OHSAA Division II Playoff Preview: Regions 7 + 8

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The OHSAA playoff brackets were released on Sunday and it's time to preview each of the 16 regions. In this article we'll break down regions 7 and 8.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Region 7 (Southeast)</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">The Favorite</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Bishop Hartley: With tough defense and a strong schedule Hartley is the favorite to emerge from this region with a core based around the Calloway brothers, [player_tooltip player_id='1701047' first='Pharez' last='Nicholas'] and [player_tooltip player_id='2125747' first='Jeffrey' last='Reynolds']. None of those players are seniors, so it'll be interesting to see how they handle the bright lights of the playoffs.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Contenders</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Zanesville Maysville: A team that won a district last year is once again the top seed in the east district, they were once again at the top of the MVL standings.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Tri Valley: The top two seeds in the East (Maysville and Indian Valley) let Tri Valley get their own district, that speaks volumes to me what area coaches think of the Scotties.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Marietta: [player_tooltip player_id='1950570' first='Alex' last='Kendall'] is a unique advantage that the Tigers have on the interior over the rest of the southeast district.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Vincent Warren: A deep team that's played a tough schedule to prepare them for this playoff run.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Sleepers</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Linden McKinley: Unfortunately, they had to opt out of the Columbus City League Championship due to playing the max amount of regular season games, but they could make a playoff push with a team that is scrappy and tough.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>St Clairsville: Recently winning an OVAC championship and with a star like [player_tooltip player_id='1952003' first='Tyson' last='Pastor'] on their team, St Clairsville could be a team to watch in a tough district.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>New Lexington: With a guard like [player_tooltip player_id='1832082' first='Isaiah' last='Stephens'] who can get a bucket when needed and a schedule that included mostly east district teams from the MVL, New Lexington is the wildcard in the southeast district.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Region 8 (Southwest)</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">The favorite</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Kettering Alter: While they've slipped a bit against some tough teams to wrap up the season, no team in this region can match the firepower that [player_tooltip player_id='1432016' first='Rj' last='Greer'], [player_tooltip player_id='2028558' first='Brady' last='Conner'], [player_tooltip player_id='1432055' first='Charlie' last='Uhl'], [player_tooltip player_id='1688317' first='Gavin' last='Leen'] and company bring.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Contenders</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Cincinnati Wyoming: A team that is led by a core group of Sophomores with [player_tooltip player_id='1888254' first='Kellen' last='Wiley'], [player_tooltip player_id='1925832' first='Darren' last='Gray'] and [player_tooltip player_id='2366692' first='Carlyle' last='Billingsley'] leading the charge. They lost three in a row in early February but are back on track.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Trotwood Madison: A team that has played a tough schedule, recent wins over Lima Sr, Mansfield Sr and Wayne show the potential of their group.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Sleepers</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Cincinnati Woodward: A potential district semifinal of Woodward and Wyoming is very intriguing, [player_tooltip player_id='1368789' first='Ru' last='Mills'] and company have the athleticism and scoring ability to win a district.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Cincinnati Taft: [player_tooltip player_id='2286920' first='Jordyn' last='Buchanan'] has been a star in the CMAC and found his stride in the later part of the season, he has the scoring ability to take over a game and the Senators could meet Alter in a district title. Those two teams played a great game last season in the playoffs.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Bishop Watterson: A potential district title between Watterson and Bishop Ready would be very competitive and provide a strong environment. They'll have to get through Bloom-Carroll and Jonathan Alder respectively to make it there. [player_tooltip player_id='2052128' first='Dominic' last='Theado'] is a player to watch for Watterson, he helped them recently knock off Bishop Hartley.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Bishop Fenwick: A team that's been playing better as of late, I plan on seeing this team in person on Saturday against McNicholas. Should give me a sense of if they look like a team that can win a district title. [player_tooltip player_id='1484682' first='Bailey' last='Temming'] is a wildcard with his size and rim protection, can dominate a game from both ends in the paint.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->