2022-23 SW D1

JUSTGOPLAY said:
I'm a little uncertain how Kings, from the ECC, beating West Clermont, from the ECC, is evidence that the GMC is better.......That being said, West Clermont's tank has been empty since that tournament up in Amish country. They've been running on fumes for a month.
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Agree about Kings/ECC, but why is WC running on fumes? Since they beat Milford 2/2, they’ve had 6 days between each of their last 3 wins. Just about every team still in the playoffs have played at least 24-25 games so far.
 
CincyIllinifan said:
Agree about Kings/ECC, but why is WC running on fumes? Since they beat Milford 2/2, they’ve had 6 days between each of their last 3 wins. Just about every team still in the playoffs have played at least 24-25 games so far.
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Coaches have been asking that same question for 100 years. This bunch lost their mojo back in the middle of January, and never got it back. Milford should have got em' on 2/2 and Kings out played em the second time they played in the regular season. It's more mental than physical, but the season just got too long for them.
 
Madame Secretary said:
Didn't they have their best player out right before all that. As I remember it was never said why she was out.
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Hicks missed a few games in early January. Not sure why. Although I think Swisshelm was their best player.

I honestly don't think West Clermont ran out of gas at the end of the season. It's just hard to beat a good team three times, and Kings is good. West Clermont also almost lost to Milford, but they improved a lot by the end of the year. Just in the last few weeks, Milford almost beat Kings/West Clermont/Talawanda and handily beat Lakota West.
 
I’m with Just Go Play on this one.
How is Kings beating WC evidence the GMC is better?
Sycamore is only GMC team Kings played this season, so no real comparison.

But disagree w ”running on fumes” theory.
Every game WC played after CIC was an ECC rematch.
Teams started to understand how to play WC, Hicks athleticism/energy overwhelmed every team in 1st ECC matchups.
2nd time around teams knew what energy to expect and began to learn how to better deal with it.

I believe if WC would have beaten Kings they would have been a very very tough out for anyone who hadn’t played/scrimmaged them this season.

As for “best player”, depends on what you like/want.
Hicks was undoubtedly the spark plug/energy of the team.
Swisshelm was the “fuel”/what made them go on offense.

Thought 1 play defined game, I think mid 3rd Q, Swisshelm who was nearly unstoppable in post all season had ball stolen by Kings triple team.
After that play WC began to look uncertain on Offense (impatient on how to score), hadn’t seen that all season since they hadn’t really been behind.

Kings making shots in 1st H and finishing on some contested drives to basket in 2nd H was a huge factor as well.

Congrats to WC on an incredible season and to Kings for a great game/plan/win last night.
On to the next 3 Sectional Finals tonight, will we see another upset(s), exciting, great game(s)?
 
Well, it’s too bad they lost. I’m a Mason fan, and I was looking forward to seeing how WC would do against either Mason or Princeton, assuming they would get past LE for the 2nd time.

The GMC now has the same problem with repetitive games. Assuming the seeds hold (which is a big if), what’s the likelihood Mason gets past Princeton for the 3rd time or LE for the 2nd? Tough road just to get out of thIs region.
 
CincyIllinifan said:
Well, it’s too bad they lost. I’m a Mason fan, and I was looking forward to seeing how WC would do against either Mason or Princeton, assuming they would get past LE for the 2nd time.

The GMC now has the same problem with repetitive games. Assuming the seeds hold (which is a big if), what’s the likelihood Mason gets past Princeton for the 3rd time or LE for the 2nd? Tough road just to get out of thIs region.
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The potential Mason-Princeton re-rematch is interesting to me. It feels like Princeton "should" have won those games. They were up big early in the first game and fouled too much. They had a lead very late in the second game and blew it. Give credit to Mason for the wins, but I'm sure Princeton feels like they let two games get away from them.

You can put Lakota East in a similar spot. They beat Mason once, and played two close games @Mason and @Princeton. Still a few games to get there, but feels like some GMC rematches are possible.
 
JUSTGOPLAY said:
I'm a little uncertain how Kings, from the ECC, beating West Clermont, from the ECC, is evidence that the GMC is better.......That being said, West Clermont's tank has been empty since that tournament up in Amish country. They've been running on fumes for a month.
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I wondered the same thing. Not sure when Kings joined the GMC.

You apparently missed the annihilation of Walnut
 
I think most people would agree that the GMC is better up top but the depth of the ECC is much better. Princeton and Mason are probably the 2 best teams in the area and i believe Princeton is the best, but sometimes they are their own worst enemy.
 
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The fun starts now! Down to Final 32.
District Finals across the state tonight and tomorrow.

SW OH interesting games:
MND/Princeton
Historic Programs, Great Coaches. Last season Reg Semi MND win and Princeton Regular Season win/loss/forfeit game in returnees minds?
If Dr. Rogers can pull this one off...?
Fairmont/Lakota East
East in District Finals for 3rd straight year, can they finally win District title and take all the pressure off for a State Title run?
Fairmont trying to ignite not to distant memories '09-'15 and '18-'20 with "generational freshmen class". Thornton looks to be special!
Kings/Centerville
Will experienced Kings continue their impressive late season run (9 in a row) and carry the flag for ECC's impressive season vs Centerville team playing in their 3rd straight District Final with 3pt sharpshooter George?
Mason/Springboro
Third consecutive year we'll see this matchup in District Finals; Mason has won both, 3rd time a charm for 'Boro?
'Boro with great young talent, can they play a complete game? 4th straight District Final. Familiarity exists in this one.
6th meeting (Mason leads 4-1) between schools in last 4 years; that's a lot for non conference foes.

Will Princeton and Mason be focused Saturday and set up a "Titanic" Round 3 Regional Semi Tuesday?
Will young guns from Fairmont and Springboro shine? Get used to seeing these 2 teams in big games for a few years.
Will East remind everyone how good they've been all season long? With WC loss, East seems to be the forgotten power.
Could see 3 GWOC or 3 GMC teams in Regionals, should make for an entertaining day.

Leaning ever so slightly Princeton as Favorite to take this Extremely Competitive Region; but wouldn't surprise to see any of the 8 teams take it.
Realistically see Princeton, Lakota East, Kings or Mason winning it.
Don't know if anyone but Mason can beat Princeton (BUT 3 times beating a great team is really, really hard), but see a few teams capable of beating Mason.

Other Intriguing District Finals
Region 1: Solon/Massillon Jackson
Solon has been very good all year, GREAT guard play. Jackson (State SF LY) has had injuries/suspensions, craziness (67 in Martin) all season. Jackson now full strength; Stars (Wisconsin and Dayton commits) could take them back to Dayton. Solon 54-53 over Jackson 12/28.
Midview (led by BGSU Commit Meng 6'4") and Canton McKinley along with above game winner are all potential Region Champions.
Region 3: Olentangy Liberty/Westerville South
Bowers (O Liberty) one of best scorers in State, won 21 of last 22. Only loss to nationally ranked Sacred Heart (KY). Loaded Region w Marysville, Dublin Coffman, Pick Central along with O Liberty favorites in District Finals.
Region 2: Fremont Ross/Anthony Wayne.
Back and forth all year as top ranked teams in NW OH. #1 vs #2 in District Final. Anthony Wayne trying to get back to Dayton.
Olmsted Falls big favorite to take this Region.
 
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I'm out of town and saw the boxscore of the Kings-East game. Did Wallace do what he always does in big games - gets a minimal lead late and takes the air out of the ball?
 
run2wyn said:
I'm out of town and saw the boxscore of the Kings-East game. Did Wallace do what he always does in big games - gets a minimal lead late and takes the air out of the ball?
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No?? It was a regional semi-final between two teams that had earned their way into it and battled back and forth all game until the final possession where someone was going to win and someone was going to lose....exactly what you'd hope for in a game at this stage of the tournament.
 
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Down to Regional Finals, Elite Eight.
Congratulations to Princeton and Kings!

Final 4 Prediction: Princeton, Solon, Pickerington Central and Olmsted Falls

Great run for Kings, surprised but not totally shocked, by the win over East; good guard play is key in HS.
Can Kings keep it going and make the Final Four dream a reality?
Think Kings only chance vs Princeton is if they shoot lights out and Officials call game really tight.

Tough end of season finishes for East and Mason.

Best season in History of East program?
Too bad French didn't get the "last shot" opportunity for East.
Congratulations on 1000 points to Miss French!
1st H of Kings East was as good an offensive half of basketball I'd seen all season.
It was played like a Mid January game where both teams had found what makes them good and were firing on all cylinders.
Enormity of game seemed to creep in to both teams minds 2nd H.
Missed Kings FTs late luckily didn't come back to haunt.
Multiple possession opportunities East missed on late will haunt.

Will East be able to maintain excellence with graduation of a very deep, talented Senior Class?
3 straight District Title game appearances, District Title this season.
22 wins this season, (I think) most in school history
Wallace masterfully used East's incredible depth to their advantage this season, press and run.
Does this success and style continue in West Chester and become the norm?
1st time he's has had "pressure of expectations" without French and Smith et al.......to lean on.
Continued growth/improvement of Blount is key to East next year. She improved by leaps and bounds during this season.
'Hawks return so many really good athletic guards, who plays inside with Blount, to keep the momentum rolling?

Princeton Mason was not a thing of beauty, it was more like a Duke North Carolina game. Emotionally charged and played as usual, very close.
If you look at total shooting stats from game, Princeton probably should have won by double digits.
Gerton looked much more under control compared to earlier in season, and shined as star of the game. Great compliment to Williams.
Princeton bigs were more involved in Game 3 vs Mason as opposed to 1st 2. Fortson is a beast, and I mean that in the best way!
And realize Vikings win over Mason was without Sole' having a great game, she has set a high bar! How is she not up for OH POY?

Mason is used to winning and found a way to make it a battle when they didn't play anywhere near their best.
Congratulations to Comets seniors on a great run. Found some amazing stats on GMC site.
Last 3 seasons: Total regular season record 58-3. 72-6 overall record, with 3 losses in state tournament.
Lakota East is the only OH team to beat Mason in the regular season (2 times) in the last 3 seasons. WOW!
3 straight GMC Championships (1 shared), 3 straight District Titles, with a Regional Championship and State Final Game appearance.
Matula doesn't get enough credit when it comes to post season honors, everyone just says, well it's Mason.
Might have been his best job ever. Lose McD All American many thought was the ONLY reason Comets made State Finals LY.
Probably rightfully (WC?) end season ranked #1 in State, pretty impressive. No one predicted that or beating Princeton twice before season.
If you look at beginning of this thread in May, consensus was Princeton was by far best team in area.
Will Mason find some depth and size for next season to continue their recent level of excellence?
What a back court they have for 2 more seasons with Parrish and Habra (3 years)!!

Final thoughts on "it's always tough to beat a team three times in a season".
Winning team of 1st 2 games thinks what they have done will probably work again so don't make as many adjustments for 3rd contest, team that loses first 2 knows they have to try something at least a little different. Human nature!
Great change in game plan by Kings vs West Clermont to stay off Hicks (let her shoot from outside), looked to confuse them.
Davis made a great change in plan for Sneed to face guard Parrish, looked to fluster Comets and might have been the difference.
Great D by Princeton!
But 26% FGA Mason, OUCH!
Haven't heard many Princeton fans or male assistant coaches complaining about foul differential even though it was similar to 1st Mason game. Winning does that:)

Kings and Princeton get to play on!!
Good luck to both teams Saturday and here's hoping for as exciting a Regional Final as LY!!

Final Rant: Why weren't Region Semi Finals a doubleheader?!
 
Still not sure how Mason got the 3rd seed in the SW. I guess it doesn’t matter though, they still would have eventually played Princeton again.
 
SWOHHSfan said:
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Down to Regional Finals, Elite Eight.
Congratulations to Princeton and Kings!

Final 4 Prediction: Princeton, Solon, Pickerington Central and Olmsted Falls

Great run for Kings, surprised but not totally shocked, by the win over East; good guard play is key in HS.
Can Kings keep it going and make the Final Four dream a reality?
Think Kings only chance vs Princeton is if they shoot lights out and Officials call game really tight.

Tough end of season finishes for East and Mason.

Best season in History of East program?
Too bad French didn't get the "last shot" opportunity for East.
Congratulations on 1000 points to Miss French!
1st H of Kings East was as good an offensive half of basketball I'd seen all season.
It was played like a Mid January game where both teams had found what makes them good and were firing on all cylinders.
Enormity of game seemed to creep in to both teams minds 2nd H.
Missed Kings FTs late luckily didn't come back to haunt.
Multiple possession opportunities East missed on late will haunt.

Will East be able to maintain excellence with graduation of a very deep, talented Senior Class?
3 straight District Title game appearances, District Title this season.
22 wins this season, (I think) most in school history
Wallace masterfully used East's incredible depth to their advantage this season, press and run.
Does this success and style continue in West Chester and become the norm?
1st time he's has had "pressure of expectations" without French and Smith et al.......to lean on.
Continued growth/improvement of Blount is key to East next year. She improved by leaps and bounds during this season.
'Hawks return so many really good athletic guards, who plays inside with Blount, to keep the momentum rolling?

Princeton Mason was not a thing of beauty, it was more like a Duke North Carolina game. Emotionally charged and played as usual, very close.
If you look at total shooting stats from game, Princeton probably should have won by double digits.
Gerton looked much more under control compared to earlier in season, and shined as star of the game. Great compliment to Williams.
Princeton bigs were more involved in Game 3 vs Mason as opposed to 1st 2. Fortson is a beast, and I mean that in the best way!
And realize Vikings win over Mason was without Sole' having a great game, she has set a high bar! How is she not up for OH POY?

Mason is used to winning and found a way to make it a battle when they didn't play anywhere near their best.
Congratulations to Comets seniors on a great run. Found some amazing stats on GMC site.
Last 3 seasons: Total regular season record 58-3. 72-6 overall record, with 3 losses in state tournament.
Lakota East is the only OH team to beat Mason in the regular season (2 times) in the last 3 seasons. WOW!
3 straight GMC Championships (1 shared), 3 straight District Titles, with a Regional Championship and State Final Game appearance.
Matula doesn't get enough credit when it comes to post season honors, everyone just says, well it's Mason.
Might have been his best job ever. Lose McD All American many thought was the ONLY reason Comets made State Finals LY.
Probably rightfully (WC?) end season ranked #1 in State, pretty impressive. No one predicted that or beating Princeton twice before season.
If you look at beginning of this thread in May, consensus was Princeton was by far best team in area.
Will Mason find some depth and size for next season to continue their recent level of excellence?
What a back court they have for 2 more seasons with Parrish and Habra (3 years)!!

Final thoughts on "it's always tough to beat a team three times in a season".
Winning team of 1st 2 games thinks what they have done will probably work again so don't make as many adjustments for 3rd contest, team that loses first 2 knows they have to try something at least a little different. Human nature!
Great change in game plan by Kings vs West Clermont to stay off Hicks (let her shoot from outside), looked to confuse them.
Davis made a great change in plan for Sneed to face guard Parrish, looked to fluster Comets and might have been the difference.
Great D by Princeton!
But 26% FGA Mason, OUCH!
Haven't heard many Princeton fans or male assistant coaches complaining about foul differential even though it was similar to 1st Mason game. Winning does that:)

Kings and Princeton get to play on!!
Good luck to both teams Saturday and here's hoping for as exciting a Regional Final as LY!!

Final Rant: Why weren't Region Semi Finals a doubleheader?!
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My opinion of the sites hosting, the size of the neutral sites would not allow for it…
 
JackAttack99 said:
I’m sure East feels like they got the wrong end of some calls late against Kings…. Princeton probably not many complaints this time around.

Will be interesting to see how GMC shapes after this year.
Does Princeton bring in someone to round out the roster with Gerton and DeDe? Their JV team wasn’t great this year
East and Mason both lose a lot but had the best JV teams. Obviously Mason still returns Parrish.
West should only get better with their loaded freshman class.
Oak Hills will play behind Kammerer for the next few years. They improved a lot by the end of the year.
Not sure how Fairfield, Middletown, Colerain, Hamilton, Sycamore are looking. Fairfield had an okay JV squad I believe.
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Princeton has 3 freshman on Varsity with 2 sophomores . They will be fine . But probably get a kid or 2
 
SLB22 said:
Princeton has 3 freshman on Varsity with 2 sophomores . They will be fine . But probably get a kid or 2
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Oh, I'm sure they will...kids always find a way into the Princeton district somehow.

Gerton, Fortson & Sneed will be their best players back. But Sole, Dede and Hill are real big losses.
 
Everyone picking Princeton to bring home its 3rd State title?

Semis prediction:
Princeton over Midview
Olmsted Falls/Pickerington Central: Toss up

Finals Prediction:
Princeton beats Olmsted Falls or
Pick Central beats Princeton

Good luck Vikings!!
 
SWOHHSfan said:
Everyone picking Princeton to bring home its 3rd State title?

Semis prediction:
Princeton over Midview
Olmsted Falls/Pickerington Central: Toss up

Finals Prediction:
Princeton beats Olmsted Falls or
Pick Central beats Princeton

Good luck Vikings!!
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Pick Central over Olmsted
Princeton over Midview
Pick Central over Princeton
 
coltfan76 said:
Pick Central over Olmsted
Princeton over Midview
Pick Central over Princeton
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Admittedly Total Sour Grapes Comment here due to being a SW OH Fan:

Especially this season for Lakota East, Mason and West Clermont (Kings).
I'm sure it will happen in future for other Regions with 3/4 top teams in state.

Anyone else find it odd that Olmsted Falls and Midview are in same conference but able to play in different regions?
They choose at seeding time which region to go in (NE or NW), not before season, very odd to me.
Shouldn't that advantage be rotated to choose to play in different/adjoining NW region yearly between Cleveland, Columbus and SW OH?
Sidney and Lima are 35 miles apart?? Different Regions.
Medina was in the Sandusky Region NOT Medina Region.


Or should OH move to Sweet Sixteen format like Kentucky?
District Title winners are seeded 1-16 or pre-determined which District title winners they play against in Sweet Sixteen.
Teams from same Region could meet in Finals.
 
SWOHHSfan said:
Admittedly Total Sour Grapes Comment here due to being a SW OH Fan:

Especially this season for Lakota East, Mason and West Clermont (Kings).
I'm sure it will happen in future for other Regions with 3/4 top teams in state.

Anyone else find it odd that Olmsted Falls and Midview are in same conference but able to play in different regions?
They choose at seeding time which region to go in (NE or NW), not before season, very odd to me.
Shouldn't that advantage be rotated to choose to play in different/adjoining NW region yearly between Cleveland, Columbus and SW OH?
Sidney and Lima are 35 miles apart?? Different Regions.
Medina was in the Sandusky Region NOT Medina Region.


Or should OH move to Sweet Sixteen format like Kentucky?
District Title winners are seeded 1-16 or pre-determined which District title winners they play against in Sweet Sixteen.
Teams from same Region could meet in Finals.
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A tough situation for SWOH teams. Between Princeton, Mason, West Clermont, Lakota East (guess you have to throw Kings in here too), you can argue that SWOH had at least 4 top 10 teams in the state. Throw them in all in the same region, and obviously some really good teams are going to lose earlier than they would if they were somewhere else in the state. Not to mention that teams like Mason and West Clermont end up playing a team for a third time.
 
JackAttack99 said:
A tough situation for SWOH teams. Between Princeton, Mason, West Clermont, Lakota East (guess you have to throw Kings in here too), you can argue that SWOH had at least 4 top 10 teams in the state. Throw them in all in the same region, and obviously some really good teams are going to lose earlier than they would if they were somewhere else in the state. Not to mention that teams like Mason and West Clermont end up playing a team for a third time.
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There was a time when a SWO team could choose to go through Columbus to play out the tournament. I believe thats how MND and Lakota West meet in the State Championship game a long time ago.
 
caringbody said:
There was a time when a SWO team could choose to go through Columbus to play out the tournament. I believe thats how MND and Lakota West meet in the State Championship game a long time ago.
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you are correct! I remember when a very gifted and loaded Princeton team chose that route and got beat by Dave Butchers Pickerington team.
 
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