Southwest District Preview: Division II

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Tournament coverage continues as I preview the 3 Southwest District brackets in Division II. This District contains two of the top teams in the state with Taft and Chaminade-Julienne both calling this district home. Both teams are considered favorites to compete for a state title. Who else should you be watching? Read below to find out.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><em>Southwest 1</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Top Teams: Chaminade-Julienne (1), Wyoming (3), Fenwick (4)</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Sleeper: Ponitz- If the Golden Panthers were in any other bracket, they would likely be considered a favorite. Loaded with seniors, anchored by <strong>DayJuan Anderson</strong> (Sr), Ponitz will certainly give C-J a battle in the Sectional should both teams advance.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Evaluation: Wyoming is the highest seed in the bracket and has beaten the likes of LaSalle and Moeller during the year. <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1207374' first='Lance' last='Grayson']</strong> (Sr) has showed great leadership as the Cowboys have lost just twice by a combined 4 points. Fenwick has been competitive throughout the year and plays defensive minded basketball. A matchup with Indian Hill could be intriguing to watch juniors <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1484682' first='Bailey' last='Temming']</strong> vs <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1462511' first='Cj' last='Hayden']</strong> battle it out. Chaminade-Julienne has been the top team all year and it is very difficult to see many teams knocking them out earlier than the District Final.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Predicted Final: Chaminade-Julienne vs Wyoming</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><em>Southwest 2</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Top Teams: Taft (1), Alter (3), Meadowdale (5)</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Sleeper: Meadowdale- The Lions are playing some of their best basketball right now going 9-2 in 2023. The senior combo of <strong>Kalerrio Reaves</strong> and <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='922591' first='Lee' last='Benson']</strong> as well as <strong>Cari Reaves</strong> (Fr) have been tough to matchup against during the stretch. The Lions have the postseason pedigree after being in the Regional Semifinals last year in Division III.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Evaluation: Alter is the highest seed in their sectional and have favorable matchups early on. The Knights have plenty of seniors behind <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1201839' first='Anthony' last='Ruffolo']</strong> and <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1219837' first='Aj' last='Leen']</strong> as well great guard play and shooting. Meadowdale could challenge the Knights in their bracket as long as they can get by Urbana, who could be another sneaky team in the sectional. The bottom half of the bracket has Cincinnati's top team in Taft. The Senators have not lost since December 19, 2022 and have beaten Archbishop Hoban, Brush, Woodward (x2), and Withrow during that stretch. Their size and athleticism led by seniors <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1088811' first='Eian' last='Elmer']</strong> and <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1156348' first='Hudson' last='Norton']</strong> have been difficult for teams to prepare for. McNicholas is the closest seed (6-seed) but has struggled in the new year.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Predicted Final: Taft vs Alter</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><em>Southwest 3</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Top Teams: Dunbar (2), Woodward (2), Tippecanoe (4)</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Sleeper: Carroll- The Patriots have been playing exceptionally well in 2023, with a recent victory over Chaminade-Julienne highlighting their stretch of games. <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1399903' first='Sean' last='McKitrick']</strong> (Sr) is again putting up solid scoring numbers averaging 19 points per game. Carroll has been a team that gets hot come February before.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Evaluation: Woodward is the highest seed and has been the best team in Cincinnati behind Taft this year. The Bulldogs have lost twice in 2023, with both games coming to Taft. <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1368789' first='Ru' last='Mills']</strong> (Jr) has been playing great basketball and cementing himself as one of the better players in the CMAC and area. CHCA could be a challenger as they've played well out in the MVC this year and have 2 of the top 5 scorers in the conference currently in <strong>Luke Sanders</strong> (So) and <strong>Wes Roberts</strong> (Jr). The bottom half of the bracket has Dunbar, Tippecanoe, Carroll, and Oakwood. The Wolverines have had some close losses in 2023, before getting beat by 16 to Bishop Ready very recently. They still have one of the better scoring combos with <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='973875' first='Antaune' last='Allen']</strong>, <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1163456' first='Antone' last='Allen']</strong>, and <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1432007' first='Bj' last='Hatcher']</strong>. Tippecanoe has one of the better records in the area while Carroll has shown an ability to compete in the tournament and this year. If both teams get through, Woodward and Dunbar would be rematching after Woodward won 59-57 just 2 weeks ago.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Predicted Final: Dunbar vs Woodward</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->