LEXINGTON, Ohio — Madison was the surprise of the Richland Source NOL-OCC Challenge, but nothing Most Valuable Player Billy Buckley did during the two-game showcase came as a revelation to coach Tim Mergel.
The 6-foot-2 senior was as reliable as he was durable in helping the Rams upset Ontario and Norwalk to improve to 5-4 on the season.
Buckley averaged a team-high 16.5 points and 4.5 assists a game. He connected on 4 of 9 3-point field goals, was 7 of 9 from the free throw line and swiped 12 rebounds in the two games.
More telling, Buckley was the only player in the event to play all 64 minutes. Mergel couldn’t afford to take him off the floor.
“Billy has been pretty steady for us all season,” Mergel said. “We rely on him to do a lot of things for us.”
Buckley had 11 points, five rebounds and five assists in Madison’s 59-53 upset of Ontario on Tuesday. The following night he dropped a game-high 22 points to go with seven rebounds and four assists as the Rams rallied past Norwalk 56-49.
Buckley was joined on the All-Richland Source NOL-OCC Challenge squad by teammate Tyrell Ajian. The athletic junior had 19 points and five rebounds against Ontario before scoring 10 of his 11 points in the final 5:03 against Norwalk.
“Ajian was the best player on the floor,” Norwalk coach Steve Gray said. “We lost him a couple of times and he made us pay.”
Like Madison, Lexington was 2-0 in the showcase to improve to 10-0 on the season. Point guard Joey Zahn had 16 points and 4 assists in Tuesday’s 55-34 win over Norwalk and added 10 points and six assists in Wednesday’s thrilling, 57-54 win over Ontario. His assist to Jonah Yaussy in the final seconds led to Yaussy’s game-winning 3-pointer at the buzzer.
Lost in Yaussy’s heroics was the play of freshman Cade Stover. The athletic forward scored 20 points on 10 of 15 shooting and grabbed 12 rebounds. Stover had seven points and seven boards in the win over Norwalk.
It was a rough weekend for Ontario, but point guard Trey Jordan was virtually unstoppable. The junior was the event’s leading scorer, averaging 20.5 points a game on 15 of 26 shooting. He scored 26 points in the loss to Madison and added 15 points and six rebounds in the setback against Lexington.
Norwalk’s George Friend averaged 10.5 points and 6.5 rebounds in the Truckers’ two losses. He had eight points and eight boards against Lexington and added 13 points and five rebounds against Madison.
