Marquee Matchups: Week 2 in Northwest Ohio
Heading into the first full week of high school basketball, we’ll take a look at the top games in Ohio.
Marion Local at Wapakoneta was originally slated as a marquee matchup in Northwest Ohio, but the game has been rescheduled because of Marion Local’s football state championship run. So, we’ll only preview one game in the area this week.
Dec. 5: Genoa at Wauseon
Genoa goes on the road to try avoiding an 0-2 start, after losing a shocker against Oak Harbor in their opener. They’ll have have their work cut out for them, as the reigning Division II runner-ups opened their season beating Archbold, behind 20 points from Duquesne commit Austin Rotroff.
Rotroff and Genoa 6’5” junior Andrew Bench will be the matchup to watch in this one. Bench is a physical player who never backs down from a challenge in the paint, often moving bigger players off their spots for rebounds. The 6’9” Rotroff still should get high percentage looks at the rim for Wauseon, ideally opening up scoring chances for Brooks Gype, Levi Seiler, and Owen Newlove. Bench can neutralize Rotroff’s defensive impact by beating him up the floor on the secondary break.
Gype, a 6’3” guard prospect with an offer from Indiana South Bend (IUSB), and 6’4” Jake Plantz (2019) is a matchup of big guards who are valuable playmakers for their team.
(I’ll be at this game tonight. Follow along on Twitter for live updates.)