2018 Boys Basketball State Championships

COLUMBUS, Ohio - Championship Saturday at the Jerome Schottenstein Center started with a bang, as Marion Local squeaked by Cleveland Cornerstone Christian in 2OT come-from-behind thriller in the Division 4 title game, while Cincinnati Deer Park rebounded from a nine-point halftime deficit to capture the Division 3 championship. The Division 2 and Division 1 games were not as close, however, as Akron St. Vincent-St. Mary’s controlled the tempo in a Division 2 matchup with Trotwood Madison that was not as close as the score indicates, and Cincinnati Moeller used superior top-to-bottom talent to blow Solon out of the gym, despite another strong performance from Solon guard, Sincere Carry. Let’s look in depth at the day that was and breakdown all four title games…

Cincinnati Moeller 83 Solon 65: With Solon looking a little tired after their come from behind win over Pickerington Central the previous night, Big Moe jumped out to a double-figure lead and never looked back, opening up a twenty-point lead early in the fourth quarter to capture their fourth State Title under head coach Carl Kremer. The Crusaders shot 71-percent on the night in a game they never trailed, running their deliberate half-court offense to perfection and then taking advantage of Solon mistakes when the Cleveland area team tried to press in the second half to change the momentum. Finishing the year 27-3 and undefeated in the state of Ohio, Moeller finally received true revenge from last year’s heartbreaking one-point State Final defeat by the hands of Massillon Jackson, a game that ruined a perfect season for the Crusaders. While Solon might have had the most dominant player in the game on Saturday night in senior guard Sincere Carry, who scored 17 of his game-high 27 points in the first half, Moeller’s top to bottom depth proved to be just too much for their opponent, as the Crusaders had four players score in double figures. Wright State signee Jeremiah Davenport led the charge, in capping off a memorable senior season, as the 6-foot-5 wing tallied 22 points, 8 rebounds and 5 assists in his final game at Moeller, while fellow senior Jaxson Hayes, a 6-foot-10 post signed with Texas, added 14 points, 6 rebounds and 3 blocks. Junior wing Alec Pfriem and West Virginia commit Deuce McBride, a junior guard playing in just his second game of the season as he recovered from a foot injury, also added 14 points apiece for Moeller, while senior guards Isaiah Payton (6 points, 4 assists, 4 rebounds, 1 steal) and Carlos Garcia (7 points, 2 rebounds) also made their presences felt in the win. Carry was by the far the main catalyst for Solon, who shot the three-point ball very well in the semifinal but finished just 9-38 from deep in the final, however, Carry also committed 9 turnovers in the loss. Moeller’s win gives the Crusaders their first State Title since 2007 and the first Division 1 championship for the Cincinnati area since GCL rival LaSalle took home the trophy back in 2011.

Akron St. Vincent-St. Mary’s 60 Trotwood Madison 51: As they have in the past, STSVSM controlled the pace against a fast-break oriented Trotwood team, with the Irish taking their third straight win in this battle of talented rivals to win the State Championship. A Rams team that averaged 90 PPG during the regular season was held to just 51 on the night, as STVSM clogged the paint and forced Trotwood to launch jumpers (which is not a strength of their team). Offensively, the Irish moved the ball and frustrated the Rams with their ball security, as Trotwood was not able to force turnovers at their normal rate (thus limiting their fast-break points). While STSVSM controlled the lead for much of the game, their lead was just 4 points heading into the final period; however, senior guard Scott Walter was able to handle Trotwood’s press with ease, as well as precision from the foul line, in closing out the game with a nine-point margin. In the win, STVSM was led in scoring by Walter’s 17 points, to go along with 4 rebounds, 3 assists and 2 steals, while junior wing Lunden McDay totaled 17 points of his own with 5 rebounds. Joining those two in double figures was junior post Keyshawn Jones who tallied 10 points, 6 rebounds and 4 assists. Trotwood’s two stars were still able to produce their normal numbers, as senior wing Myles Belyeu finished with 20 points and junior wing Amari Davis added 19 points, but Trotwood received just 12 points from the rest of their roster in the loss. The win marks St. Vincent-St. Mary’s fourth title this decade and second straight, as Dru Joyce continues to be one of the winningest coaches in Ohio basketball.

Cincinnati Deer Park 67 Columbus Africentric 57: Deer Park trailed by 9 at the half and for much of the third quarter before turning on the gas and dominating the late third and entire fourth quarters, outscoring Africentric 21-12 in the final period to claim their first ever statse title and finish the season with an undefeated record of 29-0. Africentric, the underdog in this one, came out loose with senior point guard Tre Baumgardner capping a terrific State Tournament by leading his team to easy baskets throughout the first sixteen minutes. Deer Park committed unforced errors and had lapses defensively, as Baumgardner and company scored in transition and used their size to bother Deer Park. Coming out of the half, however, the tables turned, as Deer Park’s energy level improved and shots started to fall. Junior post Joe Hocker, a huge part of both wins this weekend for the Wildcats, put-back at the buzzer to end the third quarter gave the Wildcats their first lead since early in the first quarter; from there DP never looked back, building the lead to two then three possessions for most of the final eight minutes. Scoring 24 points in transition, which is a big part of how they built their record to 29-0, Deer Park was led by the 14 points of senior wing Damani McEntire and 14 points of sophomore point guard Steve Gentry Jr., while senior wing Jalen Rose added 13 points and Hocker posted a double-double with 10 points and 10 rebounds. While not in the double-figure scoring column, sophomore guard Mark Wise was a top performer with 7 points, 8 assists, 4 rebounds and 2 steals. As he has been all season, Tre Baumgardner was the standout for Africentric, leading the way again with 17 points in this one; however, while Baumgardner did score a game-high in points again, Deer Park’s Damani McEntire played exemplary defense on him, limiting the sharpshooters open looks. Sophomore guard Cali Davis and junior wing Dorian Holloway also stood out for the Nubians, scoring 11 and 9 points respectively.

Marion Local 52 Cleveland Cornerstone Christian 51: The Flyers captured their third State Championship in school history with a thrilling come-from-behind win in double-overtime, in a game in which they looked like they were defeated several times. Junior forward Nathan Bruns made big play after big play, as the Flyers, who also won a state title this year in football with Bruns playing quarterback, were able to hang on in the second overtime, behind 18 points, 14 rebounds, 3 assists and 2 steals from Bruns. However, as clutch as Bruns was, the ultimate hero for Marion Local was senior post Tyler Mescher, who converted two free throws, with his team down one point, with 2.6 seconds to go, giving Marion Local the final margin of 52-51. Cornerstone Christian came out with guns blazing in the first half, as senior guard Michael Bothwell (Furman) scored the majority of his game high 23 points before the half, knocking down several contest three-point attempts off the dribble. Marion Local’s deliberate approached allowed the Flyers to grind their way back into the game, and they trailed just 33-30 heading into the final period. From there the two teams started to both get going offensively, with Mescher scoring with :15 left to force a first overtime, then Bruns hitting a miraculous three from the corner off a cross-court skip pass to tie the game with :09 left in the first overtime to force a second extra period. In that final frame, Cornerstone Christian’s Ricky Adams drilled a three from the corner with just :22 left to erase Marion Local’s lead and actually give CC a lead, setting up the final sequence where Mescher won the game from the line. Besides Bruns standout play, Mescher also scored 18 points for the Flyers, while senior guard Tyler Prenger chipped in with 10 points on a couple clutch shots himself. Cornerstone got another standout performance from Bothwell, who also added 7 rebounds, 3 assists, 2 blocks and 2 steals.