Division II OHSAA District Boys Basketball Scouting Report: Shelby, Lexington, Mansfield Senior seeking title game berth
ASHLAND — Ding. Ding. Round 2.
The Division II Ashland District boys basketball tournament is going to play out like a heavyweight boxing match on Thursday night with two exciting matchups of teams very familiar with each other. The two district semifinals games feature rematches of late-regular season contests in which the winning teams won by a combined 12 points.
While those winning teams won Round 1, Round 2 means the most with a trip to the district championship game on the line. It is win or go home and the moment so many has been waiting for is finally here. Let's take a deep dive into the Division II Ashland District tournament with this edition of Scouting Report.
The Matchups
No. 1 Sandusky (22-1) vs No. 5 Mansfield Senior (17-7), 6 p.m. at Ashland High School
The Blue Streaks won the first meeting between these two teams back on Feb. 4, 79-74 at Mansfield Senior. Since then, the Tygers have won six straight including overtime wins over Trotwood-Madison and Lexington and two tournament victories over Norwalk and Bellevue. The Tygers are playing their best basketball at the perfect time and has multiple players stepping up every single night. Expect them to pull out all the stops to pull off the upset and set up an all-Richland County district final.
Sandusky has been the No. 1 seed in the district all year long and for good reason. After starting the year 4-0, the Streaks lost to Tiffin Columbian 58-53 and have since won 18 in a row with only one of those games seeing less than 70 points. Sandusky scores in bunches and loves to play at a quick pace. Remind you of anyone? This is going to be a high-scoring game at a track-meet pace so buckle up and get ready for some fun.
No. 2 Shelby (20-3) vs No. 3 Lexington (19-4), 7:30 p.m. at Ashland High School
These two teams played just more than two weeks ago with Lexington coming away with a 66-59 win on Shelby's home court. But Round 2 should be even more entertaining. Needless to say, neither team showed their entire hand in the first meeting so the second matchup will be completely different than the first.
Lexington comes in having ended the regular season 1-2 with losses to Ottawa-Glandorf and Mansfield Senior forcing them to share the Ohio Cardinal Conference championship. The Minutemen outlasted Willard in the sectional final so they are battle-tested heading into the biggest game of the season. They will still be without two players who had significant minutes this year so the Minutemen won't be going extremely deep into the bench, but that didn't hurt them the first time around either. The Minutemen played some different defenses and found some things that worked against Shelby the first time around so they learned a lot about how to beat the Whippets. Expect them to do much of the same Thursday night.
Shelby comes in winning seven of their last eight with their lone loss coming to Lex two weeks ago. They were locked in some tight ones where they should have won by more comfortable margins, but things have since turned around with a blowout win in the season finale and a comfortable win in the sectional championship game. The Whippets really didn't show their hand in the game against Lexington minimizing adjustments and really using it as a scouting tool so expect them to do some different things than the first time around to try and punch their ticket to the district finals.
Players to Watch
Daylen Green, Sandusky
The senior guard averaged 18.6 points, 4.7 rebounds, 1.7 assists and 3.3 steals a game for the Sandusky Bay Conference Lake Division champions. Green is a catalyst for the Blue Streaks on both ends of the court with the ability to ignite the offense with his scoring ability and play some exceptional defense as a threat to always cause turnovers and turn them into points on the other end. Mansfield Senior will have to work to minimize Green's defensive pressure and make sure he doesn't get much going on the offensive end. He is going to be a tough matchup.
Kyevi Roane, Mansfield Senior
A sensational sophomore, Roane has had a great season for the Tygers this year averaging 15 points, eight rebounds and two assists a game. Given his 6-1 stature, Roane plays much bigger and stronger than most 6-7 kids nowadays. He isn't afraid to mix it up inside and score off of the block and is athletic and agile enough to play beyond the arch. He has a special skillset that has the Tygers looking to him for leadership and Roane provides it. He is also a very underrated defender who always seems to make things difficult with his quick hands and ability to just be a pest on defense. He will be the Tygers' x-factor Thursday night.
Baden Forup, Lexington
Speaking of x-factors, Forup will be just that for the Minutemen on Thursday night. The 6-7 senior averaged 15 points, nine rebounds and one assist a game during the regular season. He had a stellar game the first time around against Shelby with 18 points and 11 rebounds as the Whippets had no answer for him on the glass. He has a tendency to make his defender spend a lot of energy guarding him which takes the defender out of the offensive scheme on the other end making it hard for anyone to play both ends of the court. A first team All-District 6 player, Forup should get plenty of touches in the paint early to force the Whippets to change defensive tactics opening up the 3 and mid-range jumpers. And that is when Forup will be at his best gathering up offensive rebounds.
Alex Bruskotter, Shelby
Arguably the most talented player in the entire district, Bruskotter can take the next step in a legacy that will be looked at for a lifetime of success in Thursday night's semifinal. After averaging 22 points, nine rebounds, 4.9 assists and 1.8 steals a game during the regular season, he was voted the District 6 Player of the Year in Division II and Player of the Year in the MOAC for good reason. He led the league in points, rebounds and assists and recently went over the 1,000-career point mark in the Whippets' sectional final win over Ontario. If Bruskotter can make life difficult for Lexington and force the Minutemen to pick and choose their defensive schemes, it could open things up for others to contribute on a consistent basis. But, the way Bruskotter rebounds will be the biggest x-factor for the Whippets. Lexington loves to control the boards and did so against Shelby the first time. If Bruskotter can pull down some rebounds to limit Lex's second-chance opportunities, that will be the key of the night.
jfurr@gannett.com
740-244-9934
Twitter: @JakeFurr11
This article originally appeared on Mansfield News Journal: Division II OHSAA District Boys Basketball Scouting Report: Shelby, Lexington, Mansfield Senior seeking title game berth
