[OSUBasketballJunkie]

Cincy

2/22/06

Lakota West, NCH top poll

Firebirds, Trojans lead respective divisions from start to finish

BY TOM GROESCHEN | ENQUIRER STAFF WRITER

Lakota West coach Mike Mueller reluctantly accepted his team's No. 1 preseason ranking back in November. North College Hill coach Jamie Mahaffey took his own No. 1 spot in stride. Between them, the two schools lost only once to a Cincinnati team.

Lakota West (18-2) won The Enquirer final Division I boys' basketball area coaches' poll voting Tuesday, after the Firebirds were ranked No. 1 all season. West's only loss to a local team was to Oak Hills, which finished No. 5 in The Enquirer D-I poll.

North College Hill (19-1) won the Divisions II-IV poll for the second consecutive year, again by unanimous vote. NCH, led by junior superstars O.J. Mayo and Bill Walker, is ranked No. 4 nationally by USA Today. NCH was No. 2 nationally before losing 88-74 to No. 1 Oak Hill Academy (Va.) Saturday.

Mueller said The Enquirer poll title is his first in 19 seasons in Cincinnati.

Mueller coached old Lakota High School before the split into East/West in 1997. Mueller's 1991 state runner-up and '92 state champion Lakota teams did not win Enquirer regular-season poll titles.

"What means the most is that it's voted on by my coaching peers," Mueller said. "We realize North College Hill is the best team in Cincinnati, but I'm pleased to be voted No. 1 in Division I."

Lakota West is led by 6-8 senior center Josh Chichester (11 points per game), who has signed a football letter with Louisville as a wide receiver. Chichester also might play basketball at U of L.

NCH's Mahaffey, who said a mythical national title was among his team's goals, said his team will shoot for its second straight Ohio Division III championship. The Enquirer poll title also goes into the NCH scrapbook.

"It's an honor that the city recognizes us as being one of the better teams in our division," Mahaffey said.