COLUMBUS, Ohio -- Running past Linden-McKinley in the second half on Tuesday night, Pickerington North secured a solid non-league win, taking down the Panthers 62-42.

Linden jumped out to an early 8-3 lead behind the play of Shamarion Rogers, who knocked down two 15-footers. The lead for Linden disappeared in a hurry as Pickerington North ripped off a ferocious 10-0 run shortly after. The run was sparked by sophomore Jerry Saunders who made his presence felt immediately with two steals. North held a 18-13 lead after one quarter of play.

Pickerington North’s momentum carried over into the second quarter as they started out on a 6-0 run. With the game looking like it may start to get ugly, Linden showed their toughness. Cole Hudson scored five straight points for Linden and they gained some momentum as they turned up their defensive pressure and finished the quarter on a 10-1 run. 

At the half, Pickerington North claimed a 25-24 lead.

Pickerington North really locked in defensively and rode the hot hand of Casey George, who poured in 20 second half points, as they outscored Linden 37-18 in the final two quarters.

Pickerington North was led in scoring by George with 22, while Hunter Shedenhelm scored 14, Chris Scott scored 11 and Dior Conners added 10 points.

Linden was led in scoring by Chance Groce and Rogers with 11 points each, while Lason Walker added eight and Hudson scored seven.

Casey George (6’0 G / Pickerington North / 2021): George picked up where he left on Saturday, once again leading the team in scoring. He continues to show that he can create a shot for himself whenever and wherever from the floor. He knocked down two threes and made some tough midrange pull ups. The most impressive thing from Casey tonight was the strength he showed finishing through contact. His confidence seems to be sky high and you can expect to see more nights like this out of the junior in the future.

Hunter Shedenhelm (6’4 WG / Pickerington North / 2020): Hunter showed off his deadly catch and shoot ability early on tonight as his nine points in the first quarter helped combat the hot start for Linden. Shedenhelm has some great tools offensively, but what makes him such a great player has a lot to do with what he can do defensively. His tools on that end were on full display as he really made Chance Groce work hard to get quality looks by using his length to contest shots very well. Shedenhelm will play a major role in how far this Panthers team can go this year.

Chance Groce (6’5 WG / Linden / 2021): Chance didn’t attempt a ton of shots tonight, but when he did he showed glimpses of his ability to create his own shot and a better looking catch and shoot jumper that was automatic when given any space. He made some tough jumpshots off the dribble but was never able to really get it going. Defensively he got in the passing lanes to come up with some steals and defended well on the ball.

Chris Scott (6’4 WG / Pickerington North / 2020): Scott didn’t have the biggest offensive night, but he served as the ultimate glue guy and enforcer for the Panthers. He brought that football grit and toughness to the hardwood tonight. His teammates fed off of his energy as he was a man on the glass snatching down rebounds. He took advantage of smaller matchups and punished them inside the paint for some easy points throughout the contest as well.

Shamarion Rogers (6’4 F / Linden / 2021): Rogers, who usually dominates around the rim  showed off his shooting touch tonight by knocking down multiple catch and shoot mid range jumpers. It’s great to see him expanding his range and shooting the ball with confidence. If his offensive game continues to make strides like it has recently, he’ll give Linden a really nice number three option alongside Groce and Walker.

COLUMBUS, Ohio --

Linden jumped out to an early 8-3 lead behind the play of Shamarion Rogers who knocked down two 15 footers.The lead for Linden disappeared in a hurry as Pickerington North ripped off a ferocious 10-0 run. The run was sparked sophomore Jerry Saunders who made his presence felt immediately with two steals. North held a 18-13 lead after one quarter of play.

Pickerington North’s momentum carried over into the second quarter as they started out on a 6-0 run . With the game looking like it may start to get ugly , Linden showed their toughness . Cole Hudson scored five straight points for Linden , andthey turned up their defensive pressure and finished  the quarter on a 10-1 run . At the half the score was 24-25.

Pickerington North really locked in Defensively and rode the hot hand of Casey George who poured in 20 second half points as they outscored Linden 37-18 in the final two quarters .

Pickerington North was led in scoring by Casey George with 22 , Hunter Shedenhelm 14 , Chris Scott 11 , and Dior Conners with 10

Linden was led in scoring by Chance Groce 11 , Shamarion Rogers 11 , Lason Walker 8 , and Logan Hudson with 7

Casey George (6’0 G / Pickerington North /2021) George picked up where he left on Saturday , once again leading the team in scoring . He continues to show that he can create a shot for himself  whenever and wherever from the floor. He knocked down two threes , and made some tough midrange pull ups . Most impressive tonight was the strength he showed finishing through contact . His Confidence seems to be sky high and you can expect to see more nights like this out of the junior.

Hunter Shedenhelm (6’4 WG / Pickerington North / 2020) Hunter showed off his deadly catch and shoot ability early , as his nine points in the first quarter helped combat the hot start for Linden . Shedenhelm has some great tools offensively but what makes him such a great player has a lot to do with what he can do defensively . His tools on that end were on full display as he really made Chance Groce work hard to get quality looks using his length to contest shots very well . Shedenhelm will play a major role in how far this Panthers team can go this year.

Chance Groce ( 6’5 WG / Linden /2021) Chance didn’t attempt a ton of shots , but when he did he showed glimpses of his ability to create his own shot , and a better looking catch and shoot shot that was automatic when given any space .He made some tough jumpshots off the dribble but was never able to really get it going .Defensively he got in the passing lanes and came up with some steals , and played good on ball defense .

Shamarion Rogers (6’4 F / Linden / 2021) Rogers who usually dominates around the rim , showed off his shooting touch knocking down multiple catch and shoot mid range jumpers. It’s great to see him expanding his range and shooting the ball with confidence

Chris Scott (6’4 WG / Pickerington North / 2020 ) Scott didn’t have the biggest offensive night but he served as the ultimate glue guy and enforcer . He brought that football grit and toughness to the hardwood . His teammates fed off of his energy and he was a man on the glass snatching down rebounds . He took advantage of smaller matchups and punished them inside the paint .