OHSAA Division I Playoff Preview: Region 3 (Central)

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The OHSAA playoffs start this week and it's time to preview each of the Divisions to see which teams are most likely to make it to Dayton. In this article we'll be previewing Region 3, which is in Division I and the central region.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">The favorite</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Olentangy Orange: The top seed in the central region has managed through a tough regular season schedule with only one loss. [player_tooltip player_id='1480848' first='Devin' last='Brown'] has taken the leap into stardom and their new faces on varsity have fit in immediately.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Contenders</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Delaware Hayes: 1A and 1B in this region on paper is Orange and Delaware Hayes. I felt like Orange had like one or two more marquee wins but pick your poison on which team is the favorite. With the Division I talent of [player_tooltip player_id='1222373' first='Jesse' last='Burris'] and [player_tooltip player_id='1432060' first='Landon' last='Vanderwalker'] plus size and shooting across the board, Hayes is a tough out.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Hilliard Bradley: They fell twice to Olentangy Orange but the Jags are always a tough playoff out. The Norris-Mirgon connection is a familiar one in Central Ohio and this is the lone year [player_tooltip player_id='1222352' first='Cade' last='Norris'] and [player_tooltip player_id='2140168' first='Ben' last='Mirgon'] can share the court together. Can Cade finally make it to Dayton and lift the regional championship? This might be the best team of his career this season.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Reynoldsburg: It was a bit surprising to see Reynoldsburg join Olentangy Orange in their district but the rest of the district is very weak after those two teams. The Raiders have faced one of the toughest schedules in Ohio and have four Division I recruits in [player_tooltip player_id='1432017' first='Jordan' last='Fisher'], [player_tooltip player_id='1432037' first='Toby' last='Nwokolo'], [player_tooltip player_id='1705958' first='Jorden' last='Bowens'] and [player_tooltip player_id='1705956' first='Xavier' last='McKinney'].</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Sleepers</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Pickerington Central: The only team to beat Olentangy Orange, I was a little surprised they didn't like their chances in a rematch. [player_tooltip player_id='1359618' first='Braylin' last='Wells'] and [player_tooltip player_id='1432022' first='Amare' last='Spiva'] are big time upperclassmen talents and freshman [player_tooltip player_id='2288381' first='Landon' last='Evans'] has grown into his role as the season moves on. They could give Westerville North some trouble in a district semifinal.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Thomas Worthington: Okay hear me out here, they play at third seeded New Albany and potentially fifth seeded Newark. They recently beat Olentangy Berlin and Olentangy. They have a Junior in [player_tooltip player_id='2200014' first='Julian' last='Johnson'] who can take over a game and senior [player_tooltip player_id='1462512' first='Shaheem' last='Nieves'] is an impact defender. I wouldn't pick them to beat New Albany, but crazier things have happened.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Big Walnut: The side of the bracket with the most wildcards is the bottom of central 3. With teams like Gahanna, Northland, Walnut Ridge and Grove City. Any of these teams could make a district final. Big Walnut has an interim coach but the senior talent of [player_tooltip player_id='1603493' first='Conor' last='Watters'] and [player_tooltip player_id='1581789' first='Trenton' last='Minor'] is enough where they might see themselves playing on Saturday at ODU.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->