Those who have been biding their time for the demise of the Valley dynasty got their first bit of good news in a long time when the final Heal Point standings revealed that the Bingham school was not the top seed in this year’s Western Class D tournament.

Hyde earned the top spot by virtue of its 13-1 record, which, contrary to popular belief, did not include a bevy of Class C teams.

The bulk of the Phoenix schedule consisted of Class D teams, very good and point-rich D teams, such as North Yarmouth Academy, Pine Tree Academy and Portland Christian.

But before anyone writes off Valley’s pursuit of a record seventh-straight state crown, consider the viewpoint of Rangeley coach Len MacPhee, whose team played against, and lost to, both teams this season.”

“I think Hyde is probably a good two (seed), but I don’t think they’re a one,” MacPhee said. “I think Valley is the better team, but that remains to be seen.”

Favorites: Hyde and Valley: The Phoenix may pose the most serious threat to Valley’s dominance since the Cavaliers began their run in 1998. But it’s only a coincidence that the last team to win Western D other than Valley was Hyde in 1997.

What matters this year is that the Phoenix have three starters back from last year’s team, which went all the way to the Western C championship game. To that mix, they’ve added transfers Tom Bragg, the coach’s son, who was the starting point guard for North Yarmouth Academy last year, and Joe Gallant, who started for Wiscasset in the Class B quarterfinals last year. The Phoenix are deep and arguably the best defensive team in the tournament.

While Hyde is a legitimate top seed, Valley has to be the favorite until someone knocks them off. The Cavs are 17-0 this year and have a tourney-tested nucleus of their own led by Mark Gaudet, regarded by many as one of the top guards in the state.

Darkhorse: North Yarmouth Academy: The Panthers are the only team in the tournament that knows it could have, and probably should have, beaten Valley earlier this year. Back on Jan. 31, they led the Cavaliers by 18 points early in the fourth quarter.

Then Mark Gaudet brought Valley back from the dead, scoring 23 of his 44 points in the fourth quarter as the Cavs rallied for a two-point win. It’s doubtful the Panthers have forgotten about that loss, and with two of Class D’s most explosive players in Tim Deluca and Brian Chin, they may be able to avenge it.

Best quarterfinal: No. 8 Rangeley vs. No. 1 Hyde. The two teams met back on Feb. 7, with the Phoenix prevailing, 54-34. Jimmy Goodwin scored 20 of the Lakers’ 34 points.

The Lakers have a couple of extra days to prepare for this one, thanks to the MPA deciding to reschedule this game and the Pine Tree Academy/Vinalhaven tilt due to Pine Tree’s religious considerations.

“I don’t know if we can do it, but we know what we have to do,” MacPhee said. “We’ve got to handle their pressure and we’ve got to get some scoring from some of our other kids. On the defensive end, it’s really crucial to get out on their 3-point shooters and we can’t let Ortega go off inside.”

With the exception of Goodwin, the Lakers don’t have the players to match Hyde’s athleticism, but if the Lakers can take care of the ball and find someone to score in addition to Goodwin, they could make this a contest.

Players to watch: Richmond – G Shane Hutchings, G Jeremy Whitaker; Rangeley – C Jim Goodwin, F David Jensen; ; Vinalhaven – G Josh Doughty; Buckfield – F Scott Wetherell, G Marc Smith; Pine Tree Academy – G Jared Verrill, F Chris Gepford; NYA – G Tim Deluca, G Luke Welch; Valley – G Mark Gaudet, F Lucas Melcher; Hyde – C Richard Ortega, G Tom Bragg.

Overview: Hyde and NYA should test Valley, but it boils down to this -Valley has won 43 straight and is 144-1 during its seven-year run. Until someone beats them in Augusta, it’s foolish to pick against the Cavaliers.

Prediction: Valley

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