Week 3 Recap/Updated Team Rankings

Aiken senior SG Willie Moore

What a week it was in Cincinnati high school basketball. CPHR got a chance to see our top ranked Division I team for the first two times this season, both of which resulted in wins. We had some more big time clashes between GMC rivals, and the all important first round of GCL South divisional games. Who were the top performers this week; and how do we decide which teams fall where in the rankings? Check out our take….

Week Three Top Performers 

·         Willie Moore- ’12 Aiken SG: Team might have lost fourth quarter leads against Middletown and Withrow but Moore was spectacular. He scored 21 against Middletown, single handedly keeping his team in it, then put up 17 against a Withrow defense keyed in on stopping him.

·         Geovonie McKnight- ’12 Middletown PG/SG: 29 points in a close win on Tuesday against Aiken then 21 against Mason on Friday have us thinking early GMC Player of the Year.

·         Vincent Edwards- ’14 Middletown SF: Two huge wins, Aiken and Mason, were made possible by Edwards who scored 22 and then 20 with double-figure rebounds both nights.

·         Robert Overbeck- ’12 Milford C: Two 17 point outings in two big Eagles wins this week.

·         Paul Woodson- ’12 Aiken PF: A 18 point and 19 rebound game Tuesday and a 19 point and 15 rebound game on Friday marks an impressive week for this late bloomer.

·         Deion Isham- ’12 Princeton PG: With Malcolm Smith out Isham has been averaging 14 points for undefeated Princeton, including 24 in a comeback win over Colerain.

·         Carlas Jackson- ’14 Roger Bacon SF: The breakout sophomore is averaging over 14 points a game and led his team to two victories this week.

·         Deontez McGee- ’12 Norwood SG: Our prediction for the city’s leading scorer might come true as ‘Tez dropped 27 on Tuesday and is now averaging 20 points.

·         Josh Davenport- ’13 Moeller SG/SF: He’s averaging over 19 points a game, with a 22 point performance on Friday where he also grabbed 13 boards, and shooting 68% from the field. Not bad for a junior in a senior dominated division.

·         Jeff Larkin- ’14 LaSalle SG: We’re adding an 11^th player this week as we have to recognize Larkin for scoring 19 points in his first varsity divisional game in the GCL South.

Week 4 Power Rankings (12/18/11)

Middletown sophomore wing Vincent Edwards

Division I 

1.       Withrow: A convincing win over previously ranked West High on Friday and then taking Aiken’s best shot and coming back on Saturday is enough to hold on to the top spot. We’ll see how they do after Christmas in Detroit where they have a rough three game schedule.

2.       Moeller: They’re 1-0 in the GCL South, that’s all that matters to the Crusaders. On to the next one….

3.       Middletown: Flexed their muscles, and got top spot consideration, after wins over Aiken and Mason. McKnight and Edwards 1-2 punch has been too much for teams to handle thus far.

4.       LaSalle: The Lancers seem to be getting better and better as they keep proving doubters wrong. As CPHR said a month ago, sophomore guard Jeff Larkin is for real!

5.       Princeton- Impressive comeback win at Colerain has us feeling like they will attack that top spot at some point once Malcolm Smith returns from injury.

6.       Winton Woods- Young team just keeps on winning, they’re only going to get better.

7.       Mason- Can’t say much bad about a team that was tied after three quarters at Middletown.

8.       Fairfield- This team is undefeated with 5 wins. Coach Austing is our early season “Coach of the Year” as this group of veterans really believes.

9.       Turpin- The up and coming program keeps on winning as they knocked off another rival in Anderson, this team could be very dangerous come playoff time.

10.   Colerain- They’ve yet to find their groove, as they gave one away to Princeton, but CPHR still likes this team and once they get the pieces in the right places they’ll be fine.

Just Missed: Walnut Hills, Ross, Milford, West High, St. Xavier, Lakota East, Lakota West

Division II-IV

1.       Taft- They played a top ten nationally ranked team, in Grace Prep (TX) with 5 nationally ranked top 75 players, and only lost by 3? Tough to move them down after that. With up to three games left in Florida, then a matchup with Huntington Prep in Ironton, Taft will be more then battle tested when they re-enter CMAC play.

2.       Summit-With 4 blowouts and a close win over Lockland under their belt Summit appears to be, along with NCH, the team to beat in the MVC and the city in Division III.

3.       Franklin- Still undefeated, although the competition isn’t great. The Rossi twins and freshman Luke Kennard are simply too talented for their opponents.

4.       Aiken- Two losses this week (to top 4 D1 teams) in which they could’ve easily won tells us this team is improving. The schedule doesn’t get any easier so they better not stop working.

5.       North College Hill- Still undefeated, people are still surprised, but Lou Walker and Jamal Ivery continue to light up that scoreboard.

6.       Lockland- There are no moral victories but taking Dayton Jefferson to overtime on the road in their first game with big Avery Barnes back is impressive.

7.       Roger Bacon- Young team went on the road and won their first GCL Central game at McNick. Impressive, even more impressive is sophomore wing Carlas Jackson.

8.       Badin- They’re 4 and 1 while winning their first GCL Central game by 40 points over Purcell.

9.       McNicholas- Have to find a way to win these close games, Drew Hall needs more help!

10.   Madeira- Atop the early CHL standings in what is going to be a four way race.

Just Missed: Finneytown, Madeira, Mariemont, Clark, CHCA, Hughes