SW Division 7 Sectional Preview

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!   The Division 1 and 2 draw will be this Sunday, so today I will look at  Division 7 in Southwest Ohio.     OPENING ROUND MATCHUPS   @ Monroe   2/21- Middletown Christian v Oyler 2:00   Lockland v Felicity Franklin  3:30   Cin. College Prep v Miami Valley Christian  5:00   @Tecumseh   2/21- Emmanuel Christian v Jackson Center 11:00   Russia v Catholic Central  12:30   Southeastern v Covington 2:00   Cedarville v Troy Christian  3:30   @Versailles    2/21- Lehman Catholic v Fort Loramie  12:30   Fairlawn v Riverside  2:00   @Sidney   2/21- Botkins v Calvary Christian  1:00   Mississinawa Valley v Triad  3:00     POTENTIAL 2nd ROUND MATCHUP   Cedarville vs Southeastern   They say the third time is the charm, and for these two teams, it will be for a trip to the district finals if they can each get through their opening game. They both play in the Ohio Heritage Conference, in fact they're in the same division. They split during the regular season, so if this develops it will be the rubber match for their biggest stakes of the year!   [player_tooltip player_id='1192789' first='Maria' last='Christian'] leads the way for Cedarville averaging close to 18 points per game, and she gets out from Katelyn Reid, a junior averaging close to nine.    Southeastern brings in fire power of their own, including Wittenberg recruit Sydney Xavier  and Muskingum recruit Ryland Workman. That's a pretty strong duo that looks to keep his season alive.    If they can both get past their first games, this will be a battle at Tecumseh high school.     PLAYERS TO WATCH    Not only did this young lady earn player of the year and her very tough conference, she led her team to the number one seed in Southwest District North in D7. Great length, outstanding shooter and can score in multiple ways. Nice defender, can force turnovers and is very athletic.     Love Maria's offensive game, she's scoring at an 18 point per game pace with almost 9 rebounds. She moves well without the ball, mentally strong on the court and she's a good leader. Super excited as her game just continues to grow and she looks to lead Cedarville on a nice run.     Speaking of players of the year, Brooklynn earned that honor in the WOAC!  Mississinawa Valley won their conference, finishing unbeatable in league play, thanks a lot to Seubert and Paige Emrick. They've got a nice path into the district and then from there, their goal is to finally get through regionals. Strong, physical kid, good footwork at the rim, able to use the glass and solid defender.     Solid post player who is able to play against a physical defender, she can lock down her defender and score at the rim. Able to get in position with the ability to catch and score. Saw her early in the season in November, she needed the basketball in her hands more. She still only took about nine shots per game, would like to see that at about 15–18 to increase their scoring opportunities.      For the most part, the junior from Lockland has had a pretty consistent season. Excellent defender, and can translate that into points, forcing mistakes. Able to get to the line and capitalize around the rim. Occasionally can knock down a three. Scoring around 17 a game.      3 SLEEPERS TO WATCH    Everyone wondered what Fort Loramie was going to have with graduation last year, this sophomore has stepped up and made a statement. She has become the leader of that team, she has a long like the wingspan and a frame that allows her to play inside or out. Smooth shot from the perimeter.     One thing that stands out to me about this young lady, she gets on the floor, makes plays and always plays hard until the whistle. Scrappy, good defender, and with the ball in her hands, she can create shots well.     She broke the threshold recently, scoring her 1000th career point, as she is a consistent scorer and rebounder for her team. She does the little things right, and she hopes to sneak a victory out of the first round tournament game.      SLEEPER TEAM WHO COULD SNEAK OUT   A 6th seed or below that COULD sneak out and make it to the district finals   I don't see any 6th seed or below having a chance to get out of sectionals.    MY PREDICTIONS   I think in the top bracket with Lockland as the favorites, I do look for them to sneak out of that top bracket and will head to the district championship game against Russia who should have no problem getting to that point.    My heart says Cedarville in the next bracket, but my gut says Southeastern.    And the bottom bracket a district final between Mississinawa Valley and Middletown Christian looks like an attractive game for fans, but I think MV has too much fire power.

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!