DAYTON — Saturday marked the second day of the Ohio high school boys state basketball tournament at the University of Dayton. Here’s a closer look at the Division I and II state semifinal games as originally reported by the Ohio High School Athletic Association.
Division II
victory to advance to Sunday’s Division II state title game. (OHSAA)
KETTERING ALTER 73, YOUNGSTOWN URSULINE 37
Kettering Archbishop Alter shot 28-of-45 from the floor (62.2 percent), including 9-of-19 from behind the arc, on its way to a 73-37 win over Youngstown Ursuline in the first Division II state semifinal at University of Dayton Arena.
Alter (22-7) advances to Sunday’s 5:15 p.m. state championship game. The Knights will be making their fifth state title game appearance and first since 2003.
Ursuline (24-4) made its first trip to the state tournament since winning the Division III state title in 1994.
R.J. Greer shot 9-of-11 from the floor, including 4-of-5 from 3-point range, and scored 24 points to lead a balanced Alter scoring effort. Joe Brand made 5-of-7 shots and all six of his free throws for 17 points, while Brady Conner hit 5-of-6 field goals and finished with 10 points.
Jaylen Gunther and Jaden Payne both scored 11 points for the Fighting Irish.
Alter led 20-4 after the first quarter, with 15 of its points coming off eight Ursuline turnovers, and the margin remained 10 points or more over the final three quarters.
Alter finished the game with 21 assists on 28 made field goals, held a 32-21 rebounding edge and scored 38 of its 73 points in the paint.
MAYSVILLE 68, SHELBY 65
Zanesville Maysville will play in its first state championship game after defeating second-ranked Shelby, 68-65, in the second Division II semifinal at University of Dayton Arena.
Maysville won its 22nd consecutive game to improve to 26-3 overall. Shelby, after making its first appearance at the state tournament, ends its season at 25-3 overall.
Neither team led by more than five points, the lead changed hands 10 times, and the score was tied for a 15th and final time — 59-all — when Shelby’s Alex Bruskotter split a pair of free throws with 2:17 remaining.
Maysville’s Jordyn Watson scored on a driving layup at the other end of the floor, then Alex Bobb stole the inbounds pass and converted a three-point play to give Maysville an insurmoutnable 64-59 margin with 1:44 remaining. Maysville made 4 of 6 foul shots in the final 34 seconds to seal the win.
Shelby made 24 of 43 shots from the floor (55.8 percent), including 6 -of-14 from 3-point range, and was 11-of-14 at the foul line. Maysville made 23-of-50 (46.0 percent) feild goals, including 9-of-23 from beyond the arc, and 13-of-15 at the free-throw line.
Maysville committed just two turnovers, none in the second half. The Whippets had 11 miscues, in what proved to be the difference in a very tight game.
Shelby’s Bruskotter tied a Division II state semifinal record with 34 points. He played all 32 minutes, making 13-of-16 shots from the floor including four treys, and added eight rebounds.
Casey Lantz had 12 points and 11 rebounds for Shelby.
Watson, Bobb and Gator Nicholas accounted for 66 of Maysville’s 68 points. Watson had 26 points, Bobb scored 22 and Nicholas finished with 18.
Division I
CLEVELAND ST. IGNATIUS 54, DELAWARE HAYES 53
Quinn Woidke’s basket with 13 seconds remaining lifted Cleveland St. Ignatius to a 54-53 win over Delaware Hayes in the first Division I state semifinal at University of Dayton Arena.
The Wildcats led by as many as 11 points in the first half but trailed by three entering the game’s final minute.
Damon Friery scored in the paint to cut the Delaware Hayes lead to 53-52 with 50 seconds remaining, and the St. Ignatius defense forced a turnover as the clock ticked under 30 seconds.
Woidke drove to the basket out of a timeout and scored what proved to be the game-winner.
The Pacers had two challenged shots in the final five seconds that did not fall.
St. Ignatius led 19-11 after one quarter and 31-23 at halftime, but Delaware Hayes, behind 12 points from Landon Vanderwarker, won the third quarter 20-8 and took a 43-39 into the fourth quarter.
The lead changed hands five times in the fourth quarter, the final time on Woidke’s bucket with 13 seconds remaining.
Vanderwarker finished with a game-high 21 points. He also collected nine rebounds and blocked four shots. Jesse Burris added 17 points for Delaware Hayes.
Friery led the Wildcats with 16 points, and Woidke finished with 15. Reece Robinson scored just four points but led all players with 13 rebounds and also blocked three shots.
St. Ignatius improves to 25-3 overall and advances to its third state championship game. The Wildcats won a state title in 2001 and finished runner-up in 1998.
Delaware Hayes, which had won 21 straight games entering its first state tournament appearance, closes its season at 27-2 overall.
CENTERVILLE 58, TOLEDO WHITMER 39
Centerville will play in its third state championship game in the last four years after defeating Toledo Whitmer, 58-39, in the second Division I state semifinal at University of Dayton Arena.
Eli Greenberg scored 19 points, Jamar Montgomery had 14 and Jonathan Powell had 10 to lead Centerville. The Elks shot 20-of-37 from the floor (54.1 percent), including 5-of-9 from three, and 13-of-16 (81.3 percent) at the foul line.
Centerville, the 2021 Division I state champion and 2022 runner-up, improved to 20-8 overall.
Whitmer, in its fifth state tournament and first since finishing runner-up in 2012, ends its season at 25-3 overall.
Centerville jumped on top 15-6 after the opening eight minutes. Whitmer drew within 18-16, but the Elks went on a 19-9 spree over a 10-minute stretch that spanned the second and third quarters to open a 37-25 advantage entering the final quarter and coasted home for the win.
Antione West, Jr. finished with 16 points, eight rebounds, five assists and four steals for Whitmer.