Mike’s Saturday morning standouts

The OHSAA Division I district finals in Division I, Region 2 were played at the Ohio Expo Center on Saturday in what was a full day of hoops. In this article we'll break down the standouts from Upper Arlington Vs Newark and Olentangy Liberty Vs Pickerington Central.    Henry wins the Mr Clutch award as he knocked down a 3-pointer at the end of the first quarter and hit a behind half court shot to send the Golden Bears to the locker room with a ton of momentum. In the fourth quarter, Henry had two clutch floater buckets to help Upper Arlington hold off a late push by Newark.     One of the best shooters in central Ohio's 2027 class, Mitchell was making it rain on Saturday morning with two huge 3-pointers in the fourth quarter. He also knocked down an early 3-pointer and had a mid-range pull-up as well early in the game. As Mitchell matures and becomes an upperclassmen, I'll be looking for him to fill out physically and round out his game. It's impressive he's having a large impact as a shooting specialist already under the bright lights of playoff basketball.     I thought Saturday was maybe the best defensive game Smith has played. He was everywhere on that end of the court with a handful of deflections, blocks and he consistently stopped dribble drive action and closed passing lanes. When looking at a high major level athlete they should stand out at the high school level and Smith certainly had a big impact defensively on Saturday morning. Offensively he had a couple jumpers and second chance points but was consistently swarmed by the Newark defense. An offensive rebound in the final stages of the game was massive as Smith calmly knocked down both free throws to extend the lead. We'll see if Smith can keep up this defensive impact and increase his scoring efficiency in the regional semis.     An old school type of player, Quackenbush uses the mid-range shot to his advantage as he hit some crazy turnaround shots on Saturday to bring Newark back into the game. With soft touch and the size to rise up over guard sized defenders, Quackenbush is a tough match-up and with a lot of returning production, I expect Newark to be back near the top of Columbus Division I rankings next season as well.     It's very impressive watching a forward control the entire game like Kropp does and Saturday was one of his best all around games I've seen him have. First off, Kropp's hands are excellent with him catching every pass thrown his way and securing every rebound in his general area. As a passer, Kropp reads the floor at a high level and hit shooters when double teams were sent his way. Add in a pick and pop 3-pointer and a few transition layups to add to his scoring total and you get a complete offensive performance.     Few players stretch the floor at Butterfield's size like he can and basketball can be a simple game when you are making shots. That's what Butterfield did with a handful of catch and shoot buckets off kickouts, spot-ups or BLOB sets. Impressive shooting versatility and passing by Butterfield's teammates to hit him ready to shoot.     My first time watching Pickerington Central this season and Evans continued to show why he's regarded as one of the top players in Ohio's 2027 class. Evans was cooking on Saturday from the perimeter, knocking down some tough shots off the dribble. I was also impressed by Evans ability to drive to the basket and play through contact with a couple contested finishes and a couple foul line trips. We'll be following Evans this summer on the grassroots circuit as well, he'll likely be pursued heavily by Division I programs once the June contact period opens for 2027 prospects.

The OHSAA Division I district finals in Division I, Region 2 were played at the Ohio Expo Center on Saturday in what was a full day of hoops. In this article we'll break down the standouts from Upper Arlington Vs Newark and Olentangy Liberty Vs Pickerington Central.