Miami University to play in Dayton, WSU to play Friday, local schools awarded and more local headlines

We are waking up to good news and bad news here in the Miami Valley. Some good news? We now know who will be coming to town to play in the First Four, and on top of that, one of the teams is Miami University! Some bad news? The Flyers lost yesterday and did not make the tournament, and Miami Valley native Hannah Beachler did not win another Oscar. However, no need to focus on the past, as we have a lot of basketball to be played this week, including right here in the Miami Valley! Also, our annual Best of Dayton contest is back and opens today, and we are looking to you to decide who deserves the recognition!

🌆 Eyes on Dayton: The field for the 2026 First Four games at UD Arena has been announced. The two games involving 11 seeds include Texas playing North Carolina State tomorrow night, while Miami University and SMU face off on Wednesday. As for the two games involving No. 16 seeds, UMBC plays Howard tomorrow, and Lehigh faces Prairie View A&M on Wednesday. You can read more in Steven Wright’s story here, and in Michael Kurtz’s story on the First Four returning to town this week here.

🏀 WSU gets matchup info: The Raiders are seeded 14th and will play third-seeded Virginia at 1:50 p.m. Friday in Philadelphia. You can read more in our story from Doug Harris and see photos from Wright State’s watch party yesterday.

📚 Local reading champs: Schools in five local districts have earned the Governor’s Science of Reading Champions Award, Gov. Mike DeWine announced, as we learn from our Aimee Hancock. These awards recognize schools that stand out for their commitment to the Science of Reading learning method and their work to improve student engagement and literacy outcomes using this method. See the local list here.

If you have thoughts or feedback on this newsletter or other news tips, please let me know at jeremy.ratliff@coxinc.com.

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LOCAL NEWS

• Ohio Senate leader floats property tax ‘relief package’; says fixes so far are ‘forward-looking’

• Wright State hosts Big Hoopla STEM Challenge ahead of NCAA First Four games in Dayton

• New I-75 rest stops in Butler County taking shape

LIFE

• Once homeless at 18, area woman now builds hope and community for hundreds of families

• Smart tips for buying and storing whole-grain foods

• These tiny frogs are ‘like modern stereo speakers’

CRIME & PUBLIC SAFETY

• Child dies in Warren County pond drowning

• Man found dead inside Dayton home

SPORTS

• Women’s basketball: 13th seed Miami to open NCAA Tournament against West Virginia

• Dayton basketball: Flyers headed to NIT for 29th time

• Video, photos: Fairmont storms back for Div. I title with help from Hargrave

NATION & WORLD

• Iran hits Gulf neighbors and keeps stranglehold on oil shipping as concerns rise of energy crisis

• The Latest: Trump calls for help to reopen the Strait of Hormuz

• Trump suggests he may delay China trip as he pressures Beijing for help with Strait of Hormuz

ST. PATRICK’S DAY IN DAYTON: Dublin Pub, Flanagan’s and Harrigan’s multi-day events, Arcade silent disco and much more

This past weekend was wild with celebrations of green across the Miami Valley, and they continue into the week with St. Patrick’s Day tomorrow. We have a list for you of local events taking place in honor of the festive holiday here.

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About the Author

Jeremy Ratliff