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The Countdown: Jan. 24-Jan. 30

By Jason Morrow, 01/31/21, 12:00PM EST

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Recapping the past week in a 1,000 words or less

What a week. The City League reopened play on Monday, finally fully opening the 2020-2021 basketball season to every school in Central Ohio. Here on The Countdown, let us take a look at some of the big games, moments, players and facts to know about the past week as the season continues to move forward.

Five Important Results

Africentric 54, Walnut Ridge 53 (Friday)

A much-discussed no-call at the buzzer of Friday night’s game overshadowed what was otherwise another City League South classic finish, with Africentric taking a hold of the division lead. A quick seven-game league sprint to the finish means the Nubians are in the driver’s seat to play in the City title, as of right now. Dailyn Swain continues to open eyes around the area, as his game-high 24 points paced the Nubians in the big victory.

Thomas Worthington 56, Worthington Kilbourne 46 (Saturday)

The fourth quarter push by the Cardinals in a key cross-town rivalry game is just another sign that Sean Luzader’s bunch is peaking at the right time. Since a 53-48 loss to Westerville Central dropped the Cards to 2-4, Thomas Worthington has won 10 straight games; including big wins over Newark, Gahanna, and Canton McKinley. For more on this game, read Cameron Carter’s piece on the Battle for Worthington.

Gahanna 62, Pickerington North 59 (Saturday)

A week after a stunning 26-point loss to Thomas Worthington, Gahanna bounced back in a big way, knocking off old OCC-Ohio rival Pickerington North on the road. Led by Javan Simmons (13 points) and Jarius Jones (12 points), the Lions showed they can be a balanced bunch. There is one thing that Gahanna will want to clean up for March—free throw shooting, as the Lions were just 11-of-19 at the line on Saturday.

Bishop Ready 75, DeSales 69 (Friday)

Despite a gargauntan effort from Des Watson, Bishop Ready and Darius Parham got the last laugh on Friday night, knocking off first place DeSales in one of the best games of the 2020-21 season. While Parham dropped a cool 26 points, it was sophomore Charlie Russell’s layup with :2.1 seconds left in regulation that gave the Silver Knights a chance to win the game, forcing overtime. Russell and fellow sophomore Kaleb Schaffer give head coach Tony Bisutti some serious hopes for the future as well.

Olentangy Orange 65, Dublin Coffman 55 (Friday)

Arguably the most eye-popping final of Friday night’s action came from the Pioneers of Olentangy Orange, who ushered a major blow to any chances Dublin Coffman had of winning the OCC-Central. Despite 28 points from Ajay Sheldon, the Rocks were unable to recreate the magic of Tuesday night’s thrilling upset of Hilliard Bradley. A balanced attack by Andre Irvin, Jason Foster and Elias Lewis proved to be too much, as the Pioneers notched win number nine of the season.

Four Facts from the week that was

  • In Saturday night’s state-ranked girls clash between Granville and Watkins Memorial, there were 25 combined points in the fourth quarter, but only one made field goal. Defense was at a premium as the Blue Aces knocked off Watkins Memorial. Emma Ervin has more on that in her recap.
     
  • Hilliard Bradley’s sweep of Hilliard Davidson this weekend started a new winning streak for the Jaguars, who saw their 61-game league winning streak snapped by Dublin Coffman on Tuesday, in a 66-59 loss on the road.
     
  • Westerville South’s 55-37 win over Westerville North on Friday was extra special for head coach Ed Calo, who won his 500th game as head coach of the Wildcats. Calo is the second coach in Central Ohio history to win 500 games at one school, joining Tom Petty (Bloom-Carroll) among the ranks.
     
  • On the girls side, Cardington's 53-38 win over Centerburg capped off a seventh straight conference title for the Pirates. Since Knox-Morrow Athletic Conference play began four years ago, Cardington is a staggering 54-0 in league play,

Three Players who showed out

  1. Des Watson (DeSales, 2021) - After dropping 37 points on Wednesday in a 73-69 win over St. Charles, DeSales’ Des Watson was back at it again just 48 hours later, scoring 36 points on the road for the Stallions in a tight overtime loss to Bishop Ready. Watson’s game continues to blossom, and it’s no surprise that the buzz around the Davidson-commit is strong.
     
  2. Shamarion Rogers (Linden-McKinley, 2021) - The City League came back with a bang, as senior Shamarion Rogers dropped a triple-double performance on Wednesday night as the Panthers blew past International 112-35. Rogers finished Wednesday's match-up with 26 points, 13 steals and 11 rebounds, adding an encore show to a week that also featured a 16-point, 16-rebound game in a win over Centennial.
     
  3. Lauren Scott (Worthington Kilbourne, 2022) - The area's leading scorer continues to fill the basket up at a high rate, and this week's action only added to that resume. Scott totaled 81 points in the Wolves three games this week, including an impressive 36 points in a 50-36 win over Logan.

 

Two Storylines to watch this week

  • Both the boys and girls tournament draws will happen within a week of one another, and the uncertainty around seeding and slotting teams on the big boards is going to be very interesting for all of those involved in Central Ohio hoops. With home sites being tossed around as an idea for games beyond the sectional level, seeding teams will be at a premium. One thing to keep in mind though, is how do you judge a team that’s played three games versus a team that’s played 13? Sit back, and grab some popcorn.
     
  • A seven-game City League sprint to the finish makes for exciting drama, but with COVID playing spoiler already (see: Eastmoor Academy), navigating safety and health will be just as important as the play on the floor.

One last thought

Wear your mask, and practice social distancing. Let’s do our part to help all of Central Ohio and beyond get the tournament that we all deserve.

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