Kettering, Ohio — The Battle of Kettering has been known as one of the best rivalries in high school football in the Dayton area. The crosstown rivalry looked to be just as interesting this year in basketball this year as both Alter and Fairmont entered Tuesday night’s contest with undefeated records.

Alter has been very impressive to start off the season. After two thrilling victories over Homestead and Moeller, the Knights followed it up with another win over a quality Oakwood squad. Then following a thirty-point blowout over Fenwick, Alter entered Tuesday’s matchup with a perfect 4-0 record.

Alter senior Jacob Conner

Fairmont also entered the Battle of Kettering with a 4-0 record after convincing wins over Westland, Middletown, Northmont, and Springboro. Anthony Johnson and Dasan Doucet have proved to be a very effective duo. The addition of key role players like Eli Sherwood, Jamison Rountree, and Tyler Gentile have given the Firebirds the boost they’ve needed to get off to a hot start.

Fairmont senior Dasan Doucet

Fairmont set the tempo early as Dasan Doucet took a charge on the opening possession. Then Aden Marrero found Anthony Johnson on a designed lob pass to give Fairmont the early lead. A Jacob Conner and-one three and multiple transition layups from the Knights capped off a 12-0 run to give them a 12-3 lead in the first quarter. Alter led 17-7 at the conclusion of the first quarter.

A pair of threes from Anthony Johnson and a corner three from Doucet cut the deficit to five. Threes from Ryan Chew and Gavin Geisel gave Alter back a ten point lead at halftime and Fairmont went into the locker rooms facing a 31-21 deficit.

Alter senior Ryan Chew

Despite trailing by as many as fourteen in the third quarter, Fairmont stayed calm and battled back. Jamison Rountree hit a pair of jumpers. Then Anthony Johnson caught fire from deep and suddenly the Firebirds trailed by just six. Johnson’s alley-oop brought Fairmont back within two points as they trailed 37-35 at the end of the quarter.

Fairmont senior Anthony Johnson

Anthony Ruffolo drilled a three to start the scoring for Alter in the fourth quarter, but Aden Marrero would respond right back with and-one on Jacob Conner. A transition layup from Marrero cut the Knights lead to 42-40. Anthony Johnson then drove to the rim and converted on a heavily contested layup with the Marshall commit Conner right behind him. This tied the game.

A few seconds later, Ryan Chew drove coast to coast but was unable to finish on the tough layup. Johnson then dribbled up to the three point line and was fouled by Geisel while shooting a deep three. The senior guard knocked down all three free-throws which gave Fairmont a 45-42 lead. This was their first lead since the first quarter.

Fairmont senior Anthony Johnson

Jacob Conner continued to a presence in the paint as he blocked multiple shots in a row. Anthony Johnson then drove into the heart of the Alter defense a hit a tough floater over Conner to extend Fairmont’s lead to 47-42. A.J. Leen couldn’t follow through on the finish on the other end as Alter’s scoring drought continued.

This meant the Knights had to start fouling while trailing by five with limited time remaining. Tyler Gentille was fouled but missed the front end of the one-and-one. With under two minutes to go, Anthony Johnson picked off the pass from the driving Ryan Chew and Gavin Geisel was forced to foul. This was his fifth foul which ended his night. A pair of free-throws from both Anthony Johnson and Dasan Doucet gave the Firebirds a 51-44 lead.

Alter opened up another door to possibly get back into this game when Jacob Conner forced a jump ball. Conner’s three to cut the deficit to four on the following possession missed which gave Fairmont back the ball. Johnson was fouled yet again. Johnson’s first free-throw gave him 30 points on the night which capped off an incredible performance for the senior guard.

Fairmont senior Anthony Johnson

Fairmont would hold-on and stun Alter 55-45 after trailing the entire game. Anthony Johnson’s 31 points helped Fairmont pull off this incredible comeback as the Firebirds moved to 5-0 (2-0, GWOC) on the season. Dasan Doucet finished with 10 points for Fairmont, while Aden Marrero contributed 5 points and Jamison Rountree had 4 points.

Alter suffers their first loss of the year as their late scoring troubles plagued them in this loss. They were led offensively by Ryan Chew who had 13 points. Marshall commit Jacob Conner had 10 points, Gavin Geisel had 9 points, and A.J. Leen finished with 8 points for the Knights. They drop to 4-1 (1-0, GCL Co-Ed) and will look to bounce back on Sunday when they face their conference rivals in Chaminade Julienne.