Five Up, Five Down: Cincinnati Style
Trust me, I know that the high school prep season is still very early and a lot can happen between now and tournament time. But in saying that, a quarter of the season is just about over and some teams…
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Continue ReadingTrust me, I know that the high school prep season is still very early and a lot can happen between now and tournament time. But in saying that, a quarter of the season is just about over and some teams seem to be hitting the ground running while others are sputtering out the gate. Let’s take a look at five teams who are trending up early in the season, and five teams who are trending down in Southwest Ohio.
Five Up
Shroder: One of the better shooting teams in Southwest Ohio. Has shot 45% or better in every game this season while averaging nearly 80points per game on their way to a 4-0 start for the season. Boost one of the better backcourt combinations in the area with junior guards Steve Stewart and Derrick Heard leading the way. Stewart is tied for 4th in the Cincinnati Metro Athletic Conference at 10 rebounds per game while Heard ranks second in the CMAC at almost 7 assist per game. The Jaguars are currently ranked 6th in the city, Division III.
Upcoming Schedule: Friday 12/16 at Woodward 7:30pm.
Taft: The Senators started the season as the pre-season number one Division II and have not done anything to put doubt into that ranking. The Senators sit at 4-0 to start the season and included in that 4-0 is a 19 point victory over the #2 ranked team pre-season Woodward. Taft is led by Division I prospect Malek Green, who sports averages of over 19 points and 15 rebounds per game. Green is helped by c/o ’18 guard Dashawn Lawrence who leads the CMAC at over 10 assist per game, Demarco Bradley a c/o ’19 guard who is averaging over 14 points per game and leads the conference in steals with over 3 per game. The Senators smallest margin of victory this season is 18.
Upcoming Schedule: Friday 12/16 against Hughes 7:30pm, Saturday 12/17 against Badin 7:30pm
Moeller: Big Moe is once again looking like the top team in Cincinnati and the region for that matter. Monday’s win over Covington Catholic (KY), the number one ranked team in Northern Kentucky, just again proved that Moeller can compete and for that matter win games against the top teams no matter where they are from. Moeller once again looks like it could make a run at another trip to Columbus for state finals weekend. The Crusaders are currently the #1 ranked team in Division I in Cincinnati and are off to a 3-0 start.
Upcoming Schedule: Friday 12/16 against Columbus Whitehall-Yearling 7:30pm, Saturday 12/17 against Sycamore 7:30pm
Summit Country Day: After a strong showing at the Cincinnati High School Preseason Preview, the Silver Knights have continued that good play into the regular season. The Silver Knights have won their first three games by an average of 23 points while scoring at least 75 points twice. Senior G/F Alex Dahling has gotten off to a great start shooting the basketball to start the season averaging 17ppg while shooting 50% from the field and from three. Summit currently sits at 3-0 and is the #2 ranked Division III team in Cincinnati. Friday’s matchup against St. Bernard could be one of the underrated games of this weekend’s slate.
Upcoming Schedule: Friday 12/16 at St. Bernard 7:30pm
La Salle: The number two ranked two in Division I, behind conference rival Moeller, has won its first two games by a combined score of 146-72. Yes you are reading that right 146-72, just in case it did not process the first time. Bellarmine commit CJ Fleming is shooting a ridiculous 88% from the field and 77% from the three in the Lancers first two games. La Salle schedule picks up over the next couple of weeks including a holiday trip to Florida for the Kingdom of Sun Tournament, this is a stretch were we will learn more about the Lancers. La Salle currently is 2-0 and is the #2 ranked team in Division II
Upcoming Schedule: Tuesday 12/20 against Lakota West 7:30pm
Five Down
Walnut Hills: A top five team Division I to start the season, the 0-2 Eagles are currently ranked #9 in the city and are in danger of falling out completely without a win against Turpin on Friday. Walnut has been hurt by the transferring of two of their top players from last year, Dishon Daniels and Omari Peek, which is really hurting this team in particular on the offensive end. Coach Ricardo Hill is one of the better coaches in the Cincinnati area so do not surprised if the Eagles are there again at the end contending for a trip to Columbus, but this start has to be concerning.
Upcoming Schedule: Friday 12/16 against Turpin 7:30pm
Aiken: I was concerned about Aiken to start the season and thought that there top 7 ranking in the city was a bit overrated. And even though they were ranked #5 in Division II in the latest polls, this is a team that I expect to struggle for the rest of the season. Besides senior G Marcus Barton, who leads the CMAC in scoring at almost 30 points per game, the Falcons have no other offensive threats of note. Unless they reinforcements on the way after the holiday break offensively, this team will struggle for the rest of the season. The Falcons are 0-3 to start the season.
Upcoming Schedule: Friday 12/16 at Western Hills 7:30pm, Saturday 12/17 at Scott (KY) 4:00pm
Woodward: Sometimes records can be deceiving, and in Woodward’s case this may be true. While the Bulldogs hold a 3-2 record, the combined record of the teams they have beaten is 6-7 and are teams that quite honestly they should beaten. Combine with a 0-2 conference record, which includes a 19 point loss at Taft, and there is reason for concern. But help could be on the way with senior G Lonnie Berry winding the 11 games he must miss due to transfer rules, he should be back for the January 6th matchup against Western Hills. Woodward needs to find sometime of consistency before the conference matchups really ramp up or all of the preseason hype may have been just that.
Upcoming Schedule: Friday 12/16 against Shroder 7:30pm
Hughes: Anytime a team starts 2-0 in the tough CMAC conference that should be a cause for optimism, but it may be the opposite for Big Red. While senior G Corry Long has been somewhat of a bright spot for Hughes, another playmaker must emerge for Hughes to be the team that they were expected to be in the preseason. The return of junior transfer G Giovanni Santiago in January should be a tremendous boost for Hughes. Santiago will take pressure off of Long as one of the primary ball handlers and should help junior G/F AJ Smith find more open looks and paths to the basket. Hughes right now sits at 2-3 and is tied as the #7 ranked team in Division II.
Upcoming Schedule: Friday 12/16 at Taft 7:30pm
Princeton: If there has been a team that has been hurt more by OHSAA strict transfer rules than the Vikings it would be hard to believe. The season had so much promise with former Aiken coach Leon Ellison and Finneytown transfer and Ohio State commit Darius Bazley coming on board but changed after the OHSAA ruling that Bazley had to sit the first 11 games. The Vikings are off to a 1-3 start including a 26 point loss to start the season against Summit Country Day. The lone bright spot for the Vikings has been junior G Darweshi Hunter, who is averaging a team high 19 points per game through the first four games. Princeton has a lot to ground to make up and they need to start now before conference play amps up in the tough Greater Miami Conference, one of the best in Ohio.
Upcoming Schedule: Friday 12/16 against Flagler Palm Coast (FL)