MORE NETS FOR IRISH WITH 68-52 WIN OVER NEWARK

Executing outstanding offensive and defensive game plans, the Irish took control early and earned their second consecutive district championship with a 68-52 win over #4 seed Newark on Saturday afternoon.

Scioto jumped out to an 8-0 lead and forced a Newark timeout with 6:19 to go in the first quarter. Using outstanding ball movement and shot selection, the Irish scored 21 points in the first quarter – one more than they scored in the first half against Reynoldsburg last week.

Newark finally got untracked when Shaun O’Keefe hit a trey with 5:21 to go in the quarter. The Wildcats decided to use their best defender, Rahlin Watson, on Irish point guard David McKinley. He face-guarded the 5-9 senior and did not help on defense. The Irish used this opportunity to share the ball and 6 of 9 buckets in the first quarter were assisted.

At the end of the quarter, Newark was able to right itself and cut the lead to 21-17. The teams traded baskets, but the Wildcats called another timeout after Stamets scored off a steal in the halfcourt that gave the Irish a 32-23 lead.

The teams went to the locker room with a 36-25 Irish lead. Bradley McDougald, guarded by Newark point guard Cody Dennison, led all scorers with 17 points. Deji Olatoye was next with 6 points and 5 rebounds. McDougald had 4 assists at the half and Rainer Duzan had 3. Newark was led by Dennison and O’Keefe who had 8 points apiece.

Scioto shot an eye-popping 75 percent in the first half, including 4-4 from the three-point line. They had 11 assists and held a 20-6 advantage on points in the paint. Newark shot 39 percent in the first half and 31 percent from three point range.

Newark began the third quarter by trying to attack the basket. They cut the lead to 36-28 on a Watson free throw and Scioto called time. Watson hit the second to cut the lead to 7 points – and it would never be closer.

Following a missed lay-up by Dennison, Stamets rebounded and hit Olatoye with a pass at mid court. He drew a defender and hit McKinley with a perfect pass on the baseline that found the bottom of the net for a 39-29 lead.

As the clock wound down in the third quarter, Tyler Harrell had a nice offensive rebound and put back that gave the Irish a 50-37 lead. Newark’s Dennison hit a long trey as the clock wound down and the Wildcats trailed 50-40 heading into the fourth quarter.

A patient Scioto offense – marked by good ball handling by the post players – was able to spread the floor in the 4th quarter. When Marco St. John found McKinley on a back door cut with 5:49 to go, the Irish led 57-40. St. John followed it up with a drive for a bucket with just under 4 minutes to go that gave Scioto a 63-48 lead.

The Irish shot 60 percent from the field in the second half and ended the game shooting 27-40 for 67.5 percent. Duzan and McDougald were 5-5 from three point range combined and the team finished 6-7.

They outrebounded the Wildcats 26-20 and won the assists battle 19-6. The Irish yielded 15 turnovers to Newark’s 12, but had 8 steals compared to 6 for the Wildcats.

McDougald finished with a career high 29 points. Olatoye was in double figures with 10 and a game high 9 rebounds. He also had 4 assists.

St. John had 2 points in each quarter and finished with 8 points, 4 rebounds and 3 assists. Duzan had 8 points, 4 assists and 2 steals. McKinley had 5 points and 2 assists. Stamets chipped in 4 points, 4 rebounds and a game high 4 steals. Harrell rounded out the scoring with 4 points, 1 rebound and 1 assist.

Newark shot 35 percent from the field for the game and was 6-22 from beyond the three point line. They were able to get to the line 13 times in the second half and made 14-16 for the game.

Dennison led Newark with 20 points. Watson chipped in 12, with 10 coming in the second half. Ryan Dierks (10), O’Keefe (8) and Taylor Huffman (2) rounded out the scoring. Huffman had a team high 5 rebounds and Watson had 3 assists.

Newark, the defending Division I state champs, finishes the season at 20-4. They were co-champs of the OCC-Ohio and made their third consecutive district final appearance.

Scioto moves on to the regional semi-finals to face either Cincinnati St. Xavier or Kettering Fairmont at 7 p.m. on next Wednesday at the Fairgrounds Coliseum. The Irish set a boys basketball school record with their 23rd win and now stand 23-1 overall. It is the second consecutive district championship for Scioto.