Pirates rise to No. 3 in boys basketball rankings

Perkins will put its lofty boys basketball ranking to the test Thursday at Bellevue in a game that will decide first place in the Sandusky Bay Conference Lake Division. The Pirates are ranked No. 3 in the state in Division IV this week by MaxPreps, the website used by the OHSAA to determine tournament seedings. "That's a good indication that we're trending in the right direction, but I don't read too much into it," Perkins coach Andy Hoying said. "It's nice to see, but we've got a lot of work to do." Perkins' strength of schedule is low, but the Pirates will have chances to boost that starting with the trip to Bellevue, which is 9-2 and ranked No. 19 in Division IV. Perkins (9-0 overall) and the Redmen are tied atop the SBC Lake at 3-0. The Pirates are averaging a Lake-best 69.6 points per game while the Redmen have the stingiest defense in the division, allowing an average of 49.5 points per game. Bellevue, led by Sam Bollinger and Ike Brown, lead the Lake in 3-point shooting, averaging 38 percent from beyond the arc. Perkins has plenty of balance on offense with eight players averaging more than five points per game. Seniors Kellen Glass (15.4 ppg, 6.9 rebounds), Levi Groot (11 ppg), Sam Schweinfurth (8.8 ppg, 6.6 rpg) and Kash Koch (8 ppg, 3.4 assists) have impressed Hoying in his first season leading the Perkins program. "Our seniors are doing a great job leading us," Hoying said. "They come ready to go every practice and that's been a big part of our success. "Coming in, I thought we had a really good squad, but we've by far exceeded expectations. We've had multiple guys step up. We're sharing the ball on offense and flying around on defense." The Pirates host Lexington on Saturday. The Minutemen, a Division III team, are 4-5 and have lost four straight games since losing All-Ohio performer Seven Allen. The senior guard, who scored 45 points in a win against Sandusky, no longer is part of the team. He was arraigned in Mansfield Municipal Court on Dec. 30 on a charge of strangulation, a felony of the fourth degree. Perkins visits winless Norwalk on Jan. 16 before a big Martin Luther King Day matchup against Oregon Clay (8-1) in Rossford on Jan. 19. Clay is ranked No. 18 in the state in Division III. The Pirates' best wins so far have come against Elyria Catholic, ranked No. 20 in Division III, and Willard, which is 9-1 and ranked No. 21 in Division V. Keystone, which is ranked No. 5 in Division V, visits Perkins on Jan. 24. The Pirates round out the month with a game at Sandusky on Jan. 30. "We want some challenges because we'll need them come tournament time," Hoying said. The area has a handful of other ranked teams. Margaretta's boys are No. 4 in Division V and St. Mary Central Catholic is up to No. 7 in Division VII. The Polar Bears (10-1) host Willard on Friday in a matchup of teams that share the SBC Bay lead at 4-0. The Panthers, who are off to a 6-0 start, host Northwood on Friday. In this week's girls rankings, Bellevue maintained its No. 1 position in Division IV heading into Wednesday's home game against Willard, which is ranked No. 13 in Division V. The Lady Red host Division V No. 9 Clear Fork on Monday. Margaretta is ranked No. 2 in Division VI. The Polar Bears (11-1) host Port Clinton on Saturday.