Central Ohio Middle School Tourneys Tip Off

This past weekend, many of central Ohio’s middle school tournaments tipped off. Last night I stopped by Kilbourne Middle School’s 2011 Cougar Classic to check out some of the top 7th grade teams in the area. Much to my surprise, the tournament actually opened on Saturday. Last night’s action included first round losers fighting to run the table in the consolation bracket. I caught a real barn burner between Westerville Blendon and Olentangy Hyatt. This game required two overtime periods before a winner could be determined. Although Blendon had a chance to win it in regulation, as Chido Dietz stepped to the line with the game tied at 20 and no time left in regulation, both shots rimmed out to send the contest into overtime. At the end of the second overtime, with a score of 32-29, Blendon's Jalani Rogers got off a trey to knot the game, but he failed to convert. Olentangy got the win to advance in the 5th place consolation bracket. Rogers was the game's leading scorer with 17 points in the loss.

The top team in the tournament, 12-1 New Albany, got by a 0-13 Kilborne to advance to the second round. The other teams to advance on Saturday were New Albany, McCord, Gahanna MS West, Reynoldsburg, Pickerington Ridgeview, Westerville Genoa, Olentangy Liberty and Gananna MS South. The full field of teams included: Gahanna MS South (11-1), Pickerington Ridgeview (11-1), Reynoldsburg Waggoner (10-2), Gahanna MS West (8-4), Westerville Genoa (8-5), Olentangy Liberty (7-5), Marysville Bunsold (6-5), Worthington McCord (7-5), Worthingway (7-6), Olentangy Hyatt (6-6), Westerville Walnut Springs (5-7), Westerville Blendon (3-10), and Worthington Kilburne (0-13). The tournament was scheduled to resume on Tuesday but the weather postponed the action. Buckeye Prep will attempt to cover the remainder of the tournament and provide the final results. To see the pictures I took at the event, visit the Buckeye Prep Facebook Fan Page.