Weekend Recap: McCullough wins in game vs old team; Belmont bounces back; Springfield wins shootout; Northmont, Farimont survive

Here's the recap on last weekend  in HS Sports in Southwest Ohio:

Trtowood Rams D has been lights out so far this season

Rams roll past Xenia 
Trotwood had 4 players in double figures as they steamrolled by Xenia 92-61. The Rams are now 3-0 while Xenia falls to 1-3. Trotwood hasn't had the one game where they are hitting on all cylinders, which is a scary thought.

Thurgood stops Stivers as McCullough gets W vs old team
 Coach Shawn McCullough got his first W in City League play as the Cougars defeated Stivers 60-54. Star G Kadeim Jones led the Cougars with 16 points, as the game got tense late before the Cougars powered to the win.
    McCullough, who initially led the Stivers Tigers to a Regional berth just 3 years ago, now patrols the sidelines for the Cougars as the coaching carousel took a spin. In a matter of 1 year McCullough, while at Stivers, went from a hot commodity to out of a job due to a "Communication mixup" in which he was told he would literally have to go online and apply for his job again.

After the shakeup, McCullough took a year off, and landed in Cougar country.

His boys gave maximum effort and grabbed the emotional win for McCullough. McCullough knows he has a young team, so this year any win is a big one, and no one is bigger than beating your old team. 
Tony Boddie led the Tigers with 15 as Stivers falls to 3-3.



Springfield wins shootout vs C-J
Springfield survived a shootout between 2 of the best players in the area in which the Wildcats Michael McKay (35)  & the Eagles Christian Montague (32) put on a show. The Field left with the win, as they improve to 2-1, while C-J falls to 3-2.


Fairmont wins on final shot
The Legend of Jack continues to grow as star player Jack Hendricks hit a 3 point bomb in the final moments to upset the Boro' 49-47. Fairmont gets back to .500 mark (2-2) while Springboro falls to 3-2.


Belmont gets much needed W vs Lions 
The Bison was able to bounce back after a tough loss last weekend, to roll past Meadowdale 59-38. The Bison looked very sharp on d, and was able to stifle the Lions offensively. Belmont moves to 4-2.


Middletown gets another big W
Coach Darnell Hoskins continued to bring good vibes to Middletown, as they notched another big in under the belt with a 64-51 win over Cincy Colerain. Star player Snow led all scorers with 27, and the Middies advance to 2-1.


Northmont still undefeated
 Star G Rodney Richardson  dropped 26 points as the Bolts was able to outlast Miamisburg 74-71. The Bolts are now 3-0, and have he leadership that could have them see a breakout season.


The 'Creek bounces back
Beavercreek shook off the loss at Wayne to bounce back with a solid win over Lebanon. Peyton Young led the Creek with 17, as Beavers move to 4-1 on the season. Lebanon falls to 1-2.


Franklin still undefeated
Franklin continued its hot start with another easy victory, as star G Ryan Montgomery dropped 27 in the winning effort. Franklin is now 5-0 and will face its toughest test of the season tonight vs Belmont.



SPOON FED RANKINGS  (Week 3)
Here's our Weekly SPOON FED Rankings Week 3 in the Miami Valley

Divison 1-2

(1) Trotwood  3-0 - Stays in top spot after easy  W's over West Carrollton and Xenia
(2) Wayne   3-0- Blue Smith led troops to big W over Creek
(3) Dunbar   3-1-  Wolverines had bye last weekend
(4) Alter       3-1  - Alter moves into 4 spot after good weekend
(5) Centerville  2-1  Centerville led by Saben and a good squad
(6) Northmont   3-0 - Could be Bolts best chance at a deep run
(7) Beavercreek  3-1 - Creek falls after Wayne loss, but did win on Friday
(8) Springfield    2-1 - The Field have state type talent, can they put it together?
(9) Fairmont      2-2 - "The Legend of Jack" leads Firebirds into 9 spot
(10) Belmont     4-2 - Bison regroup with nice win this weekend to stay in poll

Div 3-4-5

(1) Versailles   5-0  -  Versailles looking for a big season
(2) C-J              3-2  - Eagles lost a tough one to Northmont, but still stay at 2
(3) Carlisle      4-0  - Carlisle has been lights out early this season
(4) Bethel         4-1  - Bethel is having another fine season thus far
(5) Brookville  5-0 - The Ville have the look of a top team headed for a deep tourney run




Key Games Tonight
Here are the key Games for tonight

Alter              @  Urbana
Fairmont       @  Northmont
Beavercreek  @ C-J
Sidney            @ Butler
Belmont         @ Franklin
Thurgood       @ West Carrollton

Key GWOC Games Tonight; Spoon-Fed Rankings Week 2

Here's the Top Games this Tuesday in Week 3 of HS Hoops

Where does Belmont rank in Spoon-Fed Weekly Rankings? 

(1)  Beavercreek 3-0  @  Wayne 2-0

Can the 'Creek knock off the highly touted Warriors? 

(2) Miamisburg 2-1  @ Springfield 1-1
Which team will move into upper echelon of GWOC?

(3) Yellow Springs  @ Stivers  3-1 
Can the Tigers continue the good early season play?

(4) Trotwood 1-0 @ West Carrollton 
How many will The Rams score tonight? & can the Pirates young talent battle against the premiere squad in the Miami Valley?

(5) Centerville 2-0 @ Fairmont 1-1 
Will the Elks continue its great play against a scrappy Fairmont team?

(6) Northmont   @ Springboro  
Can Northmont get a big W against a Boro squad who was shut down last weekend and will be ready to play?



Here's our Spoon-Fed Rankings going into Week 2 of HS Hoops
(DIVISION 1-2)

(1) Trotwood -Rams in top spot after big win
(2) Wayne  - Warriors led by Blue Smith 
(3) Dunbar  -Ran past Belmont and Col. Briggs 
(4) Centerville - Elks dominated Boro
(5) Alter  - Knights led by Laravie 33
(6) Northmont  -Bolts have a lot of talent 
(7) Beavercreek  -The Creek suprise team of GWOC
(8) Springfield  -The Field led by Davis lost in OT
(9) Belmont  - Bison fell to Wolverines, still tough
(10) Butler - Vandalia look to have good season 

Friday Recap: Wayne escapes upset; Dunbar shuts down Belmont; Trotwood shines; Stivers upends Ponitz; Laravie drops 33 on Purcell;

   Heres the recap of the first full Friday of high school hoops in the Miami Valley:

Wayne holds off pesky Fairmont team   -
Wayne came out the gate and was tested by a tough Fairmont squad who, quite frankly, gave them all they can handle. The Warriors won 65-57 and was led by Junior Standout L'Christian "Blue" Smith, who scored 22 points and was relentless inside. Isaiah Trice, Travis Trice 3rd son to come through program, added 11 in the winning cause.
Jack Hendrix was the leading scorer for Fairmont, with 22. Fairmont coach simply stated, "They made more winning plays."

McConnell ran the show vs Belmont 

Dunbar runs past Belmont in showdown -
  There were many people who thought that this would be Belmont year to run the basketball league in Dayton Public. With a assortment of new players and coaches, the Bison felt like this could be the year that the Bison turn the tide on the city.

Not so fast Belmont.

    The Wolverines came out firing on all cylinders, jumped out to a big lead by halftime (15) and turned the early City League clash into a rout 78-59. Star F Caleb McConnell, who is actively on the Wright State Raiders & other mid-majors radar,  dropped 19 to lead the Wolverines, who now move to 2-1 after falling to State ranked Newark (#3) last weekend.
Belmont played more efficient in the 2nd half, but by that time the deficit was too big to overcome. Dunbar won every quarter, pointwise as well.
Dunbar moves to 2-1 while Belmont falls to 3-2.

Trotwood debut starts slow, finishes fast as they run past  Fairborn -

    Trotwood, the one area team who got the farthest in the OHSAA tournament last season, looked to start slow, but once the Rams got rolling, it was no stopping them as they dumped Fairborn 95-71. Amir Foster, Sophmore sensation Amari Davis and Senior All-State Performer Torrey Patton led the Rams, who are looking for another deep run this season.

The Rams move to 1-0.

Stivers stop Ponitz  -

  Stivers got its first city league victory of the season after a win at Ponitz HS 63-54.
Freshman sensation Trevon Ellis led the Tigers with 16 to get the Tigers to 3-1 on the season. Ponitz made a late 4th quarter run, but it was not enough as Carlos Roberts and the Tigers get a big road win.
Ponitz falls to 1-1 in City league play.

Alter wins led by Laravie

 Alter grabs big win as Dominic Laravie dominated Purcell Marian with 33 points. Alter now goes to 1-0.

C-J  wins in final moments 

   C-J player Nick Barnes hit 2 Game Winning free throws to lift the Eagles over McNicholas. Christian Montague led the Eagles with 26 and P'Hariz Watkins added 21. C-J now moves to 2-1.

Hoskins gets 1st win as Middies  coach

Former Thurgood coach, now Middletown head guy Darnell Hoskins got his first w in his tenure at Middie Country with a big win over Cin. Princeton 52-45. Hoskins had previously been at Thurgood, and now will see if he can lead the Middies back to prominence.

Centerville throttles Springboro

 Centerville shut down Springboro in GWOC action as the Elks held the "Boro" to just 30 points total.

Stars of Weekend 
These are the stars of Friday Night:

Torrey Patton, Sr. G Trotwood
The reigning D-2 OHSAA Player of the Year picked up right where he left off, dropping 25 on opening night for the Rams.

L'Christian Blue Smith, Jr. F-C  Wayne
The hottest prospect in the country - & yes I said it -in the entire country - picked up 22, some huge blocks, plenty boards and dunks worthy of ESPN, along with the key win vs Fairmont.

Caleb McConnell, Jr. F  Dunbar
 McConnell Came up big as he lit up the Bison with 19 in a battle of 2 of the best in the city. not only did he score, but his passing and defense was also key as well.

Trevon Ellis, Fr. G  Stivers
  Ellis, the dynamic fab frosh, scored a game high 16 as he led the Stivers Tigers to a big road win vs Ponitz.

Amir Foster, Sr. G  Trotwood
 Foster, the dynamite of a guard opposite Patton, exploded for 23, and was able to help Trotwood
handle business against Fairborn.

Dominick Lavarie, Sr. F Alter
 Laravie dominated the competition and went for 33 in the season opener.

Andre Gordon, Jr. G Sidney
 Gordon ignited the Sidney squad with 31 as they defeated Tipp.

Nick Barnes, C-J
 Barnes hit 2 crucial FTs to give Eagles the W.



Team Of The Week:
DUNBAR - The Wolverines, who were slight underdogs heading into Friday nights game, sent a message to rest of City League with resounding W over Belmont.

Underdog Rams look to finish with State Championship

Trotwood Rams will play for a chance to win the OHSAA D-3 Football Championsip today (3pm). They will take on Archbishop Hoban (13-1), the champions from last season at Ohio State Stadium.

Can the "Underdog" Rams grab that elusive State Championship

The Rams have been counted out all year as a serious threat to win a Football State title.

While other teams looked more the part, the Rams struggled in game 1, losing to Troy 12-6.

Raveion Hargrove struggled with a early season injury, along with other key players.
 We're the Rams overrated?
Was this just not going to be the year they expected? Would they still be a year away?

Then came the schedule.

The Rams schedule was called soft, weak, and not tough enough to get the Rams ready for the playoffs.
 Despite being one of the top dogs in the GWOC for the last decade, the Rams still are overlooked, especially on the Local & National front.

Today, the entire Ram Nation will have their chance, as they take on a ready for war Hoban squad.
The Rams, once again, will not be favored in this game despite having a elite team.
 Should be no sweat for Coach Jeff Graham and the Rams.

 Hoban has everything to lose as they are going for legendary status with back to back championships.
 Trotwood also has a lot to lose, as they don't want to fall to 1-4 in Championship games.
  The Rams have made it to the state final 5 of the last 7 years, and have reached the State Semifinal the last 7 straight, a record in the Southwest Ohio area.
  If the Rams can seize a huge victory today, they will solidly themselves as a perennial title contender, a giant slayer, and a National powerhouse in the making.

   Former NFL Player, now Coach Maurice Douglass guided Ram Nation back to prominence and handed the baton to Jeff Graham, who has done a masterful job in his own right, winning a State title and losing one in his tenure.
 For Graham and the Rams, winning on Ohio State soil would feel no sweeter than to the Rams Coach, who starred at Ohio State before heading to the pros.
 He told his players to take a few minutes and "soak up the moment." Before the big game at Buckeye Stadium.
"You will get emotional" Graham said.

  Look for a inspired Rams game today.

The defense has been lights out, & healthy star  RB Ravieon Hargrove has been electrifying along with the passing game.
 Hargrove will get a chance to play where he could end up in 2 years.
 Expect something special today from the underdogs.

The game is featured and televised on Time Warner today.