COLUMBUS, Ohio -- The path to UD Arena continues for area teams in Division I and IV on Friday for the sectional finals. Let's take a look at the results around the area.

Division I

#2 Gahanna 64, #47 Zanesville 25

Gahanna advances to the district semifinals to take on Hilliard Darby on Wednesday at 7 p.m. 

#20 Hilliard darby 61, #29 canal winchester 50

Darby advances to the district semifinals to take on Gahanna on Wednesday at 7 p.m.

#15 St. Charles 59, #35 Olentangy berlin 57

St. Charles advances to the district semifinals to take on Grove City on Wednesday at 7 p.m. 

#24 grove city 65, #9 hilliard bradley 60

Grove City advances to the district semifinals to take on St. Charles on Wednesday at 7 p.m. 

#5 newark 55, #33 mount vernon 39

Newark advances to the district semifinals to take on Upper Arlington on Wednesday at 7 p.m. 

#7 upper arlington 56, #34 olentangy 37

Upper Arlington advances to the district semifinals to take on Newark on Wednesday at 7 p.m. 

#4 pickerington North 45, #42 Dublin Scioto 28

Pickerington North advances to the district semifinals to take on Reynoldsburg on Wednesday at 7 p.m. 

#13 reynoldsburg 83, #14 groveport 76

Reynoldsburg advances to the district semifinals to take on Pickerington North on Wednesday at 7 p.m. 

Reynoldsburg made key plays to close the game and win an overtime thriller, 83-76 over Groveport Madison. 

After Groveport won the first two regular-season matchups by one point each, this game was set up to be a good one. It most definitely lived up to the hype. 

Reynoldsburg opened the game on a 6-0 run behind a Julian Heckman triple and an Isaiah Wilkins and one. Duane Davis then got a lay-up in transition to open the scoring for Groveport. Reynoldsburg’s defensive intensity helped them get out to an early 12-4 but Groveport battled back and made it a 16-10 ball game. Reynoldsburg cut off driving lanes very effectively and forced the Groveport ball handlers into bad decisions. The first quarter ended with Zazen Bivens being fouled on a three. Bivens only made one free throw but still gave Reynoldsburg an 18-12 lead. 

The second quarter was when Reynoldsburg really started to gain momentum and extend their lead. The name of the game was turning defense into offense and it worked perfectly. The Raiders forced numerous Groveport turnovers which led to easy buckets in transition. Freshman Toby Nwokolo threw down a high-flying transition alley-oop to get the gym rocking which helped spark a 41-28 halftime lead for Reynoldsburg. A big part of Reynoldsburg’s success was their ability to limit Kenyatta Whiteside’s scoring to just three points in the first half. Heckman and Wilkins combined for 22 first half points to lead the Raiders. 

Groveport’s rotation consists of virtually all seniors who have played together for a while. Groveport showed exactly why senior leadership can be crucial in playoff games especially when a team is trailing. Every time during the third quarter that Reynoldsburg looked like they would pull away for good, Groveport found a way to stay in the game. Duane Davis was a big part of this as the senior scored twelve points in the third quarter to keep his team in the game. Reynoldsburg started to be a little careless with the ball and took bad shots which also allowed Groveport back into the game. Reynoldsburg led 55-47 entering the final quarter of play. 

With around six minutes left in the game, freshman Jordan Fisher hit a three and extended Reynoldsburg’s lead to 13. Once again it looked like the Raiders were going to pull away but once again Groveport found a way back. Marlon Elliott Jr. hit a huge three and and cut the Reynoldsburg lead to eight with 4:07 left in the game. Remember when I said that Kenyatta Whiteside was being shut down? The best scorers have a way of getting hot at the right time. He hit a corner three and cut the Groveport deficit to five. Fisher and Elliott traded lay-ups and the Reynoldsburg lead remained at five. Then, an Abubakar Diallo steal led to another Whiteside triple and the Raider lead was just two with around two minutes left in the game. Jordan Fisher once again scored to give his team a 68-64 lead with 1:45 remaining. Julian Heckman missed a three which led to a third straight Kenyatta Whiteside triple and Groveport pulled to within a single point with one minute left. On the ensuing Reynoldsburg possession, Noah Smith was fouled on a drive but missed both free throws and Groveport took a timeout with a chance to take the lead on their next possession. Duane Davis was then fouled on the inbounds play and went to the line for a one and one. He missed the front end and Noah Smith secured the rebound and was fouled. Smith missed the first free throw but hit the second and Reynoldsburg led by two points with around 25 second left in the game. Groveport kept feeding the hot hand and gave Davis an isolation play. The senior drove to the basketball and hit a lay-up to tie the game at 69 with 15 seconds on the clock. Reynoldsburg tried to get the ball to Julian Heckman but he was denied and Jordan Fisher missed a game winning three at the buzzer to send the game into overtime. 

Reynoldsburg won the tip and started the four minutes of bonus basketball. Both teams missed their first shot of overtime and Reynoldsburg had the ball back. After a Heckman miss, Isaiah Wilkins got the offensive rebound and was fouled. He split the free throws and the Raiders led by one. On the next Groveport possession, Markell Holmes missed a lay-up and Heckman grabbed the rebound but was tied up. The possession arrow kept the ball with the Cruisers. Duane Davis once again delivered a driving lay-up and Groveport took a one point lead. Jordan Fisher was fouled on the next Reynoldsburg possession and made both of his free throws to give his team a one point lead. Fisher hit another clutch lay-up after his team got a stop and Reynoldsburg led 74-71 with 2:28 left in overtime. Groveport drew up a set play out of a timeout for Kenyatta Whiteside and he delivered with a crucial and one. Whiteside hit the free throw and the game was tied up at 74 with around two minutes left. Noah Smith drove baseline on the next possession and found Jordan Fisher for a lay-up and the Raiders took a two point lead. Julian Heckman then got a steal and was fouled. The senior guard nailed both free throws and Reynoldsburg took a 78-74 lead with 34 second left. Duane Davis was then fouled on a drive and hit both free throws to make it a two point game again. Reynoldsburg broke the Groveport press and Noah Smith skied for an and one lay-up in transition. He missed the free throw and Groveport called a timeout trailing by four. Groveport then missed a three but got the ball back with a baseline out of bounds incoming. The nail in the coffin was an illegal screen called on Groveport during the inbounds. The Cruisers were forced to foul and Smith hit two more free throws to give Reynoldsburg an 82-76 lead with 10 seconds left. Reynoldsburg would then run the clock out and win a thriller 83-76.  

Freshman Jordan Fisher stepped into the bright lights and delivered a 24 point performance to lead Reynoldsburg to the district semi-final. He has a very advanced game for a freshman which makes him a high level prospect. Julian Heckman (18), Isaiah Wilkins (14) and Noah Smith (11) also pitched in for the Raiders. 

Duane Davis led all scorers with 25 in the losing effort. Kenyatta Whiteside had 14 and Marlon Elliott Jr had 11 for Groveport

#1 Pickerington Central 72, #49 west 22

Pickerington Central advances to the district semifinals to take on Delaware Hayes on Wednesday at 7 p.m. 

#18 Delaware Hayes 49, #23 Big Walnut 42

Delaware advances to the district semifinals to take on Pickerington Central on Wednesday at 7 p.m. 

#10 Olentangy Liberty 60, #21 dublin coffman 56

Olentangy Liberty advances to the district semifinals to take on Olentangy Orange on Wednesday at 7 p.m. 

#8 Olentangy Orange 66, #25 logan 46

Olentangy Orange advances to the district semifinals to take on Olentangy Liberty on Wednesday at 7 p.m. 

#6 Dublin Jerome 54, #22 Licking Heights 42

Dublin Jerome advances to the district semifinals to take on Hilliard Davidson on Wednesday at 7 p.m. 

#11 Hilliard davidson 55, #30 Worthington kilbourne 48

Hilliard Davidson advances to the district semifinals to take on Dublin Jerome on Wednesday at 7 p.m. 

#12 Westerville north 64, #19 walnut ridge 54

Westerville North advances to the district semifinals to take on Westerville South on Wednesday at 7 p.m. 

#3 westerville south 71, #26 thomas worthington 41

Any question of an upset special was not taking place on Friday, not in Westerville at least, as the Wildcats had no problem taking down the Cardinals in a 71-41 defeat to advance to the district semifinals.

Thomas kept the game respectable in the first quarter as they trailed 17-9, yet had missed attempts from close range and offensive charge calls that allowed the Wildcats to create distance. The Cardinals would score the first basket of the second quarter, but then failed to score the rest of the period as Westerville South went on a 19-0 run to create a 36-13 lead at halftime and would keep that pace the remainder of the game.

Although senior Drey Carter stood out and was near automatic with his game high 29 points, a selfless team effort paced the Wildcats as they consistently made an extra pass and applied a disciplined and aggressive approach on defense that clearly overwhelmed the Cardinals as they failed to convert around the rim and committed an abundance of turnovers. 

There was simply no match for Carter defensively. The 6-foot-8 wing put on a shooting clinic as he barely would touch net on his made jump shot attempts and converted at ease on his drives. Fellow senior Isaiah Johnson continued to put up impressive numbers and did so in a somewhat quiet fashion, but undoubtedly as an impact player. The 6-foot-5 wing forward finished with 14 points and six rebounds.

Junior Jadi Cunningham Jr. was in total control and looked every bit comfortable as he led point and had a team high five assists along with 11 points, which included two made three pointers in the first half. Defensively, he did a strong job against Thomas' guards that struggled to get much production.

Beyond the trio of Carter, Johnson and Cunningham Jr., the Wildcats had six other players score, but none more than four points. Yet the Wildcats played as a team that's not concerned with individual scoring or stats, as their unselfish play continues to create a mix of players that contribute on any given night and also translates to their excellent approach on defense. 

For Thomas, Friday's 30 point defeat was a far cry from their impressive performance and 30 point win of their own over Westerville Central on Tuesday.  The Cardinals had too many passes that led to turnovers and failed to convert on short range shot attempts, which were too many mistakes that would deplete any chance to beat an undefeated and disciplined team like the Wildcats. It seemed once Westerville South took a commanding lead in the second quarter, the Cardinals were too discouraged to muster a comeback. 

Sophomore Shaheem Nieves was the one lone source of consistent offense as he led the Cardinals with 17 points. The 6-foot-2 shooting guard emerged as a growing lethal threat from beyond the arc towards the end of the season. 

Senior Mike Sekyere finished with seven points and two assists, while first team all conference wing forward Joey Zalewski finished with six points and four rebounds. The Wildcats put an emphasis on doubling Zalewski which helped force turnovers and prevented the versatile junior from getting to his spots.

The Cardinals finished their season under .500, yet have plenty of optimism for next season as they graduate only one senior, Sekyere, who received significant playing time. Zalewski should be one of the area's best seniors next season, while players such as Nieves and junior Melvin Omameh have shown much promise to their potential.

The Wildcats move on to the district semifinals and face a familiar foe, as they play Westerville North Wednesday at 7 p.m. It'll mark the third matchup of the season between the district rivals, as South edged North by two points and then in overtime the previous two outings.

#12 Northside christian 60, #16 shekinah christian 34

Northside Christian advances to the district semifinals to take on Grandview Heights on Wednesday at 7 p.m. 

#1 Grandview Heights 67, #18 Liberty christian 42

Grandview Heights advances to the district semifinals to take on Northside/Shekinah Christian on Wednesday at 7 p.m. 

#11 Madison Christian vs. #15 cardington 

Madison Christian and Cardington play Saturday at 6pm. The winner advances to the district semifinals to take on Newark Catholic on Wednesday at 7 p.m. 

#2 Newark Catholic 61, #17 fisher catholic 29

Newark Catholic advances to the district semifinals to take on the winner of Madison Christian and Cardington on Wednesday at 7 p.m. 

#6 berne union 59, #7 granville christian 50

Berne Union advances to the district semifinals to take on East Knox on Wednesday at 7 p.m. 

#3 east knox 44, #13 patriot prep 28

East Knox advances to the district semifinals to take on Patriot Prep on Wednesday at 7 p.m. 

#4 tree of life 51, #5 danville 53

Danville advances to the district semifinals to take on Grove City Christian on Wednesday at 7 p.m. 

#5 Grove City Christian 63, #9 millersport 50

Grove City Christian advances to the district semifinals to take on Danville on Wednesday at 7 p.m.