As Granville girls roll on, 'Tate's Last Dance' enhances experience
COLUMBUS ― As Granville's girls easily extended their Division II postseason run Wednesday, people around the country were following the Blue Aces and their district semifinal romp.
That's because in what has turned into his final season, Coach Tate Moore, with the team's and parents' permission, has let his Barstool Sports blog's thousands of national followers experience a 24-1 ride which continued with the 52-18 win against London at Ohio Dominican University.
Make no mistake about it. It is not serving as a distraction, as evidenced by Granville forcing 18 first-half turnovers with its suffocating defense, leading 31-2 at halftime and advancing to its fourth consecutive district final. The top-seeded Blue Aces will face sixth seed North Union (17-7), a 54-41 winner against Heath, at 5 p.m. Saturday at Central Crossing.
"It's a good thing and we embrace the full experience, but everything is in the background," said senior Taylor Warehime. "In the locker room and on the floor, we're locked in on the game and practice. Nothing else matters."
Warehime helps spearhead Granville's daunting press.
All-Ohio senior post Harper Annarino, who poured in 23 points with five 3s, snagged 10 rebounds and had four assists in less than three quarters, said the Blue Aces know not to cross the line between basketball and entertainment.
"It's really fun and we've definitely put ourselves out there with it," she said. "If anything, it's motivated us to play even harder, and it's brought the team even closer together. It's making our season even more memorable. The community loves it. Everyone loves it."
Moore is giving up his teaching at Pickerington and coaching at Granville to become a full-time blogger in Chicago for Barstool Sports. Since August of 2018, he has been a part-timer under the handle Barstool Sports Ohio's Tate, weighing in on the Buckeyes and the state's pro teams with what he calls "a WWE approach. Nothing too serious. I was a cartoon character."
Barstool liked what they saw and offered him a full-time gig at the end of January.
"I've always loved writing. I wrote for my high school newspaper," Moore explained.
When he accepted, he offered his team two options. The first was to continue to keep it separate and just coach the final two weeks. The second was to let the players know what he has been involved in and get them involved with it for the rest of the season.
"It was totally up to them, and it was a unanimous decision, that they wanted to be involved," he said. "The girls love it and the parents bought shirts. Everyone is excited."
The shirts feature the words Viva La 'Ville on the back, and Tate's Last Dance 2024: Granville against the world on the front. He shares updates with the 55.6k followers on his @BarstoolTate account on X, and they are paying attention. Someone from Arizona bought a shirt. Another fan traveled three hours to see the Blue Aces play, then came back again.
What they are finding out is, this team plays great defense and hits a slew of 3-pointers, making 11 on Wednesday with senior Aliyah Moore adding four to Annarino's big night and scoring 13 points. The fourth quarter was a running clock.
The versatile Annarino made three 3s in the second quarter, scoring 13 points as Granville ended the half on a 20-0 run against 10th seed London (14-10).
"Harper never made a 3 her freshman year, but now she'll probably finish in the top five in Granville history," coach Moore said. "(London) sat in a 3-2 zone the entire game, just daring us to shoot, and we were good."
Annarino's offseason work is paying off.
"It's putting up shot after shot, until I make a certain number of shots from that spot," she said.
Defense, however, is Granville's primary focus. The Blue Aces are allowing just 17.3 points per game in the three tournament wins.
"In practice, we really concentrate on putting on as much ball pressure as we can," Warehime said.
On Wednesday, they forced a 10-second call on the first possession of the game.
"The guards try to force the ball to either side, and Taylor and I come in for the double team," Annarino said.
Freshman post Elle Mortimer chipped in with four steals and sophomore Delaney Varrasso had five assists for Granville, which went 19 of 44 from the floor for 45%.
Coach Moore started with this group of seniors and is now ending with them. As people nationwide watch, Granville will try to make its first state tournament since 1994.
"We're all on the same page. We want to go 4-for-4 in district finals, and we're going for it together," he said.
Last year, the Blue Aces lost in the regional finals.
"We keep taking the next step every year," Annarino said. "With all of our chemistry now, we're shooting even higher."
Observed Warehime: "We have not reached our full potential. We want to peak at the right time."
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This article originally appeared on Newark Advocate: As Granville girls roll on, 'Tate's Last Dance' enhances experience
