Friday night games to watch
We take a look at some key matchups on Friday in Central Ohio
OCC league action officially tips off on Friday in Central Ohio. Let’s take a look at some key games to watch in the area.
#8 Newark (1-0) at #4 Pickerington Central (1-0)
Newark opens up OCC play at Pickerington Central where the Wildcats were successful two season ago, knocking off the eventual state champions.
That game for Newark was the coming out party for a sophomore Steele Meister, who had several key buckets for the Wildcats. Now a senior, Meister is one of the elite players in all of Central Ohio basketball and will be a tough cover for the Tigers.
Central has been outstanding in its last two outings, putting together a strong regulation win over Akron St. Vincent-St. Mary, who took Reynoldsburg to double overtime this past Tuesday. The Tigers have an elite backcourt and will be a matchup problem for a Newark team that did not do a great job handling pressure against Cincinnati Taft’s full court pressure last Saturday.
In a loaded OCC-Buckeye, every game between the big three of Central, Newark and Reynoldsburg matters greatly, which means this game is a must-win for both teams. Expect another big-time matchup, as Newark tends to fare better on the road against the top teams in the area than at home as of late.