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Top Southwest Ohio junior boys basketball players heading into the 2025-2026 season

Published

4 months ago

November 18, 2025

Top Southwest Ohio junior boys basketball players heading into the 2025-2026 season

It’s almost hoops time in Ohio as the season is just around the corner. Four Southwest Ohio boys teams reached the Final Four of the state tournament across seven divisions last season, and with tons of talent spread across Cincinnati we could be in for a repeat in 2025-2026.

The Enquirer has already broken down the top 25 Southwest Ohio seniors to watch, and so it’s time to turn our attention to the juniors. Though it can be difficult to earn playing time as an underclassman, these players made the cut last year and had a huge impact on their teams.

Continuing The Enquirer’s previews and breakdowns of the year to come, here are the top 10 Southwest Ohio juniors to watch, listed alphabetically, for the 2025-2026 season. Watch for a separate story for Northern Kentucky and Indiana juniors.

Eli Beck, Madeira

A star on the baseball diamond as well, Beck was already the Mustangs’ leading scorer as a sophomore with 12 points per game. His ability to get to the rim for quality shots helped him shoot over 63% from the floor last year. He shoots well from three at over 38%, but he only took 44 threes last year. Beck was selected second-team all-conference in the Cincinnati Hills league in 2024-2025, and should continue to improve this season.

Bryce Curry, Lakota West

One of two sophomores who helped lead Lakota West to the state Final Four last season, Curry uses his length and athleticism to impact the game. At 6-foot-4, his ability to finish above the rim led him to average 11.9 points per game on 52% shooting, also grabbing 3.3 rebounds and 1.7 steals a game. Curry was named to the all-conference first team in the Greater Miami Conference and an All-Ohio honorable mention. With fellow junior Josh Tyson also returning for the Firebirds, Lakota West will be a threat to make a deep tournament run once again.

Keion Griffin, Taft

Griffin earned first-team All-Ohio honors last season in Division IV after leading the Senators in scoring with 17.9 points per game. His outside shooting and defense make him dangerous as he shot above 35% from deep and averaged 2.2 steals and two blocks a game. Taft returns all five of its leading scorers from last year, with Griffin looking to put up monster numbers yet again.

Jayceon Kibler, Wilmington

Although he missed the back half of last season, Kibler finished as the leading per-game scorer in the Southern Buckeye Academic and Athletic Conference with 19 points per game on 36% three-point shooting. As a freshman Kibler was already a first-team all-conference pick for the American Division in the SBAAC, and as long as he stays healthy he’ll be in the conversation for player of the year in his junior season.

Isaiah Mack-Russell, Winton Woods

Mack-Russell is a high-impact transfer for a Winton Woods team that already brought back a lot of talent from last year’s 23-2 season. The 109th overall player in the 2027 class, according to 247 Sports, he averaged 18.8 points per game at Toledo Central Catholic last year. He has several Division I offers, including Ohio State, Cincinnati and Dayton. Mack-Russell looks poised to be a major weapon in another deep Winton Woods run.

Braylon Settelmayer, Goshen

Settelmayer won Player of the Year in the SBAAC’s American Division last year, averaging 12.5 points, 7.8 assists, 4.8 rebounds, and two steals per game. He was also an OHSAA Division III all-state honorable mention as he led Goshen to win the American Division with a 9-1 conference record. With the team returning its top three scorers and Settelmayer there to run the offense, expect another strong season from Goshen.

Monsanna Torbert, Taft

The star quarterback for the Senators was also the second-leading scorer on the hardwood last season with 14.7 points per game. Torbert’s 3.5 assists and 2.4 steals a game were also good for second best on the team as he earned first-team all-conference honors in the Cincinnati Metro Conference’s Red Division and was named a Division IV All-Ohio honorable mention.

Josh Tyson, Lakota West

Tyson led the Firebirds’ offense last year en route to a state Final Four appearance, netting himself second-team All-Ohio honors. With 15.5 points per game on lights-out 60% shooting, including 42% from three, Tyson’s offensive firepower also granted him a spot as an all-conference first-teamer. As the team’s leader in assists as well, Tyson is more than capable of burning opponents if they try to force the ball out of his hands.

Chris Washington, Purcell Marian

In his sophomore campaign, Washington torched opposing defenses on his way to 22.1 points per game. Adding 5.3 rebounds, 3.4 assists, and two steals, he earned his place on the Miami Valley Conference’s all-league first team. In his final regular-season game last season, Washington scored 38 points on 13-of-14 shooting, including 6-of-7 from beyond the arc. If he picks up where he left off, he’ll be at the top of the list for MVC Player of the Year.

Grant Waters, McNicholas

An All-Ohio special mention and first-team all-conference selection out of the Greater Catholic League-Coed, Water used deadeye shooting to lead the league in scoring. Splashing in 90 threes on nearly 41.9% shooting, he averaged 18.2 points per game as a sophomore. With just one other GCL-Coed first-teamer returning for the 2025-2026 season, Waters is primed to make another run at athlete of the year.

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Which central Ohio girls wrestlers advanced to OHSAA state tournament?

Published

6 hours ago

March 9, 2026

Press Room

Which central Ohio girls wrestlers advanced to OHSAA state tournament?

The Olentangy Orange girls wrestling team pulled away on day two of the district tournament for its fourth consecutive title since the Ohio High School Athletic Association added the sport in 2023 and sixth overall.

The Pioneers (183) finished ahead of runner-up Marysville (131) on March 8 at Big Walnut. The top four finishers in each weight class advanced to state March 13-15 at Value City Arena.

“It gets tougher every year,” Orange coach Brian Nicola said. “This is one the toughest districts in the state. You have all these great teams here and everyone comes in ready to battle. The girls wrestled really hard, so I was very excited.”

Mackenzie Carder (120 pounds) and Lacie Knick (130) won titles for Orange, which will have eight wrestlers at state as its seeks a third consecutive title in that tournament.

Marysville has five state qualifiers, led by 100-pound district champion Avery Riley.

Canal Winchester senior Razilee Wisseh advanced to her fourth state tournament and earned her 150th career win, beating Gahanna Lincoln’s Jordan Mills 9-4 in the 170 final.

Here are the central Ohio state qualifiers from the girls district tournament. When four qualifiers are listed for a weight class, they are in order of finish.

100: Avery Riley (Marysville), Kenleigh Ballance (Pickerington North), Mila Cruz (Watkins Memorial), Aaliyah Dawson (Reynoldsburg)

105: Hali Rayburn (Hilliard Bradley, third), Ellianna Perry (Watkins Memorial, fourth)

110: Ashlynn Brokaw (Mount Vernon, first), Andrea Acheampong (DeSales, third), Delaney Tackett (Orange, fourth)

115: Reagan Johnson (Thomas Worthington, first), Arden Heckman (Westerville North, third), Malaya DiMasso (Olentangy Liberty, fourth)

120: Mackenzie Carder (Orange, first), Cami Leng (Marysville, second), Skylar McCuen (Olentangy, fourth)

125: Kendleigh Dowalter (Grove City), Kara Hockenbery (West Jefferson), Kelly Lemons (Bradley), Sarah Amonette (Orange)

130: Lacie Knick (Orange, first), Mina Gee (Gahanna Lincoln, second), Payton Morse (Watkins Memorial, third)

135: Adison Justice (Licking Valley, first), Chloe Tompkins (Orange, second), Katelyn Norris (Big Walnut, third)

140: Nora Johnson (Hartley, second), Alanna Smith (Orange, third), Cara Leng (Marysville, fourth)

145: Reese Thomas (Jonathan Alder, first), Tara Davis (Orange, second), Andrea Mendez (Marysville, third)

155: KyLee Tibbs (Gahanna, first), Maya Keane (Hartley, second), Tamia Davis (Orange, third), Brielle Proffitt (Watkins Memorial, fourth)

170: Razilee Wisseh (Canal Winchester), Jordan Mills (Gahanna), Grace Glandorff (Bradley), Evelyn Krauss (Delaware Hayes)

190: Mykah Bailey (Gahanna, first), Abbey Enders (Liberty, second), Emma Bolton (Highland, third)

235: Tara Nagel (Madison-Plains, first), Maci Lee (Marysville, fourth)

High school sports reporter Frank DiRenna can be reached at fdirenna@dispatch.com and at @DispatchFrank on X.

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Which central Ohio boys wrestlers advanced to OHSAA state tournament?

Published

19 hours ago

March 8, 2026

Press Room

Which central Ohio boys wrestlers advanced to OHSAA state tournament?

The Dublin Coffman boys wrestling team continued its dominance in central Ohio at the Division I level, winning its eighth consecutive district title March 7 at Hilliard Darby.

The Shamrocks scored a tournament-record 263.5 points in the two-day event, easily outdistancing runner-up Olentangy Liberty (153.5). Coffman set the previous record of 247 in 2022.

Coffman had six champions and qualified 10 wrestlers for the state tournament March 13-15 at Value City Arena.

The top four wrestlers in each weight class advanced.

“The [tournament] record was a good goal for the team to set,” Coffman coach Chance Van Gundy said. “We just have to wrestle our best [at state] and see where that lands us.”

In Division II at Wilmington, DeSales won the title (230.5) ahead of CCL rival and defending state champion Watterson (212).

DeSales had three champions and qualified nine wrestlers for state, while Watterson had four champions and advanced eight to state.

“The guys wrestled tough from whistle to whistle,” DeSales coach Collin Palmer said. “Some of them had to dig deep and figure out ways to win matches, and they did just that.”

Here are the central Ohio state qualifiers from the boys district tournaments. When four qualifiers are listed for a weight class, they are in order of finish.

Division I (Hilliard Darby)

106 pounds: Jacob Willaman (Olentangy Berlin), Ryan Noble (Watkins Memorial), Cole Perry (Olentangy Liberty), Ricky Molasso-Matessa (Upper Arlington)

113: Loc Webber (Dublin Coffman), Zac Dodt (Thomas Worthington), Trevor Bridges (Teays Valley), Brian Waller (Marysville)

120: Oliver Lester (Coffman), Brady Todd (Worthington Kilbourne), Nick Coverstone (Hilliard Darby), Mason Spence (Westerville North)

126: Tommy Wurster (Coffman), Josh Zimmer (Teays Valley), Jake Shirck (New Albany), Cole Dodson (UA)

132: Blaze Van Gundy (Coffman), Jack Williams (Marysville), Grant Sedlick (UA), Maddux Nauman (Berlin)

138: Finnegan Cox (Delaware Hayes), Preston Schuler (Olentangy), Alex Mickens (Liberty), Brayden Becker-Shaw (Berlin)

144: Huggy Williams (Liberty), Trent Sharp (Marysville), Austin Rohrbach (Hilliard Bradley), Isaiah Callahan (Coffman)

150: Aiden Milam (Liberty), Cash Clark (Berlin), Landon Moses (Olentangy), Daksh Adengada (Dublin Jerome)

157: Eli Esguerra (Coffman), Mavrik Gregory (Mount Vernon), Carter Shank (Marysville), Jacob Ramirez (Central Crossing)

165: Grayson Woodcock (Coffman), Chase Cone (Berlin), Keegen Andrews (Marysville), Derek Deichert (Westerville South)

175: Kile Sentieri (Marion Harding), Rylan Moran (Westerville Central), Gauge Woods (Bradley), Hamde Bakeye (Whitehall-Yearling)

190: Dylan Frass (Liberty), Michael Feeney (Coffman), Luke Mullins (Mount Vernon), Peter Graham (Teays Valley)

215: Logan Krooner (Darby), Mason Parrill (Coffman), Jackson Lane (Liberty), Cooper Frye (Delaware)

Heavyweight: Daniel Stephens (Olentangy), Tyson Keyes (Darby), Braylon Wright (Coffman), WoJo Moore (Watkins Memorial)

Division II

Wilmington

106: Mark Mobley (DeSales, first), Sid Hunt (Watterson, second)

113: Henry Geiger (Granville, third)

120: Rayce Watson (Jonathan Alder, first), Eddie Vitu (DeSales, second), Nash Finley (Granville, third)

126: Josh Sheets (DeSales, first), Anthony Bergeron (Granville, second), Elias Kline (Bloom-Carroll, fourth)

138: Grayson Debevoise (DeSales, first), Thomas Lindsay (Watterson, second)

144: Blake Eckelbarger (DeSales, second)

150: James Lindsay (Watterson, first), Reed Bodie (DeSales, second)

157: Tommy Rowlands (Watterson, first), Jonah Jenkins (DeSales, second)

165: Luke Sanchez (Granville, second), Joel Welch (DeSales, third), Miles D’Orazio (Watterson, fourth)

175: Paul Byerly (Jonathan Alder, fourth)

190: Landon Lucas (Watterson, second)

215: Michael Boyle (Watterson, first), Tanner Arledge (DeSales, second)

Heavyweight: A.J. DeMassimo (Watterson, first)

Norwalk

106: Brody Miller (Licking Valley, third)

113: Vincent Martiah (Hartley, second)

120: Brady Byler, (Highland, third)

126: Joe Curry (Licking Valley, first), Carson Schehl (Lakewood, second)

138: Ayden Douglas (Licking Valley, second)

144: Kasey Clark (Highland, third)

165: Cael Gilmore (Highland, first)

215: Joe Zang (Hartley, fourth)

Gallipolis

106: Kevin Downing (Circleville, fourth)

190: Eli Wright (Westfall, second)

Division III

Coshocton

113: Conner Wygle (Utica, second)

Troy

106: Parker Frakes (Liberty Union, fourth)

113: Rocco Castricone (Mount Gilead, third)

138: Jimmy Landis (Liberty Union, third)

165: Rylan Puckett (West Jefferson, second)

190: Bobby Kapala (Ready, second)

215: Ayden Cordle (West Jefferson, fourth)

High school sports reporter Frank DiRenna can be reached at fdirenna@dispatch.com and at @DispatchFrank on X.

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At the Buzzer: Ohio State 91, Indiana 78

Published

1 day ago

March 8, 2026

Press Room

At the Buzzer: Ohio State 91, Indiana 78

Quick thoughts on a 91-78 loss at Ohio State:

How it happened

Indiana’s defense was non-existent in the first half of Saturday’s regular-season finale at Ohio State. The Buckeyes feasted on a soft Hoosier defense, scoring 50 points on 67.9 percent shooting from the field. Ohio State scored 1.46 points per possession and led 50-33, the largest halftime deficit for Indiana in a game this season. The Buckeyes were red hot from the perimeter, shooting 8-for-13 on 3s. Three different Ohio State players scored in double figures – Amare Bynum with 14, Bruce Thornton with 12 and John Mobley Jr. with 11. For Indiana, it was a half to forget offensively as well. The Hoosiers shot 1-for-8 on 3s and committed eight turnovers.

Things didn’t get better early in the second half, as the Buckeyes extended their margin early in the half. Ohio State stretched the lead to 24 points at 69-45 on a pair of Thornton free throws with 12:18 to play. The Hoosiers, however, didn’t fold completely and made five of seven shots to cut the deficit to 15 points at 73-58 by the under-eight media timeout. Indiana then trimmed the lead to 13 at 81-68 with 4:48 left on a pair of Tucker DeVries free throws and then to 11 at 81-70 on a DeVries layup with 4:03 to play. The Hoosiers, however, would get no closer than 10 down the stretch as they dropped a critical game and finished the regular season 18-13 overall and 9-11 in the Big Ten.

Standout performers

Lamar Wilkerson led Indiana with 18 points and now has the single-season record for points by a Hoosier in Big Ten play. DeVries added 17 points, five assists and three rebounds.

Statistics that stand out

The Hoosiers were carved up defensively as Ohio State scored 1.34 points per possession. The Buckeyes shot 11-for-24 on 3s and had five players score in double figures. The 91 points for Ohio State were the second-most in a Big Ten game this season for the Buckeyes.

Up next for IU

Indiana begins postseason play on Wednesday night in the 2026 Big Ten tournament at the United Center in Chicago. The Hoosiers will be the No. 10 seed and will play the winner of the No. 15 vs. No. 18 game at 6:30 p.m. ET on BTN on Wednesday.