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We are now officially on the ROAD TO DAYTON IN GIRLS BASKETBALL! But first… we must get by Regionals. And we got some TOUGH ones today in Division VI and Divison V. Divison VI OHSAA Girls Basketball Tournament 1. Fayetteville-Perry vs. 2. West Liberty-Salem | Fayetteville-Perry Wins - This will be a very competitive ball game, both records are about the same and both teams are very tough. However I do think Fayetteville will execute more and get a few more plays and ultimately pull this off. 3. Waterford vs. 1. Harvest Prep | Harvest Prep Wins - Waterford is very good in tournament play, they are very familiar with this territory… however this is not the same Waterford team from years past. This Waterford team is younger, still talented but not as much experience as the team last year or the year before. They lost a lot of girls from last year due to graduation and ultimately I think the lack of experience will play a big factor in this and I think Harvest Prep will pull it off. 3. Shenandoah vs. 1. Federal Hocking | Shenandoah Wins - Shenandoah is a very good basketball team, and Federal Hocking has really struggled against good quality opponents. I believe their best win was to 20-4 Athens who isn’t even in the tourney anymore. They are battle tested but I don’t think they have proven they can beat a quality opponent other than in conference play, and I know people will get mad at me for this take but I’m just basing off of what I have seen in their schedule, I think Shenandoah wins. 2. Fairland vs. 1. Waynesville | Fairland Wins - I’m not going to lie, Fairland had kind of a slow start against Portsmouth West in their last one. But they ran away with it, I think this one will be tougher for the Dragons, I mean obviously it gets really tough when you get to Regionals. But I think Fairland will run away with it again and move on to yet another Regional Championship. 1. Portsmouth vs. 4. Eastern Brown | Portsmouth Wins - It was a very gritty and very hard fought victory against Piketon in Eastern Brown’s last one, it was a lot of fun to watch. But Portsmouth is next level man, they are a very good basketball team and I think they win this one here.

We got 2 BOYS DISTRICT CHAMPIONSHIP GAMES TODAY! All in Division III at the Convocation Center in Athens, Ohio. LET’S GET ITTTT! Division III OHSAA Boys Basketball Tournament 3. Chillicothe vs. 1. Steubenville | Chillicothe Wins - Probably an eyebrow raiser because I’m sure a lot of people expect Steubenville to roll the Cavs here but man I’m just saying, I wouldn’t doubt the Chillicothe Cavaliers. I made that mistake in their last one against Jackson. These boys are battle tested (FAC play plays a huge part in it, FAC is one or if not the TOUGHEST conference in my coverage), and they are very athletic… Noah Netter and Caydon Cox to name a few. Not to mention you have Cooper Stoneking at the guard spot and another solid player out of Andrew Hamman… I’m just saying I think Chillicothe can really upset Steubenville here IF they play like they did against Jackson. I could very well be wrong about this one but I am going with the Cavs here. 4. Marietta vs. 3. New Philadelphia | Marietta Wins - How about them Tigers taking down #1 Miami Trace in their last one? What a win and it was a close one too! Now I will admit, I have not watched Marietta enough other than that Miami Trace game because well they haven’t been in my coverage all season but since they are going to the TVC in football soon, I thought I’d cover them in basketball. I think this will be a physical game and a tough one but I think Marietta pulls it off.

Final scores from all Convo games today in Division IV! I had another PERFECT night of predictions! 1. Circleville, 68 | 8. Gallia Academy, 36 4. Waverly, 44 | 12. New Lexington, 35 2. Unioto, 48 | 7. Logan Elm, 22 3. Washington, 59 | 6. Meigs, 56

We got 4 games today and ALL are Division IV and ALL are District Semifinals and ALL are already at the Convocation Center in Athens, Ohio so ignore the “Road to the Convo” and think of it as “Road to the District Title” for these games at least because not all teams are at the Convocation Center yet! Division IV OHSAA Boys Basketball Tournament 1. Circleville vs. 8. Gallia Academy | Circleville Wins - This is the only game I realistically see being a blowout.. Circleville is very, very good this year. Kole Nungester is just a heck of an athlete and Riley Jenkins and Jack Kline is impressive as well… I just don’t think the Blue Devils will be able to stop him or a lot of the team matter of fact. Give me the Tigers. 4. Waverly vs. 12. New Lexington | Waverly Wins - Now this was a matchup not many was expecting… people expected Waverly to win but not New Lexington and boy they sure did upset Fairfield Union, good for the Panthers! However, Waverly is VERY good man, Kage Alexander has been unbelievable and Sawyer Myers has even been impressive, I think the Tigers move on to the District Championship where they will more than likely play Circleville and boy that could be interesting. 2. Unioto vs. 7. Logan Elm | Unioto Wins - Unioto’s résumé speaks for itself, 18-3 on the year, 14-0 in SVC play (PURE DOMINATION), SVC Player of the Year for the 2nd year in a row, Blake Fitch. Other weapons like Jack Welch, Isaac Coy, and Dawson Mitchell. I just think they will be a bit too much for Logan Elm. Now will the Braves get blown out? I don’t think so. They have dudes, Brady Neff is the biggest name. Owen Russell is another solid piece. And being in the MSL - Buckeye, one of the toughest conferences will help them too. But I think Unioto pulls this off here, I really like this Shermans team. 3. Washington vs. 6. Meigs | Washington Wins - Don’t let the Blue Lions record fool you, they have played a tough schedule and not to mention the FAC was brutal this year… probably the most competitive conference of all the conferences in my coverage (close tie with the SOC 3), and the have some legit athletes man. Noah Haithcock, Jetson Everhart, and Bryson Heath… in all honesty man, Meigs has looked shaky to me at a lot of points in the season, Carson Davis is their best player and is even playing college ball for Cornell but they have had moments where they have struggled. I don’t think they are at the level to beat a tough FAC team, compete though? Yes, I do think they will compete. I just think Washington is the stronger option, but would love to see an upset happen here!

We got ALL DISTRICT CHAMPIONSHIP games in ALL 7 DIVISIONS today! Should be a really fun day of girls hoops! Division VII OHSAA Girls Tournament - at Valley High School 1. Eastern Meigs vs. 4. South Gallia | South Gallia Wins - This may raise some eyebrows and before you say, I know Eastern has played a tough schedule. Personally though, I feel like South Gallia has shown more, been more dominant, I think they upset the Eagles here. If I’m wrong though, throw all the tomatoes you want! 2. Green vs. 6. Notre Dame | Green Wins - I am going to this game and I am being serious when I say Green NEEDS to play better than they did against SV in this. Notre Dame played REALLY good against Clay and they can very much upset Green here if they play like they did against Clay and Green plays like they did against SV. However, I do think Green’s size will be a bit too much for ND. But we will see. Give me Green here! Division VI OHSAA Girls Tournament - at Southeastern High School 1. Federal Hocking vs. 5. Valley | Valley Wins - Picking another upset here, I like this Valley team a lot and very well think they can win this ball game, Federal Hocking is a great team but in tournament you can never truly count anyone out, and I really like Valley here. 7. Belpre vs. 3. Waterford | Waterford Wins - Belpre is the perfect example of what I said above, upset number 3 Coal Grove after I counted them out. And honestly I think they could very well pull this one off too, however based on Waterford’s tradition, I think Waterford pulls it out… even if it’s ugly. Division V OHSAA Girls Tournament - at Waverly Downtown Gym 1. Portsmouth vs. 6. North Adams | Portsmouth Wins - I wanted to go to this one so bad but was unable to. I think Portsmouth wins with no issue here, not because NA is bad, they aren’t…. It’s just Portsmouth is a whole different level man, it will be REALLY tough. 3. Piketon vs. 4. Eastern Brown | Eastern Brown Wins - I like Eastern here a lot, I think they have been challenged more than Piketon has… the SHAC in girls basketball this year is tough, SVC is a bit down. I think this one can be close but I am going with the Lady Warriors. 2. Fairland vs. 8. Portsmouth West | Fairland Wins - I love my folks from the Westside, they are some of sweetest people and I hate when I feel I need to pick against them, but this Fairland man. I mean same thing as Portsmouth, they are just next level and this will be really tough for the Lady Senators, but Minford also made is a decent game for a bit in the Lady Dragons last one, so maybe West can do so as well! Division IV OHSAA Girls Tournament - at Logan High School 1. Circleville vs. 2. Logan Elm | Logan Elm Wins - This will easily be the closest, most wildest, most interesting game today. Number 1 versus number 2… now that there is MATCHUP! These teams aren’t even in my coverage yet but I figured since I will be covering them next year, I might as well start during tournament time. This will be SO CLOSE. But I think Logan Elm pulls it off. Division III OHSAAA Girls Tournament - at Zanesville High School 1. Unioto vs. 1. Steubenville | Unioto Wins - THIS will be a really good one too, I could very well be wrong about this. Steubenville isn’t in my coverage area so naturally I’m going with the team that is, Unioto!

Breaking News! Rock Hill hires Trey Wilds as the programs next football head coach! Coach Wilds will be the program’s 21st head coach!

Final scores from tonight, unfortunately unlike last time I was not perfect on predictions today! But it’s alright, here were the finals: Division VI OHSAA Boys Basketball Tournament - District Quarterfinals 3. Portsmouth West, 75 | 14. Paint Valley, 28 2. Valley, 73 | 15. Ripley, 38 7. Adena, 53 | 10. Symmes Valley, 49 6. North Adams, 61 | 11. Southeastern, 53 8. Waterford, 35 | 9. Belpre, 34 4. Huntington, 43 | 13. Eastern Meigs, 34 5. Eastern Pike, 56 | 12. Rock Hill, 51 Division III OHSAA Boys Basketball Tournament - District Semifinals 4. Marietta, 55 | 1. Miami Trace, 52 (UPSET ALERT) 3. Chillicothe, 49 | 2. Jackson, 38 (UPSET ALERT)

Got 8 games tonight and it’s ALL Division VII matchups! We got a few good ones here that I wish I could have went too, however I have to work my actual job tonight… priorities people! Anyway, here are my predictions for tonight: 1. Southern vs. 16. East | Southern Wins - Starting this one off with a no brainer here, Southern will beat East easily here. It’s just been a nightmare year for the Tartans. 8. Whiteoak vs. 9. St. Joe | Whiteoak Wins - Now this one could be a bit interesting. From what I have heard, Eli Whaley for St. Joe lit it up against Green in the final game of the year, hopefully he can keep that up here. The reason I am picking Whiteoak here is because St. Joe is just a very young team, they don’t have enough experience. They can make this a ball game but unfortunately for the Flyers, I think Whiteoak pulls this off. 4. Notre Dame vs. 13. Trimble | Notre Dame Wins - This could be a bit closer than some thing, Trimble is one of those teams that can really sneak up on somebody if they do not go into this game with a chip on their shoulder (Not saying ND isn’t, just stating from what I have seen from Trimble). Brady Jajczyk is a really good player, but he doesn’t have enough around him. I think Notre Dame pulls this one off here. 5. Western vs. 12. Miller | Western Wins - Western is a team that I think could make a small run, possibly make a district final appearance, but let’s be real I think this part of the bracket will be Southern. They’ve played solid ball lately, give me Western here. 2. South Webster vs. 15. Glenwood | South Webster Wins - Tough draw for the Tigers, Webster may be having a “down” year according to some but personally I think this Webster team has exceeded the expectations of a lot of people in terms of how the have played against teams this year, yes it was a down year in SOC 3 play but boy that conference was just so stacked this year. Brycin McClintic and Hunter Barnard have been fantastic for the Jeeps this year and I think they lead the Jeeps to victory here. 7. Manchester vs. 10. Clay | Clay Wins - This is really the only “upset” I guess some would call it here. This will be tough for Clay, especially with it being at Manchester but I REALLY like their chances in this one. Manchester has some dudes don’t get me wrong, Parker Hayslip and Braylon Rickett are very impressive… but do sleep on those boys from Clay, Evan Rider and Noah Woods. GIMME THE PANTHERS! 3. Fairfield vs. 14. Federal Hocking | Fairfield Wins - Easy win for Fairfield, especially with how they have played as of late. 6. Green vs. 11. South Gallia | Green Wins - This one will be closer than some think, SG can really shoot the ball and if Green doesn’t close out good, they will be in for a long night. However Green can shoot it decently and can take it inside, I think they will be good here… but if South Gallia pulls of the upset, I won’t really be too shocked.

IT’S BACKKKKK 👀🔥 TOP 25 AFTER THE FINAL WEEK OF THE REGULAR SEASON! I know we haven’t done one of these in a while… so yeah, I figured I’d surprise you all heading into tournament time. Let me say this first — this was TOUGH. The amount of talent in the area this year is ridiculous. These numbers are NOT a knock on anyone. If your team didn’t make it, it’s nothing personal. There are just a LOT of really good basketball teams around here and these 25 have simply performed at the highest level overall. Alright… here we go 👇 🏀 740 SPORTS NETWORK TOP 25 1️⃣ Unioto Shermans 2️⃣ Miami Trace Panthers 3️⃣ Ironton Fighting Tigers 4️⃣ Chesapeake Panthers 5️⃣ Southern Tornadoes 6️⃣ Eastern Warriors 7️⃣ Jackson Ironmen 8️⃣ Chillicothe Cavaliers 9️⃣ Peebles Indians 🔟 Zane Trace Pioneers 1️⃣1️⃣ Fayetteville-Perry Rockets 1️⃣2️⃣ Washington Blue Lions 1️⃣3️⃣ Portsmouth West Senators 1️⃣4️⃣ Fairfield Lions 1️⃣5️⃣ Meigs Marauders 1️⃣6️⃣ Wheelersburg Pirates 1️⃣7️⃣ Adena Warriors 1️⃣8️⃣ Wellston Golden Rockets 1️⃣9️⃣ South Webster Jeeps 2️⃣0️⃣ Portsmouth Trojans 2️⃣1️⃣ Valley Indians 2️⃣2️⃣ Waverly Tigers 2️⃣3️⃣ Eastern Eagles (Beaver) 2️⃣4️⃣ Notre Dame Titans 2️⃣5️⃣ North Adams Green Devils Tournament time changes EVERYTHING. Momentum matters. Matchups matter. And some of these teams are about to prove me right… and some of you are hoping they prove me wrong 😂 Debate it. Argue it. I’m ready. Let’s get to March. 🏀🔥

BOOOOOOM 💥🏈 ROCK HILL IS SENDING A DUDE TO THE NEXT LEVEL! Eli Hamlin has officially COMMITTED TO University of Rio Grande 🔥 Hard work paying off. Small-town grind → next-level opportunity. Congrats to Eli Hamlin, the Rock Hill program, and the Redmen community — HUGE move!

BOOOOOOOOOMMMMMM 🏆🔥 THE SOC 1 CROWN IS HEADED TO PORTSMOUTH! The Notre Dame Titans are your SOC 1 Champions after battling through one of the most competitive races in the area all season long. No gimmicks. No shortcuts. They earned it. Final SOC 1 Standings: 1️⃣ Notre Dame Titans 2️⃣ Green Bobcats 3️⃣ St. Joe Flyers 4️⃣ Clay Panthers 5️⃣ Glenwood Tigers 6️⃣ East Tartans This league was a WAR all year. Green pushed them. St. Joe battled. Clay made noise late. But when it mattered most, the Titans handled business. Say what you want — they closed it out and brought the hardware home. Congrats to the Notre Dame players, coaches, and the entire Portsmouth community. Banner earned. 🏆

Here were the final scores from tonight! OHSAA tournament play began tonight in Division 5 with 1st round games! DIVISION V OHSAA BASKETBALL SCORES - 1ST ROUND 15. Dawson-Bryant, 59 | 18. Alexander, 47 16. Oak Hill, 57 | 17. West Union, 36 REGULAR SEASON GAMES: Clay, 70 | East, 23 Green, 72 | St. Joe, 63 Symmes Valley, 66 | Northwest, 46 Southern, 56 | Belpre, 49 Unioto, 63 | Miami Trace, 35 Notre Dame, 40 | South Gallia, 35 Portsmouth West, 46 | South Webster, 36 Wheelersburg, 56 | Minford, 43 Wellston, 67 | Nelsonville-York, 56 Adena, 38 | Miller, 28 Fairfield, 56 | Hillsboro, 43 Fort Frye, 54 | Federal Hocking, 49 Whiteoak, 57 | Manchester, 51 Peebles, 72 | Western, 59 Fairland, 67 | Rock Hill, 58

Final scores from boys games last night: South Point, 77 | Green, 50 Southern, 72 | Warren, 42 Piketon, 59 | Whiteoak, 51 Eastern Pike, 56 | South Gallia, 37 Valley, 57 | Greenup County (KY), 38 Portsmouth, 63 | Gallia Academy, 53 Eastern Brown, 62 | Batavia, 53 Clay, 58 | Glenwood, 38

🏀 IT’S ALMOST TOURNAMENT TIME… AND YOU KNOW WHAT THAT MEANS 👀🔥 The regular season is wrapping up and it’s time to start looking at who’s BUILT for March. I put together my Top 10 teams to keep an eye on heading into the boys basketball tournament — plus some honorable mentions that absolutely could crash the party. No rankings. No bias. Just ten teams that I believe are dangerous right now. Some squads are peaking at the PERFECT time. Some have legit superstar talent. Some have upset written all over them. And a few of y’all are going to disagree… which is exactly how it should be this time of year 😈 March is different. Records don’t matter as much. Matchups matter. Momentum matters. Confidence matters. Let’s argue. Let’s debate. But most importantly… let’s get ready for tournament basketball. Drop who YOU think I’m sleeping on ⬇️🏀

BOOOOOOOOOMMMMM 🚨🏈 BREAKING NEWS OUT OF McDERMOTT! Northwest has hired former Oak Hill head coach Paul Carver as the next head football coach of the Mohawks! As I was doing some research, it looks like Coach Carver spent a solid amount of time at Oak Hill, so he’s no stranger to Southern Ohio football. That experience matters. That familiarity with the area matters. Northwest brings in a guy who understands the region, understands small school football, and has been around the game for a while. Congratulations to Coach Carver and the Mohawk community — big move for Northwest football. Friday nights just got interesting.

We have 8 games today, LETS GOOO! Greenup County (KY) vs. Valley | Valley Wins - Wanting to go to this one but I may have to go to church, we will see. This is interesting and I better watch what I say about Greenup here since I have family on that team 😂 Greenup has really struggled lately, started the year off pretty strong but has struggled lately and I don’t really watch Kentucky basketball so I don’t really know what it is, they have some legit talent on that team, it’s just a tough situation. Valley’s played really good lately plus they are home in this one so I am giving the edge to Valley. Piketon vs. Whiteoak | Whiteoak Wins - I have been guilty of calling Whiteoak overrated but man they really have played pretty decent as of lately… Piketon on the other hand has struggled a bit, I don’t really know what Piketon is right now but either way I think this’ll be a good game. I am giving it to Whiteoak here because they are home and home court advantage means a lot. Eastern Brown vs. Batavia | Eastern Brown Wins - I don’t know much about Batavia since they are not in my coverage area but from a record standpoint they seem pretty solid. This’ll be a good matchup for Eastern Brown and I think it’ll be a good one, especially with Batavia being at home. I am going Eastern Brown because I really like this Warriors team and I think they’re going to make a lot of noise in the tournament. Glenwood vs. Clay | Clay Wins - Man what a comeback season it’s been for Clay. Having there best season since 2016-17 when they made Regionals where they unfortunately ended up falling to Wellington. I am a fan of this Clay team man, that Freshman class, Noah Woods being the biggest name of them, is really good and I genuinely feel they will be SOC 1 contenders next season. Evan Rider is also an awesome player, love watching him play too. Coach Howell has done amazing turning that program the right direction and I can’t help but be happy for not only the program but the kids as well. Give me Clay here. Green vs. South Point | South Point Wins - Tough one for Green last night, you all know I’ve been high on the Bobcats all year, I never stopped believing in them and I still am not stopping. This is just an SOC 1-OVC matchup and man these conferences are completely different levels of basketball. South Point will play very physical and honestly that’s just a standard in OVC play, all teams are like that. Some are even kind of undisciplined about it. However this is at Green, and it’s a decent trip for the Pointers so I am not county Green out of this one at all. I think it could very well be a close game. Eastern Pike vs. South Gallia | Eastern Pike Wins - Tough trip for Eastern that’s for sure, South Gallia has been better as of lately… only lost to Northwest by 4 last night. But these Eagles are a team I honestly underestimated going into the year. I saw they were losing a lot and didn’t think they’d be great but I was wrong, and I have been a lot but hey, I am human. I think Eastern pulls this one out here despite the brutal road trip. Southern vs. Warren | Southern Wins - Will be a good one here, Southern is one of my favorite teams to watch… they are very very good. Reed Brinager and Andre Chandler are no joke man, and Reed is probably one of my favorite players to watch. Warren will make this competitive, don’t get me wrong they will. It will not be a blowout but where Southern is home, I think they pull this one off. Portsmouth vs. Gallia Academy | Portsmouth Wins - Could very well be wrong on this one… Gallia has had a great turnaround and man I feel like this one will be GOOD. I would not count the Blue Devils out at all, especially with how they’ve played lately. But give me Portsmouth here.

Little late on these, took a little longer than anticipated to gather them all but here are the final scores from last nights game. Also congratulations to Notre Dame on winning the programs 3rd straight SOC 1 title and Ironton on winning the OVC title and Meigs for winning the TVC - Ohio for the 2nd year straight (Although I do think it will end up being shared with Wellston, which is still a TVC title for the Marauders!) Notre Dame, 42 | Green, 39 Ironton, 47 | Chesapeake, 41 Portsmouth West, 55 | Wheelersburg, 51 Eastern Pike, 66 | St. Joe, 29 Waverly, 41 | Minford, 29 Symmes Valley, 59 | Oak Hill, 52 Wellston, 50 | Athens, 43 Northwest, 37 | South Gallia, 33 Lynchburg-Clay, 72 | Paint Valley, 41 Jackson, 62 | Vinton County, 46 Meigs, 86 | Nelsonville-York, 60 Fairfield, 53 | North Adams, 49 Glenwood, 44 | East, 37 East Clinton, 54 | McClain, 50 Williamsburg, 55 | Fayetteville-Perry, 48 Whiteoak, 64 | Felicity-Franklin, 60 Chillicothe, 53 | Washington, 47

BOOOOOOMMM! Congratulations to Meigs Marauders Carson Davis on his COMMITMENT to CORNELL UNIVERSITY to play basketball for the BIG RED!