SW D2 sectional top guns, sleepers, picks

It's tournament time throughout the state of Ohio, and over the next few days. I'll take a look at some of the brackets, teams and players in Southwest Ohio as the sectional tournament begins next week in the Buckeye State!   Today I will look at Division 2 in Southwest Ohio.     OPENING ROUND MATCHUPS   @Fairborn   2/25- Troy v Miamisburg 6:00   Stebbins v Northmont  7:30   @Fairfield   2/24- Ursuline v Loveland 7:30   2/25- Kings v Harrison  6:00   Anderson v Seton  7:30   @Lakota East   2/25- Winton Woods v St. Ursula 6:00   Edgewood v Little Miami 7:30     POTENTIAL 2nd ROUND MATCHUP   Winton Woods v Little Miami   Winton Woods will be the favorite in this game as the defending state champs look to make another run to Dayton. Strawberry Blankumsee is the top player in Ohio in her class, and she has put together a very strong year for Winton Woods. But she also has a lot of help from the likes of Sydney and [player_tooltip player_id='748813' first='Whitley' last='Davis'] who has had the big game feel, finishing unbeaten last year and bringing home the gold. Little Miami doesn't have the offensive fire power, but they do have [player_tooltip player_id='1235630' first='Avery' last='Green'], a 6-foot sophomore who can compete against anyone. Their problem will be who else steps up to add offense to her attack. WW beat them by 40 earlier in the season in league play, and while they have the fire power to do that again, Little Miami wants to contain them.     PLAYERS TO WATCH    Aubrey is the top D2 girls basketball player in the Dayton area, and she led her high school to their conference division championship. Electric point guard with a great first step, anticipates well and can distribute with great court vision. Oh, and she can also knock down the three.      She's only a freshman, but she has taken some leaps and bounds this year into being one of the best 2029s in the Buckeye State. She has scored double figures most games, but has struggled a little bit with her shooting the last couple of weeks. She's a gym rat and will fix that. She has a great court sense for a freshman, she will draw a lot of attention this summer.     This 5-7 senior can do it all from Mount Notre Dame, and this team is loaded from top to bottom. Absolutely knock down three-point shooter, over 42% from behind the arc. Great great shooter, solid defender with over three steals per game, and her leadership skills alone should get some attention for her!     Lauren is headed to Kent State next fall, but first she has her eyes focused on the gold prize. She's 6-2, can play and defend any position. Her best game is around the paint as she is shooting well under the mid 60s from the field, and she can knock down free throws.      I mentioned her earlier, she is a highlight reel every night. Great quickness, anticipates the game well, can defend enforce mistakes, and if she gets the steal, she's gone. Can take her game to a different level, a level that is difficult to defend.       3 SLEEPERS TO WATCH    This young lady is super talented, and she can beat you inside the paint or out behind the arc. She has good moves around the rim, good footwork and euro. She uses the glass and can also use the soft touch to knock down the mid range shot. Can score from deep, smooth handles and just a poised smooth player to watch.      I've written about her before, and she is definitely not a sleeper in the Cincinnati area, but this young lady deserves more attention than she gets. Very good basketball IQ, able to create plays and plays equally as hard at both ends of the floor. She's only a junior, look for her to keep getting better. Great basketball genes in the family!     She is long & skilled forward with 3 level scoring. Strong footwork & finishes in the paint, smooth midrange game & has 3 pt range. Uses length to create deflections & block shots. Physical on the floor & likes to push the pace.       SLEEPER TEAM WHO COULD SNEAK OUT   Ursuline #6   I would say this one would be the only six seed or higher that would have a chance to get to the district finals. [player_tooltip player_id='1660495' first='Jessica' last='Pate'] is a 5-6 2029 who has made her presence felt as a freshman, leading the way offensively, as she has been deadly from the outside. Not only is she shooting 78% from the free throw line, she can also knock down the three. [player_tooltip player_id='861147' first='Maria' last='Garza'] is a 2027 who has missed some time this year, but she is also scoring in double figures and can be a factor in their attack.      MY PREDICTIONS   As we look at the top bracket, Stebbins is the number one seed, but Northmont does have the weapons to challenge them, no question about that. But I think Stebbins gets the win and will battle Loveland in the district finals.    Mount Notre Dame already advanced via forfeit and I don't think we'll have any problem in the district finals. The same thing with Seton, neither Troy nor Miamisburg have the fire power to battle with [player_tooltip player_id='959232' first='Lauren' last='Bain'] and company.   Winton Woods is on a mission to repeat, and I think they have a great chance of doing that at least through the district finals and then we go from there!

It's tournament time throughout the state of Ohio, and over the next few days. I'll take a look at some of the brackets, teams and players in Southwest Ohio as the sectional tournament begins next week in the Buckeye State!