The boys basketball season starts with a bang this weekend in Cincinnati.
Mason High School will once again host the Ohio Valley Hoops Classic, which will feature 11 boys basketball games over two days Nov. 28-29.
Tickets for each day are $11 per person, and you can watch online for $10 per day. Both fees cover all the games for that day and can be bought on the web site.
Several of the projected top teams in the Cincinnati area will take on each other as well as teams from Indiana and other parts of Ohio. Some of the top players in both states will be on hand.
Among the marquee games are Taft vs. Zanesville Maysville, which is scheduled for 4 p.m. Nov. 28. Maysville is the defending Ohio Division IV state champion, and brings back senior guard Gator Nichols, the reigning state player of the year. Taft is expected to be a contender in Division IV along with Wyoming, which lost to Maysville at the buzzer in the 2025 state semis.
Wyoming will take on Summit Country Day in the fourth game on Saturday, Nov. 29, set for 4:45 p.m. Summit lost in the Division V state semifinals last season. Wyoming brings back four starters who have been starting since they were freshmen and are all getting college offers, and Summit welcomes back one of the top sophomores in the state, Max Joiner.
Other games on Friday include Lebanon and top prospect Jashawn Coffey taking on Mt. Vernon Fortville from suburban Indianapolis, which has Purdue commit Luke Ertel, a senior guard ranked No. 1 in Indiana by 247 Sports.
Three of the four Greater Catholic League-South teams play on Nov. 29. La Salle plays Hilliard Bradley, which has multiple DI prospects. Moeller and Alter finish the night in a clash of perennial powers.
Host Mason takes on Kettering Fairmont in the first game for C.J. Fleming as Mason head coach.Here is the schedule for the weekend:
Friday, November 28
12:30 – Loveland vs Badin
2:15 – Lakota East vs Chaminade Julienne
4:00 – Taft vs Zanesville Maysville
5:45 – Mt. Vernon Fortville vs Lebanon
7:30 – Fairfield vs Little Miami
Saturday, November 29
11:30 – La Salle vs Hilliard Bradley
1:15 – CHCA vs Cardinal Ritter (Indianapolis)
3:00 – St. Xavier vs Brebeuf Jesuit (Indianapolis)
4:45 – Summit Country Day vs Wyoming
6:30 – Mason vs Kettering Fairmont
8:15 – Moeller vs Kettering Alter
This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: Ohio Valley Hoops Classic returns to Mason this weekend
Reporting by James Weber, Cincinnati Enquirer / Cincinnati Enquirer
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
