OHSAA Division I Watchlist: SW

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The OHSAA basketball season is just a couple weeks away and in this article we'll break down four teams that just missed our top 10 in the preseason rankings but are on our radar from southwest Ohio.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Cincinnati Moeller</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Talented enough to make it into the top 10 by the end of the year, the Crusaders are just too young for me to have them in the top 10 preseason list. But with guys like [player_tooltip player_id='2885759' first='Bubba' last='Donald'] and [player_tooltip player_id='2890898' first='Jayden' last='Davis'] at guard, the Trenz brothers at forward and [player_tooltip player_id='2885762' first='Eyobel' last='Abraham'] and [player_tooltip player_id='2575898' first='Maximus' last='Arlinghaus'] at forward, the future is bright for Moeller. If [player_tooltip player_id='2856504' first='Danny' last='Kelly'] and [player_tooltip player_id='2422858' first='Riley' last='McQueen'] take the necessary steps, I could see Moeller being one of the top teams in Cincinnati and reclaim the GCL-South.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Cincinnati St Xavier</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The defending GCL-South champs lose a senior duo of Jacob Wassler and Donovan Waleskowski who were staples of the Bombers program. With a couple of seniors back, I still expect St Xavier to put up a strong fight to keep their conference crown. I think [player_tooltip player_id='2674982' first='Liam' last='McGeady'] is the most intriguing long-term prospect in the Bombers program right now but I'm sure other names will establish themselves as the season progresses.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Cincinnati Fairfield</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>A team that's been to three regional finals in the past five years, Cincinnati Fairfield is probably the most accomplished Division I program to not reach a final four in that time frame. Always having a nice mix of guards and size, but they'll be without their tallest player due to injury as Demaceo Bronston is unfortunately out for the year with a torn ACL. I'll be curious who steps up at the guard position after the graduation of Daviawne Crim and Michael Lewis from last season. [player_tooltip player_id='2222945' first='Trevor' last='Davids'] is another 2027 prospect to watch for Fairfield, he appeared in 11 games as a sophomore. After finishing tied for second last season in the GMC, I expect Fairfield to remain competitive in the GMC this winter.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Lakota East</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>There's been a ton of hype around the Thunderhawks crosstown rivals at Lakota West but I don't want people to sleep on Lakota East going into this season. [player_tooltip player_id='2422124' first='Brady' last='Bowman'] is the perfect guard to take over the reigns after star Trey Perry graduated and headed off to Miami (OH) this year. Add in a nice mix of senior returners and younger pieces like [player_tooltip player_id='2422302' first='JJ' last='Smith'] ready to contribute and I think Lakota East will be in the top 4 of the GMC standings when it's all said and done this year.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->