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Cincinnati St. Xavier (3-5) will travel a few miles down the road to take on bitter rival Cincinnati Moeller (7-1) this Friday in a Greater Catholic League South match up.
The rivalry has been more one-sided over the past five years as Big Moe' has won 11-straight over the Bombers including the 2007 state championship game. St. Xavier's last win came on February 17, 2006.
The two appear to be going in opposite directions once again, so the streak may still be in tact after 2012. The Crusaders have just one loss on the season, which came in their last game against Hialeah Gardens (FL), 65-59 in the championship game of the Junior Orange Bowl Classic. Moeller already owns quality wins over Winton Woods, Kettering Alter, Middletown, Coral Reef (FL), and Sagemont (FL).
Moeller has been led by 6-3 junior Josh Davenport, who is one of Top 10 Class of 2013 prospects in the state. Davenport has always passed the looked test, but now the potential has turned into production. The junior is averaging 18.8 points and 8.4 rebounds a night and would be over 20 if it weren't for a four-point outing in a blowout win over Brookwood (GA) where he only played 10 minutes.
Davenport's main scoring assistant has been 5-11 senior Ben Galemmo, who is averaging 12.1 points and five assists. Elon signee Tony Sabato (6'7/Sr.) is netting 7.8 points and five boards, and classmate Alex Voss (6'5) is scoring 5.5 points an encounter.
The Crusaders have played nine kids in all eight games with seniors Jake Cummings (6'2), Michael Riney (5'11), and Devin Gresky (6'6) along with junior Patrick Wrencher (6'6) and sophomore Tre' Hawkins (5'9) providing plenty of role play.
The Crusaders are still awaiting the return of junior guard Keith Watkins, who is yet to return from a football injury.
St. Xavier has won just three games in its first eight starts, but its five setbacks have been against some pretty stiff competition. Fairfield, La Salle, Middletown, Walnut Hills, and Dayton Meadowdale have a combine seven losses.
The Bombers are a really young squad with only three seniors on the team with just two playing significant minutes.
6-1 junior Alex Blink leads the team in scoring at 8.9 points per game and sophomore Roderick Mills is right behind at 8.8 points and a team-high 4.3 rebounds. Mills is the best prospect on the roster and one of the better sophomores in Ohio.
6-2 junior Ben Carroll is another option and he is netting 7.6 points a game and 5-11 senior Charles English is a shade below seven points. 6-2 senior Ryan Gantzer and juniors 6-9 Chris Stefanou, 6-1 Tommy Callahan, 6-2 Trey Kilgore, and 6-2 Joe Barrett all log minutes.
Three-Point Play:
*Cincinnati Moeller has won three state championships since 1999, played for another, and made the state semis on another occasion.
*Moeller and St. Xavier won back-to-back state titles in 1999 and 2000.
*Moeller and St. Xavier were both at the 2005 Division 1 state tournament. The Crusaders were eliminated by the Bombers in the semis, but X was unable to beat Canton McKinley in the finals.
*Moeller and St. Xavier played for the 2007 state championship with the Crusaders coming out victorious for the third time that season.
