skip navigation

Stars of the Night: Friday's Top Boys Scorers

By Jake Spegal, 01/22/22, 11:00AM EST

Share

Taking a look at some of the top scorers around Central Ohio on Friday night

Full Disclosure: If you want to be featured in these articles, please email your box scores to 270hoops@gmail.com.

COLUMBUS, Ohio -- LA Walker is back to his dominant ways.

After only scoring 11 points yet making a huge impact on the defensive end on Tuesday as Linden-McKinley picked up a big win over Bloom-Carroll, Walker got back to his scoring ways on Friday night as he dropped a career-high 37 points for the Panthers in a win over East High.

While his performance last night did lead to him tallying a new career-high, this is nothing out of the ordinary for Walker this season.

After Linden-McKinley graduated Chance Groce in the 2021 class, Walker has really taken it upon his shoulders to carry the scoring load for the Panthers this season as he is averaging upwards of 23 points a night on the year.

With great size at 6-foot-5 and the ability to put the ball on the floor and create his own shot, the senior wing has proved to be a really tough matchup for most teams in the City North this season.

While he is at his best driving downhill and getting inside for easy scores, Walker has also improved his jump shooting this year and is forcing defenses to respect what he can do from beyond the three-point line.

After another solid league win last night, Walker needs to play one of his best games all season on Monday night when Linden-McKinley hosts Beechcroft in a battle for first place in the City North.

The Panthers are riding high right now after taking down the No. 1 team in Division II on Wednesday in Bloom-Carroll and they will look ride that momentum moving forward as they have their biggest game of the entire season coming up on Monday night.

We have no doubt that Walker can help power his teammates to a big victory in this contest, however we are also excited to see how Beechcroft decides to defend the scoring machine of a senior as they look to show everyone why they are still the best team in the North division.

Outside of Walker's huge performance, three other local hoopers tallied 30+ points last night while there were multiple other big time showings. Lets take a look at some of them below!

Devonte Curry (6'3 HG / Briggs / 2022): While Briggs suffered a loss to Walnut Ridge last night, Curry did everything he could to keep his team in it all the way to the end. Dropping 33 points in the contest, the senior guard showed once again why he is one of the most electric scorers in the City League and for that matter, the entire area. Curry came out of the gates firing against the Scots, scoring 11 points in the first quarter and riding this hot streak throughout the rest of the game. The 6-foot-3 guard did what he does best in the contest, knocking down five three-pointers to go along seven two-point field goals and a 4-for-5 showing at the free throw line. Curry is a sharpshooting guard who has a knack for creating offense for himself and others as we believe that small colleges and JUCO's in the region should be all over this kid. He continues to get better and has the potential to piece together a really impressive college career.

Dailyn Swain (6'8 SG / Africentric / 2023): Swain did what was expected of him last night, exploding for 30 points as Africentric took down Independence on the road. The Sixers have no matchup for the length, size and skill of Swain as got things going early on and never let up in the win. He showed off his outside shooting ability by knocking down three triples in the contest and also used his length to create buckets on nine two-point field goal attempts. This is what we have come to expect of Swain against City League opponents as nobody in the league has a matchup for the unique blend of size and skill that he offers. The junior will be greatly tested today when Africentric takes on Hilliard Bradley in the Jared Sullinger Scholastic Play-By-Play Classic at Ohio Dominican. Hilliard Bradley has a history of really slowing down star players like Swain so we are excited to see how he deals with the backline defense of the Jaguars.

Trenton Collins (6'3 SG / Utica / 2023): Continuing his stellar junior campaign on Friday night, Collins poured in 30 points as Utica suffered a tough loss to Northridge in LCL play. Collins did all of his work in the contest from inside the three-point line, converting on 11 two-point field goals and shooting a solid 8-for-10 from the charity stripe. Collins is at his best when he is looking to score the ball, however he is also capable of creating for his teammates on the offensive end as well. After transferring to Utica in the offseason, the junior has the Redskins playing some of their best basketball in at least the last decade. Collins is a pure scorer on the wing who only continues to get better each night out in the LCL.

Justin Townley (6'3 WF / Northridge / 2023): Townley turned in a performance that nobody saw coming last night, exploding for a career-high 29 points to lead Northridge to a huge win over Utica. Townley was extremely efficient in leading Northridge to victory as he went 4-for-4 from the free throw line, hit one triple and also converted on 11 field goals inside the three-point line. Townley is a player who we are not extremely familiar with. His highest scoring output on the season before his 29 point showing on Friday night was just a 16 point outing the last time that Northridge took down Utica. We are excited to see if Townley can build momentum off of this performance and continue to put up stellar numbers in the LCL.

Other Notable Scorers

  • Ajay Sheldon (6'1 HG / Dublin Coffman / 2022): 29 points in a 52-50 loss to Olentangy Liberty
  • Tyree Morgan (6'6 PF / Walnut Ridge / 2022): 27 points and 26 (!!!) rebounds in a 74-64 win over Briggs
  • Cortez Freeman (6'2 HG / Canal Winchester / 2024): 27 points in a 65-46 win over Worthington Kilbourne
  • Tanner Holbert (5'10 G / Logan Elm / 2023): 26 points in a 62-34 win over Hamilton Township
  • ​​​​​​​Amani Lyles (6'8 hybrid big / Beechcroft / 2022): 25 points in an 81-35 win over Mifflin

Recent News


Get the 270 Hoops Preview Magazine today!


Get your tickets to the Battle in the 614 High School Basketball Showcase