Month: February 2020

February 28, 2020May 4, 2020 by Rob Ellis

Milton-Union blows out Arcanum in second half

Milton-Union freshman guard Blake Brumbaugh

Milton-Union senior guard Nathan Brumbaugh

Milton-Union senior forward Brandon Lavy

Clayton, Ohio — On Feburary 11th, Arcanum beat Milton-Union by 11. So when the two teams pulled each other to play in the first round of the tournament, it was safe to say the Trojans felt pretty confident heading into this game.

Milton-Union made it clear that they didn’t want any part of Carter Gray. The Bulldogs tightly face guarded him most of the first half making Arcanum give the ball up to other guards. Blake Brumbaugh got off to a nice start hitting his shots early. Arcanum drew within one after a Grant Delk and-one but Milton-Union extended the lead after Sam Case hit a corner three. Things got heated after a tie-up between Grant Delk and Justin Randall. Both players stared each other down and a technical was assessed to Randall. Milton-Union still led 12-10 at the end of the first.

Carter Gray finally got on the board with a jumper to open the second quarter. Sam Case hit his third three of the game to put the Bulldogs up 19-12. Then he would drive to the basket and finished to put them up 23-14. Case then dished a pass to Nathan Brumbaugh who stroked a three and then a full-court pass to Brandon Lavy which put Milton up 28-14. They would add on some more to make their halftime lead 31-14.

Jake Goubeaux hit a three for Arcanum to start the third quarter, but Nathan Brumbaugh responded with an NBA range three of his own. The Bulldogs would then go up by 20 after a Blake Brumbaugh steal which led to and-one at the other end. Blake Brumbaugh would get a pair of scores before Brandon Lavy hit a three to put Milton-Union up 48-22 going into the fourth quarter.

Nathan and Blake Brumbaugh would each hit another three and Milton-Union continued their dominant night. Arcanum’s all-time leading scorer Carter Gray would check out one final time in the orange and black as he left the court and was subbed out with around 3 minutes to play. This obviously wasn’t the ending Gray wanted or expected. Milton-Union went on to win 61-25.

Blake Brumbaugh finished with a game-high 14 points, Sam Case had 13 along with three three-pointer’s, Nathan Brumbaugh had 11 and Brandon Lavy had 10 points for the bulldogd. Arcanum was led by Jake Goubeaux who had 6 points and Carter Gray and Cade Brubaker who each finished with 4.

Milton-Union will advance to the sectional final at Northmont as they will play Middletown Madison on Saturday at 6 pm. This is a rematch of a game Madison won earlier in the season at Milton-Union.

February 26, 2020May 4, 2020 by Rob Ellis

Turnovers kill Fairmont in tough loss

Centerville, Ohio — Usually, when a three and ten seed square off, it isn’t a close game. Fairmont is not your usual ten seed though. The Firebirds have accomplished a lot this season with an extremely young and inexperienced team. They knocked off Centerville, Wayne, and Springfield during the season but have struggled at times due to their lack of experience at the varsity level.

One of Fairmont’s trio of sophomore guards Keon Wright drilled a fadeaway three to start the game. Another one of those sophomore guards Anthony Johnson nailed a three to put the Firebirds up 6-1. Johnson then dumped it off to Danye Lewis for the layup to end the run and put Fairmont up 8-1. Darren Taborn wasn’t going down that easy as he drilled a corner three and then Avante Martin and Dominick Durr each got layups to bring Sidney back. Kaleb Hall and Keon Wright would each get buckets for Fairmont as well but the score was tied at 13-13 at the end of the 1st quarter.

The Firebirds came out hot in the second, Tank Gant, Kaleb Hall and Danye Lewis all scored to put them up 20-13. Dasan Doucet added on to the lead with a bucket of his own as well. Sidney would fight back as Lathan Jones tacked on a pair of layups to end the half down 22-17.

Darren Taborn started the second half with three straight buckets including an and-one to tie the game. Kaleb Hall would respond with a layup to give Fairmont the lead but another Taborn and-one would soon put Sidney on top. Lathan Jones then got a pair of layups including an and-one which gave the Yellow Jackets a 30-25 lead. Malachi Parker nailed a three for Fairmont to bring them within three as they trailed 35-32 at the end of the third.

Dominick Durr started the 4th with a jumper and then Cedric Johnson got a pair of steals and layups to put Sidney back up 41-33. Camden Vordemark finished off a transition layup to put the Yellow Jackets up double digits. Keon Wright hit a quick three but it was watered down by Jaden Swiger and Devin Taborn putting the Jackets back up by 11. Kaleb Hall hit a contested layup and then Malachi Parker took over. Parker hit a three and then drove through the lane to bring Fairmont back within 2. Avante Martin and Darren Taborn each got buckets to put Sidney up 53-49. Parker responded with a pair of clutch threes to make it a 58-54 game. Then, with 18 seconds left and down 6 Parker missed a three and Fairmont was forced to foul. Danye Lewis got another layup and then Keon Wright hit an uncontested three at the buzzer but it wasn’t enough. Sidney survived the young Firebirds and held on to win 60-59. Fairmont amounted over 20 turnovers in the loss which shows their inexperience. This is a Fairmont team that will be a scary sight come next March.

Darren Taborn finished with 15 points for Sidney and was joined by Dominick Durr and Devin Taborn who each scored 10 points each. Malachi Parker had a game-high 16 points for Fairmont. Keon Wright finished with 14 and Kaleb Hall had 12.

Sidney will advance to the District Semifinal against Stebbins at Centerville on Thursday.

February 26, 2020May 4, 2020 by Rob Ellis

Jaden Dahm leads Carroll past Troy

Centerville, Ohio — Entering this first-round matchup, both Troy and Carroll have had very different seasons this year. Troy has played a decently easy schedule up to this point with tough matchups against teams like Tippecanoe and Sidney while Carroll has played in the gauntlet of a conference with teams like Alter, Badin, and McNicholas all having great seasons.

Shaeden Olden got the game started off with a bucket right off of the tip. After another Troy bucket, Sam Severt would knock down a three to cut it to a 4-3 Troy lead. Jaden Dahm then caught fire, he got three straight buckets including an and-one. Tre Archie would answer with a bucket of his own. Shaeden Olden would then hit a three. The score at the end of the 1st was a tied game at 9-9.

Troy’s Landyn Henry and Carroll’s Logan Broaddus each hit a three to open up the second quarter. Dahm got another bucket and then Broaddus hit a transition three to put the Patriots up 17-12. Tre Archie and Shaeden Olden would each get another bucket before Broaddus drilled another three to give Carroll the 22-18 halftime lead.

Broaddus would open up the second half with another three and then Sam Severt’s layup put Carroll up 11. Dahm would put Carroll up 13 with a pair of layups and then Ryan Seltsam was fouled while shooting a three with 0.5 seconds left. Seltsam would go 2/3 from the line to put Carroll up 37-23 heading into the 4th.

It looked like Troy might make a late comeback as Jaden Owens hit a three to open the 4th, but Logan Broaddus and Jaden Dahm proved to be too much as they went on a final run in the 4th. Shaeden Olden got a couple more buckets, and Tre Archie made a nice behind the back pass to Hollis Terrell for the layup. Carroll ran away with this game in the second half as they will move on to the second round with a 52-35 win over Troy.

Jaden Dahm finished with 19 points and Logan Broaddus notched a career-high 14 points in the big win. Shaeden Olden had 16 points for Troy, while no one else scored in the double digits for the Trojans.

Carroll will play Wayne next after the Warriors narrowly escaped a possible first-round exit at the hands of Northmont. That game will be played at Centerville on Tuesday.

February 23, 2020May 4, 2020 by Rob Ellis

Late run not enough for Belmont

Miamisburg sophomore forward Anthony Coppock

Belmont sophomore forward Shawn Phillips

Centerville, Ohio — The first round of the division one tournament usually gives us some pretty interesting matchups and that was no different as the Belmont Bisons from the Dayton City League battled the Miamisburg Vikings from the GWOC. Miamisburg came into this season with some uncertainty as a lot of their GWOC championship team from the year before had graduated but sophomore Anthony Coppock has stepped up this year.

To get the game started, Belmont attacked the paint as four-star 6’10” big man Shawn Phillips got the turnaround jumper to go. Phillips would get another bucket just a couple plays later. Junior guard Alex Ball played well in the first quarter getting a pair of buckets and he also set up his teammates well. He found Corey Fries for a three and then found Anthony Coppock for a three and an and-one. The Vikings led 16-8 after one quarter.

Miamisburg started off the second quarter red hot as Fries and Murphy each hit a three to put ‘Burg up 22-9. After freshman Jackson McGohan and Alex Ball each got and-ones, Miamisburg led 30-12. Anthony Coppock and Collin Murphy each got a pair of buckets and the Vikings led 36-19 at the half.

Shawn Phillips started the second half strong as got three quick buckets, one of those being a dunk to bring Belmont back. Antaune Allen also contributed with an and-one. Allen cut the lead to single digits with another bucket and then Logan Moore got the steal and dished it to Allen to cut it to just a 7 point game. Allen missed a jumper at the buzzer which would’ve cut it to a 4 point game. Miamisburg still led 42-36 heading into the 4th.

Anthony Coppock was unstoppable in the 4th. He got four straight buckets to give Miamisburg a 56-42 lead. It seemed everything Coppock threw up went in and the Bisons had no answer for that. A jumper for Colin Murphy and an up-and-under layup from Alex Ball put the game out of reach for Belmont. That late run from Coppock saved Miamisburg’s season and gave the #5 Vikings a 67-50 first-round win over #11 Belmont.

Anthony Coppock finished with a game-high 20 points and Colin Murphy added on 14 points in the win. Alex Ball finished with 11 and then Luke Copsey had 9 points for Miamisburg.

The Vikings will play Springboro in their next tournament game which will be at Centerville on Thursday at 6 pm.

February 22, 2020May 4, 2020 by Rob Ellis

Tolliver’s 23 points leads Springfield past Butler

Centerville, Ohio — The first round of the division one tournament held at Centerville opened up with an intriguing matchup between the #15 Butler Aviators and the #6 Springfield Wildcats. These two teams were pretty similar coming into the season as they both lost crucial seniors that led their teams last season.

Josh Tolliver started off the game with a corner three and Larry Stephens and Tolliver both hit jumpers to put Springfield on top 9-0 to start. Butler’s Quincy Rackley hit a pair of layups but Josh Tolliver responded with a deep three. Tolliver nailed a deep three and then Ray Cole slammed home a dunk to extend the Wildcats’ lead to 19-6 at the end of the first.

Tyler Montague brought Butler within 10 with a deep three but Ray Cole stole Montague’s loose handle on the ball and got another dunk. Montague hit a heavily contested layup and then nailed a deep three to bring Butler back within single digits. Rackley continued his hot streak as pulled down an offensive rebound and putback, but Tolliver answered with a deep three to put Springfield up 27-22 at the half.

Springfield and Butler traded blows to open up the second half and then Quincy Rackley really went off, scoring bucket after bucket and then a Tyler Montague floater that found the bottom of the net suddenly cut the deficit to 6. Josh Tolliver then exploded and hit deep three after deep three and multiple contested layups as the Wildcats led 48-35 heading into the fourth.

Ray Cole started off hot in the 4th but was called for a technical after hanging on the rim after a dunk. This resulted in Butler making two free-throws after getting the ball back. But Montague was called for a push-off after him and Jeff Tolliver had been exchanging words the whole game. This ended whatever run Butler was brewing up as Josh Tolliver turned up the intensity and ended Butler’s season as Springfield could not be stopped in the 4th quarter and won 76-52.

Josh Tolliver finished with 23 points including 5 threes and Ray Cole had 11 points for the Wildcats. Butler was led by both Tyler Montague and Quincy Rackley who both had 18 and Cooper Justice who had 10 points.

Springfield will play their next tournament game against Xenia next Wednesday at Butler high school at 6 pm.

February 17, 2020May 4, 2020 by Rob Ellis

Stivers defeats Northridge to close out season

Dayton, Ohio — To wrap up the 2019-20 regular season, Stivers hosted Northridge for a rematch of last year’s down to the wire game. Stivers led by Tre Ellis mounted an 18 point comeback to beat the Polar Bears. Now a year later a lot of things are different. Ellis is no longer apart of the Stivers team and Northridge lost its two leading scorers from last season to graduation.

Allen Lattimore got the scoring started for the Tigers with a steal and a dunk. The duo of Cameron Evans and Chad Florence excelled in the first quarter for Northridge as both bigs dominated Stivers in the paint. Dajuan Allen played well in the first as he made a pullup jumper and a putback layup. Northridge led after one quarter 14-9.

Stivers came into the second quarter on fire. An Allen Lattimore and-one and then a jumper suddenly put the Tigers up 19-14. Justin Hamilton and Isaiah McCallop each got a bucket for Northridge to tie the game back up. After both teams traded buckets, Darryl Story gave Northridge back the lead with a steal and score. Stivers led at halftime 28-23 after Dajuan Allen made a jumper and finished an alley-oop to put the Tigers up at the half.

Chad Florence went back to work in the second half as he started the scoring with a turnaround floater in the paint. Isaiah McCallop then caught fire as he couldn’t miss. He 3 three-pointers back-to-back-to-back as Northridge took a one-point lead. Florence’s turnaround jumper made that a three-point lead. Allen Lattimore hit a pair of threes and then Darryl Story finished off the quarter by drilling a three before the buzzer to put Northridge up 47-45 heading into the fourth.

Stivers went on a massive run in the fourth quarter led by Allen Lattimore and Dajuan Allen. Both players couldn’t miss and hit shot after shot to put Northridge away. The Polar Bears went cold in the fourt quarter and had too many turnovers to stay in the game. Stivers finished off the game with a dunk from Lattimore and a three at the buzzer to put an exclimation point on the 77-58 victory.

Northridge will face Kenton Ridge in the first round of the tournament held next week and Stivers will play Northeastern which will take place two weeks from now to begin their tournament run.

February 15, 2020May 4, 2020 by Rob Ellis

Centerville wins GWOC title outright

Beavercreek sophomore forward Adam Duvall

Centerville, Ohio — Before this week started, most people believed this game would be decided for a GWOC title. If Centerville won, they would be outright champions, if Beavercreek won they were co-champs. But after Centerville was upset by Fairmont on Tuesday that opened a door for Beavercreek. That door and the hopes of an outright GWOC championship for Beavercreek were shut after a 75 foot shot from Jordan Howard went in and Springfield upset Beavercreek.

Freshman phenom Gabe Cupps got the scoring started as he drilled a mid-range jumper. Beavercreek responded as senior Chris Herbort nailed a corner three. Kebba Njie and Adam Duvall traded basketball and then sophomore sharpshooter Tom House hit a corner three to put Centerville up 11-5. Chris Herbort hit another corner three to cut it to just a 5 point deficit. House and Herbort then traded NBA range threes and Braden Grant got an and-one to make it a 16-13 game at the end of one.

House continued his hot hand in the second quarter pulling from way past the volleyball line and hitting nothing but net. Then Mo Njie playing in his final home game got a turnaround floater to go. House then hit a jumper which put the Elks up 10. Yousef Saleh and Herbort both got layups but Centerville countered it with baskets of their own. Going into the locker rooms at halftime, Centerville led 30-22.

Gabe Cupps got the second half started off with an and-one jumper. Beavercreek senior guard Yousef Saleh wouldn’t let his team lose this easily. He hit a jumper and then nailed a three to cut the lead down to single digits. Herbort and Saleh continued to fight and cut the lead down to 5 at one point but Gabe Cupps stopped the momentum with a three. Centerville sophomore Ryan Keifer had a big third quarter as he got a layup and then got a steal and coast to coast finish to put the Elks up 52-41. Mo Njie finished off the quarter with a massive slam and Centerville led 54-41 and was one quarter away from a GWOC title.

Adam Duvall had a great 4th quarter as hit shot after shot but Gabe Cupps proved to be too deadly as he drilled a deep three and hit a trio of heavily contested layups to put his team up by 20 and put the game out of reach. Beavercreek showed fight at the end though, Duvall continued to hit his shots down the stretch but it was just too little too late. It was fitting that the final bucket scored in this game would be a slam dunk from Mo Njie as he finished off his career at Centerville with a 72-59 victory over Beavercreek and a GWOC American championship.

Gabe Cupps finished with 21 in the victory, some other key contributors for Centerville were Tom House with 15 and Mo Njie with 8. Adam Duvall had 18 points for Beavercreek, Chris Herbort finished with 16, and Yousef Saleh had 14 in the loss.

This game wraps up both teams’ regular seasons as Centerville will play Tecumseh in the first round of the tournament and Beavercreek will play Lebanon.

February 11, 2020May 4, 2020 by Rob Ellis

Oakwood defeats Northridge on senior night

Dayton, Ohio — Northridge looked to defend their home court on senior night as Denison University commit Darren Rubin and the Oakwood Lumberjacks came to town. Northridge was coming off of a loss the previous night to Madison as they fell 56-39. The Polar Bears looked to bounce back bigtime against Oakwood.

In his final home game, senior Darryl Story got the Polar Bears started off right with a transition layup and a jumper. Darren Rubin responded with a deep three. Cameron Evans added on a bucket as well but Oakwood freshman Will Maxwell tied the game with a three of his own. Northridge senior Chad Florence hit a deep three before Daniel Hu responded with an and-one. Rubin got a pair of layups and then kicked it out to Dan Flannery who drilled a three before the buzzer. Oakwood led 16-10 after one quarter of play.

Christian Reynolds hit a three to put Oakwood up 19-10 and both teams traded buckets most of the quarter. Cameron Evans brought the Bears back within 3 after an and-one. Isaiah McCallop then tied the game after a transition layup. A Darren Rubin three was the difference at the half as Oakwood led 28-26.

Jack Epley and Chad Florence traded threes as this back and forth affair continued. Daniel Hu hit a jumper and then Darryl Story drilled a three from way downtown to give Northridge the lead. Senior Shawn Shehee got on the board with a putback layup to give the Polar Bears the lead. Shehee then went coast to coast for an and-one to keep Northridge in front. Will Maxwell got a layup as he dribbled baseline to tie the game at 40 apiece heading into the 4th.

Maxwell got a layup to start the 4th, but Shehee quickly answered it with a layup of his own. After Rubin and Hu each got a basket, Chad Florence kept Northridge in the game with a putback layup. Darren Rubin’s nasty euro put Oakwood up 48-45. Isaiah McCallop cut the 9 point deficit to 6 with a clutch three. McCallop and Story each got layups to cut it 8 but it wasn’t enough down the stretch. Northridge pulled Story and Florence for the final time at home in an emotional scene at Northridge. Oakwood came out with the 66-54 win.

Darren Rubin finished with 23 points in the win, Daniel Hu had 19, and Will Maxwell finished with 11.

Northridge was led by Chad Florence and Cameron Evans who each had 13 and then Darryl Story who had 11. Northridge will close out league play with a game at Preble Shawnee and then will end the regular season with a game at Stivers next Saturday. Oakwood will end their season with a game at Franklin next Friday.

February 9, 2020May 4, 2020 by Rob Ellis

#5 Wayne knocks off #3 Centerville again

Huber Heights, Ohio — When Wayne upset Centerville in early December, it was a shock to a lot of people as a Gabe Cupps missed a game-tying shot at the buzzer. Both teams have progressed a lot since that first matchup and the highly anticipated freshman versus freshamn rematch tipped-off on Friday.

With Mo Njie out with an injury, Elijah Brown used his size to body Kebba Njie as got an easy layup, then Malcolm Curry made a nice spin-move for the layup. Freshman Lawrent Rice drilled a deep three to give the Warriors an early advantage. A bucket from Kebba Njie and then a deep three from Drew Thompson kept Centerville down just 9-7 after one quarter.

Brendan Hill knocked down a three to start the quarter for Wayne, then Curry found Elijah Brown on an alley-oop to put Wayne up 14-7. Rich Rolf and Kebba Njie each contributed with a bucket each but Centerville still trailed in this low scoring affair, as they were down 17-12 at the half.

Brown and Curry got the third quarter started off with a pair of layups, but Centerville sophomore Tom House got hot as he hit three after three after three. Wayne junior Cam Fancher broke a defender before hitting a sweet floater to put Wayne up 25-21. Tre Johnson cut the deficit to 25-23 at the end of the third as he converted on a layup to end the quarter.

Wayne extended their lead to 7 as Lawrent Rice and Elijah Brown each hit mid-range jumpers. Tom House cut the lead to 4 as he drilled another three. Elijah Brown hit another massive layup but Drew Thompson cut the lead to 32-28 with 1:09 remaining. Centerville had the ball down 34-28 with 48 seconds to go. Kebba Njie got what looked to be an and-one with 34 seconds left as Ben Palma hit his arm but no foul was called. If Kebba converted on the free-throw it would’ve made it a three-point game with 30 seconds left. But with the no-call, it put the game out of reach so Brook Cupps ran out onto the court yelling at the officials. That prompted a technical and then officially put the game out of reach. Tom House nailed a three at the buzzer and Wayne survived 36-33 with another big-time GWOC win.

Gabe Cupps finished with 0 points as he was locked up the entire game. Tom House had 15 points off of 5 threes and Drew Thompson had 6 points for the Elks. Wayne was led by Elijah Brown who had 11 points and had some huge buckets down the stretch. Lawrent Rice had 7 and Malcolm Curry, Brendan Hill, and Cam Fancher all contributed with 5 points.

Centerville has two big league games coming up as they will face Fairmont and Beavercreek to end their regular season. Wayne will go and play Springboro and Springfield and then Columbus Independence to end their regular season.

February 6, 2020May 4, 2020 by Rob Ellis

Belmont shocks #5 Stivers with last second shot

Dayton, Ohio — After a tough couple of weeks, Stivers looked to stay alive in the Dayton City League race as Thurgood Marshall looked to close out the outright title with wins over Ponitz and Stivers this week.

Stivers guard Allen Lattimore got the scoring started with a three, then Stivers senior Dajuan Allen went coast to coast before converting on an and-one. Belmont four-star and 6’10” forward Shawn Phillips went to work on the offensive glass pulling down a ‘board and getting an easy putback. Phillips got another putback layup and Lattimore drilled another three. Latrell Estes added an and-one and Antaune Allen got a monster putback dunk to end the 1st quarter but Stivers still led 16-9.

Belmont went on a run to open up the second quarter but Allen Lattimore put the Tigers back up by 9 with a pair of threes. Randy Latham and Antaune Allen both got contested layups to find the bottom of the net. Both teams traded buckets the rest of the half as Stivers led 28-19 heading into halftime.

The third quarter went about the same as the rest of the game. Dajuan Allen shot the ball very well and at times it looked like Stivers was going to run away with this game but Randy Latham and Antaune Allen kept Belmont in it with some big and-ones and threes towards the end of the 3rd quarter. An Antaune Allen three at the buzzer cut Stivers’ lead down to 48-40.

The 4th quarter stayed at the same back and forth pace the rest of the game had been played and it appeared Belmont wasn’t going to have enough time to pull of a comeback. But, with 2:30 remaining Latrell Estes got an and-one which brought the Bisons within 6. Then Belmont converted on another and-one which brought them within 3. Dajuan Allen hit another fadeaway jumper to make the score 64-59. Then Latrell Estes got another and-one with 49 seconds left to cut the deficit down to 2. Down 68-64 with 22.3 seconds left, Antaune Allen kicked it out to another guard who nailed a jumper to make it a one-possession game. Stivers led 68-66 and was inbounding with 11 seconds left. Antaune Allen was able to tip the inbound pass but missed the layup to tie. Lattimore pulled down the rebound but was then forced out of bounds by his teammate. That gave Belmont the basketball under their hoop with 4.1 seconds left. Belmont gave the ball to Harry Fisher who then made the play of his life and converted on an and-one to tie the game. With only 1.4 seconds remaining, Fisher made the free throw to give Belmont the lead. Stivers’ full-court heave was off the mark and Belmont comes out with the 69-68 win off of some last-second heroics.

This loss for Stivers gives Thurgood Marshall the outright City League title. Both teams have one league game remianing and Stivers will face Thurgood on Friday and Belmotn will play Ponitz on Friday.

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