Utah Prep (Hurricane, Utah) Vs CATS Academy National (Boston, Mass.)
Sunday, 11:30 a.m.
International talent will be on center stage in this one as both teams have stars from across the globe. Big man
Djafar Silimana comes from Bali and guard
Jayden Cecil from Australia are notable names to watch on Utah Prep. Nicolas Mitrovic from Serbia, Valdis Valters of Latvia, Cheick-Oumar Fadiga of Sweden and Ater Maker Bol of Spain all started the opening game of Nike Scholastic league play for CATS Academy. CATS Academy is one of the taller teams in the Nike Scholastic league with Mitrovic as a 7’0 center in the paint with two 6’9 and 6’10 prospects also on the roster. For 6’8 forward Jackson Kiss, he’ll have a height disadvantage but potentially a strength advantage for Utah Prep in the paint.
Iowa United (IA) Vs Dream City Christian National (Glendale, Ariz.)
Sunday, 1:15 p.m.
While this is the first of two Nike Scholastic league games for Iowa United, this is the third and final Nike Scholastic game of the weekend for Dream City Christian. Dream City Christian’s reward is a date against the number one center in the country in Houston commit Arafan Diane of Iowa United. Iowa United has plenty of other senior talent in three stars Jordan Sigmon, Mading Kuany and Navon Shabazz. Shabazz is a Murray State commit. 2027 guard Favour Nkemka has been building momentum and already holds an offer to Saint Louis. We’ll see if the fresh legs of Iowa United allow them to run Dream City Christian out of the gym or if Dream City’s comfort playing in Trent Arena will allow them to stay poised and have enough gas left in the tank to end their weekend with a key win.
St. Vincent-St. Mary (Akron, Ohio) Vs Archbishop Moeller (Cincinnati, Ohio)
Sunday, 3 p.m.
Two of the most historic programs in Ohio square off as Akron St. Vincent-St. Mary takes on Cincinnati Moeller in what should be a thrilling contest. Akron St. Vincent-St. Mary has won 10 state titles with their latest coming in 2022, while Cincinnati Moeller has won five state titles with their latest coming in 2019. Each program has sent dozens of players to the Division I level under current Head Coaches Dru Joyce for the Irish and Carl Kremer for the Crusaders. This game is not short on talent either as the Irish are led by seniors DeCarlo Prince and Leigh Cotton, as well as sophomore guard Ascen Lomack. For the Crusaders, they have one of their youngest teams in the Carl Kremer era as freshmen
Jayden Davis and
Carson Trenz are both projected to play major roles this season. Add in sophomores like
Bubba Donald and
Austin Trenz, and the Crusaders have Division I talent filled in their younger classes. Seniors
Danny Kelly and
Karson Lang could be x-factors for the Crusaders as the Irish will look to pressure and force turnovers to jumpstart the fast break. These two programs met in Cincinnati last season as Moeller dominated in a 78-51 victory, despite the lopsided final score, DeCarlo Prince of the Irish led all scorers with 26 points.
La Lumiere (La Porte, Ind.) Vs Lakota West (West Chester, Ohio)
Sunday, 4:45 p.m.
Lakota West is regarded by some as the top OHSAA team regardless of Division. They are led by star 2027 guard duo of
Josh Tyson and
Bryce Curry who each hold numerous Division I offers. Transfer Roman Combs and the emergence of sophomore
Eli Dunn has added to the Firebirds forward depth from last season’s regional championship squad. Head Coach Kelven Moss and company are familiar with Flyin’ To The Hoop as they wrapped up last season’s event with a 70-47 victory over the host Kettering Fairmont. Lakota West will have a major challenge this season as La Lumiere brings in numerous high major commits. Both Jonathan Sanderson and Gan Solongo are headed to South Bend, Indiana to play for Notre Dame next season while Jacob Webber and Rivers Knight will be headed to West Lafayette, Indiana to play for Purdue. Add in forward commits Ferlandes Wright to Louisville and Gabe Weis to Western Kentucky and this La Lumiere Lakers team will be a major challenge for Lakota West to try and take down.
Upper Arlington (Columbus, Ohio) Vs Archbishop Alter (Kettering, Ohio)
Sunday, 6:30 p.m.
The Knights of Kettering Alter return to Flyin’ To The Hoop for the fourth consecutive season looking for a win after falling to Omnia Academy, Westminster Academy and Louisville the last three seasons at this event. The Knights were the 2024 OHSAA Division II state champions and still have three members from that team, Naceive Fenton Jr, Andrew Gochenour and Peyton Bakos. Delta State commit Grant Guess was a key addition last season from Miami Trace and freshman phenom William Peagler Jr gives the Knights an extra gear offensively. This core group makes the Knights contenders in a loaded southwest region in Division IV. The Knights will take on an Upper Arlington squad that is led by upperclassmen guard duo
Hayden Henry and
Luke Mitchell. Add in senior forward
Brody Larrison and the Golden Bears have a lot of talent despite losing Ohio State commit Alex Smith to Prolific Prep for his senior season. With top shooters in the 2027 class like Mitchell and Bakos on either side, expect a lot of 3-pointers to be attempted in this one.
