Ohio Valley Hoops Classic: Friday Preview

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>One of the marquee early season events every year is the Ohio Valley Hoops Classic hosted in Mason, Ohio. In this article we'll break down the Friday contests which feature six games starting at 11:30 A.M.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Goshen Vs Lakota East 11:30 A.M.</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>This is a great match-up to open the event, Goshen comes in with [player_tooltip player_id='2021052' first='Tyler' last='Owens'] back after a solid Sophomore season but is a prime breakout candidate after a strong showing at the Prep Hoops 250 Expo. He'll be joined by freshman [player_tooltip player_id='2532133' first='Graham' last='Roark'] who is a name to know for the future as that duo will be ones to watch for Goshen. Lakota East is led by star [player_tooltip player_id='1285295' first='Trey' last='Perry'] but the Thunderhawks graduate their next four leading scorers from last season after Perry. It'll be interesting to see which new names establish themselves this winter.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Loveland Vs Preble Shawnee 1:15 P.M.</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Loveland had a solid season in the ECC and return double-digit scorer [player_tooltip player_id='2445462' first='Chase' last='Martin'] who is a Junior this year. I expect Martin to be one of the best players in the ECC this winter and lead his team. For Preble Shawnee, they graduate one of the best players in school history in Mason Shrout, who led them to the final four in Division III. Sophomore [player_tooltip player_id='2125752' first='Knox' last='Mills'] is the main prospect to watch as Preble Shawnee looks to build on a great run the past few seasons.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Cincinnati St Xavier Vs Kettering Fairmont 3:00 P.M.</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>A GCL-South Vs GWOC battle as St Xavier takes on Kettering Fairmont. One aspect to watch in this game could be the Bombers playing without key football athletes who also play on the basketball team. St Xavier takes on Moeller on Friday and a win in that game would have them advance to the final four which would be played on the same day as this game. For Kettering Fairmont, they return their two leading scorers from last season and could start fast with [player_tooltip player_id='2323147' first='Evan' last='Gentile'] leading the charge.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Cincinnati Sycamore Vs Colonial (FL) 4:45 P.M.</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The lone out of state squad in the event is Colonial out of the Orlando area. They face a Sycamore squad that loses Raleigh Burgess to graduation, who is now at Purdue. The Aves return [player_tooltip player_id='1888353' first='Sam' last='Imade'] and [player_tooltip player_id='1285291' first='Tariq' last='Kimbrough'], who were their second and third leading scorers last season, so I expect them to remain competitive in the GMC.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Kettering Alter Vs Richmond Heights 6:30 P.M.</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Defending state champions meet as reigning Division II champs Kettering Alter take on reigning Division IV champs Richmond Heights. A total of five Division I commits are in this game but I'm most intrigued by what [player_tooltip player_id='1432055' first='Charlie' last='Uhl'] and [player_tooltip player_id='1497738' first='Matt' last='Lunne'] can do against an undersized Richmond Heights frontcourt. On the other end, can the Spartans run those bigs out the game and stretch them to the perimeter to outscore the Knights? Interesting clash of styles in this one.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Little Miami @ Mason 8:15 P.M.</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The hosts get their game to end the opening night of the event as the younger Comets squad will look to replace a huge 2024 senior class. [player_tooltip player_id='2576066' first='Brycen' last='Johnson'] and [player_tooltip player_id='2286926' first='Max' last='Cherplain'] are names to know for Mason while Little Miami is led by Illinois State baseball commit [player_tooltip player_id='2453400' first='Carter' last='Sellers']. I'll be curious what the guard play looks like for Little Miami as Elisha Jones was a standout for them last year and is currently playing at the college level at Mount St Joseph.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->