Ohio Valley Hoops Classic Preview

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The Ohio Valley Hoops Classic brings some of the top talent from Cincinnati to battle with top teams from other parts of Ohio and neighboring states. In this article, we'll break down what fans can be excited about at Mason High School Arena.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Friday December 1st</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The opening night of the event starts with Cincinnati Withrow against Crispus Attucks (IN) as Withrow looks to start their charge to the top of the CMAC. With returners like [player_tooltip player_id='1421135' first='Michael' last='Johnson'] leading the way, Withrow has some intriguing talent returning against a talented out of state opponent. The second game of the day might be the top game of the entire event as Richmond Heights takes on Newport (KY) in the second game of the day. Richmond Heights is a back-to-back state champion in Division IV and added our top ranked 2026 prospect [player_tooltip player_id='1705953' first='Tj' last='Crumble']. Newport has one of the top teams in Kentucky with 2026 stud [player_tooltip player_id='1359137' first='Taylen' last='Kinney'] and [player_tooltip player_id='1359138' first='James' last='Turner'] leading the way. Newport also has multiple 2024 transfers originally from Ohio at the guard position in [player_tooltip player_id='1675737' first='DeShaun' last='Jackson'] and [player_tooltip player_id='1238514' first='Jabari' last='Covington']. The final game of the night features host Mason against Cincinnati Taft. Mason returns key seniors [player_tooltip player_id='1222359' first='Ben' last='Menker'] and [player_tooltip player_id='1285243' first='Matt' last='DeBrosse'] and have a solid core around those two. Taft will have a new look squad after graduating some talented prospects but are hoping to show they are still at the top of the CMAC.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Saturday December 2nd</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The second day of the event starts with Chaminade Julienne Vs Miami East. Miami East returns a senior guard duo of [player_tooltip player_id='1068245' first='Wes' last='Enis'] and [player_tooltip player_id='1068246' first='Jacob' last='Roeth'] and will be state title contenders in Division III. Chaminade Julienne is coming off a final four appearance in Division II but after losing a majority of their production from last season, will be relying on [player_tooltip player_id='1467912' first='Devin' last='Rakestraw'] and [player_tooltip player_id='1701134' first='David' last='Cartwright'] to take the next step. The second game is Sycamore Vs Lloyd Memorial (KY) as [player_tooltip player_id='1222347' first='Raleigh' last='Burgess'] will make his return to this event after dominating against Dublin Jerome last season. Lloyd Memorial is led by [player_tooltip player_id='1252216' first='EJ' last='Walker'], who has a handful of high and mid major offers. Lakota East takes on Cincinnati St Xavier in a GMC Vs GCL showdown. Lakota East is led by [player_tooltip player_id='1285295' first='Trey' last='Perry'] and will rely on their defensive toughness to grind out wins this year. St Xavier has a pair of talented 2025 prospects to watch in [player_tooltip player_id='1462534' first='Jacob' last='Wassler'] and [player_tooltip player_id='1718518' first='Donovan' last='Waleskowski']. Kettering Alter takes on Hilliard Bradley in what could be the marquee match-up of day two. Alter is led by transfer [player_tooltip player_id='1432016' first='Rj' last='Greer'] but they also have other 2025 talent in [player_tooltip player_id='2028558' first='Brady' last='Conner'] and [player_tooltip player_id='1497738' first='Matt' last='Lunne']. Hilliard Bradley is one of the top teams in Columbus with [player_tooltip player_id='1222352' first='Cade' last='Norris'] leading a sharp shooting squad. Freshman [player_tooltip player_id='2140168' first='Ben' last='Mirgon'] will be a name to watch in central Ohio as he gets his high school career underway in that game. Finally, Kings take on Preble Shawnee to end the day. Kings is another program with a strong 2025 class led by [player_tooltip player_id='1812061' first='Tommy' last='Clark'] with [player_tooltip player_id='2025118' first='Myles' last='Baker'] as a prime breakout candidate next to senior [player_tooltip player_id='1222364' first='Talan' last='Noyes'] in their backcourt. Preble Shawnee will be contending for a Division III state title as [player_tooltip player_id='1067753' first='Mason' last='Shrout'] wraps up his illustrious high school career.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Sunday December 3rd</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The final day of the event has just three games but there will still be plenty of talent to see. Delaware Hayes takes on Cooper (KY) to open the day as [player_tooltip player_id='1222373' first='Jesse' last='Burris'] and [player_tooltip player_id='1432060' first='Landon' last='Vanderwalker'] are one of the top duos in Ohio. Cooper is led by seniors [player_tooltip player_id='1208147' first='Jashaun' last='Pouncy'] and [player_tooltip player_id='2087598' first='Tanner' last='Murphy'] this season. Cincinnati Woodward takes on Rowan County (KY) in the second game of the day. [player_tooltip player_id='1368789' first='Ru' last='Mills'] led the CMAC Red in scoring as a Junior and is back for more this season. [player_tooltip player_id='1148601' first='Brayden' last='Mirus'] will be a player to watch on Rowan County, he recently received an offer to Webster University. The event wraps up with Goshen taking on Lloyd Memorial (KY). Goshen is led by Caden Zeinner, one of the top scorers in the greater Cincinnati area. They'll take on Lloyd Memorial, the only team to play multiple games at the Ohio Valley Hoops Classic this year.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->