Ohio Stars Win Indiana Tourney

2024 Ohio Stars-Spring Run & Gun Champions

With their championship win at the Spring Run & Gun tournament in Fishers Indiana last weekend, the 2024 Ohio Stars has made a big move in our Power Rankings.  The Stars’ 4-1 run to the title included a win over NLBE (50-25), a loss against to 7^th ranked Mid-Ohio Pumas McClure (31-42), and wins over Blackout 6^th Jackson (66-38), Mid-Ohio Pumas Burris (56-34) and Mid-Ohio Pumas-McClure (44-38).

According to Coach Rob Kiser, the Star’s title run represented “a great team effort” and was the result of “tenacious defense.”  The Ohio Stars were led in scoring by Jacob Roeth and Wes Enis.  For the season, the Ohio Stars 16-5 overall.  Congratulations to the Stars’ players and parnets for the big win!

7th Grade Circuit Recap

This weekend was a mixed bag for Ohio teams on the Midwest Circuit. Ohio Champion was the best of the five teams going 4-0 with two very close wins over the Gurus and Flint Town Elite. Ohio Champion scored the game-winning basket against the Gurus receiving the ball with 5.6 seconds on the clock and sinking a shot as time expired. A good win for them and a tough loss for the Gurus. The Ohio Champion Basketball Club cemented themselves as a legitimate power on the local and national AAU scene. Champion’s final Circuit record is 9-3; good for the #3 seed in the May finale.    

Ohio Champion weekend scores:Gurus 51 - Champion 53; Indiana Elite 2023 38 - Champion 58; Flint Town Elite 53 - Champion 55; Chicago Swish 52 - Champion 64 

The Gurus of Go continue to be competitive and cannot be taken lightly. The Gurus suffered a tough loss to Ohio Champion. A win in that game would have shifted the Power Rankings significantly. The Gurus are still trying to figure out if they are very good or truly elite. The only powerhouse they have beaten this season is OBC in session #2 of the Circuit. They went 2-2 on the weekend. The Gurus final Circuit record is 6-6; resulting in a #8 seed in the top of the bracket.Gurus weekend scores:

Champion 53 - Gurus 51; Sky Diggs 56 - Gurus 59; Louisville Magic 51 - Gurus 27; Gurus 55 - Manimal (IL) 32 

The Queen City Prophets are like a box of chocolates. They went 3-1 this weekend marking a good end to the Circuit regular season. They will be a tough first-round opponent for Indiana Elite 2023 in the May finale.  The Prophet's final Circuit record is 4-8, and they will be the #12 seed in the finale. Queen City Prophets weekend scores:

HBA Elite 60 - QCP 56; Flint 58 - QCP 72; Darius Miller Elite 37 - QCP 56; Great Lakes Warriors 49 - QCP 60

Team DOSE went into the weekend less than full strength again. Not only were they still without standout guard Kevin Hamilton, but they were also bitten by the flu bug. This lead to them going 1-3 this weekend. Coach Dawson is still positive.  DOSE’s final Circuit record is 5-7, and they will be the #11 seed in the finale. DOSE weekend scores: 

Darius Miller Elite 36 - DOSE 50; Chicago Swish 63 - DOSE 48; Indiana Elite Team Uprising 50 - DOSE 28; Indiana Elite 2023 49 - DOSE 29

The worst turn of fortune this weekend went to OBC, as they went 0-4 this weekend after playing in the championship game of the Buckeye Prep Tournament last weekend. The competition on the Midwest Circuit is tough. OBC played well and was in every game except one. OBC finished 5-7 and will be the #10 seed in the finale. OBC weekend scores:HBA Elite 74 - OBC 38; Indiana Elite Team Uprising 56 - OBC 48; Chicago Swish 56 - OBC 55; and Flint Town Elite 55 - OBC 49 .

Showtime Wins Irish Classic

2024 Showtime-Irish Classic Champions

This past weekend, Coach Angie Stooksbury’s 2024 Showtime squad finished 6-0 on their way to the championship of the Irish Classic in Dublin.  According to Coach Stooksbury, her team has strong posts and guards that create a challenge for their opponents.  Also, “We continue to be lead by Gigi Bowers, Jojo Eberhart, Sarah Mitchell, Lexi Stooksbury and Madison Yanka,” said Stooksbury.  Congratulations to Coach Stooksbury and her players for a job well done!

2018 Buckeye Prep Invitational Final Results

J.J. Loudon, Xavier Bowman, Jordan Briggs, Taylen Kinney & Austin Sloane 

By all accounts, the 2018 Buckeye Prep Invitational Tournament was a huge success, and one of the most competitive tournaments in the region this year! In terms of the top teams in the state, just about everybody was here.  Not only did the event host 96% of the state’s top teams, we had some of the best teams from Michigan, Ohio and Kentucky as well. In addition to the top teams, the tournament hosted the top players in the Buckeye state.  

Below is a link that lists the champions and runner-ups in both the Gold and Silver divisions, as well as the tournament MVPs and All-Tournament Teams.  We’re extremely proud of this event in terms of both the competition and the exposure we were able to provide. Based on the results of the tournament, our Buckeye Prep Team Power Rankings have been updated.  Also, our Top Player lists will be updated as well. Next up will be our Summer Showdown scheduled for June 9^thand 10^th. Congratulations to all of the teams, players and coaches who collected hardware on championship Sunday.  See you in June!

Buckeye Prep Invitational Results

Buckeye Prep Invitational Star Watch List

Buckeye Prep Power Rankings

Buckeye Prep Invitational Day III Photo Gallery

Hamilton Powers SMAC Akron over Another Level in OT

Brayden Hamilton, Connor Sams, Deitrich Hurst & Sam Marbury

Leading for most of the game, 2022 SMAC Akron needed 3 clutch free throws and over time to get by a scrappy Another Level squad in Gold Bracket play at the Buckeye Prep Invitational Tournament in Columbus. Up by 2 points with under 3 seconds left, a Another Level player fouled a 3-point shooter, and after 3 clutch freebies, the game entered OT.  SMAC would control the overtime period to advance to the semifinals.  SMAC was led in scoring by Braden Hamilton (6’1”/SG/2022/Brunswick), who was smoking hot from beyond the arc and scored a team-high 18 points.  Behind him in scoring was Aiden Palmes (11 points) and Connor Sams (9 points).  This SMAC Akron team is very well coached, fundamental, talented and has a roster is full of high skill guys who can all shoot, pass and dribble.

We were also really impressed with Another Level who is also well coached, physical and play hard. The man for the Cleveland-based team was Deitrich Hurst (6’1”/WF/2022/Cleveland), who was too big, strong, physical and athletic to keep from scoring at the rim.  Hurst dropped a game-high 24 points.  Also playing well for Anther Level was Sam Marbury (6’1”/SG/2022/Cleveland), who finished with 12 points.  They gave the game away at the end, but from what we saw from Anther Level, they should receive top 10 consideration when we update our Power Rankings next week.

On another note, Ed Heban's TNBA Ohio Shooting Stars exacted some revenge on the Ohio Basketball Club from a loss last week with a 66-65 squeaker in Gold Bract Play. Despite a monster effort from Elmore James IV (19 points) and Danny Young Jr. (18 points), OBC went down.  Michael Bova was a stud, finishing with a game-high 22 points in the win.  Three other players were in double figures including Raymar Pryor and Jalen Wenger.  Two very competitive games!

Wenger Leads Shooting Stars in Win Over Blue Chips

Jalen Wenger 6'1" WF 2022 Dalton

It wasn’t an upset, but TNBA, ranked #2 in the Buckeye Prep Power Rankings, was wounded after an upset loss (27-59) in pool play to 13^th ranked Ohio Hoopsters-Hill, when they took the court against the 5th ranked North Coast Blue Chips.  The score was close through out the game, and in fact, the score was knotted at 52 with 9 seconds left.  TNBA would hold on to secure the 54-52 victory on the strength of Jalen Wenger’s (6’1”/WF/2022/Dalton) game-high 16 points.  Wenger showed the ability to shoot it from deep and finish at the rim on drives.  We always new he was good, but his outstanding play today re-confirmed his status as one of the best players in the state.  In support, Raymay Pryor poured in 11 points. Ray Green III and Sean Jones were the leading scorers for the Blue Chips with 11 points each. Next up for TNBA is a rematch between the 3^rd ranked Ohio Basketball Club, who is fresh off a win over 10^th ranked C2K Elite in the opening game of the Gold Bracket.