Warren 72
Athens 51 final
I've had the pleasure to watch some of the BEST teams Below the Lancaster-Dixon Line so far in the first half of the 2015-16 season ... THAT'S entirely by design !!! I can choose which teams, which games I want to see based on the quality of the TEAMS playing ... I don't try to see EVERY team in Southern/SouthEast Ohio - time & distance make it impossible for one BUT in my little mind if I can see between 35-50 of the 72 teams in the Southeast District during the season I've done what I can to be knowledgable about the best of the best out there ... there ARE TEAMS/PROGRAMS that I go see play more than once, twice, three times or more !!! outstanding players get me there, quality match-ups get me there, outstanding coaches/teachers of the game get me there, quality PROGRAMS get me there ... Warren vs Athens in A'town last night fit the bill !
... Warren - I hadn't seen yet this season ! unheard of in my time following high school hoops - I have in the past seen at least 2 games maybe more played by Warren at this point in the season ... Warren IS one of the quality TEAMS/PROGRAMS - end of story ... Athens lost everyone from last season with the exception of Griffin Lutz - who by the way fits the OUTSTANDING player description (don't be fooled though by AHS - they have quality players who are getting varsity minutes, they have size in the pipeline, the JV squad has quality players freshmen & sophomores ... & Griffin Lutz returns for his senior season next year ...
... Warren has been "rumored" to be down this season ... 2 losses to two TVC teams (Meigs/Alexander) ... "down" is not the correct word to be using imo "inexperienced" at the varsity level is much much better ... throw in key injuries to the Warrior PG Seth Hall and you have your varsity experienced PG , leader NOT on the floor ... with all of that said - Warren looked every bit as good as you would expect from a Coach Maddox TEAM as they dismantled the Athens Bulldogs in the first 2 quarters last night 47-15 by intermission ... I've used this word twice this season to describe how a team has performed on the court ... "Clinic" ... the first time I wrote it on my napkin sheet was at Unioto vs Fairfield Union ... the Shermans of Coach Hoops lead by sophomore PG Logan Swackhammer hit FU in the mouth jumping out to a 36-17 lead at halftime offensively/defensively UHS was in total control ... last night the Warriors one upped Unioto - as good as Unioto looked vs FU ... Warren looked even BETTER vs Athens - 9/16 from behind the arc (including a "called" bank off the glass - ok maybe it wasn't called BUT if it was the results would have been the same - 3 points off the glass) ... 8/9 from the FT line ... only 2 TOs without the regular PG (Seth Hall) - Kyler Dennis did an outstanding job handling the ball and offensively as he singlehandedly beat Athens in the half KD 16 Athens 15 ... K. Dennis had 4 three's in the first 2 quarters (5 for the game) ... lots of help from the other 5 Warriors who played in the first half - 5 more threes (Chase Weihl 2 /Bryce Gandee with 3) ... defensively the Warriors held Griffin Lutz to 1 fg & 4 points in the first 2 quarters ... forced 8 Athens TOs and committing only 2 of their own in the half ... held the Bulldogs to 2 fgs in the 2nd quarter ... in my book it added up to a "clinic" ... Warren 47 Athens 15 at intermission ... game , set and match ... both teams liberally played everyone in the 2nd half ... the Bulldogs got good minutes from their bench as Nick Lutz , Genesis Williams and Bay Rogers knocked down 6 threes balls (3,1,2 respectively) and the 6-6 Williams put down a 2 hand dunk to get into the highlights for the Bulldogs last night ... Warren 72 Athens 51 a final ...
... Pfloyd's Official "unofficial" Napkin Stats - Athens ...
Scoring ... Griffin Lutz 13, Nick Lutz 9,Bay Rogers 6, Genesis Williams 5, Dalton Cozart 5, Zacciah Saltzman 5,Robert Dickleman 4, Logan Maxfield 2 and Noah Skinner 2
3 Pointers ... 8/21 ... Nick Lutz 3, Bay Rogers 2, Genesis Williams 1, Dalton Cozart 1, Zacciah Saltzman 1
FT's ... 7/11
TO's ... 12
Dunks ... Genesis Williams 1
... Pfloyd's Official "unofficial" Napkin Stats - Warren ...
Scoring ... Kyler Dennis 23, Chase Weihl 17, Luke Drayer 13, Bryce Gandee 11, Josh Huffman 4, Bishop Ford 2, Noah Nichols 2, Mason Pilkey 1
3 Pointers ... 10/26 ... 9/16 in the first half ... Kyler Dennis 5, Bryce Gandee 3, Chase Weihl 2
FT's ... 13/17
TO's ... 3
... Coach Maddox's BIG BAD BLUE have some areas that have not been filled by this years group ... from the "better than Cheap Seats" in the McAfee Gymnasium ... Kyler Dennis DID an outstanding job running the show last night and I haven't seen Seth Hall this year- but the ball handling from past years is not there - 3 TOs on the game last night doesn't indicate that BUT Athens does not apply the pressure that other teams do or will ... I'm used to seeing Warren players be THE FIRST on the floor, scrambling for the loose balls, the rebounds - even though again it's not indicated I don't see the hard-nosed , sacrifice my body type of kids on the floor - I saw "hesitation" in reacting to the loose balls/rebounds ... I didn't see the kid that will "take a charge" giving up the body to get pickup a foul on the opposing team , stop penetration, willing to "take a hit" to take away a possession and pick up a possession for the TEAM ... Warren IS a good ball club !!! obvious shooters are there and on the floor !!! I was impressed with Chase Weihl the 6-6 junior post player - he stacked the napkin stat sheet last night - unofficially carding 17 points, 11 rbs, 3 blk shots on the evening and probably most importantly he WAS the man in the middle that forced Griffin Lutz to kick the ball out to the perimeter ... last year I remember C. Weihl as being tall, long, and thin ... this season still tall at 6-6, still long with that wingspan AND he HAS put on weight , add to his pluses he will get better finishing in the paint AND he can shoot/hit the three ball (2 treys last night) ...
... all 'n all ... the rumors of the death of the Warren Warriors is just that - rumors ... looking forward to seeing the Warriors again with Seth Hall in the lineup soon ... it looks like the dwindled SEOAL crown STILL goes through Warren Local BUT I foresee 2 outstanding matchups between my Purple & the Big Bad Blue of Warren ...
... on a side note - I truly enjoy the hoops on the floor every game that I go to BUT I enjoy even more meeting up with friends I've made over the years from watching sports... last night I was greeted at the gate by a lady who said are you "p-something" ? I know I'm not that famous that the "floyd" part rolls off the tongue LOL - anyway I said "I'm pfloyd" - she responded by saying that Coach Skinner had taken care of my ticket for the night !!! ... I walked in the gym door and ran into Coach Maddox of Warren - we sat/talked for 10-15 minutes ... David Saltzman (Zacciah Saltzman's dad for Athens) stopped down to chat and give me grief about my basketball diet (2 dogs & a pepsi) LOL ... I thanked Coach Skinner while he was readying he boys for the JV game ... 93dog & the radio crew set up in front of me - always good to see my basketball compatriot 93dog ... several Warren fans came all the way across the court to chat/say hello including Mrs. Maddox !!! ... my point is it doesn't matter what happens on the court , it's the wonderful folks - the coaches, the players, the fans for all sides, the posters on SEOPs- that I enjoy just as much as the game itself ... when YOU go to games get to know the people on both sides ! - it makes every game, no matter where you go the best - and what I have found all of these folks - every coach I've met, every player/every parent/every fan of the game and every poster here on SEOPs - are friends for life ... great stuff to me anyway ... makes just driving to games at the different venues all over Southern & Southeast Ohio a treat because I know that meeting up with the folks - the coaches, the players, the parents, SEOPs friends - makes the 1-2 hours of driving worth every minute ...
... LOL - 93dog you're an all around sports guy ! Sports - Chieftains are synonymous !!! 