The boys side of the ACAC Tournament can be more interesting than the girls side for one main reason: we haven’t seen most of these teams play each other yet. So there is still time for bragging rights and a little bit of mystery.
THE FAVORITE
BLUFFTON (7-3, 3-0 ACAC)
The Tigers’ win last weekend over Bluffton put them right at the top of this conference. But it was forcing Central Noble into overtime earlier in the week that puts them in the drivers seat this week more. Hayden Nern has been a breakout player in the conference this year and the Tigers have stability behind legendary coach Chris Benedict. A lot of things are flowing Bluffton’s way right now, so they just need to stay the course to be the team to beat in this week’s tournament.
Potential Tournament Star: Nern has been good, but think about how much of a big week a player like Konner Norman can have with his gritty guard play. He has a steady hand shooting and can really scrap if he stays out of foul trouble.
THE CONTENDER
WOODLAN (4-5, 2-1 ACAC)
This was the team to beat in the conference until they got beat. The Warriors have played a tough schedule and will need to avoid getting into a hole in any game here. They are solid when playing even with teams but once they drop off, they haven’t been able to pull themselves out of those ruts. Mitch Mendenhall and Joe Reidy carry the load offensively, but Aiden Bayman will need to be a defensive stopped to create instant offense this week.
Potential Tournament Star: Joe Reidy has the size and explosiveness to make a major impact in this tournament. He is a matchup problem more often than he is not.
THE OTHERS
SOUTH ADAMS (4-3, 1-1 ACAC)
The Starfires come in off a 10 day layoff and a needed one after a big letdown opposite Bellmont. Their +/- in scoring is just at -4.2 points, so they have shown that they’ve been more mature and can stay in any game so far. South Adams falls out of the realm of what we’d call a contender, but are the most prone to be able to pull off upsets.
Potential Tournament Star: Nick Miller can be a solid force at the rim with his size. If he can be physical, don’t put upsets out of the realm of possibility.
ADAMS CENTRAL (3-7, 2-1 ACAC)
How does Adams Central contend in this tournament? Stay the course on their side of the bracket. The Flying Jets got a great draw here with very winnable games against Heritage and a Southern Wells team they already beat. Adams Central needs to find a steady pace with Lucas Van De Weg controlling tempo to get to Saturday’s title game.
Potential Tournament Star: Ben Voirol. Notice a trend? This tournament can be won or lost inside and in the post. Voirol is a comfortable and confident force down low and if the Flying Jets can clear out the post for him, watch him make a big impact.
HERITAGE (2-7, 1-1 ACAC)
There is a lot of rebuild for Heritage to try and defend their tournament title. This is still a young team that hasn’t put together a lot of success. Coach Adam Gray is getting there with this group, while Hunter Teichman and Luke Saylor are becoming consistent contributors.
Potential Tournament Star: Parker Tracey is the energy guy and he knows what its like to play a quality role in an ACAC Tournament run. That experience is big for Heritage and Tracey could be in for a solid week.
JAY COUNTY (2-9, 0-2 ACAC)
Right now, the Patriots want to break out of a major funk as much as they want to contend in this tournament. Their upset win over Richmond made them 2-0 and they have only been within four points of a team once since. Jay County has to have their best games of the year in order to string together wins and they have to give up less than the 55.1 points per game they are giving up on average.
Potential Tournament Star: Sophomore Ethan Dirksen can be a run stopper defensively and has a team best 1.5 steals per game. He can play a lot of positions on the floor and you can expect him to draw some of the tougher matchups individually.
SOUTHERN WELLS (2-8, 0-3 ACAC)
Like the SW girls, these Raiders are just a win away from a title game with a bye. They match up fairly well with either Heritage (lost by 12) or Adams Central (lost by 8), who they have already played this year. For the Raiders to win, they have to have learned a lot since those losses.
Potential Tournament Star: Kreigh Roush has the size and stature to be dominant inside in some games. Does he have the killer mentality to take over? If he does, he could help the Raiders to the title game.
BOUNCE’S FULL PREDICTIONS
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