OHSAA Division III Playoff Preview: Regions 11 + 12

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The OHSAA playoff brackets were released this Sunday and we're previewing each region ahead of the start of the playoffs. In this article we're discussing regions 11 and 12 from Division III.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Region 11 (Southeast)</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">The Favorite</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Harvest Prep: Always tough to beat, Harvest Prep has had a ton of success going down to Athens after emerging from the central district. They have size, athleticism and depth that many teams in the region can't compete with. They've also beaten a handful of Division I teams to prepare for the tournament.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Contenders</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Malvern: One of two unbeatens in the state, Malvern is once again a contender in the east district. Their senior duo of [player_tooltip player_id='2328308' first='J'Allen' last='Barrino'] and [player_tooltip player_id='1950569' first='Mitchell' last='Minor'] give them a guard-forward combo that's won a lot of games together.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Minford: Another year where Minford is a contender, their Junior duo of [player_tooltip player_id='1432013' first='Myles' last='Montgomery'] and [player_tooltip player_id='1888322' first='Bennett' last='Kayser'] give them the star power and experience to contend for a district title after falling short last year.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Wheelersburg: The number one seed in the southeast district, the Pirates have beaten Minford by 2 and 3 points respectively in their two meetings this season. They also pushed the favorite Harvest Prep early in the season for three and a half quarters.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Sleepers</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>North Adams: As the three seed in the southeast double district, they could draw Minford again in a district final after upsetting them in that round last season. Could they play spoiler again with [player_tooltip player_id='1068243' first='Bransyn' last='Copas'] and [player_tooltip player_id='1958384' first='Jayce' last='Rothwell'] running the show?</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Africentric: They started off the year slow but [player_tooltip player_id='1222355' first='Cortez' last='Freeman'] and company have been rolling with some signature wins in January. They are severely under-seeded due to their slow start and could easily find themselves in a district final.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Martins Ferry: [player_tooltip player_id='1952004' first='Alex' last='Reese'] has the talent to take over a game and they avoid each of the top 2 seeds until a potential district final.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Region 12 (Southwest)</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">The Favorite</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>No team emerged from the pack in this region, making this a wide open draw for who will emerge.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Contenders</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Preble Shawnee: [player_tooltip player_id='1067753' first='Mason' last='Shrout'] is the best player in the region and I wouldn't be betting against him despite some recent losses. His 38 point game against Eaton helped his team get back on track.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Tri Village: [player_tooltip player_id='1729405' first='Trey' last='Sagester'] is one of the top underclassmen shooters in Ohio, the Patriots have played a soft schedule so far, but have a pair of tough playoff tune-ups this weekend.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Indian Lake: A team I caught in person, Indian Lake can really score the basketball and senior [player_tooltip player_id='1972338' first='Caiden' last='Nicol'] can win a game in crunch time.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Williamsburg: The top seed in their half of the bracket, Williamsburg only lost twice all season and once was in overtime.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Sleepers</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Miami East: A program that expected to compete for a regional title had an adjustment when [player_tooltip player_id='1068245' first='Wes' last='Enis'] enrolled early at Lincoln Memorial. [player_tooltip player_id='1068246' first='Jacob' last='Roeth'] and company have still competed and could make a district title push with a favorable draw.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Gamble Montessori: Unbeaten in the small school CMAC division and a 13 point win over top seed Williamsburg shows they can play with anybody in the region.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->