Big Sully Claims Co-MVP Honors

Playing on his future home court at the Value City Arena, Jarred Sullinger (Pictured) dropped a game-high 22 points on his way to Co-MVP honors. Although Sullinger's East team was defeated by the West squad 107-104, Sullinger's performance was simply outstanding. Sully's output was even more impressive considering the fact that he fought a bout with food poisoning the night before. Down double digits late in the contest, the East team scrapped their way back to tie the game at 104 with under a minute remaining, but a last second trey by Brandon Knight (9 points) sealed the deal. Sullinger did most of his damage around the cup, but he also stepped outside and displayed his shooting touch. In the paint, the Big Smooth used his size and strength to score at will. Harrison Barnes' team-high 18 points was good enough for Co-MVP. I also liked the play of Duke recruit Kyre Irving who finished with 13 points.

The gym was far from being sold out, but the crowd was a sprinkled with VIPs. Kentucky's John Wall, Demarcus Cousins and Eric Bledsoe were in the house taking in the action, as was Ohio State's Evan Turner. All-in-all, it was a great night of basketball and it all went down in central Ohio. To see pictures of both the All-American Game and the slam dunk contest, visit the Buckeye Prep Facebook Fan Page. Also, check out Ty Kish's video.

6th Annual Buckeye Prep Invitational Tournament

The pool assignments, tournament schedule and rules can be found on the Jr. All-American Camp website.

For the 6th consecutive year, the Buckeye Prep Invitational Tournament promises to be very competitive. Right now, 75 teams from across the state and Michigan will be descending on Columbus April 2nd, 3rd and 4th for the annual event. Some of the top 5th thru 11th grade teams slated to attend include: All-Ohio (Red & Purple), Queen City Prophets, Michigan Titans, Team Toledo, Cincinnati Lakers, Buckeye Prep, Dayton Salvation Army, Saginaw Panthers and the Friars Blue Storm.

This year's event will be held at multiple sites including Ohio Dominican University (ODU), Westerville South High School (West 1 & 2), Whitehall Yearling High School (WHHS 1-3). A maximum of 80 teams will participate this year. In terms of the format, there is a 3-game guarantee with the top 2 teams in each pool advancing to single elimination bracket play on Sunday. The exposure opportunities will be great, as there will be several scouting services in the house evaluating the kids. If you are interested in entering a team in the tournament you need to send an email to: Taylorobe@aol.com ASAP to reserve a spot. Send a MO payable to Rob Taylor to 585 Tall Oaks Dr. Gahanna, Oh. 43230., or make your payment via Pay Pal on the upper right of this website. Keep an eye on the comment section of this story for tournament updates.

Nike Grassrooots Tournament-Day 2

With the Ohio high school basketball season officially in the books, it's now time to turn our attention the AAU ball. This weekend, Jerry Watson's Grassroots tournament tipped of in Columbus. I had a chance to spend a couple of hours at the tournament and catch some of the action. From what I could tell, some of the young Cincinnati-area teams were dominating play. The 6th grade Elite Cavaliers were having their way on day 2, as they totally out classed a local All-Ohio team. In addition, the 7th grade Cincinnati Knights easily defeated All-Ohio Allocco. Buckeye Prep's 8th grade team handled Devine Thunder. In the 9th grade division, All-Ohio Red and the Cincinnati Lakers are on a collision course, as both teams won their Saturday games. In terms of individual performances, the following players caught my eye: DJ Wingfield (Team Jordan) Ronnie Williams & Kevin Fischer (8th Buckeye Prep), Nigel Hayes and Keon Johnson (All-Ohio), Tyreke Johnson and Leon Davis (Elite Cavilers), AJ Harris and Chris Moxley (Cincinnati Knights). Stayed tuned to Buckeye Prep for the final results of the tournament.

Magical Season Comes to an End

By most accounts, Gahanna Lincoln's run to the state final four was nothing short of magical. After defeating the then #1 team in the nation, thoughts quickly turned to a possible state championship. The dream would not be realized, as Massillon Jackson ended the Golden Lion's run with a 62-50 win in the state semi-final last night.

Although the Gahanna (26-1) loss could be blamed on poor shooting; the size and toughness of the Polar Bear front line was the difference in the contest. Despite the fact the Golden Lions were only down 2 points at the half, a 15-3 run to start the 3rd quarter gave Jackson the margin they needed to claim the win. Akron signee Josh Eigner had a big night, finishing with a game-high 23 points. The leading scorer for Gahanna was Anthony Jackson who finished with 23 points. Next up for Jackson is Cincinnati Moeller who downed Mentor in the other semi-final game. Congratulations to Gahanna Lincoln for a spectacular season! To see pictures of the game visit the Buckeye Prep Facebook Fan Page. Check out the story the appeared on Slam Magazine.com

All-Star Saturday All-Star Game Rosters Set

For the 12th consecutive year, Richard Crockett, CEO of Capital Transportation and Buckeye Prep partner, will be hosting "All-Star Saturday" at the Bruce Howard Recreation Center located at 2505 North Cassidy Ave (at Agler Road) on Saturday April 2nd. The day-long event has long featured the Columbus' largest Easter egg hunt as well as a series of four very competitive all-star games.

In terms of the schedule, the Easter Egg Hunt will begin at 10:30 am, followed by the 6-8 year old all-star game at 11:00, the 9-10 year old game at 12;30pm, the middle school game at 2:00 and the high school game at 3:30. In addition to the free food and drink, Power 106 FM's "City" will be in the house to MC the games. Each all-star game participant will recive a very nice award for their participation in the event. Below are the all-star game rosters:

Middle School Game:

East All-Stars: Wiiliam Green, JeMichael Blanton, Jhustice Cornley, Mylan Smith, Asante' Patterson, Chris Little, Arius Moore, Nate Jamison JB Bess and Adam Gigax. West All-Stars: Jaylen Jones, Ronnie Williams, Julian Scott, Brice Bailey, Danny Hummer, Antonio Gay, Alex Stewart, Darryl Long, Cameron Ball and Granger Long.

High School Game:

East All-Stars: Isiah Boddy, Anthony Jackson, Damon Powell, DeMarkeo Lyshe, Kyle Scherimal, Devon Benson, Garrin Tate, Chester McFadden, Andrew Bendolph. West All-Stars: Rob Brandenburg, Buckey Chenault, Desmond Pack, Doug Thorpe, Sam Bott, Matt Ryan, Adam Westbelt, Dwayne Basemore, Cameron Robinson and Diallo Ford. (Note: all-star game rosters are subject to change)

Buckeye Prep and Prep Spotlight Join Forces

Youth basketball in Ohio just got another platform. For the first time in the history of the magazine, John Stovall's Prep Spotlight will highlight the top middle school-aged players in the state in its quarterly magazine. Starting with the current issue (pictured), through "The Buckeye Prep Back Page," the Buckeye Prep Report will now be providing content to the magazine that spotlights the top 8th graders in the Buckeye State. Prior to this collaboration, Stovall had not started ranking/evaluating kids until their freshmen year in high school. As most people know, John Stovall and Prep Spotlight are highly respected on the local and national basketball scene, and players highlighted in their magazine have traditionally gone on to become high school stars, college-level and even NBA players. In addition to his magazine, Stovall contributes to ESPN.com, he is a Nike rep, and he runs his own scouting service. If you are a fan of high school (and now middle school) basketball, be sure to pick up your copy of Prep Spotlight Magazine.