Division II Previews and Predictions: Southwest Ohio
Photo courtesy of CMAC Twitter account
Mason Arena is the place to be for those following the Division II playoffs, as four of the best D-II teams in Southwest Ohio hit the court for the chance to advance to the District finals in Dayton. Prep Hoops is here to give you a preview of Saturday night’s action.
(1) Wyoming Cowboys vs. (5) Woodward Bulldogs, Saturday 6:00pm Mason Arena:
There should be a lot of points scored in this game as both of teams love to push the ball up and down the court. Wyoming scored over 80 points seven times this season while Woodward hit 90 points two times and 80 another three, including their last game were they outlasted Mt. Healthy 89-80 Tuesday. This game will feature two of the better backcourts in Cincinnati with Lonnie Berry and Marshall Football commit Will Coker for the Bulldogs and Lonnie Grayson and Joey Edmonds for the Cowboys. Berry is coming off of a 42 point performance against Mt. Healthy and is regarded as one of the best scorers in Cincinnati, along with Grayson for the Cowboys. The Garyn Prater-Terry Durham matchup will be a fun one to watch as well. Whichever backcourt plays the best will win this matchup.
Prediction: Wyoming
(2) Hughes Big Red vs. (3) Taft Senators, Saturday 7:30pm Mason Arena:
This is the 3rd meeting between the top two teams in the Cincinnati Metro Athletic Conference with Hughes winning both matchups during the regular season. Big Red has looked as dominant as any team in the playoffs winning both of their games by a combined 64 points. Taft has been impressive themselves in their first two playoffs games which includes a 53-point victory over Taylor in the opening round. Everyone knows about the two marquee seniors, Malek Green for Taft and Corry Long for Hughes, but the supporting cast will have a huge say so as to who will win this game. Senators G Justin Newman must continue his strong play in the tournament if the Senators want to win this game, in particular since it looks like sophomore G Chris’seon Stringer will be unavailable. For Big Red the combination of junior guard Dwayne Rosado junior forward AJ Smith must help on the scoring and defensive end if Hughes wants to advance.
Prediction: Hughes
** Each team’s seed is listed in parenthesis