Springfield boys basketball Class 6 districts preview: Schedule, top players, predictions

Wyatt D. Wheeler, Springfield News-Leader

The larger classes will begin high school basketball postseason play across southwest Missouri this week.

Classes 4-6 will tip off district play on Monday all across the area. We went through and provided the brackets, top teams, players to watch and predictions for each local district.

Check MSHSAA.org for the most accurate times and brackets throughout the postseason.

SPRINGFIELD AREA GIRLS BASKETBALL DISTRICT PREVIEWS: Class 4 | Class 5 | Class 6

SPRINGFIELD AREA BOYS BASKETBALL DISTRICT PREVIEWS: Class 4 | Class 5 | Class 6

Class 6

No. 1 team: Oak Park

The Northmen have been the best team in the state this season and haven't wavered much from their top spot in the Class 6 rankings. A program that hasn't won a district in over a decade, Oak Park is led by the junior duo of Caleb Estes and shooting guard Corbin Allen, a three-star prospect and the state's fifth-ranked player. This is a team that is averaging nearly 75 points per game.

District 5 at Glendale

Feb. 29

  • No. 1 Central vs. No. 8 Neosho

  • No. 4 Glendale vs. No. 5 Republic

  • No. 2 Kickapoo vs. No. 7 Joplin

  • No. 3 Nixa vs. No. 6 Ozark

March 2

  • 1/8 vs. 4/5

  • 2/7 vs. 3/6

March 5

  • Championship at 6 p.m.

Team to beat: Central. Southwest Missouri's best team will have a chance to make more history this week. The Bulldogs head into district play seeking the school's first postseason championship since 2009. It's been a year full of great achievements for Central including its first Blue and Gold championship in 40 years and its first appearance at the Tournament of Champions in 15 years. This roster is loaded with scorers and some of the best athletes in the area. Keion Epps has been the team's heartbeat and Tyrique Brooks, the team's lone senior, has been phenomenal as well. Names like Bryce Walker, TayShaun Wells and Devin Sanford have each had their standout moments and have also helped make this a special year.

Next best: Kickapoo. You can never count out the Kickapoo Chiefs come postseason time. Few in the area have the big-game coaching experience that Mitch McHenry's gathered during his time in charge of the Chiefs. This program knows how to win even when the odds appear to be against it. This roster is a bit more inexperienced than the one that upset Nixa in the district championship a year ago but you still see the standouts from last year's state runner-up finish like Jackson Shorter and Drew Akins. Sophomore Reese Kimrey has broken out as one of the best young players in the Ozarks this season.

Sleeper: Nixa. If you can't count out Kickapoo, you can't count out Nixa. The Eagles remain one of the area's best and haven't done much losing in Brock Blansit's two years as head coach. This year's Nixa team enters the postseason with six losses with two being to Central and Kickapoo, the top two teams in this district, which they lost by two and one point respectively in the same week. Nixa can make 3's as well as anyone in the area with Josh Peters and Garrett Hines being two standout seniors. Adam McKnight, a freshman, has emerged as a double-double threat each night and won't be out-hustled by anyone. A potential semifinal game between Kickapoo and Nixa would be electric.

Prediction: Central over Kickapoo.

Wyatt D. Wheeler is a reporter and columnist with the Springfield News-Leader. You can contact him at 417-371-6987, by email at wwheeler@news-leader.com or X at @WyattWheeler_NL.

This article originally appeared on Springfield News-Leader: Springfield high school boys basketball Class 6 districts preview

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