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Some thoughts on tournament assignments released today for the 2012 Wisconsin Interscholastic Athletic Association basketball tournament:
 
WIAA Division 1
 
Neither the Brown County Arena in Green Bay nor the Kolf Sports Center in Oshkosh will be used for sectional games in the Fox Valley area in 2012. Instead, Stevens Point High School and Manitowoc Lincoln are slated to host Division 1 sectional finals along with Kettle Moraine and Racine Horlick in the southern part of the state.
 
In addition, the Al McGuire Center on the campus of Marquette University, the Quandt Fieldhouse on the campus of UW-Stevens Point and Williams Fieldhouse on the campus of UW-Whitewater will no longer be used for sectional games. In fact, tournament contests will be hosted on college campuses in the state.
 
The move away from Brown County Arena, Kolf Sports Center and the Al McGuire Center, in particular, may be tough to swallow for state high school basketball fans. Those three venues have hosted some outstanding games in front of sellout crowds in the past. Moving sectional games to high school gyms, which have far less seating and far less prestige, appears to be a step backward.
 
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With Super Tuesday no longer on the docket for Division 1 teams, schools in all five divisions now play for sectional championships on Saturday, March 10. This is definitely a move in the right direction as it treats all schools equally and gives the four Division 1 representatives at the state tournament extra time to prepare and enjoy the overall experience.
 
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Early favorites to advance to the Kohl Center in Division 1 include Oshkosh North in the Stevens Point Sectional, Germantown in the Manitowoc Lincoln Sectional, Madison Memorial in the Kettle Moraine Sectional and Milwaukee Riverside in the Racine Horlick Sectional.
 
The Manitowoc Lincoln Sectional is loaded with very good teams as Bay Port, De Pere, Sheboygan North, Arrowhead, Homestead and Waukesha West could all present a stern challenge to Germantown.
 
WIAA Division 2
 
After opting to play up a division a year ago, Milwaukee Washington has decided to stay put in Division 2 for 2011-12. The Purgolders figure to have one of the premier teams in Division 2 with the return of talented players such as Derek Williams, Jamaar McKay, Antonio Mayfield, Deandre Harris and Gederrick Williams.
 
Playing a brutal schedule in the Milwaukee City Conference against Division 1 teams such as Milwaukee Hamilton, Milwaukee King, Milwaukee Riverside and Milwaukee South Division, among others, certainly will aid Washington once it hits tournament play in Division 2.
 
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Kaukauna and Waunakee, with 1,193 and 1,186 students, respectively, are the largest schools in the Division 2 field while Luxemburg-Casco (618) is the smallest school in Division 2.
 
Kaukauna competes in the a largely Division 1 conference in the Fox Valley Association while Waunakee participates in the largely Division 2 Badger North. Both appear headed to the Division 1 field as their schools continue to increase in enrollment. The cutoff for Division 1 is 1,200 students.
 
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Early favorites to advance to the Kohl Center in Division 2 include Onalaska in the Marshfield Sectional, Pulaski in the Fond du Lac Sectional, Madison Edgewood in the Janesville Craig Sectional and Milwaukee Washington in the West Allis Central Sectional.
 
WIAA Division 3
 
The biggest news at the Division 3 level concerns highly regarded East Troy and Racine St. Catherine’s.
 
A year ago, St. Catherine’s nipped East Troy 68-65 in overtime in a classic regional final en route to a second-place finish at the state tournament.
 
Both schools are expected to challenge for the Division 3 title again in 2011-12, but unlike a year ago when they were placed in the same regional, East Troy and St. Catherine’s won’t meet in 2012 unless it’s at the state tournament.
 
The WIAA moved East Troy west to the Middleton Sectional while St. Catherine’s stayed in the southern Arrowhead Sectional.
 
That doesn’t mean either school has a cakewalk to Madison, though.
 
East Troy has Clinton, Lake Mills and Lakeside Lutheran in its half of the regional with Lodi, Nekoosa, Prairie du Chien and Wisconsin Dells on the top half of the bracket.
 
St. Catherine’s has Oostburg, St. Thomas More and Kettle Moraine Lutheran in its half of the regional with Omro, Poynette, St. John’s Military Academy and Winnebago Lutheran on the top half of the bracket.
 
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Early favorites to advance to the Kohl Center in Division 3 include La Crosse Aquinas in the River Falls Sectional, Little Chute in the Menasha Sectional, East Troy in the Middleton Sectional and St. Catherine’s in the Arrowhead Sectional.
 
WIAA Division 4
 
Due to an enrollment dip, perennial powerhouse Whitefish Bay Dominican drops from Division 3 to Division 4.
 
The only thing small about Dominican, though, is its enrollment of 303 students.
 
The Knights feature a frontline that includes 6-foot-7 senior Sam Starke, 6-6 junior Patrick Feldmeier and promising 6-8 freshman Diamond Stone.
 
Moreover, the Knights’ talented backcourt of senior Jamall Taylor and junior Duane Wilson ranks among the best in the state, regardless of division, as each is projected as NCAA Division I players.
 
Senior wing Breon Jordan and junior forward Jordan Bradley are also expected to return to Dominican, which likely will enter the season ranked No. 1 in Division 4.
 
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Cuba City has not advanced to the state tournament since 2005, but coach Jerry Petitgoue, who needs seven victories to reach 800 for his incredible career, appears to have a squad capable of getting back to the Kohl Center in 2012.
 
Senior Corey Vaassen is a terrific inside-outside player for the Cubans while senior Trent Denlinger provides plenty of size and strength in the post.
 
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Early favorites to advance to the Kohl Center in Division 4 include Elk Mound in the Chippewa Falls Sectional, Auburndale in the Antigo Sectional, Cuba City in the Baraboo Sectional and Dominican in the Brookfield Central Sectional.
 
WIAA Division 5
 
Sheboygan Lutheran will not have to get past Division 5 powers Randolph and Racine Lutheran in order to play at the Kohl Center.
 
But cross-town rival Sheboygan Christian had no such luck.
 
Sheboygan Lutheran, which features future University of Wisconsin recruit Sam Dekker, was moved from the southern Division 5 sectional to the northeast sectional while Sheboygan Christian, which does not feature a Division I player, remained in the southern sectional.
 
Kind of odd, but it could potentially make for an intriguing set of Division 5 semifinal games on the opening session of the state tournament at the Kohl Center.
 
Dekker, a versatile and talented 6-7 swing player, is without question the top player in  Division 5 and he’s a Wisconsin recruit to boot. If he can lead Sheboygan Lutheran to the state tournament, it will undoubtedly help attendance figures. 
 
Recall what Sam Okey of Cassville, Anthony Pieper of Wausaukee and Joe Wolf of Kohler did for state-tournament attendance, not to mention what Mickey Crowe of JFK Prep did for the old WISAA Tournament in Milwaukee.
 
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Racine Lutheran drops from Division 4 to Division 5 and figures to give Randolph a very strong run for its money in the Watertown Sectional.
 
Racine Lutheran may struggle with Randolph’s size in the post, but the Crusaders have superior depth and athleticism.
 
A sectional final between Racine Lutheran and Randolph appears likely with the winner becoming the favorite to win the Division 5 state crown.
 
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Early favorites to reach the Kohl Center in Division 5 include Prentice in the Spooner Sectional, Sheboygan Lutheran in the Waupaca Sectional, Royall in the La Crosse Central Sectional and Racine Lutheran in the Watertown Sectional.