VaPreps 5A All-State Hoops Teams for 2016-17

VirginiaPreps.com is proud to release our 9th Annual All-State Basketball Teams.

There are a total of 12 honors with six players, including a Player of the Year, for First Team and six more on the Second Team.

So what are the factors that go into the choices that are made? All selections are made by me with no consultation of the coaches simply because that’s what the VHSCA Teams are designed for in my opinion. However, we try to study individual statistics (some supplied by coaches upon request) as well as factor into the equation team success and overall impact.

Once everything is weighed, we try to blend it all together and make the best choices possible, even though there’s no such thing as a perfect team or right and wrong picks.

It’s never an easy process because there are always many deserving players who don’t get recognized on First or Second Team.

Without further ado, here’s the VirginiaPreps.com 5A All-State Basketball Teams for the 2016-17 campaign with bios on each player . . .

5A First Team:
Austin Katstra - Albemarle - Sr.
Johquin 'Pinky' Wiley - L.C. Bird - Sr.
Nana Opoku - Potomac - Sr.
Cam Bacote - Bethel - Sr.
Jalen Ray - Hampton - Sr.
Mario Haskett - L.C. Bird - Sr.

Player of the Year: Austin Katstra (Albemarle)
Coach of the Year: Troy Manns (L.C. Bird)

5A Second Team:
Dajour Dickens - Bethel - Sr.
Alan Treakle - Wakefield - Sr.
Jamal Washington - Potomac - Sr.
Cam Henry - L.C. Bird - Sr.
Jake Hahn - Albemarle - Sr.
Shawn Sanders - Green Run - Jr.

This 6-foot-6 senior forward planning to walk-on at UVA had quite a run with the Patriots, earning Conference 16 Player of the Year honors for a third consecutive time with averages of 20.9 points per game (tops in school history) as well as program records for rebounds in a season with 318 and blocked shots with 80. In fact, Katstra's 1898 career points and 991 rebounds are Albemarle all-time records also.

During the State Tournament, Katstra took his game to another level with back-to-back double-doubles of 28 points and 15 rebounds in a victory over, followed by 24 points and 15 boards in a double-overtime loss to eventual State Champ L.C. Bird. He shot 61.8% from the field in the State Playoffs and was the driving reason behind a 27-4 season to remember that culminated with their second straight trip to the Final Four round.

Wiley graduates as one of the most successful players in Bird history, given the fact they went 94-12 overall during his four years on varsity. The 5-foot-11 senior point guard averaged 11 points and seven assists per game in 2016-17 to lead the Skyhawks to a 27-1 overall record, capped with their first ever state title.

In the State Tournament semifinals against Albemarle, it was Wiley draining the game-winner with four seconds left in the second overtime to lift Bird to a 61-59 win in a game where they trailed by 13 points at the start of the fourth quarter. The consummate floor general was recognized for his leadership and making others around him better by being named the 5A-South Region Player of the Year as well as Conference 12 Player o the Year.

Few players showed as much progress offensively as the 6-foot-8 Opoku, who went from averaging 8.3 points and 5.1 rebounds per game during his junior season for the State Champion Panthers, to posting 14.8 points and 7.3 rebounds a contest his senior year. He averaged 3.4 blocks per game, for the second straight season, serving as a major defensive presence around the basket while Potomac won the 5A-North Region Tournament for the second consecutive year.

Headed to Mount St. Mary's to play his College Basketball, Opoku shot an efficient 67% from the field, including 70% inside the arc, plus registered a triple-double of 32 points, 11 rebounds and 10 blocks in a win over rival Freedom. He was named the 5A-North Region Player of the Year in leading the Panthers to a 23-3 overall record.

An accomplished basketball player who also maintained over a 3.4 GPA in the classroom, Bacote led Bethel to a 24-6 overall record and their first appearance in the State Championship game since 2008. Although the Bruins were denied a state title, falling to L.C. Bird 65-52 in the 5A Final, he scored a game-high 21 points in that contest.

Signed to play his College Basketball at Maryland-Eastern Shore in the MEAC, Bacote averaged 20 points, three rebounds and two assists per game as a senior while also shooting 84% from the foul line and 38% from long distance with 44 makes behind the arc. The senior guard was chosen the PenSouth Conference 10 Player of the Year and First Team All-Region in 5A-South.

A 6-foot-2 senior guard headed to Hofstra to play his College Basketball, Ray averaged 16 points per game for a Crabbers team that earned its second straight berth to the 5A State Tournament. Early on in the season, he had a few huge offensive outputs, highlighted by a 34-point performance in an overtime win over city rival Bethel.

Ray, a First Team All-Region and All-Conference performer, also put up 39 points in a comeback victory over a Phoebus team that reached the 3A State Tournament Final Four. Additionally, he earned MVP honors at the VirginiaPreps Classic for the second time in three years by leading the Crabbers to a come-from-behind win over John Marshall at Virginia Wesleyan.

An athletic 6-foot-3 senior guard who'll play his College Basketball at Harvard, Haskett was at his best in the State Championship game against Bethel when he scored a team-high 20 points on 7-of-14 shooting from the field to go with six boards, three assists, three steals and just one turnover. He upped his scoring average from 12 points per game during the season to 15 points per game in the State Playoffs.

Haskett had a flair for dramatic moments, too. In the Conference 12 Tournament against Varina, who beat them for that same trophy one year ago, he sank a buzzer-beating three-pointer so that the Skyhawks were able to hoist the hardware. It came as no surprise that Haskett was named First Team All-Region and All-Conference.

Manns joined pretty exclusive company as a guy to win a state title as a player - which he did back in 1992 at Patrick Henry-Roanoke - and as a Head Coach when he led the Skyhawks to a 65-52 victory over Bethel in the 5A State Championship, just one year after falling to Potomac in the title round. His sixth season at the helm at Bird was unquestionably the best yet with the team finishing 27-1 overall, suffering their lone loss to 6A State Tournament semifinalist Landstown.

Under the direction of Manns, the Skyhawks have gone 141-20 overall and won their second straight 5A-South Region Championship. Maybe most impressive is the fact that Bird graduated its top scorer the last two years - Kenny Williams (UNC) from 2014-15 and Charles Falden from 2015-16 - and improved their win total the next season.

The 6-foot-11 senior center rated as a Top 150 prospect in the country didn't disappoint in some of Bethel's biggest games as he recorded three double-doubles in the State Playoffs, finishing the tourney with averages of 14.3 points, 15.7 rebounds and 4.0 blocks per game while shooting 81.3% from the charity stripe. He was a key reason why Bethel won three of its five meetings against city rival, including posting double-doubles in the regional semifinals and State Tournament semis.

Signed to play his College Basketball at Providence, Dickens was selected First Team All-PenSouth Conference 10 and Second Team All-Region in 5A-South. He averaged 11 points, 12 rebounds and four blocks per game as the Bruins notched 24 victories, their most since the 2007-08 campaign when they finished 30-2 overall.

Averaging 16.5 points per game, Treakle was the top scorer on a Wakefield team that reached the State Tournament for the fourth time in five years. The 5-foot-10 senior point guard was also money at the free-throw line, where he made 135-of-156 tries (86.5%) and often came through in crunch time as the Warriors finished 22-6 overall on the season.

Named Capitol Conference 13 Player of the Year and First Team All-Region in 5A-North, Treakle poured in a season-high 31 points in their regional consolation triumph over Potomac Falls. The Mount Olive (D-2 in NC) commit had a game-high 23 points in the Warriors' 62-56 loss to Bethel in the State Tournament quarterfinals.

Though an injury forced him to miss two games, including a overtime loss to eventual 3A State Champ Norcom in the VirginiaPreps.com Classic, Washington was a vital factor in the Panthers repeating as 5A-North Region Champs and returning to the State Tournament for a fourth consecutive year. The 6-foot-3 senior guard averaged 13.4 points, 3.7 rebounds and 1.4 steals per game while shooting 51% from the field and 79% at the foul line (92-of-117).

Washington was named First Team All-Region in 5A-North and First Team All-Conference 15. During his four years at Potomac, the Panthers went 100-10 overall and rode a 24-game winning streak that was tops in Virginia before their out-of-state loss to Linden from New Jersey.

It would've been tough for Bird to win its first state title without the valuable contributions and steady improvement of Henry, who averaged 13 points and five rebounds per game as a senior. The 6-foot-5 wing was a utility type of player used at various positions on the floor, routinely filling the stat sheet in several different categories.

Chosen First Team All-Region and First Team All-Conference 12, Henry played perhaps his best game in the double-overtime win over Albemarle with 23 points, six rebounds and four three-pointers. During the State Tournament, he averaged 16.6 points, six rebounds, three assists and 1.3 steals per game while converting 45.5% of his three-point field goals (45.5%).

Entering the State Tournament with averages of 14 points and 9.3 rebounds per game, Hahn was one of the main cogs on a Patriots squad that went 27-4 overall with back-to-back trips to the 5A Final Four round. The 6-foot-5 forward and Hampden-Sydney commit led the team with 82 three-pointers over the past two seniors, including 37 as a senior.

In addition, Hahn was an inside-outside factor that did more than just score and rebound, as evidenced by his 86 assists along with 46 blocked shots. He was named First Team All-Region in 5A-North and First Team All-Conference, ending his Albemarle career with 1467 points scored.

The lone junior to be named First or Second Team All-State in 5A by VaPreps or the VHSL, Sanders led the Stallions in scoring at 15.9 points per game and rebounding at 9.7 boards per game while recording a team-best 10 double-doubles. This came after a sophomore season in which he was a reserve that put up just 4.3PPG and 2.5RPG, making him one of the most improved players from a production standpoint in all of Virginia.

Named Atlantic Conference 9 Player of the Year and First Team All-Region, Sanders also made 52% of his field goals inside the arc (129-of-248) and hit 69.6% of his free-throws (80-of-115). The 6-foot-4 forward poured in a career 40 points in a win over Booker T. Washington, which helped earn him a spot on the Scope All-Holiday Classic Team.

Matthew Hatfield serves as Publisher for VirginiaPreps.com, part of the Rivals.com Network, and is a regular contributor to the ACC Sports Journal. Check out Hatfield’s Twitter page for more sports related updates, and you can also read his work in the Suffolk News Herald. To contact Matthew, please e-mail hatfieldsports2k4@yahoo.com, and don’t forget to listen to him every Saturday at 10AM on ESPN Radio 94.1.