Gramps 2024 Boys Girls MO HS BB ratings

 KCI Conference ( @KCI_Athletics) replied to the new MBCA coaches poll where Lathrop, who is 22-0, has been #4 in the Class Three girls basketball poll for the past month or so. I have had Lathrop at #10 in Gramps ratings but not necessarily a top 5 team.  But how good is Lathrop?  There are few undefeated teams in Missouri and Lathrop is one of those few remaining undefeated teams. Lathrop's Girls Coach Greg Keith chimed into the conversation to answer KCI Conference with " No disrespect to your intent, but at the end of the day, esp this late in the season, it doesn’t matter. I appreciate the MBCA for putting out these polls. It’s fun for the kids, and it’s fun to debate who should be where and why. Our girls know what matters starts next week! " And Coach Keith is right.  The rubber hits the road next week for all these teams. I decided to take some time out to look at Lathrop and my #1 and #2 teams in class three, Fair Grove (17-7) and El Dorado (21-3). ...

 I know a lot of people think Ladue is the best team in the St. Louis Area.   I know my friend, John Hough, over at Gateway Sports Venue, is a strong believer in the Rams, as he is a graduate and faithful follower of their program.  I have told John several times, that we must "agree to disagree". Ladue's schedule was not all that tough.  I felt it was more like a small school schedule, playing great small schools like John Burroughs and MICDS but avoiding the big dogs like Vianney, De Smet, Chaminade, Vashon, Cardinal Ritter, and the Metro teams on the east side like Collinsville, East St. Louis, and Belleville East.  They have recently played Francis Howell and Lindbergh. I think any team that is 20-1 is awfully darn good, no matter what their schedule, unless they are playing home school teams and Christian Academies that don't qualify for MSHSAA accreditation.    Ladue is very, very good and just knocked off their second top-ten large school o...

 Happy Groundhog's Day.   I woke up this morning, thinking about Bill Murray's weatherman character in "Groundhog Day" who hates his assignment to the celebrations in Punxutawney, Pennsylvania, and wakes repeatedly to find out it is still February 2nd and he is still in Punxutawney.  He tests this endless cycle, from punching people to killing himself by a variety of means, until he finally figures out a way to end this purgatory by being nice. Do you ever have days like Murray's Groundhog Day experience?  Do you think this day is just a repeat of the "same-old" that happened yesterday or the day before? When I get up, I usually take a quick look at Twitter activity and I usually find that I have been part of a post by a team that had a big win the night before.  They brag on their win and how they beat a higher-ranked team, ie. the #5 team in the state.  The only problem is that these posters are quoting the MBCA coaches poll, not Gramps Braggin' Ri...

 I have had several inquiries about team ratings and I have patiently answered them.  On two of them, I found another error in my reporting form where the team rating did not transfer over from the spreadsheet.   I appreciate people asking because I make mistakes with over 1100 teams to rate and the multiple forms I use to report these ratings.  Sometimes, a cell value from one spreadsheet falls off the table and I am misreporting the team's rating. Other times, I simply lose interest in a team.  Halfway through the season, I see no reason to continue calculating their ratings because it probably won't change much and they are mired deep in the class or district rankings.  Sorry folks.  Gramps spends more time on the top dogs than the pack but it is a fact of life.  Time marches on and I drop mediocre teams to focus on the best. Occasionally, a team comes on strong and I have missed them.  Brent Bradley brought up Father Tolton Girls and...

 Braggin' Rights extends beyond just the Missouri side of the river.  Over on the east side of St. Louis is the Southwestern Conference with some of the best teams in Illinois.  Collinsville, O'Fallon, Belleville East and West, East St. Louis, Edwardsville and Alton all have outstanding teams this year and these are all public schools.  Their records might not look great because they eat each other up in conference play.  The league is so balanced, most of the teams end up about 50-50 on wins and losses. Over on the St. Louis side, the Metro Catholic Conference, with De Smet, Christian Brothers College, Saint Louis U High, Chaminade and Vianney, always has elite basketball teams.  The biggest difference?  The MCC schools are all private boys schools and recruit.  Their records are usually similar to the SW conference.  They beat each other up in conference play and the conference winner is the team with one win over 50-50. And then you have V...

 Varsity Assistant Cory Nicholson of the New Franklin Boys basketball team had a question about New Franklin's rating vs. Harrisburg, who they beat twice, and Salisbury, who they lost by two early in the season.  I thought I would answer that question but first, I wanted to wish everyone a Happy Martin Luther King holiday. Only some people are thrilled with the MLK Holiday.  I think it is an important American Holiday.  It is a reminder of the monumental struggle for civil rights by King and others that brought some advancement of the rights of people of color.   Yet, we are backsliding on our progress.  Some want to castigate the "Woke" movement.  (If you don't like "woke", then stop here and unfollow me).  I think Woke means being aware.  Aware of others in need, aware of our past and the lessons we should learn from it.  Aware of how we all want to be treated. Some want to ban books and not teach our history.  We don't want ...

 I occasionally have someone who inquires about my ratings.  Most of the time, the inquiries are polite and inquisitive.  They do not understand how their team, with an 8-3 record, is rated lower than another team that has lost two-thirds of their games.   I will go back and recalculate and double-check my ratings.  Most of the time the stats are correct.  Occasionally the calculations are off and I fix them.  The Pit@Central and SWMO Sports politely asked about Springfield Central's rating and I did a deep dive and determined they were a #4 team instead of a #7 rated team in class six. A few Barstool guys get bent out of shape when their team is dissed.  Most of them are good guys.  I had this discussion yesterday with some Barstool Guy about 8-3 Glendale and 4-8 Ozark boys.  I had rated Ozark two points better than Glendale: Well, thanks Barstool guy.  Really gives your school a good vibe with everyone when you cuss out an el...