COLUMBUS – A number of north central Ohio basketball teams, boys and girls, are keeping a close eye on the Ohio High School Athletic Association’s Ratings Percentage Index.
There’s a good reason for it.
The RPI rankings will be used to determine seeding for the statewide district tournament draws, which are Feb. 4 for girls and Feb. 11 for boys.
On Wednesday afternoon, the OHSAA released the updated statewide rankings for girls and boys basketball RPI.
Loudonville has big goals for the 2023-24 girls basketball campaign, and the Redbirds are right on track.
Despite absorbing their first loss, 67-51 on Tuesday night at Division III powerhouse Warrensville Heights (who happens to top the Northeast District rankings), coach Tyler Bates’ squad still ranks No. 1 in the Division IV, Northeast District RPI ratings.
Senior Corri Vermilya, a finalist for Ms. Basketball who is bound for Ashland University, is averaging better than 25 points per game for the Redbirds. She’ll lead Loudonville into a monumental showdown on Jan. 31 at Colonel Crawford.
The Eagles are also 15-1, sit atop the Northern 10 standings, and are ranked No. 2 in the Division III Northwest District RPI poll.
Clear Fork (11-4) and Wynford (10-4) are third and fourth behind the Eagles in that region.
On the boys’ side, Willard (11-2) has supplanted Lexington (16-1) in the Division II, Northwest District 3 rankings.
The Minutemen dropped their first game of the year to Gahanna (56-46) on Jan. 14 in Columbus. Coach Scott Hamilton’s team is closing in on an undisputed Ohio Cardinal Conference crown, and will host Ashland on Friday night.
Shelby (11-2) is third and Mansfield Senior (11-3) is fifth in that same region.
There are a couple of enormous matchups looming at the end of the regular season for, but they will not play into the RPI formula that determines tournament seeding.
Still, when Lexington hosts Ottawa-Glandorf on Feb. 17, and Shelby travels to Willard on Feb. 23, both games should serve as prime postseason tuneups.
The final reporting dates for scores to be entered and utilized in the RPI are 11:59 p.m. on Feb. 2 for girls and Feb. 9 for boys.
The concept of using RPI to determine seeding was proposed by the Ohio Basketball Coaches Association (OHSBCA) and approved by the OHSAA Board of Directors last fall.
The RPI formula was recommended by the OHSBCA, adopted by the OHSAA and is calculated using scores entered into MaxPreps.
The formula is comprised of 40 percent winning percentage, 35 percent opponent’s winning percentage, and 25 percent opponent’s opponent’s winning percentage.
The winning team is required to enter the score into MaxPreps, or for out-of-state opponents, the Ohio school must enter the score if it is not entered by the out-of-state school.
Check out your favorite teams at the links below
Girls Basketball: https://www.ohsaa.org/MaxPreps-RPI/Gender/Girls/Sport/Basketball
Boys Basketball: https://www.ohsaa.org/MaxPreps-RPI/Gender/Boys/Sport/Basketball
As noted above, regular-season games continue after the tournament draw.
The school groupings are determined by how each of the OHSAA’s six District Athletic Boards set up the seeding for their specific district.
The Central, East, Northeast and Southeast Districts put all the schools together in each division, while the Southwest District divides its schools into North and South groups, and the Northwest District divides its schools into smaller groups.
The OHSAA has utilized a version of RPI data to determine football playoff qualifiers since 1972.
The OHSAA will continue to explore using RPI data to determine seeding in additional sports.