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High school basketball: With March in full swing, the celebrations will only get louder

Feb. 27—Good morning, and welcome to another Friday edition of the Dayton Daily News Sports Update!

As I walked into the hallway behind Fairborn's Skyhawk Arena on Wednesday night, I heard something I wasn't expecting — the Stebbins girls basketball team singing the 'Hokey Pokey.'

The Indians had just beaten Northmont to advance to their second straight Division II district final appearance.

In the locker room, they celebrated the way they celebrated every victory this season — by doing the 'Hokey Pokey.' After Wednesday's victory, they joyously sang a second verse that started with 'Remix!'

The tradition was started by former Stebbins coach Al Cridge, who coached the current senior class as freshmen.

The seniors decided to keep it going and celebrated 16 victories this winter.

Those moments — like the Indians celebrating with a song that became popular in the 1940s — are one of the things I love most about sports.

The girls won't necessarily remember specific moments from the game — the made 3-pointers, the missed free throws, the block/charge call that could've gone either way — but they'll remember doing the 'Hokey Pokey.'

And with March in full swing, expect the celebrations to get even louder.

Here's what you need to know heading into this weekend:

L'Etang shining as Dayton takes four-game win streak to GW

Are the Flyers peaking at the right time?

3 to watch

With the Winter Olympics in the rearview mirror, college basketball and the NFL Scouting Combine takes center stage: — Men's college basketball: Miami at Western Michigan (6 p.m., Friday, CBSSN): The RedHawks are three wins away from a perfect regular season, but it won't be easy as every team in the MAC wants to end their unbeaten run. — NFL Scouting Combine: Quarterbacks, Wide Receivers & Running Backs (1 p.m. Saturday, NFL Network): Will we get a glimpse of the next Browns quarterback? — Men's college basketball: Purdue at Ohio State (1:30 p.m., Sunday, CBS): ESPN's Joe Lunardi has the Buckeyes as the first team out of the NCAA Tournament, but a win against the Boilermakers might change his mind.

3 to see (in person)

It's girls basketball district final weekend and there are plenty of great sites with multiple games to check out on Saturday: — Girls basketball: D-I and D-II district finals at Fairborn (11 a.m., Saturday): Fairmont opens the action against Mason and will be followed by Beavercreek-Milford (1 p.m.), Stebbins-Loveland (3 p.m.) and Miamisburg-Seton (5 p.m.). — Girls basketball: D-III district finals at Springfield (1 p.m., Saturday): The doubleheader includes Carroll-Goshen at 1 p.m., followed by Bellbrook-Monroe at 3 p.m. — and the winners will meet in a regional semifinal game on Tuesday at Lakota West. — Girls basketball: D-IV district finals at Troy (1 p.m., Saturday): The other district site with four district final games includes: Alter-Indian Hill (1 p.m.), CHCA vs. Brookeville (3 p.m.), Bethel-Cin. McNicholas (5 p.m.) and Purcell Marian-Oakwood (7 p.m.).

Archdeacon: Unbeaten RedHawks spark arena dreams and Speedo fever

As crowds continue to flock to the aging Millett Hall, one thing has become clear, Miami athletic director David Sayler said:

"We need to do something from a facility standpoint: The status quo isn't OK. We need to massively renovate this building or start over."

ICYMI: Miamisburg girls advance to first district final in 16 years

The Vikings advanced to face Cin. Seton (19-3) in a district final game at 1 p.m. Saturday at Fairborn.

WHERE TO FIND OUR COVERAGE

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