Photo by Kim North Monroe Central’s Chance Allen goes in for a layup during the Seminoles’ OVAC Semifinal matchup against Martins Ferry on Tuesday. Allen and top-seeded Monroe Central will take on No. 2 Wheeling Central in the 3A Championship at the ECO Center at 6 p.m.

ST. CLAIRSVILLE — The season series is tied, 1-1, and the rubber match is for all the marbles.

It’s a classic setup for what looks to be a high-velocity matchup on Saturday inside Ohio University Eastern’s ECO Center as No. 1 Monroe Central (19-2) takes on No. 2 Wheeling Central (14-2) in the OVAC 3A Championship.

“It’s a huge matchup for us– we played [Monroe Central] twice already, we beat them once and they beat us once,” Wheeling Central head coach Mel Stephens said. “We’re pretty familiar with them and I’m sure they’re familiar with us. It’s going to come down to who can make the plays when they need to.”

Wheeling Central won a neutral-site game at WesBanco Arena on Dec. 13, 53-44, and Monroe Central got their revenge at home on Jan. 3, 63-47. Saturday will make it three straight months with a Maroon Knights-Seminoles matchup.

“I think we learned something from our last loss as far as what they’re trying to do and things like that,” Stepehens said. “They’re good. They can get out and run, they’ve got kids who can really shoot the ball, obviously Tucker Howell is just an exceptional athlete. We’ll have our hands full and our guys are looking forward to the challenge.”

Howell, a senior, leads the Seminoles with averages of around 16 points, eight rebounds and four assists. Fellow senior Chance Allen also averages in double figures, around 14 a night, while Cooper Howell, Caedyn Silva, Jacob Fogle and Corbin Farnsworth are also steady contributors in the scoring column.

Across the court, junior Eli Sancomb enters the game as the leader in several categories for Wheeling Central, averaging 26 points, 10 rebounds and five assists. 6-7 Max Olejasz is second in scoring, close to double figures, while Tyler Dean, Luke Sancomb and Troy Anthony provide shooting around the outside.

“They’re excited to be there,” Stephens said. “We got there last year and some of the guys played in that game. When you lose a game like that, you get that little bit of an incentive to get back there and try and win one.”

Wheeling Central fell to Union Local in last year’s 3A championship game. The Knights rectified the loss by beating the Jets in their semifinals meeting on Tuesday, 73-59. Monroe Central reaches Saturday’s game after defeating Martins Ferry, 86-54.

The Seminoles are defending OVAC champs– but in 2A, where Monroe Central defeated Toronto for their first ever piece of conference gold.

The Maroon Knights are hoping they can score a trophy of their own on Saturday.

“It’d be huge for these guys,” Stephens said, when asked what an OVAC title would mean to his team. “We’ve been telling them all year, we think we can be a pretty good team– but none of these guys have been on a team that’s won any kind of a championship in basketball.

“They’ve got that hanging over them a little bit, that gives them a little bit of incentive. They walk into the gym, they look up and they see state championship banners, OVAC championship banners, and they’re gotten close but we haven’t gotten to the top they. I think that drives them a little bit.”

The game is set for 6 p.m. on Saturday, the final game in a day of championship contests.

“That’s kind of what we strive for, to play in these type of games,” Stephens said. “The OVAC championship means a lot to us, and it also helps prepare us for down the road when we start playing regional and, hopefully, state tournament games.”