By Ed Letsinger/Hacksports.com
Special to MaxPreps.com
This past Saturday, Princeton High School hosted St. Xavier in an exhibition basketball game as part of a pilot project of "The OHSAA Foundation."
The Ohio High School Athletic Association approved this exhibition game to promote the OHSAA Foundation and to provide assistance to worthwhile endeavors.
The purpose of the game was to pay tribute to former Princeton head coach Bill Brewer, who passed away unexpectedly in November. The proceeds from the game will go to the Brewer Children Education Fund, a fund established to assist Brewer's three daughters with educational expenses.
There are five OHSAA Foundation games scheduled this season, one in each region of the state. Created nearly 10 years ago, the OHSAA Foundation provides scholarships and leadership training to student-athletes across Ohio.
On Track For State Title Defenses
Four Greater Cincinnati schools started the 2007-08 basketball season as defending state champions. At the halfway point of the season, all appear to be right on track to make another legitimate run.
North College Hill is trying to become the first program in Ohio high school boys' basketball history to win four straight state titles. O.J. Mayo and Bill Walker led NCH to Division III state titles in 2005 and 2006. Last season, minus the star duo, they still managed to tie the record of three straight with a 50-45 win over Findlay Liberty-Benton, joining Dayton Stivers (1928-30) and Columbus Wehrle (1988-90).
The Trojans are currently 8-3 overall and ranked No. 1 in the Cincinnati coaches' small-school poll. Two of their losses were to larger division schools. Senior point guard Damon Butler leads the team in scoring (21.6 ppg.) and assists (5.1 apg.).
Defending Division I state champion Moeller is seeking to become the first Cincinnati school to win back-to-back big-school titles since Elder in 1973 and '74. The Crusaders are 11-1, ranked No. 1 in Ohio and 12th nationally by MaxPreps, and are unbeaten against local competition. They own big wins over Greater Catholic League rivals St. Xavier and Elder, both ranked in the top 10 in Ohio by MaxPreps, and Lincoln (N.Y.), ranked No. 9 in the nation by USA Today. Their lone loss was 56-45 to St. Benedict's Prep (N.J.), currently the top-ranked team in the nation by MaxPreps. Senior forward Quinn McDowell leads the team in scoring (14.8 ppg).
Georgetown, coming off a 28-0 season and first-ever state title in Division IV, is quietly putting together another strong season. The G'Men are 8-1 and riding an eight-game winning streak after losing their season opener to Ripley, 46-40. Georgetown, flying under the radar, is not ranked but on the verge of cracking the local small-school coaches' top 10 Poll. Forward Jess Chadwell leads the G'Men is scoring at 12.8 points a game.
In girls' basketball, Mount Notre Dame is going for a three-peat in Division I. The Cougars (10-2) stumbled out of the gate at 2-2, but their losses came against top competition against No. 1-ranked Lakota West and Kentucky powerhouse Lexington Catholic. Mount Notre Dame has regrouped and is currently riding an eight-game winning streak. The Cougars have a star-studded cast and are led in scoring by Georgetown recruit Tia McBride (14.7 ppg.), UTEP recruit Channing Hillman (14.6 ppg.), junior Kendall Hackney (12.2 ppg.) and junior Gabby Smith (10.4 ppg.).
Perusing the Polls
Preseason coaches' polls can be a crapshoot at best sometimes, so it is always interesting to compare them against reality. The midpoint of the season is as good a time as any for a check-up to see where teams really stand. In Cincinnati, it looks like coaches actually did their homework this time around.
The boys' large-school division is holding up well, with eight of the 10 teams still ranked, albeit in different order. Preseason No. 9 Mason (4-7) and No. 10 Aiken (8-3) have slipped out. Surprising Fairfield (10-2) and Loveland (8-2) are in at seventh and 10th, respectively.
The small-school division is even better, with only preseason No. 6 Finneytown (3-6) dropping out, and McNicholas (4-6) in at No. 10.
In the girls' large-school division, only preseason No. 10 Mason (7-5) has dropped out, replaced by Glen Este (8-4). Among the small schools, Batavia started at No. 8 and is now out. Summit Country Day (8-3) is in at No. 10.
We'll check out and report on this again at the conclusion of the regular season to see where the final rankings came in compared against the preseason.
Ed Letsinger is the editor of Hacksports.com
