By The Herald Sports Staff

Mercer County boys basketball fans have been quite lucky in recent years.

It always seems there is at least one team that makes the trip to Hershey for the state championship. That trip is usually fruitful. Kennedy Christian has won two straight Class A titles. George Junior won the AA crown two years ago.

There has also been a dearth of talented players. George Junior star B.J. Grove is now a freshman seeing action at the University of Cincinnati. Grove City's Josh Morgan is a freshman playing at Gannon. And the list goes on for countians playing at smaller schools.

This year should be no different. Kennedy Christian will look to defend its state titles with the help of Division I recruit John Reimold. Slippery Rock's Ben Zajac, just a junior, is back as one of the league's premier players. And in Class AA, the league is stacked from top to bottom.

There were several coaching changes as well. George Junior welcomes Bob McConnell back to the bench. Nick Cannone takes over for Dick Harris at Wilmington. Chris Burtch is on the bench at Slippery Rock, replacing Posie Rhoads. Chad Mild takes over for Larry Ellison at West Middlesex. And Don Andres is Reynolds' third coach in three years.

It all should add up to another interesting and competitive season.