OHSAA Division III Preseason Rankings: 6-10

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The OHSAA basketball season tips off in about a month and it's time to start breaking down which teams have the best chance of making it to Dayton for the state championships in all seven Division's. In this article we'll break down teams 6-10 in our Division III preseason rankings.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">6. Sandusky</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Streakball is an exciting brand of basketball to watch and the crazy Sandusky fans pack out the gym to cheer on their team. [player_tooltip player_id='1672052' first='Jason' last='Henlon'], [player_tooltip player_id='1672053' first='Kobe' last='Brown'] and AaZoriyon Bonner have been staples of the program and have one last run together. After winning 46 games the past two seasons, I expect Sandusky to be above the 20 win mark once again and contend for a regional title.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">7. Akron STVM</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>One of the most historic programs in all of OHSAA basketball, Akron STVM finds themselves just outside the top five of our rankings. The Irish lost a couple key pieces to transfer this summer but I respect Dru Joyce II way too much to have them any lower. I expect [player_tooltip player_id='2476483' first='Elijah' last='Chapman'] to be one of the breakout stars in northeast Ohio and [player_tooltip player_id='2288382' first='DeCarlo' last='Prince'] is a nice wing athlete who has a couple FBS football offers.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">8. Lima Shawnee</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Last season it was the Bertke brothers show as Beckett and Trevick were running the show for Lima Shawnee. Adding [player_tooltip player_id='1432045' first='Jagger' last='Hutchins'] to the mix will help them with a third scoring option that they were missing last season. I also think [player_tooltip player_id='2434352' first='Trevick' last='Bertke'] getting a year older and stronger will go a long way in his development.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">9. Lexington</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>A team that had an incredible season last year, the Minutemen return 2026 standouts [player_tooltip player_id='1705955' first='Brayden' last='Fogle'] and [player_tooltip player_id='2353222' first='Seven' last='Allen'] who will continue to be the go-to options for their team. I expect another amazing season for Lexington, just potentially more playoff success with their 2026 duo now being Juniors.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">10. Cincinnati Aiken</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The defending CMAC champs have elite guard play, which usually wins you a lot of high school basketball games. [player_tooltip player_id='1432009' first='Jaiden' last='Arnold'] and [player_tooltip player_id='1432023' first='James' last='Burnett'] return and [player_tooltip player_id='1675746' first='Tayvon' last='Smith'] could breakout this season. I expect Aiken to compete for a second straight conference title and potentially a regional championship.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->