Boys Basketball

COLUMBUS — The trophy was in the arms of 6-foot, 8-inch Demonte Flannigan when Cleveland Villa Angela-St. Joseph walked out of the Value City Arena in their blue blazers and khaki pants an hour and a half after beating Leipsic 87-63 in the Division IV boys basketball state championship game on Saturday.

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Follow the Leipsic vs. Cleveland Villa Angela-St. Joseph state championship game with Jim Naveau's timely tweets with updates.

COLUMBUS — Even before talking about the starting lineup populated by NCAA Division I players, it is obvious Cleveland Villa Angela-St. Joseph is no ordinary Division IV high school boys basketball team.

COLUMBUS — Forget the vote on having separate public and private school tournaments.

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Follow the Ottawa-Glandorf vs. Ironton state semifinal game with Jim Naveau's timely tweets with updates.

LEIPSIC — Eighty-eight years ago players like Bob Hutton, Bill Wagner and Oscar Robinson energized the town of Leipsic by leading the boys basketball team to the 1925 state tournament.

I spent Monday night at the Milano Café with a bunch of basketball officials.

BOWLING GREEN — Ottawa-Glandorf’s season was dedicated to a second chance.

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BOWLING GREEN — Everything changed. But everything stayed the same.

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BOWLING GREEN — It was all about openings when Ottawa-Glandorf beat Lima Central Catholic 60-52 in a Division III boys basketball regional semifinal at Bowling Green State University on Wednesday night.

BATH TOWNSHIP — After defeating Elida on Saturday night, Bath’s boys basketball team got exactly one day to think about and celebrate its first district title in school history.

Because my wife Janie and I were both teachers and had our summers off, we used them to travel all over the country with our kids. I put over 100,000 miles on an old, orange Volkswagen camper van and then traded that in for a mini motor home that we drove to the ends of the earth. We avoided the crowded RV parks and campgrounds. When we were roaming through big cities, I often parked overnight in a church parking lot or on a nice, peaceful street.

ADA — When Bath junior forward Taren Sullivan went high and pulled down the rebound with 10 seconds, securing the win, virtually every Wildcat player, coach and fan knew what it meant.

ELIDA — Before their fingerprints were all over the district championship trophy, Delphos St. John’s footprints were all over the lanes on the basketball court at the Elida Fieldhouse.

ADA — Two minutes.

I have always been intrigued by the basketball played in Putnam County over the years because it is fueled by a passionate fan base and has produced some of the greatest players to ever hit the hardwood in this area.

DEFIANCE — Ottawa-Glandorf’s boys basketball team began the sectional tournament in impressive fashion, dominating Fairview 100-26 in a Division III final at Defiance.

LIMA — The long-range bombers found a cozy place to settle in at Lima Senior.

OTTAWA — Top-seeded Leipsic started the boys basketball tournament by dismantling North Baltimore 107-39 in a Division IV sectional semifinal at Ottawa-Glandorf. Leipsic will play Cory-Rawson at 8 p.m. Friday at O-G in the sectional finals.

WAPAKONETA — For 31 minutes, Bluffton had Coldwater right where it wanted.

LIMA — The key when playing as the favorite in the high school basketball tournament is to never let your opponent think they have a chance to beat you.

VAN WERT — The Ottoville boys basketball team beat Perry 41-35 in a Division IV sectional semifinal game at Van Wert on Tuesday.

1 GREG SIMPSON

CANTON — After making it to the OHSAA Division II State Swim Meet as a freshman and sophomore, Shawnee’s Emily Murphy knows what it takes to compete at the highest level for high school swimming in Ohio.