With the 2021-22 Ohio boys basketball regular season in the books, every team resets with 0-0 records at the start of state tournament play this week around the state.
In the northwest Ohio area, entering Division I sectional play as league champions, most notably, will be fifth-ranked Northern Lakes League champion Northview (21-1, 14-0) and four-time defending Three Rivers Athletic Conference champion Lima Senior (19-2, 13-1).
Others tipping off as league champions from the Toledo area will be Start (15-6, 9-1), which won its fourth City League title in the past five seasons and enters the D-I bracket, and three others that will compete in D-III — Northern Buckeye Conference champ Eastwood (19-3, 13-1), Northwest Ohio Athletic League winner Swanton (20-2, 7-0), which is ranked ninth in Division III, and Toledo Area Athletic Conference victor Ottawa Hills (14-6, 8-2).
From the Sandusky Bay Conference come three divisional winners — Lake Division champ Sandusky (17-4, 11-1), which plays in D-II; Bay Division co-champs Huron (18-2, 9-1) and Margaretta (19-3, 9-1), which compete in Divisions II and IV, respectively; and River Division champ Tiffin Calvert (22-0, 16-0), which opens tourney play as the second-ranked team in D-IV.
Other regional league winners include Blanchard Valley Conference champion Pandora-Gilboa (15-7, 9-0), Buckeye Border Conference co-champions Edon (12-8, 6-1) and North Central (12-9, 6-1), and Green Meadows Conference champion Wayne Trace (20-2, 7-0), which is ranked fifth in D-III, and runner-up Antwerp (21-1, 6-1), which is ranked No. 1 in D-IV.
Also, perennial state power Ottawa-Glandorf (19-2, 9-0), the Western Buckeye League champion, is ranked No. 4 in D-III. The Titans' only losses came in nonleague play against two strong D-I teams from the TRAC, Lima Senior and Findlay (17-5, 9-5).
Here is a look at the most likely outcomes in all four divisions in their respective regions as all teams strive to reach the state tournament March 18 to 20 at the University of Dayton.
DIVISION I
There may be some drama and a few upsets along the way, but look for Northview and Lima Senior to win their respective district titles at Central Catholic and Lake on March 4 and 5.
NLL runner-up Perrysburg (18-3, 12-2) has potential to make a run, and perhaps the most underrated dangerous teams in these two districts are TRAC runner-up Whitmer (17-4, 11-3) and fourth-place Findlay.
The March 1 district semifinals at Central's Sullivan Center should pit Northview against Ashland (13-8) at 5:30 p.m., and Whitmer versus fifth-place TRAC foe St. John's Jesuit (14-7, 8-6) at 7:30 in a must-see doubleheader.
On March 3, at Lake, the equally intriguing district semifinal matchups should be Findlay against Perrysburg at 5:30, and Lima Senior versus Start at 7:30. The latter two teams squared off in regional semifinals in 2019 and 2020 with Lima's Spartans edging coach Matt Wortham's Spartans both times.
Look for Northview to squeak by in a tight battle with Whitmer at Central on March 4 at 7 p.m., and for Lima Senior to take a less dramatic victory over Start on March 5 at 2 p.m. at Lake.
If these districts do play out that way, Lima Senior would be favorite in the March 9 regional semifinal at 7 p.m. at Savage Arena. Northview's only loss was a 79-64 setback at Lima on Dec. 19.
If coach Quincey Simpson's veteran, battle-tested Lima squad is to have its string of three straight regional final advancements halted, the teams most capable of upsetting the Spartans would appear to be Findlay, which lost to Lima 51-48 on a Jan. 14 buzzer-beating 3-pointer, and Whitmer, which edged the visiting Spartans 60-57 on Jan. 21.
Until someone can prove otherwise, Lima Senior is the top team, in any division, in northwest Ohio. If Lima gets to its fourth straight regional final, the Spartans would meet the winner of a regional semifinal played in northeast Ohio between the winners of the Copley and Elyria Catholic districts.
The top three seeded teams at Copley are unranked Brecksville-Broadview Heights, Cleveland Heights, and Shaker Heights. The top three from Elyria Catholic are Cleveland St. Ignatius, Brunswick, and Olmsted Falls.
The regional final is set for March 12 at 2 p.m. at Savage Arena.
DIVISION II
If ever there was a team prepared for a deep tournament run it is third-place TRAC finisher Central Catholic (17-5, 9-5) in D-II. Coach Mike Floyd's Fighting Irish returned pretty much everyone that was part of Central's 4-11 team a year ago that regrouped to reach the regionals.
Add to that mix junior guard Michael Greenlee, an Irish starter last year who was not able to compete in the tournament. Junior guard Chico Johnson is one of the area's top overall talents.
Central played an all D-I TRAC schedule, edged NLL runner-up Perrysburg, and rallied from a 21-point third-quarter deficit to top North Carolina power Word of God Christian, 76-73 in overtime, on Jan. 24. After that gantlet, the Irish will see no D-II foes that can match what they have already faced. Thus, their biggest enemy may be simply not being ready for an inspired, upset-minded opponent.
Look for the Irish to face SBC Lake Division member Clyde (12-10) in a 7:30 district semifinal at Lake on March 2, that following a 5:30 matchup between Sandusky and NBC runner-up Rossford (16-6, 12-2).
The most likely March 5 district final matchup at Lake would be Central versus Sandusky, and look for the Irish to advance to their second straight regional.
At regionals, the Lake district winner would play a March 10 semifinal at 6 p.m. at Bowling Green's Stroh Center against the winner of the North Ridgeville district, projected to be either sixth-ranked Akron Buchtel or Gates Mills Gilmour.
The 8 p.m. regional semifinal at BGSU would feature the winners of the Ada and Ashland districts. The top four seeds at Ada are WBL members Defiance (15-6), St. Marys Memorial (14-7), Wapakoneta (15-7), and Van Wert (16-6). The top four seeds out of Ashland are Huron, Mid-Ohio Athletic Conference champ Shelby (19-3), Ohio Cardinal Conference member Lexington (13-9), and SBC Lake member Norwalk (11-11).
The March 12 D-II regional final at the Stroh Center is at 4 p.m.
DIVISION III
Expect several tight battles along the way to the 1 p.m. district final on March 5 at Central Catholic, and also look for the eventual combatants to be league champions Eastwood and Swanton.
Eastwood will likely first need to get past a tough hurdle in Ottawa Hills. The Eagles edged the host Green Bears 46-43 on Feb. 8.
Swanton will have two tough tests to pass to get there — Friday's sectional final against TAAC runner-up Cardinal Stritch (15-7, 7-3) at Wauseon, and most likely a rematch against NWOAL foe and perennial tournament threat Archbold (15-7, 4-3) on March 3 at Central.
Neither win is a given, but coach Bruce Smith's Bulldogs have shown a season-long ability to prevail in close games. Swanton is 6-2 in games decided by six points or fewer, including wins over Archbold (45-39) and Stritch (53-51). Their two losses were each by two points.
If Eastwood and Swanton do reach the district final on March 5, look for coach Todd Henline's Eagles to have too much depth for the Bulldogs.
The Central Catholic district winner would advance to an 8 p.m. regional semifinal at the Stroh Center on March 9 against the winner of a star-studded the Lima district with the top four seeds being Ottawa-Glandorf, Wayne Trace, Northwest Conference co-champion Bluffton (20-2, 7-1), and BVC runner-up Liberty-Benton (16-6, 7-2).
The 6 p.m. regional semifinal at BGSU on March 9 features the winners of the Norwalk and Ohio Dominican University districts.
The top two seeds at Norwalk are top-ranked Colonel Crawford (22-0), and second-ranked Collins Western Reserve (20-1), and the top seed at ODU is seventh-ranked Canal Winchester Harvest Prep (16-3).
The D-III regional final at the Stroh Center is set for March 12 at 1 p.m.
DIVISION IV
In the early weeks of the season, The Blade posed a question as to whether preseason TAAC favorite Emmanuel Christian would develop well enough to challenge for a state title. That question became moot when superstar 6-5 freshman guard Jerry Easter II suffered a fractured right wrist early in the third quarter of an eventual 69-67 overtime loss to Stritch on Jan. 21.
EC was 11-2 overall entering that game, and Easter's sterling first season halted with him averaging 25.0 points and 10.2 rebounds. After he exited, the Warriors (14-5, 6-4) lost three of their final six games.
But, with or without Emmanuel in the mix, the D-IV regional at BGSU was going to be a grueling test with top-notch teams emerging from all four districts.
At Defiance, look for top-ranked Antwerp to beat EC's Warriors, and for Ayersville (16-5) to top GMC foe Hicksville (15-7) in the March 1 semifinals. And, expect GMC champ Antwerp to prevail over Ayersville in the March 3 final.
Antwerp would then face the winner of the Wapakoneta district in an 8 p.m. regional semifinal on March 8 at BGSU. The top four seeds from Wapakoneta are Midwest Athletic Conference tri-champion New Bremen (17-4, 8-1), NWC third-place finisher Spencerville (19-3, 6-2), Northwest Central Conference winner Lima Perry (17-5, 7-0), and MAC tri-champion Marion Local (18-4, 7-1).
The 6 p.m. regional semifinal on March 8 at BGSU would pit the district winners from Elida and Findlay.
The top four seeds from Elida are NWC co-champion Convoy Crestview (15-6, 7-1), joint NWC and Putnam County League members Columbus Grove (15-7) and Leipsic (14-8), and BVC champion Pandora-Gilboa (15-7, 9-0).
The top four seeds from Findlay are second-ranked Tiffin Calvert, SBC River Division runner-up Old Fort (18-4, 13-3), Northern 10 Conference member Mohawk (15-7), and SBC River member Hopewell-Loudon (14-8, 10-6).
Look for the tough MAC schedule played by New Bremen or Marion Local to prepare whichever team advances from Wapakoneta to oust top-ranked Antwerp in one semifinal, and for Convoy Crestview to emerge from its district and to hand Tiffin Calvert its lone loss of the season in the other semi.
And, call the 7 p.m. regional final at BGSU on March 11, a toss-up for the state semifinal berth.
First Published February 21, 2022, 6:09 p.m.
