Division I Top 25 - Week 9

The top 10 remains exactly the same, however, major movement shakes up the rest of the rankings

It was a busy week of basketball once again in Central Ohio. With a handful of entertaining league matchups last week, there was no shortage of action. Let’s take a look at our latest power rankings in Division I as we stand a few weeks out of the district tournament draw.

1. Olentangy Orange (14-0)
This Week: Tuesday vs. #23 Hilliard Davidson, Friday at Dublin Coffman
MaxPreps RPI: #1

The Pioneers continued their undefeated streak, picking up quality wins over Olentangy Liberty and Walnut Ridge last weekend. Orange has two winnable games this week as they look to remain the only unbeaten team in Central Ohio. Junior wing Devin Brown has been the biggest stock riser in Ohio this season and picked up two Division I offers from Ohio and Toledo on Saturday.

2. Newark (13-1)
This Week: Tuesday vs. #18 Pickerington Central, Friday at #5 Reynoldsburg, Saturday vs. #7 Hilliard Bradley
MaxPreps RPI: #4

Newark had a light week last week with just one game against Lancaster. This week is the complete opposite with three matchups against ranked opponents. It will be interesting to see how Newark plays on Saturday in a back-to-back after a matchup against Reynoldsburg that could be a winner-take-all game in the OCC depending on how Tuesday’s Pickerington Central goes. We’ll know a lot more about how serious of a contender Newark is this week.

3. Delaware Hayes (13-1)
This Week: Tuesday vs. #4 Westerville North, Friday at Worthington Kilbourne
MaxPreps RPI: #2

Delaware Hayes has a massive game at home on Tuesday when Westerville North comes to town. In a matchup that will decide undisputed first place in the OCC-Capital, Hayes is looking to defend home court against a North team that came just one point away from delivering a huge win over the Pacers. If Hayes wants to win its first district title since 1985, they’ll need to show up in big games like this one from here on out.

4. Westerville North (12-2)
This Week: Tuesday at #3 Delaware Hayes, Friday vs. #14 Westerville South
MaxPreps RPI: #3

Westerville North has a massive week on tap with games against rivals Delaware Hayes and Westerville South. The Warriors have been really impressive as of late, picking up neutral site wins over out of town powers Kettering Alter and Akron Buchtel in the last week. They’ll need to bring their A game for both games this week, as neither opponent will roll over and die.

5. Reynoldsburg (9-5)
This Week: Tuesday at Groveport Madison, Friday vs. #2 Newark
MaxPreps RPI: #16

Reynoldsburg had one heck of a 24 hours over the weekend. The Raiders came from behind for an emotional overtime win at Pickerington Central on Friday - their first win in The Jungle since 2013. They had to quickly follow that up with a matchup against undefeated state power Garfield Heights 17 hours later. Reynoldsburg could not recreate magic and fell in a game where they look visibly gassed. Newark can pick up a signature in-area win against Newark on Friday in what could be an absolute first place game in the OCC-Buckeye.