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Marysville 41, Olentangy Liberty 40 - Prospect Scouting Report

By Zach Fleer, 01/27/22, 2:45PM EST

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Jason Moore went for 15 points and 11 rebounds in an upset victory

POWELL, Ohio -- In late January, every game matters. Sitting a week away from the Central District tournament draw, teams can do themselves major favors over the next eight days.

Marysville (5-9, 2-4) is one of those teams that put themselves in a much better position for the district tournament when they went on the road and knocked off No. 6 Olentangy Liberty (9-7, 4-2) on Tuesday, 41-40. 

The Monarchs put together a mammoth defensive effort, holding the Patriots to six points in the final 10 minutes of the game and scoreless for the final 2:51. After going down 34-24 with two minutes remaining in the third quarter, Marysville never panicked, chipping away at the lead in each possession. 

In fact, Marysville never took a lead in the second half until there were just 40 ticks left on the clock. The Monarchs rallied behind sophomore big man Jason Moore, who had a Herculean effort on Tuesday.

Moore was the best player on the floor in Tuesday's game, as his tip in with 40 seconds, executed with perfect touch and timing, was the bucket the Monarchs needed to strike its decisive blow.

The game was not over from there, however, as the Monarchs had a mega defensive stand in the final seconds. Marysville's ability to switch while communicating at an elite level helped the Monarchs make Liberty extremely uncomfortable in the fourth quarter.

The home Patriots were clamped down so badly by Marysville on the final possession, that they were not able to get a shot attempt off until 0.1 seconds remained on the clock, as Alex Okuley missed a near half court heave after Marysville junior Nick Wever forced a steal and threw the ball back across half court with just over four seconds left.

While Wever's hustle play was what popped off the screen, it was the defensive awareness of Moore that stood out the most. On the final trip, Moore switched off onto Liberty senior Cooper Davis, blowing up Liberty's set and not allowing the Toledo signee to touch the ball on the final possession.

The awareness and IQ of Moore, for only being a sophomore, is extremely special as the 6-foot-7 big made so many important plays down the stretch to deliver the win.

Moore led all scorers with 15 points on 7-of-14 shooting, adding 11 rebounds and two blocks. The sophomore was able to stretch the floor with one made three and a mid-range jumper, but did most of his damage at the rim where he can break defenders off the bounce and score on either side of the basket. We'll get more into Moore's game in the player scouting report below, but just know that this young man has a chance to develop into a special player.

Three players scored in double figures for Marysville with Wever adding 11 points on three made triples, while senior Kade Focht was a solid secondary scoring option, pitching in 10 points on two threes. 

Marysville's defensive performance was really impressive, as the Monarchs only gave up 17 points in the entire second half. Never giving up, Marysville battled back from multiple 10-point deficits in the third quarter to keep themselves in the game. 

The win for Marysville ends a seven-game Liberty win streak, as the Patriots suffer their first loss in-state since Dec. 11. The Monarchs are winners of two-straight and appear to have salvaged their season after knocking off Grove City last Saturday. The Monarchs have a favorable stretch to end the season with only three more games against teams above .500.

The Patriots were led by 15 points from Davis, as the Toledo signee shot 5-of-9 from the floor and drained two triples in the first half. Marysville made it a point to run Davis off the three-point line and force him to become a passer, which paid off as no other Liberty player added more than six points.

Junior James Hummell was impressive off the bench with six points, while junior Parker Hinkle added the only other three that didn't come from Davis. The loss ends a hot streak for the Patriots who had taken down a handful of quality teams since an 0-5 start to the year.

Liberty falls to 9-7 with the loss and enters a stretch of three road games in five days, visiting No. 7 Upper Arlington on Friday, Olentangy on Saturday and No. 10 Dublin Jerome next Tuesday. Friday's matchup at Upper Arlington will decide first place in the OCC-Central. 

Jason Moore (6'7 hybrid big / Marysville / 2024): Buy stock now in Moore. This is a young player who screams big time potential as he is already extremely polished, skilled and aware. The sophomore has a great feel for the game and already knows how to impact winning at the highest level. He made a big block on Davis with 37 seconds left in the third, switching off his man, extending completely vertical and pinning the senior's layup attempt on the backboard. Moore moves very well on the defensive end, as he is really versatile with his ability to switch and pick up on the wing. With his size, he defends the paint very well and has great timing and anticipation on his blocks.

On the offensive end, Moore is nearly a complete player already with his ability to put the ball on the deck, use his size and finish at the rim. The sophomore is a capable shooter from the perimeter that will only continue to improve, but perhaps his most attractive skill is his patience, vision and passing ability in the post. It's impossible to speed Moore up and force him into mistakes, as he has the IQ and vision to pass out of double teams, which he did often on Tuesday. Moore's best play, outside of his game winner, was a play in the fourth quarter, where he took his defender right before crossing over to the left and spinning and finishing at the rim. The footwork, elegance and overall ease of that finish was really impressive, as again, this kid is only a sophomore.

His coaches rave about his work ethic, desire to be coached and get better, which is the formula of a special player. Toledo's JT Shumate is another player with that type of desire for the game, as we see Moore being able to have an impact like Shumate, who is one of the best stretch bigs in college basketball. 

Cooper Davis (6'5 SG / Olentangy Liberty / 2022): Davis is the purest shooter in Central Ohio. Watching him create shots on the perimeter is a work of art, as Davis can take advantage of late arriving defense and bury shots all game long. The senior has bulked up considerably and has become a really good athlete which helped him pick up an offer from Toledo over the summer. We see Davis being a specialist at the next level, as he is one of the best shooters off movement in our area, but can also make shots off the bounce with his ability to create space with ball and head fakes. Davis shot 5-of-9 on Tuesday, hitting two threes and having a few impressive finishes at the rim. We were really impressed with his defensive performance, as he added three steals and a block to his stat line. Davis isn't a high usage player who needs the ball in his hands constantly to be effective, which will help him carve out a role at the next level with his shooting ability. 

Nick Wever (5'10 SG / Marysville / 2023): Wever is a deadly three point shooter who has had multiple games of 6+ made threes this season. On Tuesday, he was needed for three triples and 11 points. We are really impressed with his ability to get shots off quickly, as Wever is a catch and shoot assassin. If he gets his feet set and has even just a little bit of space, Wever will make a defense pay and that has been the case all year. With the graduation of all-time leading scorer Jack Christian last year, Marysville needed someone to step up on the perimeter and Wever has been that offensive weapon for the Monarchs. We look forward to seeing what he and Moore can do the rest of this season and next, as they've been a reliable guard-big duo for Marysville. 

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