Ohio Play By Play Classic Preview

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The biggest single day event of the Ohio High School Basketball Season is this Saturday when six games tip off at Nationwide Arena in Columbus. This article will preview the six games with storylines and players to watch.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2>Game 1 Olentangy Orange Vs Cleveland Heights</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The first game starts off with a battle of one of the top public schools from the Columbus area against one of the top public schools in the Cleveland area. Olentangy Orange has a trio of guards that are scholarship level talents in [player_tooltip player_id='1467907' first='Jordan' last='Edwards'], [player_tooltip player_id='1163459' first='Mikey' last='McCollum'] and [player_tooltip player_id='1090150' first='Elias' last='Lewis']. McCollum suffered an injury at the end of the Pioneers victory over Dublin Jerome though. For Cleveland Heights, they've played some top teams already from northeast Ohio and boast some intriguing guards including [player_tooltip player_id='1352455' first='Shemarion' last='Hardy'], [player_tooltip player_id='1421391' first='Rayvelle' last='Duncan'] and [player_tooltip player_id='1494497' first='Rondelle' last='Pollard']. This should be a fun up and down contest to get the day started.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2>Game 2 Garfield Heights Vs Chaminade Julienne</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Garfield Heights is led by superstar freshman Marcus Johnson who is scoring over 20 PPG to open his high school career. Johnson has a talented team around him led by Juniors [player_tooltip player_id='1222346' first='Calvin' last='Little'] and [player_tooltip player_id='1421143' first='Deandre' last='Jones']. The Bulldogs also have seniors who play hard and make winning plays. On the other side, Chaminade Julienne is led by the Washington brothers, George and Jackson are the notables but freshman JJ Washington has also seen some minutes for CJ. [player_tooltip player_id='1443913' first='Evan' last='Dickey'] and [player_tooltip player_id='1467912' first='Devin' last='Rakestraw'] are key returners for the Eagles who currently appear like the state title favorite in a wide-open Division II.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2>Game 3 Saint Ignatius Vs Africentric</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Saint Ignatius comes in on a bit of a cold streak after falling to Lutheran West and Walsh Jesuit, two teams that are playing excellent basketball this season. They'll try and get back on track against an Africentric squad led by [player_tooltip player_id='922605' first='Dailyn' last='Swain'], [player_tooltip player_id='1222355' first='Cortez' last='Freeman'] and [player_tooltip player_id='1163468' first='Preston' last='Steele'] who just dropped 100 on city league rival Walnut Ridge. Swain has been on another level for the Nubians since the start of his Junior season as he attempts to bring a state title to Columbus. For the Wildcats, they've started slow but still found ways to end up in Dayton for the final four, can [player_tooltip player_id='1222353' first='Ace' last='Buckner'], [player_tooltip player_id='1432034' first='Damon' last='Friery'], Reese Robinson, [player_tooltip player_id='1165700' first='Braydn' last='Szczepaniak'] and company get back on track? We'll find out in an exciting third game.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2>Game 4 Lutheran East Vs CVCA</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The top level talent in this game is unreal with [player_tooltip player_id='1432004' first='Darryn' last='Peterson'] going against [player_tooltip player_id='1222354' first='Jesse' last='McCulloch'] and Tj Crumble. The Falcons have lots of depth as [player_tooltip player_id='867939' first='Cody' last='Head'] has been playing at a crazy high level, trying to convince Division I programs to offer him. The Falcons also have a ton of size and athleticism to throw at Peterson who recently scored 40 points in a victory.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2>Game 5 STVM Vs Sierra Canyon (CA)</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>One of the headliners, it's Bronny James against his dad's former high school. This one was a classic when Bronny was a freshman as the Irish had a shot to win it at the buzzer. The Irish are led by [player_tooltip player_id='867938' first='Lance' last='Hayes'], [player_tooltip player_id='867952' first='Darius' last='Stratford'] and [player_tooltip player_id='1181712' first='Kevin' last='Hamilton'] but face a tall task with Bronny James, Isaiah Elohim, Ashton Hardaway and more coming from the west coast to Columbus to battle.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2>Game 6 Centerville Vs Pickerington Central</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The rematch of the state championship game from last season where the Tigers ended the Elks winning streak that spanned a season and a half. [player_tooltip player_id='867951' first='Devin' last='Royal'] is back alongside [player_tooltip player_id='867940' first='Gavin' last='Headings'], [player_tooltip player_id='1222377' first='Juwan' last='Turner'] and some new faces for the Tigers. Centerville returns [player_tooltip player_id='867934' first='Gabe' last='Cupps'] and added [player_tooltip player_id='1222348' first='Jonathan' last='Powell'] after graduating a majority of their roster from last season. Both teams lost their season opener to non OHSAA competition, Centerville fell to Indy Cathedral while Pickerington Central lost against Spire Academy, both will be looking to prove they are the team to beat in Ohio in 2022-23.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->