella King is on an absolute tear averaging 27.5 ppg over her last two games.

3. Manchester Memorial- The Cardiac Crusaders are alive and well after a 48-45 win over Concord. You could say this win is a surprise, but after the second half they put together in their first meeting with Concord, I'm not too surprised to see this result.  

4. Exeter- The Blue Hawks got it done in the first of two matchups with Spaulding 55-39, bumping them one spot up this week. This group gets production from all 14 players, 14 PLAYERS, I can't emphasize that enough. 

5. Spaulding- Despite the loss to Exeter, Spaulding can flat out score the basketball. 84 points against Oyster River!? I don't care who you're playing, that is quite the feat. 

6. Concord- I think a lot of people forget this is a team consisting of mainly sophomores and juniors, and even some impact freshman. A 3-4 start I am sure isn't satisfying but I know Tim LaTorra and his group will clean things up. 

7. Pinkerton- The Astros are still sidelined but are most certainly a Top 10 group. 

8. Goffstown- Ava Winterburn continues to tear opposing defenses apart. A 52-36 victory against Manchester Central to get over the .500 mark again was a great statement win. 

9. Alvirne-  The Broncos are rolling. Three straight wins for Frank Girginis' team is a sign of things to come.

10. Windham- While two straight losses may be a bad thing to most teams but two competitive games with BG are certainly positives for the Jaguars.  

 

Biggest games of the weekend: Exeter at Spaulding, Goffstown at Bedford, Nashua South at Merrimack

Where are we today: Did someone do something to upset Isabella King? She has been terrorizing for opposing defenses all year for Bedford... Bishop Guertin's 72-22 victory over Concord showed us there is a very sizeable gap between the elite (BG and Bedford) and the rest of the division... THE CARDIAC CRUSADERS LIVE ON! Missed free throws late made their game with Concord a bit more nerve-wracking than it should have been but still a great win for Memorial... Round One of Exeter-Spaulding goes to the Blue Hawks. Friday's matchup will tell us a lot more, but these are two teams capable of making the Final Four...

 

Division II 

Division II standings, Gold Level Coaches & Top 20 Scoring Leaders

 

Power Rankings 

1. Hanover- This is the most complete team in the division and maybe even the state. The defense of this team is what surprised me the most when seeing them against Fall Mountain last week. All I can say is it will be tough to beat Hanover.

2. Pelham- The Pythons squeaked out a 52-45 win over Sanborn in what was their closest game of the season by far. 

3. Bishop Brady- 68.5 ppg for the Giants this year. When this offense is clicking they are tough to stop. 

4. Hollis-Brookline- A big matchup with Pelham Friday night will give us a better look at the Cavaliers. 

5. Bow- This Falcons team is fun to watch and Phil Davis is getting production out of his entire rotation. 

6. Laconia- The biggest surprise of the season has been Laconia. Although their schedule has been heavily Division III, this is still a really good basketball team.

7. Kennett- After two early losses to Laconia, the Eagles are 2-0 and trending in the right direction. 

8. Sanborn- A 2-17 start from three in the first half against Pelham may haunt Sanborn, but it also showed us that this senior-laden group can play with the best of them. 

9. Lebanon- The Raiders should be back on the floor soon. I'm really excited about what Sally Rainey and Catherine Cole can do to lead this group.

10. Plymouth- A good 57-52 win over Gilford has Plymouth back in the Top Ten. Jordan Levesque has been tremendous for the Bobcats this year. 

 

Biggest games of the weekend:  Pelham at Hollis-Brookline, 

Where we are today: Top to bottom Hanover is one of the best "teams" I have ever witnessed live. They play tenacious defense and their offense consists of all five players touching the basketball in a possession... I'm intrigued to see how Bow handles a big test this season. They have games with Coe-Brown and Merrimack Valley on the schedule and end the year with Bishop Brady twice... Sanborn is a sleeper team to make a deep run. The biggest factor is going to be having good shooting nights... Isabella Daly has been outstanding for Laconia. That is a team we need to get an in-person look at... 

 

 

Division III 

Division III standings, Gold Level Coaches & Top 20 Scoring Leaders 

 

Power Rankings 

1. Conant- No debate on this one. Two convincing wins over a hard-working Monadnock team reassured us that the Orioles are the clear favorites.

2. Fall Mountain- Two losses to Hanover were good tests for Fall Mountain. Those games will only help in the long run, and they will certainly help prepare them for a team like Conant. 

3. Prospect Mountain- The Timberwolves picked up a huge 54-51 win over Division II Laconia and fell just short in their second matchup 61-57. Prospect Mountain is going to be a threat this year. 

4. Campbell- The Cougars haven't taken the floor since last week but that doesn't change the fact that this group is a top-four team in the division.

5. Newfound- The same goes for Newfound. They still sit at 1-1 but are certainly a team to watch for once they get back to playing.

6. Kearsarge- The Cougars hung with Hanover in the first half, but that momentum ran out quickly. With Ellie Camp returning to the lineup this week and her sister Caroline Camp scoring the way she is, Kearsarge will be very competitive with a tough second-half schedule. 

7. Monadnock- Despite being 0-3, I'm still high on Monadnock. Matchups with Hinsdale and Conant are tough to start the year with, also don't forget this team had barely any practice entering into last week since they were sidelined for 14 days. The Huskies are going to be just fine. 

8. Winnisquam- The Bears will get tested on Friday night against Belmont, and that game will certainly give us a clearer picture of who this team is. 

9. St. Thomas Aquinas- Two games with Oyster River will be great stepping stones for a team looking to make noise amongst the best of Division III.

10. Stevens- This was a team I was very excited to see play in Division III this season and as we know that is yet to happen. Once everything is right and everyone is safe and healthy we will get to see what the Cardinals are made of. 

 

Biggest games of the weekend: Belmont at Winnisquam, Berlin at White Mountains, 

Where we are today: As we have stated a lot, Division III has been hit the hardest with cancelations. We only have a month left of the season and I still feel like we don't know a lot about most teams... The emergence of Brynn Rautiola for Conant has been a game-changer for the Orioles... Berlin quietly played Colebrook very tough the other night in Colebrook. Makenna Balderamma has been on a tear to start the season. Never count out Don Picard and the Mountaineers... 

 

 

Division IV 

Division IV standings, Gold Level Coaches & Top 20 Scoring Leaders 

 

Power Rankings 

1. Colebrook- It is hard to put either Colebrook or Hinsdale at 1 and 2. I am taking the same approach as Dave does for the boy's side. These are the two best teams, and there really is no difference in where they should be ranked, both deserve the top spot. 

1a. Hinsdale- The Pacers got back in the win column with two wins over Mascenic. Hinsdale has two more chances at Conant and another two games with Monadnock as well. 

3. Woodsville- Woodsville will have some big tests coming up with White Mountains, Colebrook, and Littleton, who is hopefully rescheduled, all on the schedule. 

4. Newmarket- The Mules take game one with Derryfield 33-23, and we will be there for the rematch on Friday night.

5. Derryfield- Shawna Lesmeries sidelined with an injury is a huge blow for Derryfield. This is a team that likes to score the basketball and Lesmeries created a lot of those opportunities for this group. 

6. Littleton- The Crusaders are back on the floor on Friday and will look to pick up right where they left off. 

7. Groveton- Emmalee Deblois has been tremendous for Tim Haskins squad. Pairing her with Nodia Davenport who is starting to find a rhythm is a great boost for the Eagles. 

8. Farmington- The story with this group will be the underclassmen developing a year ahead of schedule. You know what Chloe Weeks and Jaclyn Peaselee will bring every night, it will be about the role players if the Tigers want to make a run.

9. PCA- The Eagles return to action against Somersworth on Friday and look to keep their hot offensive play going. 

10. Lisbon- A matchup with Littleton Friday night will be a good measuring stick game for the Panthers. 

 

Biggest games of the weekend: Newmarket at Derryfield, Lisbon at Littleton, Colebrook at Groveton

Where we are today: Newmarket started the two-game series off with Derryfield on the right foot. Without Lesmeries, Newmarket was able to slow Derryfield down and play at a slower pace, exactly the pace the Mules want to play at every night. We will see if the same story holds on Friday night when Jen and I are in the house... It is Colebrook and Hinsdale's division to lose at this point. The biggest game of the season will be when Colebrook travels to Woodsville. What can the Engineers do in that one? Those two teams played each other tough in their lone regular-season matchup last season and the same was true in last year's championship game. If Woodsville can hang tough and maybe even get a win on their home court, that narrative may include a third team...