Saturday, March 11, 2006
by Steve Blackledge
THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH

When DeSales and Centennial met for the opening tip in a Division II district final last night, the gulps and whispers of fans were unmistakable.

With a front line standing 6 feet 7, 6-5 and 6-4, the Stallions looked like giants compared with the Stars, who surround a 6-6 center with three guards under 6 feet.

DeSales finally made the most of its mismatch in the third quarter, pulling away for a 64-54 victory in the Ohio Expo Center Coliseum.

"We talked a lot about getting out to a quick start to take away the wave of confidence Centennial was riding after they beat (top-seeded) Beechcroft the last game," Stallions coach Blair Albright said, "but as it turned out, we got off to a slow start and their quickness on the perimeter was more than we expected. We had to refocus at halftime."

In the third quarter, DeSales increased the tempo by releasing a defender on all Centennial shots. The move paid dividends.

"We claimed the game in the first couple minutes of the third quarter," Albright said. "You could see them lose a little of that confidence . . . that pulse that carried them."

Alex Kellogg had 18 points and nine rebounds to lead DeSales. The 6-7 junior, who has come on strong the past six weeks, played a vital role altering entry passes at the top of the Stallions’ 1-2-2 zone.

"Once we established the lead, we got into a position where we could alternate defense and keep them out of a rhythm," Albright said. "Obviously, we feel like we can do some things in that zone to disrupt teams."

DeSales (17-6) will face Cadiz Harrison Central in regional play at 6:15 p.m. Thursday at Ohio University.

It marked the fifth district title this winter season for the Stallions. The school also won titles in girls basketball, wrestling, girls swimming and girls gymnastics. It was DeSales’ first district title in boys basketball since 1987.

"All the guys are really happy because we’ve never experienced anything like this," Kellogg said.

Five players chipped in between seven and 11 points for the Stallions, who outrebounded Centennial 41-27 and forced the Stars into 35 percent field goal shooting.

"Even when we were close in the second quarter, I didn’t think we were playing well," Centennial coach Roosevelt Osborne said. "We should have been more patient and made better decisions with the ball."

Thursday, March 16, 2006
by JOE CORLEY
ThisWeek Staff Writer

Teams from central Ohio have made Athens a sort of second home in Division II high school boys basketball regionals since 2001.

From 2001-05, teams from the Central District went to Athens each year and four times emerged with regional championships. The lone team not to win was Beechcroft in 2004, when it fell 57-54 to Dover in a regional final. East won in 2001, Beechcroft won in 2002 and 2003, and Linden-McKinley won last year.

That's part of what was in the mind of DeSales coach Blair Albright on Feb. 5 during the district tournament drawing. When it came time for Albright to place the Stallions on the board, he chose their spot based partially on which regional they would attend if they won a district title.

Albright knew that it might mean a tougher road in the district and a possible meeting with top-seeded Beechcroft in a final, but the rewards -- including a seemingly easier road to the state tournament -- would be worth it.

Now it's time for DeSales to see if it can reap those rewards.

The second-seeded Stallions held off upstart Centennial 64-54 in a district final last Friday in the Fairgrounds Coliseum to improve to 17-6 and secure their regional berth. They will play at Ohio University at 6:15 p.m. today against Cadiz Harrison Central, which beat Dresden Tri-Valley 50-42 in a district final March 9 at Coshocton to improve to 21-2.

"We always felt that if we could get this point, we would have a good chance to get to (the state tournament)," said Albright, whose team won its first district championship since 1987. DeSales last advanced to a district final two years ago, when it lost 54-42 to Watterson.

The winter season has been good for DeSales, which also won district championships in girls basketball, wrestling, gymnastics, and girls swimming and diving.

Against Tri-Valley, which finished 20-3, Harrison Central forced 19 turnovers, including seven in both the first and second quarters, and led 40-25 by the end of the third. Willie Walker scored 16 points and Ben Hodkinson had 13.

After Tri-Valley had pulled to within one point, the Huskies scored the last eight points of the first half to take a 28-19 advantage.

Harrison Central was vulnerable inside as 6-foot-6 Andy Kilgore shook off frequent double-teams and scored 12 of Tri-Valley's first 15 points of the second half. That helped keep the Scotties in the game, and they later pulled to within 42-41 with 51 seconds left before the Huskies pulled away with their accuracy from the line.

"The game got away from us there a little bit," Harrison Central coach Donnie Madzia told the Zanesville Times Recorder. "They knocked some balls loose, got aggressive and put some pressure on us. Fortunately for us, time ran out before they could get over the hump."

The Huskies, who were 0-21 four years ago, are making their first appearance in a regional.

The other regional semifinal will be at 8 p.m. today, with Logan Elm playing Zanesville. Logan Elm enters at 19-5 after beating Fairfield Union 55-28 in a district final last Saturday. Zanesville improved to 16-7 with a 62-42 win over Carrollton in a district final March 8.

None of the teams in the regional were listed in the final state poll, which was led by Akron St. Vincent-St. Mary. Logan Elm beat No. 6 Greenfield McClain 56-43 in a district semifinal March 3, and Zanesville beat No. 9 Dover 59-48 in another district semifinal March 4.

Logan Elm beat visiting DeSales 78-62 on Dec. 17 as Evan Blake made four 3-pointers and scored 35 points, Kyle Reichelderfer had 16 points and Chris Leasure and Jamie Morris added 10 apiece.

The Stallions, who at one point were up 11-3 in the first quarter but were outscored 41-23 in the middle periods, got 19 points from Alex Kellogg, 13 from Dane Johnson and 12 from Elijah Allen.

Johnson and David Knapke both fouled out and Kellogg and Brandon Garrick finished with four fouls as DeSales was called for 26 fouls to 14 for Logan Elm.

Against Fairfield Union, Logan Elm led 27-10 by halftime and never was threatened in the second half. Reichelderfer made three 3-pointers and scored 20 points.

Zanesville pulled away from Carrollton by scoring the last 14 points of the first quarter to take a 16-2 lead en route to its ninth victory in a row. Logan Aronhalt finished with 16 points and three assists, Jordan Aronhalt had 11 points and three assists and Kody Haddox scored 11 points. Carrollton, led by 6-6 center Zach Pridemore, outrebounded the Blue Devils 28-25.

Centennial, which finished 11-12, kept it close for a while last Friday, trailing 26-24 after it scored the first two points of the second half. Allen answered with a field goal eight seconds later, and 16 seconds after that, Kellogg scored on a two-handed dunk on a fast break.

Twenty-seven seconds later, Allen dunked in traffic to put his team up 32-24.

The margin never got below four after that. The closest the Stars got was 45-39 after Greg Borojevich completed a three-point play with 7 minutes, 41 seconds remaining.

The Stallions' biggest lead was 64-49 before Centennial scored the last five points in the final 18 seconds.

"In the third quarter we refocused on our game plan and claimed the game in the first four minutes," Albright said.

One of Albright's concerns was to take control and make Centennial doubt itself early. The Stars were coming off a 64-60 upset of Beechcroft in a district semifinal March 3. That didn't happen.

After Centennial kept it close in the first half, actually leading 15-11 through one quarter and 18-17 midway through the second, Albright said it became even more important for the Stallions to assert themselves.

"The key was we had to break their confidence," he said.

"Our shots weren't falling in the first half," Kellogg said. "We came out and did a better job in the second."

Borojevich scored 21 points, but no other Star reached double digits. Kellogg scored 13, Allen had 11 and Andrew Thomas added 10 for DeSales.

"I missed a lot of easy shots," said Borojevich, who was 6-for-17 from the field. "My shots weren't dropping. I didn't feel much pressure. I felt like I was getting good looks."