COLUMBUS, Ohio -- There's a new small school sleeper to keep an eye on.
After being featured on several of these articles in past weeks, Shekinah Christian junior Connor Slabaugh highlights this edition of stars of the night as he went off for a career-high 39 points in a 69-50 league win over Delaware Christian.
Getting things going early on, he scored a quick seven points in the first quarter to help Shekinah Christian build a 24-5 lead after one, a lead they never surrendered after this.
After nailing three triples in the second to bring his point total to 16 at the half, Slabaugh came out on a tear in the third quarter as he scored 15 of his team's 17 points in the frame and nearly outscored Northside Christian during the stretch.
Scoring the ball in a ton of different ways on Tuesday, the junior wing hit six triples, scored off the bounce and did some work in the post as Northside Christian had no matchup for him throughout the contest.
According to the head coach at Shekinah Christian, if Slabaugh did not come out midway through the final quarter, he likely would have broken the school record for single-game points scored.
While he plays in a much weaker conference at a smaller school many people may not know about, Slabaugh has been dominating this season as he is averaging nearly 18 points a night and has eclipsed 20 on five different occasions.
We hope to get eyes on the junior at sometime within the next couple years as regardless of competition, the numbers he consistently puts up warrants him getting some attention.
While he highlights this edition of stars of the night, there were several other big scoring performances in the area on Tuesday, so let's dive right into them below.
Brandon McLaughlin (6'8 PF / Heath / 2022): In a tough loss to a scorching hot Licking Heights team who has won 14 straight on Tuesday night, McLaughlin led all the scorers in the contest as he did all he could in a 29 point outing. Doing work from the opening tip to the end of the game, McLaughlin scored a handful in each quarter and did so in a variety of ways as he even expanded him game to the three-point line on Tuesday. At 6-foot-8 with great length, McLaughlin is a matchup nightmare in the LCL as he has a nice touch on the interior, is a capable ball handler and can score from all three levels. While Heath is not undefeated at this point in the season like they were last year, the Bulldogs and McLaughlin are still a major threat to win a district in Division II when he is playing the way he did on Tuesday.
Griffin Shaver (6'1 WG / Ontarion/ 2021): While Ontario is not in Central Ohio, Shaver is a player we have become familiar with over the last couple of years and we are giving him some recognition here since he put together a solid performance against a team in our coverage area last night. Going off for 27 points in a big league win over River Valley just a few days after committing to play football at Ashland, Shaver turned in an excellent game on Tuesday. He knocked down four triples, had a few scores inside and most impressively went 9-for-10 at the free throw line and nailed all six of his shots from the stripe in the final quarter to put the game on ice. In a MOAC conference with some stellar athletes at every school, Shaver is one of the league's top players as he showed on Tuesday.
Zach Vernon (6'7 PF / North Union / 2022): Continuing to impress on Tuesday night, Vernon went for 25 points as North Union picked up a win over Northwestern. An intriguing big man who caught our eye last season, Vernon has continued to improve all year this year and has been enjoying a really solid campaign. At 6-foot-7, Vernon has a soft touch near the rim, can stretch the floor and can hold his own on the defensive interior. While we questioned his motor at times last season, he has impressed us with improvement in that facet of his game in each viewing we have had this season. After North Union graduates guys like Preston Crabtree and Trevyn Feasel following this season, it will be interesting to see how Vernon does as the #1 option every night next season.
Travis Mecklenburg (6'5 WF / Worthington Kilbourne / 2021): In another league win for Worthington Kilbourne on Tuesday night, Mecklenburg led the way as the Wolves dismantled Big Walnut behind his game-high 23 points. Mecklenburg is an interesting senior prospect at 6-foot-5 as he is a knockdown shooter who offers a lot of value on the defensive end with his length and decent foot speed. If he is seeking to play in college then a small college program would be getting a prospect with a lot of upside who could develop into a great role player as the senior has been a key piece to one of the area's better teams in Worthington Kilbourne this season.
Ryan Paris
Tag(s): Home Boys Leagues Ohio Capital Conference Buckeye Olentangy Orange Capital Cardinal Hilliard Bradley Thomas Worthington Worthington Kilbourne Central Hilliard Davidson Pickerington Central Licking County League Heath Central Buckeye Conference North Union MOAC Ontario River Valley MOCAL Shekinah Christian