Boys basketball: Brunswick gets top seed in tournament draw

The Brunswick boys basketball team earned the MaxPreps RPI top seed for the Division I tournament draw Sunday and valued rest over an extra game.The Blue Devils (19-3) opted for a Northeast 3 semifinal in the bracket whose championship game will be at Copley. Brunswick will host 17th-seeded John Marshall (6-15) on March 3, with the winner playing No. 5 Perrysburg (16-6) or No. 14 GlenOak (7-15) four days later.Coach Joe Mackey could have picked a first-round game Thursday in Northeast 1 or Northeast 2, whose finals will be held at Lakewood, but decided to stay closer to home. Point guard Trey Drexler is 89 points from breaking the Medina County career scoring record but sustained a minor injury last week at Euclid.Elsewhere in D-I, Medina (14-7) was the ninth seed out of 18 schools and jumped on a Northeast 4 District semifinal at No. 6 Elyria on March 3. The winner plays No. 4 Canton McKinley (18-4) or No. 10 Massillon Jackson (14-7) at Barberton on March 7.In D-II, Highland (15-6) was seeded eighth and Wadsworth (7-15) 27th out of 33 schools.The Hornets chose an open semifinal in the Northeast 5 bracket and were soon jumped by multiple teams but still had a favorable draw.Highland will host the winner of No. 13 Stow (13-9) and No. 22 Normandy (12-9) on March 3. The winner will play No. 10 Avon (16-6) or No. 16 North Ridgeville (13-9) at Wooster in the afternoon game March 7.The Grizzlies immediately chose a winnable Northeast 6 semifinal at 26th-seeded Boardman (7-14) on March 3. The winner will play No. 2 Massillon (20-1) or No. 31 Green (5-17) at Wooster in the evening game March 7.Contact Albert Grindle at (330) 721-4043 or agrindle@medina-gazette.com.Tournament scheduleDivision I, Northeast 3March 3 (7 p.m.) — John Marshall at Brunswick, GlenOak at Perrysburg. March 7 (2 p.m.) — District final at Copley.Division I, Northeast 4 March 3 (7 p.m.) — Massillon Jackson at Canton McKinley, Medina at Elyria. March 7 (7 p.m.) — District final at Barberton.Division II, Northeast 5Feb. 26 (7 p.m.) — Normandy at Stow. March 3 (7 p.m.) — Stow/Normandy winner at Highland, North Ridgeville at Avon. March 7 (3:30 p.m.) — District final at Wooster.Division II, Northeast 6March 3 (7 p.m.) — Wadsworth at Boardman, Green at Massillon. March 7 (7 p.m.) — District final at Wooster