Wildcats Take 6th Grade Title

Pickerington Wildcats-6th Grade Champions

Over the weekend, Allen Henderson’s 6th grade Pickerington Wildcats finished undefeated on their way to the championship of the Joe Riggins Jr. Memorial Pre-National Tournament in Dayton. In pool play, the Wildcats defeated the Dayton Nets/Buckeye Prep (13 points) and The Mr. Basketball Academy (4), Dayton Pilots. In bracket play, Pickerington downed the Dayton Nets for a second time (20) and the Dayton Pilots (20) in the championship game. Although the Wildcats got it done on the strength of “team play and execution,” according to Henderson, the team’s reserves “came off the bench and played their tails off.”  Those reserves included Jalen Mitchell and Nick Giardina. What’s interesting to note, the Wildcats played the entire weekend without Isaiah Speelman and Dondre Palmer, the team’s starting wing and center. In addition, Pickerington picked up Dayton’s Antwon Johnson for the weekend.

I have to give a shout out to Damon Stringer’s Mr. Basketball Academy (MBA) who traveled down from northeast Ohio in search of competition. Ohio basketball fans may remember Stringer, as he was a standout for Cleveland Heights, was named Ohio’s Mr. Basketball in 1995, and went on to play with Ohio State and Cleveland State. With an overall season record of 32-8, Stringer’s 6^th grade squad has established themselves as one of the top 3 or 4 teams in the northeast area.  This weekend, MBA finished 3^rd behind the Dayton Pilots and the Wildcats, but played both teams closely. It should be noted, MBA was missing Johnny Bigsby, the team’s second leading scorer, due to a hip injury. Deion Burton and Derrick Veasley Jr. were both standouts for MBA. For the season, MBA’s resume includes a win over #10 Dayton Nets/Buckeye Prep, a split with #7 King James, and a 4 point loss to both  #6 Pickerington and the Dayton Pilots.

In the 7^th grade division, Brooks Hall’s Next Level squad closed their season on a positive note, with a lopsided victory over the Columbus Braves (30) in the championship game of the same tournament. Next level blew by Dayton Nets-Turner (30+), Ohio Varsity, Dayton Pilots B, and Columbus Crusaders before dispatching the Braves in the title game. Danny Davis, L’Christian Smith, Keegan Seban and Ryan Proffit were all standouts for Next Level. Hall’s team finished the summer with an impressive 40-4 over all record. For those wondering, as is the case with a number of kids this time of year, Hall mentioned that Smith and Seban will be heading down to the AAU nationals with the Indy Hoosiers.

Congratulations to the 7^th grade Cincinnati Royals for winning the Louisville Legends Classic in Louisville, Kentucky this past weekend. On championship Sunday, the Royals defeated Indiana Elite South (46-38), Focus (63-46) and Rob D’s Elite (71-48). Standouts for the Royals included Matt & Dan Sichterman, Sean Clifford, Matt King and Jaeden Orr. 

All-Ohio Red-5th Grade MIT Champs

Congratulations to All-Ohio Red 5th graders for getting it done at the Maryland Invitational Tournament in Baltimore. This tournament has traditional attracted a strong field. This team just keeps on winning!