We're approximately halfway through the winter season, and this year's iteration of MIAA basketball has delivered.
Many of the projected top teams have met, if not exceeded, lofty expectations. We're seeing stars and future college players dazzle almost every night. And when the best schools have gone head-to-head, those meetings have given us fireworks.
There's a lot to look forward to in the second half, even before we get to March. I've mapped out most of my February schedule and am floored by the amount of awesome matchups on tap. Then we cap the regular season with a slew of school break tournaments, including the highly-anticipated Comcast Tournament and Spartan Classic.
Here are my general takeaways from the season so far.
MORE MIDSEASON REPORTS: MIAA Boys | NEPSAC Girls | NEPSAC Boys
As good as advertised
The upper echelon of our MIAA Girls Top 10 hasn't changed much since the season began. These five schools started in the top six and have lived up to the hype.
1. Bishop Feehan (11-1) — The defending Division 1 champion hasn't skipped a beat in its title defense. Aside from its lone loss of the season to New Hampshire powerhouse Bedford, and a 60-57 thriller against St. Mary's, the Shamrocks have won every game by double digits. Their next month is daunting: two matchups against Cathedral, plus a game against Dartmouth and road rematch with St. Mary's before the Comcast Tournament. But the Shamrocks are built for it.
2. Medfield (10-1) — The Warriors have one loss during their Florida winter break trip, but in-state, they've won nine of 10 games by at least 19 points. They're putting up 64.8 points per game and allowing 36.8, a whopping 28.0 scoring differential. Medfield is another Comcast Tournament participant and could face Bishop Feehan in one of the brackets.
FEATURE:Â How Medfield's Tess Baacke keeps her mother's memory alive
3. St. Mary's (11-2) — When the Spartans took Bishop Feehan down to the wire, that proved the young roster had the potential to compete with the best. Their comeback win against Cathedral a month later showed they're capable of stepping up in clutch moments. St. Mary's will host both Feehan and Medfield in February; the Spartans are unbeaten at home this season.
4. Cathedral (8-3) — The Panthers probably should have won that game against St. Mary's, and even though they lost, they again showed the aggressive defensive intensity that has sparked their last two Division 4 championships. Cathedral's other two losses came out of state. They've won six games by 20 or more points. Hijjah Allen-Paisley and Keyona Raines represent one of the MIAA's best backcourts.
5. Woburn (10-0) — Behind the dynamic duo of point guard Mckenna Morrison and center Shannon McCarthy, the Tanners have once again dominated the Middlesex league. They're beating opponents by 20.8 points per game. Woburn has only played two nonconference games, but they'll also join the loaded Comcast Tournament field.
3 surprises
Division 2 is No. 1 — I knew Division 2 would have some of the state's best teams, but I wasn't prepared for the depth of high-level basketball. At the top you have Medfield, Tri-Valley League rivals Norwood and Westwood, and unbeaten Dartmouth. Schools like Pembroke, North Quincy, Oliver Ames and Mansfield have exceeded my expectations. Bishop Fenwick can take down top teams, and it's a No. 14 seed in the latest Power Rankings. Even Worcester South as a projected No. 23 seed would be a tough out. The early and middle rounds of the Div. 2 playoffs will feature some absolute battles.
Braintree emerging in Bay State — I wasn't sure who the best team in the Bay State Conference would be this year with Wellesley and Walpole losing stars to NEPSAC, plus Weymouth and others graduating key seniors. But I didn't expect it to be Braintree, who is 10-1 with a lone loss to Cohasset. Braintree has beaten just about every threatening conference foe and scored nonconference wins against Bridgewater-Raynham and North Quincy. Players like Frankie Spadorcia, Frankie Mazzini and Eva Downing have led the way.
Avery Gamble, Maeve Powers lead breakout names — I knew Gamble was a great player; I helped select her as a Globe All-Scholastic last winter. I did not know the junior guard could shoulder the scoring load at Oliver Ames the way she has. Gamble is averaging close to 10 more points per game this year and is a consistent 20-plus-point producer on an 8-3 Tigers team.
Powers, only a sophomore, has spearheaded North Quincy's rise to the forefront of the Patriot League. As of Jan. 19 she was tied for the league lead with Quincy's Alyssa Hopps at 17 points per game. With Powers' help, the Raiders have beaten rivals like Quincy and Whitman-Hanson and have just two losses to Pembroke and Braintree.
Who's in the MVP conversation?
We've watched stars across various levels of MIAA basketball put up big-time individual performances. But in my eyes, eight players have stood out from the rest. Not only are they dominating on a nightly basis, but their teams are all legitimate contenders for state championships.
In Division 1, I look at the two frontrunners. Bishop Feehan sharpshooter Maddy Steel can't seem to cool down; she has eclipsed 20 points in a game five different times as she helps the Shamrocks stay atop our MIAA Girls Top 10. They could meet Wachusett (10-1) in the Div. 1 final again, which would mean running into Jaelynn Scott, a dynamic two-way forward averaging 20 points.
Division 2, as stated, is filled with talent, and it includes three of the MIAA's best point guards. Naya Annigeri just went 7-for-7 from behind the arc as part of her 23 points in Medfield's win against Dedham. Over the last three games, the sophomore is averaging 21 points and has made 23 of 29 shots (10 of 12 3s). That's absurd.
Joining her are two of the state's elite bucket-getters: Ava Orlando at Notre Dame (Hingham) and Kat Cheesebro at Dartmouth. Orlando just dropped 43 points last week against Central Catholic, and Cheesebro is averaging a cool 28.8 points as her squad stays unbeaten.
Division 3 boasts three more superstars. Kailey Sullivan is another instant microwave shooting guard on Foxboro who has scored 22 or more points in every game of the Warriors' current six-game win streak. Maddie Oliver is a nightly threat for 20 points or 10 rebounds (or both) on a Norwell squad that has won nine of 11 games by double digits. Then there's the MIAA's resident Power Four college prospect: St. Mary's sophomore Bella Owumi, who has noticeably improved as a scorer and playmaker in addition to her elite defense.
3 questions for the second half
Who's the best team in the Patriot League?
As I've alluded to, this conference has been war at the top. Quincy, North Quincy, Pembroke, Duxbury and Whitman-Hanson can all beat each other as well as most other teams in the state on any given night. We still have a lot of league games left to play, so be sure to check out some of these head-to-head matchups. The latter four teams are all in Division 2, which means the rivalries could get some extra postseason juice.
Does Cathedral have real challengers in Division 4?
The Panthers, ranked fourth in our Top 10, have owned the division since the pandemic, aside from their upset loss to Cohasset in 2022. They've won the last two state championships and it hasn't been particularly close. But right now, Cathedral is actually seeded second, with Millis (8-3) well in front as a projected top seed. Millis fought valiantly against Medfield in a 49-44 loss. Third-seeded Cohasset gave Braintree its lone loss of the year and 10-1 South Hadley is out for revenge after last year's championship defeat. I don't know if these schools have enough to beat Cathedral, but it's a stronger field than last year.
Which undefeated teams could run the table?
As of Thursday morning, there are nine undefeated schools across the state: Woburn, Chelmsford, Dartmouth, Oakmont, Blue Hills, Renaissance, Lenox, Pioneer Valley Christian and Snowden.
Pioneer Valley Christian plays Maimonides, a team that just lost its first game of the season, twice in February. Snowden might run into trouble against some of the best Boston City League teams when it gets to the city championships in mid-February. Renaissance and Lenox are two of the best teams in Div. 5, and with fairly light schedules the rest of the way, I could see them making it to the tournament unbeaten.
Oakmont (Div. 3) and Blue Hills (Div. 4) also play winnable schedules up until the state tournament. One of them could make it to March unblemished.
Dartmouth (Div. 2) and Chelmsford (Div. 1) are two top-20 teams, but they have yet to face their toughest opponents. Dartmouth has Bishop Feehan and St. Mary's to open February, and Chelmsford waits for Central Catholic on Feb. 4.
This leaves Woburn as a potential pick among the elites. The Tanners play Middlesex League opponents until mid-February. They then enter the loaded Comcast Tournament that includes many of the state's top teams. But Woburn might be strong enough to survive the challenge.
