McNicholas High School will likely miss out on the high school basketball playoffs in the state of Ohio because of an ineligible player. The Rockets were forced to forfeit every game in which he played as punishment.
However, the administration claims the Ohio High School Athletic Association (OHSAA) cleared the athlete to compete prior to their first game in November.
McNicholas was right in the middle of its best high school basketball season since 2020-21 when this unfortunate ruling was announced. It will be allowed to compete in the postseason if it can get there but that seems unlikely.
McNicholas High School basketball was on fire.
Archbishop McNicholas High School, better known as just McNicholas, is located in the Mount Washington neighborhood of Cincinnati, Ohio. It offers a college-preparatory curriculum to approximately 700 students in Grades 9-12.
Founded in 1951, it is known as the first co-ed Catholic high school in the area.
The Rockets started the high school basketball season at 10-2. They notched notable wins over Badin, Elder and Alter en route to their best start this decade. They were on a roll.
And then it all came crashing down.
McNicholas was forced to vacate 10 of its wins from the current 2025-26 season due to the use of an ineligible player. Its current record now stands at 5-14.
The penalty was announced on Feb. 2, with just three games left in the regular season. Although the Rockets are allowed to play in the playoffs, they would need the selection committee to consider their success prior to the sanctions. They could also sneak into the sectional tournament field if the dominoes fall their way. We’ll see.
The ineligible player was previously cleared.
It appears as though the player in question, who has not been named publicly, was a first-year transfer. He officially joined the McNicholas high school basketball program for the fall semester.
An initial review took place prior to the season. He was cleared to compete. The Rockets put him on the court under the assumption that his clearance would not be overturned. He was allowed to play!
“We are extremely disappointed by this decision,” McNicholas High School said in a statement. “As a qualified institution of the Ohio Catholic School Accrediting Association, McNicholas High School administrators reviewed the student’s application and transcript data in accordance with the State Board of Education’s Operating Standards for Ohio schools. Additionally, OHSAA granted the student-athlete approval to compete in games with McNicholas basketball on November 4, 2025, before the start of the season.”
The OHSAA later changed its mind. More information came to light that made the player as ineligible. He already exhausted his eligibility!
“Based on the initial information submitted to the OHSAA, the student was ruled eligible to participate,” the OHSAA said in a statement. “After receiving additional information recently, it was discovered that the student had already completed four years of high school.”
I don’t know how this kind of thing happens, where a student-athlete who already completed four years of high school is somehow allowed to enroll for a fifth year of high school, but it sounds like there was some shenanigans afoot. McNicholas claims it acted in good faith and with transparency throughout the process.