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.

Can Alter get revenge tonight? Who wins epic Boro - Wayne Train battle?

As the 2nd round of playoff games on tap tonight there are very intriguing matchups as we start to see who are the State Championship contenders from the teams who had good seasons but just not good enough.
Here's some key playoff matchups

(3) Trotwood    vs   (2)  Tippecanoe
    @ Wayne HS
Tipp rolled over Piqua last week, and now faces Trotwood, who also had a big W last week vs Celina.
There are reports that the Tippecanoe fan base was chanting "We want Trotwood";
Maybe they were feeling good after whipping the team the Rams took their last L to - at home.
 Maybe they feel like their high powered offense will be too much for the young Rams.
 1111 they like their experience.  They have a good squad, and have wrecked lots of dreams this season.
  However with a healthy Raveion Hargrove we think the Rams will find a way to win.
  They looked their best when in the pressure moments, and Tippecanoe won't be able to withstand the pressure of the Rams running game.
 Rams win 32-24.


Alter     vs    Fenwick (1)  -  Fenwick  has had a incredible season & will look to do what very few teams have done in their history, which is beat Alter twice in a season.
Fenwick shut them down earlier this season in mid-season.
 But this ain't mid-season, and as we all know in Southwest Ohio, the Knights are a machine when it comes to playoff time.
  Alter squeaked by last week, but I think Fenwick will do the rarely impossible;  win twice vs Alter in a season.
   Fenwick defeats Alter 28-27.

Can Brookville get it donight?
The Blue Devils, one of the top teams in the state, will take on Greenvillle tonight. Brookville has been nothing short of dominant.  Can they keep it up?
Greenville has been playing it's best ball of late.
We're taking the Blue Devils 37-24.


Wayne vs  Springboro
 in a matchup of two GWOC powerhouses, can Springboro pull off the major upset?
Wayne has been nothing short of dominant this season, and will have their heels clicking as they get ready for another showdown, which seems like they're playing in every week. With so many weapons can the Panthers slow down the Wayne train?  Qiarterback Elijah Cunningham is a very good weapon and has had a great season but can he win the biggest game of his career?
We don't think so.
 We have Wayne prevailing 37 - 20.

If committee is paying attention, Bison will make it to playoffs

   We had the luxury to have Belmont on the TV show of Dayton High School Sports last year. After initially speaking with rising star RB Davion Lankford  you got the sense that the smooth RB with sick moves and a gear few have, hadn't quite understood what he was accomplishing.

  He hadn't played ball in years. His grades wasn't on par, and, quite frankly, he wasn't focused on being a student athlete. Or even a student.

However with the coaxing of his family and new staff of Belmont football coaches, Lankford did make changes.
Big changes. Program resurrecting changes.
With stunning results, we might add.

But back to the Interview.
Before the interview Lankford was nervous, excited, and happy to be on the show. He had ran for 200+ with 3 TDs, and his mom, uncles, and support staff was there.He genuinely seemed shocked that he was getting so much attention for playing football. 

He was our first ever DHSS Athlete of the Week. And he beamed for that moment.

But the one thing you also seen was the hunger for more, and the desire to be great. The longer the interview went on, the better he got. Kind of like how he is on the field. And in the books too.

    After a nice start last season,  the Bison fizzled late, and you started to hear the rumors of the "Old Belmont Bison ways", which was losing, losing, and more losing.
    But the one difference between the old Bison and the new Bison is quite simple:

Coach Earl White and his coaching staff.

  Not to mention a rejuvenated Bison fan club (Bison Nation) which tailgates, whoops and hollers and support their Bison with the best of them.

   White took the Colonel White / Thurgood Marshall program and took it to a level very few coaches have reached in City League and Southwest Ohio HS football history.
   Multiple City League Titles, numerous playoff beths, (including a signature victory over the vaunted Alter Knights) and a State Berth, to name a few.
   White was a former player himself, and holds every player, coach, and staff member accountable.

And if you don't like it?  Deal with it.


  And by his results, the players have responded and love his style. Whether u like his style of play or not, it has worked almost 70% of the time, which is a great winning percentage for any coach on any level. He knew it would take a little time, but a Southwest Public City League Championship in their first season and his first City Title after two years?

Ohio HS Football Playoff Committee, are you watching?

  After a gutsy win over Ponitz, we asked some family where Lankford was looking to go.
   Sources close to Davion told us that Coach White told Lankford that, "When the time is right" he'd unveil the list of schools drooling over the two way star for his services.

"Stay focused on books and the season, and the rest will take care of itself." White said.

Well after a 5 TD game last week, it's safe to that Lankford is listening.

Now about that change...
Lankford has become the unquestioned leader of the Bison. He has squared his grades, worked extremely hard on his body, as he takes major punishment every week. He is a captain of the team, become more vocal and holds all the other players accountable while lifting an entire program back to notoriety.

  Lankford has taken a glimpse of hope and turned it into a mountain of opportunities.
D-1 offers, loved by his peers, respected and feared by his opponents.

  But, in his most recent interview, its obvious he is focused on the task at hand. He talked about his team, getting to the playoffs and rising up even with its looks dim, as his boys had just won in OT after he had scored a TD, 2-pt conversion and had a key sack.

  The Bison (6-1) sit 9th in the region for a playoff berth, with 2 games to go. Although they won their league, it's not guaranteed to make the playoffs.  With White's pedigree in previous playoffs, & the a team loaded with talent, quality coaching, and players who have bought into the system?

Never too late.

Just ask Davion Lankford and Earl White.

OHSAA Football playoff Committee, are you paying attention? If not, you should be.

Everyone else sure is.

Salute the Bison.