Isiah Boggs, center, will be the go-to guy for Largo, which hopes to keep pace with Douglass atop the Prince George’s 3A/2A/1A standings. (Ricky Carioti/The Washington Post)
Top teams
Douglass (20-5), Gwynn Park (10-13), Crossland (19-5)
Top players
G Isaiah Boggs, Largo, 6-1, Sr.
G Kelvin Sellman, Crossland, 6-2, Sr.
F Cameron Hayes, Douglass, 6-5, Sr.
F Isiah Miles, Gwynn Park, 6-4, Sr.
Skinny: Douglass has several key pieces back from a team that won 20 games and lost in overtime to eventual state champion Oakland Mills in last year’s 2A South region final. Hayes averaged 17 points per game in 2014-15, emerging as one of the county’s best low post threats. The Eagles’ size will be a strength, with 6-foot-5 senior Dalton Smith and 6-foot-7 junior Zion Cousins also inside and 6-foot-3 guard Donald Carey providing length on the perimeter. . . .
Gwynn Park is poised to make a leap from a below-.500 record in 2014-15 to top contender this season. The Yellow Jackets return six of their top seven players from last year’s rotation, including four starters. Miles nearly averaged a double-double last winter (14.5 points, 9.5 rebounds) and should be a force inside playing alongside forward Aaron Parker, an Eastern Michigan football recruit, and guard Marlon White. . . .
Potomac (Md.) has no starters back, and watched star Randall Brodie move on to Memphis. But the Wolverines should have a bit more stability following a tumultuous 2014-15 campaign that saw several players transfer mid-season. Guards Ryle Burley and Gary Robertson will be much improved after receiving extensive playing time earlier than expected because of last year’s attrition. . . . Crossland had a breakthrough season under Coach John Perry last year, and Sellman returns after emerging as a top weapon in 2014-15. The Cavaliers plan to play four point guards at the same time this year, a dynamic that could make them one of the most exciting teams in the area. . . .
Largo won’t be as imposing without All-Met Player of the Year Abdulai Bundu, but the Lions shouldn’t fall too far with Boggs, one of the best finishers at the rim in the entire area, returning. . . . Fairmont Heights is starting fresh under new Coach Chuck Henry, a former Cesar Chavez assistant who also coaches for D.C. Premier during the offseason. The Hornets have just one starter back, but the hope is senior point guard Kevin Smith is on the cusp of a breakout year that will help set the foundation for seasons to come. . . .
Surrattsville has three starters back in the fold, led by senior guards Nathaniel Christian and Robert Middleton. The Hornets could move up the standings this year with the county race more wide open than last season. . . . Oxon Hill moves down to the 3A classification this season after years competing in the Prince George’s 4A division.
