The Swami

Welcome to year number eighteen of Trail Trash. This also marks the eighth year for Trail Trash and the Swami’s predictions on Davey1.com.

The 2011 tournament season for Northwest Ohio represents the end of an era. The 2011-2012 season will bring significant changes in the basketball landscape around the district. The Suburban Lakes League will be gone after thirty-nine seasons and the Greater Buckeye Conference will also fade away. There will be new leagues with the Three Rivers Athletic Conference (TRAC) and the Northern Buckeye Conference (NBC) coming into existence. The Swami still has no idea which three rivers are being referred to in the TRAC. Mentioning the NBC brings back memories of the old NBL (Northern Border League) with Patrick Henry, Delta, Swanton, etc from the early seventies. The Toledo City League will go from a mixture of public and privates with great tradition to just the six public high schools in the Toledo system. The Northern Ohio League will add Sandusky while losing three members with the North Central Conference picking up former NOL members Galion and Upper Sandusky. The TAAC and the NLL will also add new members as the dominos continue to fall. By the way, whatever happened to Domino’s Pizza? Who would have thought that Lakota jumping from the SLL to the MAL would have created so much upheaval (with a little help with the closing of Toledo Libbey and the elimination of freshman teams in the TCL) in such a short period of time. One thing is certain with all these changes. There will be more changes.

Another potential change on the horizon is the OHSAA’s “competitive balance” proposal. Although you might not make the same argument for football and some other sports, the Swami has not bought into the idea that there is a lack of competitive balance in boys basketball. Sure there are teams that people love to hate (I can think of one on Airport Highway in Toledo), but the numbers don’t support revamping the boys basketball classifications. The 2010 regional tournament consisted of 47 public schools and 17 private schools statewide. Since the end of the L@&*!# era at Akron SVSM in 2003, 80 public schools and 32 private schools have made appearances in the state tournament. But any proposal that has schools like Cardinal Stritch and Fostoria St. Wendelin playing up a class makes perfect sense to me. That was sarcasm in case you didn’t catch it. While we’re at it, let’s also penalize teams for their past success. Maybe we should just handicap the teams and put a few points on the scoreboard before the start of each game. Don’t educators have more important things to do than getting bent out of shape over who won the football playoffs?

On a somber note, Northwest Ohio lost a legendary figure when long-time Delphos St. John’s coach Bob Arnzen passed away earlier this winter. Rest In Peace, Coach Arnzen.

Before we move on, here are a couple of Trail Trash trivia questions. Where was University of Findlay coaching great Ron Niekamp’s first job as a head basketball coach? What team was the first SLL basketball champion, and who eliminated them from the tournament that year?

Time to put on another pot of coffee and fire up the Ouija board. It’s Swami time.

DIVISION I

With Toledo Rogers and Toledo Waite dropping to D2, the field in D1 from NW Ohio has shrunk to 20 teams. As a result, Springfield was moved from the Liberty-Benton sectional back to the Toledo sectionals in order to balance the numbers at the district level.

To date, Toledo St. John’s has been the class of the field in D1 for Northwest Ohio. Toledo Whitmer has become a fixture in the Associated Press polls losing only to SJ. Toledo Central Catholic, Bowling Green, and Findlay are the best of the rest of the contenders.

D1 will again use a “Super Sectional” format. Sectional winners from Willard and Liberty-Benton will remain at those sites to square off in district semifinal games on March 10. Their district final will be played at BGSU’s Anderson Arena. The two winners from the Toledo Central Catholic sectional will face off in a district semifinal at the University of Toledo on March 10 with the Toledo Waite sectional winners playing in the second game of the doubleheader at Savage Arena.

The two NW Ohio district winners will play in a regional semifinal at UT on March 17. That winner will play the winner of the regional semifinal at Akron between the Canton (Massillon Jackson, Canton Timken) and Copley (Stow, Green) district champions. The regional final will be played at the University of Toledo on March 19.

SECTIONALS

WILLARD: Mansfield Senior and Sandusky are the top seeds. Although they are using the Super Sectional format at Willard, this certainly is not a super sectional. Mansfield Senior is the top team, but this is not one of the Tygers’ better squads. Mansfield has nine consecutive sectional titles. Sandusky has had injury issues while Fremont Ross has improved since being back at full strength. Marion Harding returned two of their better players from the ’09-’10 district semifinalist but has been a big disappointment. Ashland’s downward spiral continues but you never know what will happen when the Arrows match up against Senior High.

Semifinal-Ashland over Marion Harding

Finals-Mansfield Senior over Ashland; Sandusky over Fremont Ross

LIBERTY-BENTON: Bowling Green and Findlay are the top seeds. A good sectional at L-B with four of the five teams above .500. BG is the NLL champions. Chauncey Orr (son of BGSU coach Louis Orr) is the career-scoring leader for the Bobcats. Findlay is the GBC champion and had their fourteen game winning streak recently snapped by Toledo Whitmer. 6’10” C.J. Gettys is a force inside for the Trojans. Lima Senior is a couple of notches below BG and Findlay. The Spartans’ athleticism could cause some problems for BG if they are to meet. Perrysburg is solid as usual but aren’t quite as talented as they have been the past few seasons. Still, the Yellow Jackets could spring an upset.

Semifinal-Lima Senior over Perrysburg

Finals-Bowling Green over Lima Senior; Findlay over Anthony Wayne

TOLEDO CENTRAL CATHOLIC: Toledo St. John’s and Toledo Bowsher are the top seeds. Heading into the Toledo City League playoffs, St. John’s is undefeated against teams from Ohio. 6’8” sophomore and OSU commit Marc Loving and point guard Cheatham (or is it Eddie?) Norrils are the top players for the Titans. Bowsher had four players transfer in from Libbey along with one from St. Francis. The Rebels are talented, but there have been plenty of bumps in the road. So what has Keith Diebler been doing on Bowsher’s bench the past few weeks? Springfield was expected to contend with BG for the NLL crown but the Devils have underachieved. Both Bowsher and Springfield have question marks with their personnel heading into the sectional. How those get resolved will dictate who advances.

Semifinal-Springfield over Toledo St. Francis

Finals-Toledo Bowsher over Springfield; Toledo St. John’s Jesuit over Clay

TOLEDO WAITE: Toledo Whitmer and Toledo Central Catholic are the top seeds. Whitmer, with help from the Toledo Blade, appeared to be a team in turmoil during the summer. Going into the TCL playoffs, Whitmer’s only loss is to St. John’s. Nigel Hayes from Whitmer is one of the top sophomores in the state. Central Catholic continues to improve as the season progresses. Don’t play from behind if you plan on beating the deliberate Irish. Start had two players transfer from Libbey and a mid-year transfer from Central, but the Spartans are yet to jell. Southview is a year away from being a factor.

Semifinal-Toledo Start over Sylvania Northview

Finals-Toledo Whitmer over Toledo Start; Toledo Central Catholic over Sylvania Southview

DISTRICTS

Mansfield Senior will play Sandusky in a district semifinal at Willard while Bowling Green will play Findlay in a district semifinal at Liberty-Benton.

Semifinals-Mansfield Senior over Sandusky; Bowling Green over Findlay

BGSU: Lima Senior is the defending district champion. That marked the second straight district title for the Spartans. Five different district winners (Mansfield Senior, Ashland, Findlay, Perrysburg, Lima Senior) in the last nine years at BG. Will there be a sixth?

Final-Bowling Green over Mansfield Senior

UNIVERSITY OF TOLEDO: Toledo St. John’s is the defending district champion. That was the second consecutive district crown for the Titans. The Titans have 13 straight sectional titles heading into the 2011 tourney and have won seven of the past nine district championships. Only Scott (’05) and Whitmer (’08) have broken the string.

Semifinals-Toledo St. John’s over Toledo Bowsher; Toledo Central Catholic over Toledo Whitmer

Final-Toledo St. John’s over Toledo Central Catholic

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DIVISION II

Toledo Rogers and Toledo Waite are new to D2 for 2011 with Rogers in the Swanton sectional and Waite replacing the closed Toledo Libbey at the Clay sectional. So how did Rogers and Waite drop a division when there won’t be new enrollment numbers until next season? When a school closes i.e. Libbey, the schools that have absorbed their students submit new enrollment numbers. Typically, one would think that the schools receiving those students would experience increased enrollment. That was not the case as Toledo schools experienced enrollment decreases and Rogers and Waite are now D2.

There are a number of good D2 teams in NW Ohio this year but no clear-cut favorites. Shelby, Celina, and Defiance can be found in the weekly AP popularity contest, but it is difficult to differentiate them from Rogers, Van Wert, Sandusky Perkins and others.

The NW Ohio district winners in D2 will head to the regional at BG’s Anderson Arena to be joined by the winner of the Westlake district (Rocky River, Avon, Bay). NW Ohio will again have a D2 team in Columbus come late March.

SECTIONALS

CLAY: Toledo Scott and Toledo Waite are the top seeds. None of the teams at Clay were .500 or above at the time of the draw. Scott started the season 0-6 as the Bulldogs dealt with suspensions and injuries. Scott has shown improvement despite playing on the road all season. Waite has also dealt with plenty of distractions. The Indians are playing a little better with leading scorer Ke-Sean Harris no longer on the team. Not much to choose from among the other four. Despite their records, it will be a big surprise if Scott and Waite do not advance to the district.

Semifinals-Eastwood over Toledo Woodward; Rossford over Oak Harbor

Finals-Toledo Waite over Eastwood; Toledo Scott over Rossford

SWANTON: Toledo Rogers and Defiance are the top seeds. This is an excellent sectional. Only one team (Wauseon) will finish the season under .500. Rogers was nosed out in their bid for the Toledo City League playoffs. The Rams’ speed and quickness will make them a tough out in the tournament. The key is whether Rogers will be able to grind out close tournament games, and then there is the BEF (Big Earl factor). Defiance returns plenty of experience from their 2010 district championship team. Heading into the final week of the season, the Bulldogs still have a chance to tie for the WBL title. Napoleon is dominated by sophomores but talented. Maumee is much improved this season and could spring an upset as could an inconsistent Bryan team and Wauseon.

Semifinals-Bryan over Wauseon; Napoleon over Maumee

Finals-Defiance over Bryan; Toledo Rogers over Napoleon

SANDUSKY: Norwalk and Edison are the top seeds. This is a solid sectional although there won’t be any 20-0 teams this time around. Norwalk has been a surprise this season. The Truckers start two freshmen and a sophomore and still have a chance for an NOL title. Norwalk’s last NOL title was in 1962. Much was expected of Perkins even though the Pirates also start two freshmen and a sophomore. A veteran Edison team is the Sandusky Bay Conference champion. Clyde is solid although not very pretty while Bellevue has shown great improvement late in the season. 2010 Division II state runner-up Port Clinton has had their season ruined by injuries to key players.

Semifinals-Norwalk over Bellevue; Clyde over Port Clinton

Finals-Perkins over Norwalk; Edison over Clyde

MANSFIELD SENIOR: Shelby and Lexington are the top seeds. This is another very good sectional with only one team (Willard) under .500 heading into the final week of the season. A veteran Shelby team won their first fourteen games and is in a position to get at least an NOL co-title. Lexington had limited experience going into the season so their success was unexpected. Currently leading the Ohio Cardinal Conference, Lex is coached by former NBA player Jamie Feick. There is very little to differentiate Mansfield Madison, Clear Fork, and Willard.

Semifinal-Mansfield Madison over Willard

Finals-Lexington over Mansfield Madison; Shelby over Clear Fork

LIMA SENIOR: Celina and Van Wert are the top seeds. This is an all WBL sectional so anything could happen. Celina currently leads the WBL. The Bulldogs boast great balance. Van Wert started the season with ten straight wins and are now playing the role of spoiler in the WBL. The Cougars could still make a long tournament run. Elida has reigning WBL player of the year Reggie McAdams. Just a junior, McAdams already has gone past 1,000 career points. St. Marys is much improved under former New Knoxville boss Dan Hegemier. Both Shawnee and Wapak could pull upsets in the semifinals, but their chances of advancing to the district are slim.

Semifinals-Elida over Lima Shawnee; St. Marys over Wapakoneta

Finals-Van Wert over Elida; Celina over St. Marys

RIVERDALE: Kenton and Lima Bath are the top seeds. One of the weaker D2 sectionals in NW Ohio. Kenton has put together a solid season although their non-league success has come against a less than stellar schedule. Junior Maty Mauk, a big-time quarterback prospect, has gone over 1,000 career points. Bath started the season well but is stumbling to the finish line. Bath should advance, but the Wildcats getting “upset” would not be a huge surprise. Fostoria, Tiffin Columbian, and Upper Sandusky have been inconsistent in the topsy-turvy NOL

Semifinal-Upper Sandusky over Tiffin Columbian

Finals-Kenton over Upper Sandusky; Lima Bath over Fostoria

DISTRICTS

BGSU: Defiance is the defending district champion. With the exception of the William Buford led Libbey team in ’08, a WBL team has won the BG district every year since 1995. That is likely to change with Defiance the only WBL team still part of the BG district.

Semifinals-Toledo Rogers over Toledo Waite; Defiance over Toledo Scott

Final-Toledo Rogers over Defiance

ASHLAND UNIVERSITY: Port Clinton is the defending district champion. The NOL has won twelve of the past fourteen championships at Ashland with only Port Clinton (’10) and Lexington (’08) breaking the streak. It would make sense to pick Shelby in 2011, but the Swami has never been accused of having much of that. Ashland is a great atmosphere for high school basketball.

Semifinals-Shelby over Perkins; Lexington over Edison

Final-Shelby over Lexington

OHIO NORTHERN: Celina is the defending district champion. This is the second year for ONU as a district site in D2. You probably get tired of reading this, but this is one of the Swami’s least favorite venues. There is no chance that a WBL team will not win the district crown at ONU.

Semifinals-Van Wert over Lima Bath; Celina over Kenton

Final-Celina over Van Wert

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DIVISION III

D3 is the only division where there are no changes for 2011. Speaking of the status quo, some of the usual suspects are among the better D3 teams this season. Defending D3 state champion Lima Central Catholic and Archbold are at the top of the list. The Blue Streaks spent a couple weeks as the state’s top-ranked D3 team according to the AP. Ottawa-Glandorf has been inconsistent but still figures to be a tough out while Western Reserve has quietly put together a good season. Beyond that, there are a number of question marks.

The NW Ohio district winners in D3 will head to the regional at BG to be joined by the winner from one of the Columbus districts (Bloom-Carroll, Columbus Africentric). The regional final at BG on March 19 will in all likelihood be the final basketball game played at BG’s storied Anderson Arena. As in D2, look for a D3 team from NW Ohio to be in Columbus for the state tournament.

SECTIONALS

DEFIANCE: Archbold and Paulding are the top seeds. With strong man-to-man defense and balanced scoring as their calling cards, Archbold won the NWOAL championship. The Blue Streaks have ten straight sectional titles. How well guard Telly Fricke recovers from a recent injury will affect Archbold’s chances once they get out of Defiance. This has been a banner year for Paulding. The Panthers’ five losses are to teams with a combined record of 80-13. Tinora shares the Green Meadows Conference title with Antwerp and Edgerton. Liberty Center appears to be the best of the rest.

Semifinals-Fairview over Hicksville; Tinora over Liberty Center

Finals-Archbold over Fairview; Paulding over Tinora

TOLEDO WHITMER: Evergreen and Delta are the top seeds. The SLL takes on the NWOAL at Whitmer. Evergreen and Delta are clearly the class of the field. Evergreen lives (and dies) by the three while Delta appears to be peaking as tournament time rolls around. Lake has a chance to finish over .500 for the first time in a number of years. The Flyers have accomplished this despite being forced to play their home games at Owens Community College. Sophomores lead Otsego while Genoa and Swanton are just trying to finish their seasons.

Semifinals-Genoa over Swanton; Otsego over Lake

Finals-Evergreen over Genoa; Delta over Otsego

FINDLAY: Ottawa-Glandorf and Patrick Henry are the top seeds. Despite seven losses heading into the final week of the season, Ottawa-Glandorf can still grab a piece of the WBL title. After a couple of losing seasons, Patrick Henry has had a nice bounce back year. Elmwood won the SLL in the league’s final year. The Patriots and Royals had a wild overtime game when they played during the regular season at PH. At 10-9 heading into the final week of the regular season, Liberty-Benton is having a down year. That really shouldn’t be a surprise after losing Aaron Craft to graduation. Amazingly, The Eagles have won sectional titles the past twenty seasons beginning with the 1991 tournament. That streak will be severely tested this season.

Semifinal-Liberty-Benton over Riverdale

Finals-Ottawa-Glandorf over Liberty-Benton; Elmwood over Patrick Henry

WAPAKONETA: Lima Central Catholic and Delphos Jefferson are the top seeds. Maybe not up to their normal standards, this is still a good sectional. Defending D3 state champion hasn’t missed a beat under new coach Frank Kill who replaced the retired Bob Seggerson. LCC has fourteen straight wins headed into their showdown with Columbus Grove. The T-Birds are battling injury problems. Delphos Jefferson is having a solid season while St. Henry has played very well since mid-January. Bluffton has faded down the stretch. Coldwater is in the midst of a tough season and will not be a factor at Wapak.

Semifinals-Coldwater over Parkway; St. Henry over Bluffton

Finals-Lima Central Catholic over Coldwater; St. Henry over Delphos Jefferson

LEXINGTON: Ontario and Colonel Crawford are the top seeds. Ontario is currently tied with Wynford for the lead in the North Central Conference. The lower bracket at Lexington should be very competitive. Colonel Crawford and Ashland Crestview are having nice seasons while Galion is the dark horse. Ontario should cruise through the upper bracket. Plymouth ran out of Tursons (both dad and sons) this season. When was the last time Bucyrus won a sectional title?

Semifinals-Bucyrus over Plymouth; Galion over Ashland Crestview

Finals-Ontario over Bucyrus; Galion over Colonel Crawford

NORWALK: Western Reserve and Huron are the top seeds. Western Reserve is the Firelands Conference champ. Not much was expected from Huron this season. The young Tigers just continue to improve. Both the top seeds chose to play first round games. Margaretta has been solid but has not been able to figure a way to defeat Huron. Is it really that hard to beat a team three times in a season? Woodmore could spring an upset on Huron. It’s a long bus ride to Norwalk for Woodmore, Gibsonburg, and Lakota. Lakota has averaged just 33 points a game while giving up more than 55 a game so there have been plenty of long bus rides this season for the Raiders.

Semifinals-Western Reserve over Lakota; Huron over Woodmore

Finals-Western Reserve over Gibsonburg; Huron over Margaretta

DISTRICTS

NAPOLEON: Archbold is the defending district champion. In addition to last year’s title, Archbold won the Napoleon district in 2008. The Blue Streaks have won five district crowns in the past eight seasons.

Semifinals-Archbold over Delta; Paulding over Evergreen

Final-Archbold over Paulding

ELIDA: Lima Central Catholic is the defending district champion. Although not quite the meat grinder it’s been over the past few seasons, this remains a very good D3 district tournament. The Elida district produced both the 2010 and 2008 D3 state champions as well as the 2007 state runner-up.

Semifinals-Ottawa-Glandorf over St. Henry; Lima Central Catholic over Elmwood

Final-Lima Central Catholic over Ottawa-Glandorf

MANSFIELD SENIOR: Plymouth is the defending district champion. Plymouth won back-to-back district crowns in D4 prior to last year’s D3 title. The Big Red took D3 state champion Lima Central Catholic into overtime in last year’s regional final.

Semifinals-Ontario over Huron; Western Reserve over Galion

Final-Western Reserve over Ontario

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DIVISION IV

There are some venue changes in D4 for 2011. With Lake High School having been destroyed by the June tornado, that sectional has been moved to Rossford. Rossford? The Bluffton sectional has moved to the Elida Fieldhouse with few tears shed. With Elida now the site of a D4 sectional, Lima Senior has replaced Elida as a D4 district venue.

D4 basketball in NW Ohio? A large number of schools (71 teams), great tradition, and some very good teams. Undefeated McComb heads the list while Columbus Grove and Continental are also state-ranked according to the AP. You can add New Knoxville, Kalida, Minster, Vanlue, and Ottawa Hills to the list as well as a number of others who can do some damage in March.

The Lima Senior district winner will meet the Gibsonburg district winner in one regional semifinal at Anderson Arena with the Liberty-Benton and Napoleon district winners meeting in the other regional semifinal at BG. I think the Swami might pay to see a Columbus Grove/McComb regional final. The Wapak district winner will meet one of the Dayton district winners (Lockland, Fort Loramie, Houston) in a regional semifinal at Kettering while the Willard district winner will meet the Columbus district winner (Tree of Life, Harvest Prep) in a regional semifinal at the Barn.

SECTIONALS

COLDWATER: New Knoxville and Minster are the top seeds. The MAC may be a little bit down this year, but this is still a good sectional. New Knoxville is the MAC champion. Minster has been solid all season while Marion Local appears to be coming around as the tourney approaches. Fort Recovery started off the season at 9-1 but has faded while New Bremen has done just the opposite. The lower bracket is really tough to call with all three teams (Marion Local, Minster, New Bremen) having a legitimate chance to advance. Waynesfield-Goshen is the only team that does not figure to contend.

Semifinals-Fort Recovery over Waynesfield-Goshen; Marion Local over New Bremen

Finals-New Knoxville over Fort Recovery; Marion Local over Minster

VAN WERT: Convoy Crestview and Spencerville are the top seeds. Crestview has been solid all season in the tough NWC. The Knights own a win at LCC. Spencerville started the season strong but has faded a bit. Delphos St. John’s is the dark horse at Van Wert. The Jays are very deliberate and have been competitive in the MAC. St. John’s could jump up and bite Crestview. Ottoville, Lincolnview, and Fort Jennings round out the sectional. Lincolnview and Fort Jennings are former D4 state champs. Surprisingly, Fort Jennings has yet to win a game this season.

Semifinals-Delphos St. John’s over Lincolnview; Ottoville over Fort Jennings

Finals-Convoy Crestview over Delphos St. John’s; Spencerville over Ottoville

KENTON: Arlington and Ada are the top seeds. Usually a weak sectional and this year is no exception. Arlington, a middle of the pack BBC team, is the best of the bunch. It will be a shocker if the top two seeds don’t advance. Ada has seven consecutive sectional titles to their credit. Allen East, Upper Scioto Valley, Ridgemont, and Hardin Northern have combined for thirteen wins this season. That is an improvement from some recent seasons but still a strong argument for making the Kenton sectional part of a combined sectional/district.

Semifinals-Allen East over Ridgemont; Upper Scioto Valley over Hardin Northern

Finals-Arlington over Allen East; Ada over Upper Scioto Valley

ELIDA: Columbus Grove and Continental are the top seeds. Three excellent teams (Grove, Continental, Kalida) at Elida. Grove has size and balance. Their game with LCC on February 25 will decide the NWC championship. Continental has late season losses to Grove and Kalida. Coach Kevin Homier’s hair was recently spotted in Loverboy’s “Working For The Weekend” video. Kalida returned quite a bit of experience this season from their back-to-back district championship teams. Coach Richard Kortokrax has won something like 10,000 games in his storied coaching career. A little known fact is that Korto has worn the same sport coat in over 500 of those wins. Lima Temple Christian has put together a nice year while a young Lima Perry team has improved throughout the season.

Semifinals-Kalida over Cory-Rawson; Lima Perry over Lima Temple Christian

Finals-Columbus Grove over Lima Perry; Kalida over Continental

BRYAN: Stryker and Pettisville are the top seeds. The BBC and the Locos always make for a good time at Bryan. Difficult to separate Fayette, Montpelier, Pettisville, and Stryker. Fayette has played well since starting the season with six straight losses. Montpelier has been much more competitive when compared to the past few seasons. Pettisville has tradition while Stryker is slumping as the regular season comes to a close. Hilltop and North Central don’t figure to contend.

Semifinals-Fayette over Hilltop; Montpelier over North Central

Finals-Fayette over Pettisville; Montpelier over Stryker

HICKSVILLE: Edgerton and Antwerp are the top seeds. This is an intriguing sectional with all five teams having a shot at titles. Edgerton and Antwerp shared the GMC title with D3 Tinora. This appeared to be a down year in the GMC. Edon is the Buckeye Border Conference champion. Edon’s Tyler Wells set the school scoring record in early February when he dropped 47 on Hamilton, Indiana. Ayersville controlled the GMC for a good portion of the season but the Pilots have been inconsistent. Wayne Trace is having a dismal season but the Raiders have a tradition of tournament success.

Semifinal-Edon over Wayne Trace

Finals-Edon over Antwerp; Edgerton over Ayersville

OTTAWA-GLANDORF: McComb and Leipsic are the top seeds. Only two teams have come within single digits of McComb to date. Mason Roth, Taylor Hanes, and Andrew Dee are the big three for the Panthers. McComb also has the best tailgating at the state tournament. Leipsic has been solid but somewhat of a disappointment to the Swami. Holgate has averaged 33.3 per game while giving up 33.3 per game. Miller City and Holgate went three overtimes earlier in February. Pandora-Gilboa has played much better of late after starting the season at 2-11. I realize they play in the MAL, but the Swami never expected North Baltimore to win eight games this year.

Semifinals-Pandora-Gilboa over North Baltimore; Holgate over Miller City

Finals-McComb over Pandora-Gilboa; Leipsic over Holgate

FOSTORIA: Vanlue and Van Buren are the top seeds. The BVC and the MAL clash in Fotown. Vanlue has put together a great season losing only to McComb and Leipsic. The Wildcats have a lot of size. Van Buren is solid again and will be a tough out. Vanlue and Van Buren are the only teams to come within single digits of McComb. New Riegel will finish no worse than in a tie for the MAL crown. A Van Buren/New Riegel sectional final looks like a great matchup. Hopewell-Loudon is much improved while Fostoria St. Wendelin and Arcadia round out the sectional.

Semifinals-Hopewell-Loudon over Arcadia; New Riegel over Fostoria St. Wendelin.

Finals-Vanlue over Hopewell-Loudon; Van Buren over New Riegel

PORT CLINTON: Fremont St. Joseph CC and Monroeville are the top seeds. Not a great sectional but it will be very competitive. Fremont St. Joe is the only team that was at or above .500 at the time of the draw. Monroeville was expected to contend in the Firelands Conference but that has not happened. Last year, Monroeville won their first tournament game since “Augie’s Eagles” captured the Class A state championship in 1984. Sandusky St. Mary is the dark horse at PC. Norwalk St. Paul, Danbury, and Old Fort could easily pull “upsets”. Sorry Jon.

Semifinals-Norwalk St. Paul over Old Fort; Sandusky St. Mary CC over Danbury

Finals-Monroeville over Norwalk St. Paul; Sandusky St. Mary CC over Fremont St. Joseph CC

ROSSFORD: Maumee Valley Country Day and Ottawa Hills are the top seeds. The gym at Rossford was a nice place to play the 1971 Class AAA sectional. The Swami loves the older gyms but Rossford is a bad place to watch a game (unless you can see through poles and like to sit away from the floor) and has poor parking for larger crowds. Maumee Valley’s Jim Robinson now has over 500 career wins. When you look at Robby’s career stops, it reads like the OHSAA directory of schools. MVCD is dominated by underclassmen. Ottawa Hills has five of their top seven players back from the team that made it all the way to the state semifinals in 2010. The Green Bears are the TAAC champs again this year. Toledo Christian has eight straight sectional titles. The Eagles with the #3 seed jumped to the MV side of the bracket. TC and MV in a sectional final should be a slobber knocker. Bettsville, Cardinal Stritch, and Northwood round things out.

Semifinals-Toledo Christian over Northwood; Bettsville over Cardinal Stritch

Finals-Toledo Christian over Maumee Valley Country Day; Ottawa Hills over Bettsville

GALION: South Central and Mansfield Christian are the top seeds. South Central is a tough read. The Trojans have an excellent record but quality wins are scarce. The same can be said of Mansfield Christian. Lucas is the dark horse at Galion, and New London could also spring an upset to advance to the district. It is always difficult to view Mansfield St. Peter’s as just an also-ran in a very average sectional but that is the reality. St. Pete’s basketball will always be synonymous with guys like Doug Alt, Whitey Varga, Leo Brown and many others.

Semifinals-Lucas over Mansfield St. Peter’s; New London over Crestline

Finals-South Central over Lucas; Mansfield Christian over New London

BUCYRUS: Tiffin Calvert and Wynford are the top seeds. Did we finally make it to Bucyrus? This is a good sectional that should be extremely competitive. Wynford is currently tied with Ontario for the lead in the NCC. Wynford has fifteen straight sectional titles. Calvert started the season with thirteen straight wins before they hit the tough part of their schedule. The Senecas should finish in a tie with New Riegel for the MAL title. Carey has plenty of experience back from last year’s district runner-up team. Buckeye Central has been solid while Seneca East is athletic. Only Mohawk appears not to have a chance to advance to the district.

Semifinals-Carey over Mohawk; Buckeye Central over Seneca East

Finals-Carey over Tiffin Calvert; Wynford over Buckeye Central

DISTRICTS

WAPAKONETA: Fort Recovery is the defending district champion. Teams from the Coldwater sectional normally dominate this district although this is only the second year that they have been matched up with the Van Wert sectional.

Semifinals-New Knoxville over Spencerville; Convoy Crestview over Marion Local

Final-New Knoxville over Convoy Crestview

LIMA SENIOR: Kalida is the defending district champion. The Wildcats also took the district title in 2009.

Semifinals-Columbus Grove over Arlington; Kalida over Ada

Final-Columbus Grove over Kalida

NAPOLEON: Wayne Trace is the defending district champion. The Raiders won the district last year despite finishing the season with 11 losses.

Semifinals-Edgerton over Fayette; Edon over Montpelier

Final-Edgerton over Edon

LIBERTY-BENTON: Miller City is the defending district champion. Last year’s district final between Miller City and Pandora-Gilboa was one of the wildest games that the Swami has seen in recent years.

Semifinals-McComb over Van Buren; Vanlue over Leipsic

Final-McComb over Vanlue

GIBSONBURG: Ottawa Hills is the defending district champion. Last year was the first year for the district at Gburg and it produced a regional champion. That will be difficult to match in 2011.

Semifinals-Ottawa Hills over Monroeville; Toledo Christian over Sandusky St. Mary CC

Final-Ottawa Hills over Toledo Christian

WILLARD: Wynford is the defending district champion. Difficult to go against Wynford in the House that Haas built. The Bucyrus sectional dominated the district a year ago and that should again be the case in 2011.

Semifinals-Wynford over South Central; Carey over Mansfield Christian

Finals-Wynford over Carey

That’s all for now. We will be back with a much shorter version for the regional and state tournaments. All facts, fiction, and opinions are those of the Swami. Brackets are courtesy of Davey1.com himself, Mr. David Spengler. Rock on.

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