COLUMBUS, Ohio -- Harvest Prep locks down in the fourth quarter to claim their ninth district title and beats North Union, 48-42. 

Nyelle Shadeed got the scoring started for Harvest Prep with a transition two. The Warriors then forced two more turnovers which led to four quick points and they were out to an early 6-0 lead.

Zach Vernon then scored on a post-spin to get North Union on the board. Vernon then scored off an offensive rebound followed by an Aaron Krebehenne corner triple to give North Union the momentum. Max Parish then threw down a transition slam off a steal and Vernon scored on another post move to give North Union an 11-8 lead.

North Union then moved into a 2-3 zone which started to cause problems for Harvest Prep. The Warriors shot a lot of threes in the first quarter which slowed down their offensive production. Zyuan Hutson knocked down a top of key triple to give Harvest Prep a 16-13 lead after one quarter. 

North Union started the second quarter on a 9-0 run which was capped off by an Owen Davis throw down in transition to force a Harvest Prep timeout. Adonus Abrams and Hutson got back-to-back transition layups to stop the bleeding. Marshawn Oliver then hit a layup to tie the game up at 22. Both teams traded a few buckets and Harvest Prep headed into the locker room with a 29-28 lead. 

The second half started with each team draining a three, one by Oliver and one by Aaron Krebehenne. The next couple of minutes were frantic as the pace really picked up. Hutson picked Krebehenne’s pocket for a transition layup to slow the pace. Owen Davis then blocked a Hutson three-point attempt at the buzzer to end the third quarter as Prep had a 38-35 heading into the final eight minutes of action. 

Vernon spun baseline for a two but Abrams answered with a three on the other end to start the fourth quarter. Krebehenne then hit his third triple of the game to get North Union back within one. Abrams and Brandon Roddy scored back-to-back buckets for Prep as they then took a six point lead. Roddy played really key minutes off the bench and finished with seven points. Harvest Prep secured the rebound on the next Wildcats possession and North Union was forced to start fouling with two minutes to go.

Artrell Saunders missed the front end of a one and one to give North Union a chance to get back into this game. However, the Wildcats turned the ball over on a post entry pass to Owen Davis. Hutson then made his next two free throws to give Prep an eight point lead with a minute to go. Davis hit a mid-range jumper to cut the Warrior lead to six with 40 seconds left. Harvest Prep then was able to dribble out the clock and capture their fourth district title in the last five years. 

Hutson led Harvest Prep with 12 points but his impact doesn't come from just scoring. Hutson was the vocal leader for his team and and did everyone a coach could ask. Abrams chipped in 10 along with eight points each from both Oliver and Shadeed. 

The 6-foot-7 senior big man Vernon had a double-double with 21 points and 15 boards for North Union. Aaron Krebehenne also had 11 for the Wildcats. North Union comes just shy of an elusive district championship, something the program has gone since 1970 without.

For Harvest Prep, the Warriors continue a dominant stretch of basketball, winning their fourth district title since 2018 and ninth in program history.