Postseason Preview: Regions 7 and 8

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>District tournaments start Monday! Let's take a look at some teams and players to watch heading into district tournaments.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong><span style="text-decoration: underline">Region 7:</span></strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Most likely to make the regional tournament field:</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>DuPont Manual</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Central</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>St. Xavier</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Male</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Trinity</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Seneca</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Ballard</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Eastern</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>X-Factor: [player_tooltip player_id='2529549' first='Baron' last='Clay'], Ballard - While [player_tooltip player_id='2851845' first='Mason' last='Grivna'] and [player_tooltip player_id='1359140' first='Cole' last='Edelen'] get a lot of the headlines for the Bruins, it's Clay who tends to make the team go. Baron is much more of a facilitator than Cole and the Ballard offense is at it's best when he is creating open looks for Edelen, [player_tooltip player_id='2459420' first='Qyntin' last='Woods'], etc. on the perimeter. If the Bruins hope to win a regional title, it will be because [player_tooltip player_id='2529549' first='Baron' last='Clay'] had a big regional tournament.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Most likely regional champion: St. Xavier</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Most likely regional tournament MVP: [player_tooltip player_id='1563823' first='Jeremiah' last='Jackson'], St. Xavier</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><span style="text-decoration: underline"><strong>Region 8:</strong></span></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Most likely to make the regional tournament field:</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>South Oldham</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>North Oldham</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Woodford County</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Spencer County</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Henry County</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Owen County</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Simon Kenton</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Walton-Verona</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>X-Factor: [player_tooltip player_id='2391345' first='Joaquin' last='Siakam'], South Oldham - Siakam has had a really impressive Sophomore season, averaging 16 and 5 but he offers one thing that most other 8 region teams cannot match: his top tier athleticism. If Joaquin has his motor running full speed for the next couple of weeks, the Dragons could find themselves at Rupp Arena next month. He's a matchup problem for nearly every team in the 8th region. If Siakam is content to be just another guy, it's hard to see South Oldham making a deep run.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Most likely regional champion: North Oldham</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Most likely regional tournament MVP: [player_tooltip player_id='2392232' first='Tommy' last='Gregg'], North Oldham</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->