SoutheasternOhioPreps.com

can SE ohio even claim to be any good at basketball? how many final fours have teams from the region been to in the past 10-20 years?

Well, lets see.

2008
Chillicothe, Div. II State Champs

2007
Wheelersburg, Div. III State Semi-Finalist

2006
Lancaster, Div. I State Semi-Finalist
Wheelersburg, Div. III State Semi-Finalist
South Webster, Div. IV State Champs

2005
Ironton, Div. III State Runner-Up

2004
Bellaire, Div. III State Semi-Finalist

2003
Sugarcreek Garaway, Div. III State Runner-Up

2002
Eastern Brown, Div. III State Semi-Finalist

2001
Belpre, Div. III State Semi-Finalist
Meigs Eastern, Div. IV State Semi-Finalist


So atleast 1 team every year has been to the final four. Two State Champions and 2 Runner-Ups. Not to bad.

Not bad at all.......

Should be some pretty decent teams again this year making a run in the tournament.

And 1- If you are going to include Garaway in 2003, you should probably have included them last year too.

Garaway is clear up in Tuscarawas County. I wouldn't consider anything that far north of I-70 as being in the southeast part of Ohio.

Contrary to what many think, SE Ohio doesn't start at Canton.

I myself dont consider Bellaire S-E Ohio either ,Wellston played them in football in the playoffs and it is far from S-E Ohio.

I believe they are counting Sugarcreek because they came out of the SE region. Some of those fringe teams switch depending on the year. But Sugarcreek did come out of Athens in 2003. But that is a regoinal game. Really the SE district is what I beleive the conversation is about. Could be wrong though.

I agree that the relevant definition of SE Ohio basketball should be the Southeast District. Ohio utilizes 6 districts (Southeast, Southwest, Northeast, Northwest, Central, and East). Only one or two teams is annually classified as D-I from the Southeast District. If you eliminate D-I competition, and look at just the D-II, D-III, and D-IV state champs from 2001 through 2008, then you get a breakdown by district like this:

Southwest District - 10 state champs
Northwest District - 9 state champs
Northeast District - 3 state champs
Southeast District - 2 state champs
Central District - 0 state champs (as long as you don't count the forfeited crown won by Columbus Africentric)
East District - 0 state champs

So based upon who wins it all, you have to say that the real power resides on the west side of Ohio. But Southeast District basketball has shown that it can be plenty dangerous in the D-II, III, and IV classifications, and capable of winning it all in any given year. Given the relative size of the communities, the dearth of parochial schools, and sometimes limited resources, the Southeast District plays at a respectably competitive level.

whiteoak also went to the final four in division 4 in 2002 and the regional final in 2003.

Belpre, Lynchburg and North Adams should be included in the timeframe listed.

you have to say that the real power resides on the west side of Ohio.

Must be the bleed-over from Indiana

My experience with SE Ohio Basketball over the last 10 years is this. For every "great" team there is one or two "good" teams. For every "good" team there are 5 -6 average teams. For every average team, there are 8-10 bad teams. The balance is not there. Yes there have been some dominant teams, but for the most part the whole district is down in "good" and "great" teams. Take South Webster for example. They were a freakish team. But in the SE they had no competition inside D 4. They blew everyone out through the Districts.

Every year you'll have teams that are not geographically located in SE Ohio come through the SE region due to changes in enrollment. Remember Columbus Beechcroft a few years back playing at the Convo. Also the year Eastern went to the Final 4, Howie's boys went to Columbus to play at the Fairgrounds Coliseum.
SE Ohio basketball is no worse than hoops anywhere else in the state. I've also lived in west-central and northwest Ohio and found the level of play to be comparable.