River Valley makes it back to a Division II boys basketball district final game
SUNBURY — The Vikings are back.
For the second year in a row, River Valley will play for a Division II boys basketball district championship.
"We were there last year. There’s no nerves," RV coach Rodney Brown said after his second-seeded team clinched the spot with a 66-55 semifinal victory over No. 7 seed Linden McKinley on Wednesday night at Big Walnut.
Brown's senior leader agreed,
"Its not really nerves," Carson Smith said after dropping 31 points on the Panthers. "You want to be back here again, so we’re using last year as motivation to get there again. We are there again, so now we’ve just got to cut down the nets."
Look back at Ridgedale's run: Ridgedale basketball's feel-good season ends in Division IV district semifinals
Check it out: All-Central District basketball: Northmor's Grant Bentley named D-IV's top boys player
Up next for the Vikings
Last year, River Valley led Bishop Watterson but couldn't hold on, falling 62-54. This time, the Vikings return to Central Crossing at 3:30 p.m. Saturday to face top-seed Bishop Hartley. The district winner will go to the Ohio University regional on Thursday, March 14 for a 6 p.m. game against either Maysville or Indian Valley.
"They’re a really good team," Smith said of Hartley. "We’ve got film on them."
The Hawks (21-3) were ranked No. 5 in the final AP state poll in Division II and are led by first-team All-Central District and 6-foot-1 junior guard Jaden Calloway, who averages 14.2 points, 3.9 rebounds, 3.5 assists and 2.5 steals. Also making the all-district teams for the Hawks were 6-5 junior Pharez Nicholas, who averages 11.2 points and 7.5 rebounds, and 5-10 sophomore Jakii Calloway, who puts up 13.7 points, 4.1 rebounds, 3.6 assists and 2.8 steals.
"They have a really good point guard. They’re fast. They get the ball up the floor quickly. They’ll push it up real fast and then stop," Brown said. "They’re similar with the drive and the kick. They do have a big guy. He is big and muscular and good inside. They’re fifth in the state, so obviously they’re good."
Wednesday's game
Against Linden (16-7), Smith scored his team's first eight points and helped the Vikings (19-5) to a 21-6 lead by the end of the first quarter. The start proved to be the difference.
The Panthers hung around, trailing 33-20 at halftime and 48-40 by the end of the third quarter, but they couldn't put the game in real jeopardy down the stretch.
"We had a great start," Brown said. "We lost the second and third quarters, which I wasn’t very happy with, but we were talking about defending in the fourth like you did in the first. I think we did a better job."
After Smith's 31, junior Chase Ebert added 16 points for River Valley.
For Linden, Philip Towns also had 31 points and Kevin Darthard III chipped in with 11.
Northmor plays Friday night
No. 3 Northmor plays top-seeded Northside Christian for a Division IV district title at 8:30 p.m. Friday at Ohio Dominican. It is Northmor's second straight trip to the district final as it looks for its first regional berth.
In its 56-47 semifinal win over No. 4 Patriot Prep, Grant Bentley shook off a 1-for-10 3-point shooting night to still produce 21 points and five rebounds, while Jax Wenger backed him with 15 points, five rebounds and four assists. Drew Hammond added nine points and seven rebounds, and Hunter Fulk had eight points, six boards and three steals.
"We have kept the silver medal hanging in our locker room all season as a reminder of what we want to accomplish this year," Northmor coach Blade Tackett said. "To win (Tuesday) night against Patriot, who beat us last year, felt great, but that has not been our goal. Our goal is a district championship."
The winner of Friday's game will go to the Ohio University regional for a 6 p.m. game Tuesdayagainst either Monroe Central or Berlin Hiland — both are top 10 teams in the final AP state poll.
rmccurdy@gannett.com
419-610-0998
X @McMotorsport
Instagram @rob_mccurdy_star
This article originally appeared on Marion Star: Quick start lifts River Valley back to a district championship game
