There's not a huge representation of local basketball players in this year's NCAA tournament, but there are more than a couple. First off, the seventh seeded Washington Huskies have the Tacoma pair of Isaiah Thomas and Abdul Gaddy (although Gaddy is out with injury), the Huskies also will have Franklin's Venoy Overton back. And last but not least, Archbishop Murphy's pride and glory, Brandon Sherrer will hopefully find the floor during the NCAA tournament, (Sherrer minutes = blowout victories) for those that don't follow the Huskies regularly.
Across the state at the eleven seed Gonzaga University, Bainbridge's Steven Gray is in his final season. Gray is in his fourth NCAA tournament, he made it to the Sweet 16 in his sophomore year and is 3-3 in his career in NCAA tournament games. Also starring for Gonzaga is David Stockton. Stockton will be playing in his first NCAA tournament and is quite a joy to watch. He definitely isn't one of the most talented players on the court, but he always keeps Gonzaga in games with his solid decision-making and steadiness at the point guard position. He's been a pleasant surprise to Mark Few and his staff.
After winning a state championship with Kentwood last year, Josh Smith finds himself in the postseason again this year with the seventh seeded UCLA Bruins. Smith has lived up to the hype of a five star recruit. He's been an absolute monster inside for the Bruins; he's averaging 10.6ppg and 6.5rpg. Also on UCLA is former Bellevue stand-out, Alex Schrempf. Yes, he is the son of Detlef. Unfortunately the redshirt freshman has only seen the court in three games this season (he has yet to record a statistic).
Speaking of former Bellevue players, Colton Christian (remember him?) is a freshman at the eighth seeded University of Michigan. After spending a year at prep school, Christian has starred in 26 games for the Wolverines, averaging five minutes a game.
I'm still perplexed on how a 30-3 team gets rewarded with a 12 seed. I guess Utah St.'s strength of schedule was that bad? Anyways, Federal Way's Pooh Williams is one of the main pieces to this Aggie squad. Williams is considered to be one of the best defenders coming out of the WAC conference. The senior guard is averaging 8.4 points per game.
Last but not least, and perhaps the most notable player not named Isaiah Thomas in this group of players is Peyton Siva from Louisville. The former Franklin guard is in his second NCAA tournament with the fourth seeded Cardinals. Siva has rightfully had the spotlight on his game since he's been at Louisville. Don't be surprised if he gets himself into SportsCenter's top ten plays during the tournament.
Which local player are you most excited to watch in the tournament?
Original Story:
http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/Seatow...
