A- Mamo vs Scarsdale final game of season should be a good grudge match but not sure it matters much as they see each other later in playoffs. Scars owns mental edge, not sure how Mamo shakes that, maybe being away as underdog is better for them? Don't see how N Rockland can beat either one of them.
B- Yorktown seems to have the juice for this group but the brutal schedule shows they can lose. Greeley is a year ahead of schedule and will be a tough out. Hard to deny Pac when that team takes the field. Somers just can't hang with the top teams. Playoff seedings will be unusual and some early rounds will have top teams going at it.
C- Rye up there, then JJCR. Pelham seems like they shouldn't be in the mix but each year they come though in playoffs. Lack of FOGO for Rye matters with these teams. Rest of C teams just too thin to do damage to top teams.
D- Pleasantville has been so good. Can Bronxville, Briarcliff or even Haldane beat them? Yes. Maybe. But a lot has to go wrong for Pville. Interesting is how Bville and Bcliff played such tough schedules, so they'll be low in the brackets as teams like Blind Brook and Rye Neck grab higher seeds. So Round 1 could see top teams playing each other.
B and D are good examples of the inherent issue with the way rankings are currently done. And I say this without an alternative that I’d find better (yet). The way it is rewards teams for playing either: a) a weaker in-section schedule (Greeley, North Rockland) or b) a strong non-section 1 schedule (Yorktown, Pleasentville, JJCR, Scarsdale) which I’d prefer teams play.
We see too many early round matchups between what arguably are the two best teams because someone else in the class loaded up with a soft schedule and gamed the seed.
I’d have to crunch the numbers to include a strength of schedule component for the seedlings. The data is there we have Opponents win %. I’d have to do some further digging to get opponents-opponents win % to crunch the SOS for each team. But you look at D, and briarcliff and bronxvilles SOS would dwarf anyone else’s besides Pleasentville. B, Yorktown, Mahopac and Somers SOS would probably be too three easily.
There shouldn’t be an incentive for loading up a weaker schedule to get the higher seed.
The problem with factoring SOS is you arrive at the same result - the math doesn't know the difference between a 7-9 team with a loaded scheduled vs a 7-9 team with a cupcake schedule.
The system is fine as is - best team will always make it through. The only marquee game is the section final, and you can't you fake your way into there. Its much more important to ensure that all teams can manufacture a 16 game schedule that makes for fun and competitive games for all teams.
Also, keep in mind that the traditional powers don't often want to play the "others". So, it's not necessarily true that teams are purposely playing a soft schedule. It's sometimes true that the big teams are not returning calls.
Except that it would... a 7-9 team vs. a soft schedule would otherwise be properly seeded. a 9-7 team with a strong schedule also would. Where SOS would be a factor would be more correctly ranking that 9-7 team who had a strong schedule versus a 12-4 team that played a weak one. Just look at the classes, you look at A and B and tell me that those are the correct rankings after you look at everyone's schedule? And who their opponents played? You have arguably the two best D teams outside Pleasentville and they are at 6 and 8 right now. All due respect to those other teams above them, but do we honestly think they would beat either of them?
As it stands, and for the last couple of years it has been mostly true: the best thing you can do is load up on a soft schedule, lock in the 1 seed and make the 2-3 best teams play each other in the semis and you only have one to beat. Or if you want to challenge yourselves you have a soft section1 schedule but load up on tough opponents out of section since they don't have an impact on the seedings. In fact, the math works more in your favor doing that.
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