COLUMBUS, Ohio -- Beechcroft spoiled Eastmoor’s senior night on Tuesday, walking out on top with a 59-53 win over the Warriors. While the Cougars reigned victorious, Eastmoor did not go down without a fight in this rematch of last year's City League title game.

The majority of the first quarter was sloppy on both ends, as both teams struggled to take care of the ball. The Warriors elected to go with an unconventional lineup, starting all five of their seniors and allowing them to play the first five minutes of the game, leaving them without their leading scorer in Julian Binford and other contributors like Da’lon Keaton and Kieran Flemming.

Beechcroft could not take advantage of this Eastmoor lineup without a ton of self creation or shooting. The Warriors rolled out their regular lineup with three minutes left in the first while only down 10-9. Beechcroft came away with quite a few turnovers in the first and transitioned them into points as they excelled when playing at an up tempo pace and held a slight 15-12 advantage heading into the second.

The second quarter was all about runs on both sides of the ball. The Cougars came out aggressive in this quarter jumping out to a 12-4 run which forced an Eastmoor timeout.

In less than a minute, the entire momentum of the game shifted. Eastmoor went on a run of their own and spent the rest of the quarter climbing back into the game. This was courtesy of a strong facilitating spurt from Binford and senior forward Isaiah Kelley, who scored seven points in the quarter.

Beechcroft’s leading scorer, Na’elle Simmons, played limited first half minutes due to foul trouble. This did not discourage the Cougars, who played an excellent team defensive half and saw complimentary contributors like Davon Wooden and James Delaney play major roles on both ends of the floor in order to hold onto their slim 30-29 lead at the half.

Both teams came out of halftime cold, but Eastmoor really struggled to take care of the ball and get open looks to fall. Beechcroft saw some early production from Simmons, but he was forced to exit the third once again due to foul trouble. With only a total of 18 combined points in this quarter, the Warriors went into the final quarter down 41-36.

A majority of the final quarter was action packed as senior Duane Gordon knocked down a three to tie the game at 43 with five and a half minutes left and cap off a 7-2 run to open the frame.

After a Beechcroft timeout, the Warriors full court zone trap was effective enough to help them jump ahead to a four point lead after two straight easy buckets off turnovers.

Then, after a few possessions, Beechcroft senior Trevonne Reeder buried an outside shot with 2:58 left in the game and Eastmoor called a timeout still up 49-48.

Eastmoor almost built onto their lead after Fleming was fouled shooting off a curl on a set out of the timeout, but he missed the pair of free throws.

After a scoreless minute, Beechcroft went back up by one point with just under two minutes left in the game with a score off an offensive rebound, and then increased the lead to three after another putback.

Binford was fouled attacking the rim with 55 seconds left, converting on both free throws to make it a one point game.

On the next possession, Davon Wooden broke the Eastmoor press on a drive and found Elijah Hairston for an easy layup. After a quick miss on the other end, the Warriors continued to foul for the rest of the game and Beechcroft iced the game with free throws.

Na’elle Simmons (6’7 C / Beechcroft / 2019): Simmons contributed eight points in his team's victory and was productive on the glass as well within his limited minutes. At a lengthy 6-foot-7, the big possesses physical and athletic attributes unlike any prospect in the area. The key component to his collegiate appeal is to apply his tools in a consistent and functional manner throughout the entire game on the court. This requires a nonstop motor along with a solid IQ on both sides of the ball. He executed this throughout his time in the game today by using his leaping explosion on both ends of the boards tonight effectively along with reacting well and making simple rotations as a rim protector. His foul trouble should not be looked upon as a bad sign either. With raw big men prospects, it shows a sign of engagement on the defensive end of floor that coaches can hope to mold into production in the future.

Ideally, the unsigned senior would fit best into a collegiate role as a play finishing/roll man threat on the offensive end of the floor where you can take advantage of his wing like movements and speed running hard to the rim in spacious situations and could eventually provide vertical floor spacing for open shooters rolling hard to the rim off ball screens, DHO’s, and back screens. He could also be useful as a rim runner within a transition offense.

Defensively, Simmons will likely be a rim protector that could potentially develop some positional versatility guarding wings on the perimeter. This is a pretty rare combination that coaches in the future should covet, but should not rush to rely upon immediately. Being a standout rim protector requires consistent engagement and quick reaction time on both strong and weak side rim rotations on top of a feel for the weak side of the floor and proper defensive positioning within a teams construct.   

With just a Central State offer, Simmons should be a prospect that Division II and III schools are looking at heavily. As a long term prospect that still has plenty of upside to become a key piece of a program in the future, he needs to continue to get stronger, play with a consistent motor, continue to apply his athleticism on every possession on both ends of the floor, and develop a feel for the weak side of the floor on both ends. The unsigned senior applied his tools consistently tonight and this game was a step in the right direction. If he ends up at a program that is willing to develop him properly, Simmons could be a heck of a two way collegiate big.

Jaylen Simmons (5’10 G / Beechcroft / 2022): The freshman only scored two points in a rough shooting outing tonight, but he was still impressive in other facets of the game. At 5-foot-10, the lead guard was relied upon to handle the aggressive Eastmoor press and delivered in a way few freshman could. He made simple and mature passing reads to advance the ball past half court. He also showed tremendous passing equity as a transition handler and put his teammates in easy positions to score on the fast break along with flashing a feel for the weak side of the floor and making decisive dump offs once getting into the lane with his incredibly tight handle.

Defensively, Simmons was far better than most freshman who would likely be liabilities as team defenders off the ball in a varsity game. He flashed some mature off ball engagement in both man and zone defenses. He did not have many possessions in space, but his open court speed should transition well laterally too.

Simmons is one of the most productive freshman you will find in the area. His less than stellar scoring outing should not be discouraging at all. With plenty of time to develop in the future, the freshman should continue to develop his jumpshot, refine his decision making, and continue to become a more consistent off ball defender. Do not be surprised if he is one of the top if not the top City League performer and prospect at the lead guard position in the future.

Davon Wooden (6’0 WG / Beechcroft / 2019): Wooden was the heart and soul of a strong defensive performance from the Cougars as a unit. He was tasked with guarding the always shifty Julian Binford and the junior rose to the occasion as Eastmoor’s leading scorer only finished with seven inefficient points. The defensive side of the ball is Wooden’s calling card, where he is a strong point of attack defender at 6-feet tall with exceptional lateral quickness and a strong frame that was applied tonight by bumping his matchups off their spots when attempting to get into the lane off the dribble.

Offensively, most of Wooden’s points came in transition off of his defensive ability to generate turnovers with his active hands on the ball. In the halfcourt, Wooden is a straight line driver with a quick first step and can absorb contact on his finishes at the rim.

I’d like to see the junior continue to expand his offensive game in a couple of ways. Mainly by becoming a consistent shooter and applying his handle a little more in the halfcourt. Wooden will likely be played into a major role next season with Simmons in forming a strong backcourt tandem. It will be interesting to see how he develops as a much larger piece within Beechcroft’s half court offense.

Julian Binford (5’8 G / Eastmoor / 2020): After being named first team all City League South earlier in the week, Binford struggled for a majority of the game. However, you did see his equity as a lead ball handler in spurts throughout the game.

At 5-foot-8, Binford is a shifty ball handler that can change speeds and directions well. He has a blazing quick top speed in the open court and in transition as well. This allows him to get into the lane frequently, but decision making once he gets into the lane was a major problem against the Cougars. While he did execute some dump offs reading the rim protector at the rim, he did have a tendency to pre determine that simple read, which resulted in a few turnovers.

Binford’s appeal as a prospect will be solely on the offensive end of the floor with his size and frame. He’s been very impressive throughout the year and one of the breakout players in the City League. He can get into the lane at will, occasionally feel the weak side of the floor, finishes ambidextrously better than he should at his size, and knockdown spot up shots from deep. This game was a huge eye opener though and Binford needs to continue to pump out strong performances against ideal guard defenders like Wooden.