The Eddy's

Some of the selections were obvious - I'm alluding here to the Girls First Team picks: Joanna McFarland, Lindsey Keller, Tiffany Bias, Ashia Woods and Julia Marshall. Others were more difficult (which equals fun) - here I'm referencing the Boys Second Team, which includes lesser-known players, Michael Janzen of Hesston and Ryan Chippeaux of Goddard. (After watching Hesston's first-round game at Class 4A state, however, senior post player Alex Roth was difficult to leave out. The guy was a monster on the offensive boards.) Overall, the most enjoyable squads to put together were my first-ever All-Battier Teams, named in honor of the no-stats all-star, Duke graduate and current Houston Rocket Shane Battier. Sportswriter Michael Lewis wrote a February piece in the New York Times Magazine about Battier, now in his seventh season in the NBA. In the magazine article, Lewis, who wrote the book Moneyball, which details Oakland A's general manager Billy Beane's use of numerous statistics in combination to grade players, exposes the growth of a similar tactic in the NBA. Beane built one of baseball's top clubs by finding the under-appreciated player and the best deals, not by signing expensive free agents. According to Lewis, Daryl Morey, general manager of the Rockets, has identified a set of new, non-traditional statistics to evaluate players much like Beane did. Rather than counting a player's rebounds, Morey and his staff determine how likely it is for the team to get a rebound with a particular player on the court. Rather than look at how many points a defender gives up, the Rockets look at what a defender can lower his opponent's shooting percentage and force him into uncomfortable shots. The Rockets also value the plus-minus ratio, which grades how many points better the team is with a certain player on the floor. Battier was a plus 10 in February, putting him among the NBA's best players, in the company of Orlando's Dwight Howard and Boston's Kevin Garnett. This much is certainly true, as Lewis outlines: Drafted by Memphis in 2002, Battier and the Grizzlies went 23-59. In his third season, Mempis was 50-32, and they made the playoffs in his final three seasons. Traded to Houston in 2006, Battier went to a Rockets team coming off a 34-48 losing season. In Battier's first season, they finished 52-30 before going 55-27 in 2007-8, including a 22-game win streak, 11 of which wins came without stars Tracy McGrady and Yao Ming in the lineup. Morey was one of the few NBA executives who sought after Battier when he became available on the trade block in 2006. Few saw premium value in Battier's game. Battier, another Duke guy who no one thought would make it in the NBA due to his lack of freakish athletic ability and one-on-one scoring prowess, does not show up as a star in the box score every night, but he helps his team win. I don't have Morey's stats on basketball player efficiency for this year's All-Battier selections, but just from watching these kids, I can tell that they bring more to the team than what shows up in the box score or nightly round-up. They provide the elusive intangibles, the un-measureables so prevalent in coach-speak. They are the glue guys - or gals. So I'll lead with them before offering my all-area first and second teams. Boys, All-Battier 2008-2009 Joseph Randle, 6'1" Jr. F, Southeast Randle, one of the state's top running backs entering the fall 2009 season, always seemed to be around the hoop - battling for the ball and running the court. Andrew Hourani, 5'10" Sr. G, Collegiate Hourani, another tough football player, was relentless with defensive pressure in the backcourt and often went unnoticed on offense until hitting the game-winning hoop. Joe Brown, 6'3" Sr. G, Carroll Brown, a tight end bound for Colorado State, broke full-court pressure at the point with passes over the top while taking on other teams' power forwards on defense. Brett Soft, 6'4" Sr. F, Maize Maize, with a 3-4 record on Jan. 9, battled back into state contention when the athletic, strong and unafraid Soft returned from a broken fibula in January. Scott Henderson, 6'4" Sr. F, Trinity Ac. In addition to being a natural leader, at 6'4", Henderson played defense in the post but could dribble-penetrate on offense and shoot the ball from the corner. Girls, All-Battier 2008-2009 Ann Pauly, 5'7" Jr. G, Garden Plain Pauly was a prominent scorer for Garden Plain every night, but her ability to pass the ball anywhere on the court and the havoc she caused on defense were most impressive. Tierra Andrews, 5'10" Sr. F, Heights On a team of highly touted underclassmen, Andrews, one of the few Falcons who spent two years learning the system on the JV, made the extra pass and boxed out. Ashlynn Bezdek, 5'7" Jr. G, Andover In her signature low-tops and ankle socks, Bezdek, a sophomore on a team of young players, protected the dribble, swarmed on defense and scored an occasional three. Rayna Gutierrez, 5'7" Sr. G, North Playing for an up-and-down program at North, Gutierrez fought through some tough seasons by driving and dishing, running the court and contesting shots. Mariah Green, 5'6" Jr. G, Collegiate In combination with Kamri Phox, Green contributed to Collegiate's success by blanketing the opposition's point guard on defense, passing the ball and staying upbeat. Now, here are my all-area picks, gleaned from the eight-county Vype coverage area: Boys, First-Team All-Area Joe Mitchell, 5'11" Sr. G, Southeast Perry Ellis, 6'8" Fr. F, Heights Leon Flowers, 6'3" Sr. F, East Dorrian Roberts, 5'10" Sr. G, Heights Blake Bell, 6'6" Jr. F, Carroll Boys, Second-Team All-Area Blake Jablonski, 6'2" Jr. G, Collegiate Luke Meisch, 6'5" Sr. F, Andover Michael Janzen, 6'1" Sr. G, Hesston Ryan Chippeaux, 6'7" Sr. C, Goddard Cecil Shaw, 5'11" Sr. G, Southeast Reserves Marshall Miller, 6'5" Jr. F, Andover Central Alex Roth, 6'4" Sr. F, Hesston Girls, First-Team All-Area Joanna McFarland, 6'3" Sr. F, Derby Lindsey Keller, 6'3" Sr. F, Goddard Tiffany Bias, 5'5" Jr. G, Andover Central Ashia Woods, 5'11" So. F, Collegiate Julia Marshall, 5'9" Sr. G, Carroll Girls, Second-Team All-Area Abby Fawcett, 5'6" Sr. G, Carroll Jhasmin Bowen, 6'1" So. F, Heights Kylie Cooper, 6'2" Jr. C, Andover Kamri Phox, 5'8" Jr. G, Collegiate Whitney Bates, 5'5" Jr. G, Rose Hill Reserves Tanya Friesen, 5'9" Sr. F, Buhler Kaitlin Tennyson, 5'8" Jr. F, Andover Central