re: 7th Annual CSAL 8th Grade Preseason Basketball Rankings

After polling a wide range of coaches, fans, and players, an all time list has been compiled of the all time CSAL 8th grade basketball teams. Without further adieu, here is the countdown in reverse order.....

5- St Alphonsus 1999: great run in 8th grade year. Led by a future state champion quarterback. One of the more gritty teams in the countdown.

4- STM 2002: Elite 8 champion and one of the more dominant teams across a 3 year span. Had a good mix of guard play, big man, and shooting.

3- St Jude 1995: possibly the most athletically gifted team in the ranking. Roster loaded with future all state performers in both football and baseball. Played well as a basketball team although this team's real talent was in other arenas.

2- St George 1997: very gifted team. Had a great mix of athletic guards, lead by one of the better athletes in CSAL history. If the guards were shut down, they also had a strong shooter and a more than serviceable big man. The knock on this team was the depth of competition in that class. This was evident in the 96 STM 8th grade tournament where SGS tried to dance with the big boys but flamed out against a very deep class of 96.

1- STM 1996: the best pure basketball team as voted on by the panel. The San Antonio Spurs of the their time. Nothing flashy. Great defense. Great shooter mixed in with other solid scores from the outside. Solid guard play, athletic bigs. Not to mention a deep bench of grown men and a heady coach that utilized his talent to win games.