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The Portsmouth Trojans will enter the 2025-26 season coming off a 7-15 campaign a year ago. The good news for PHS is that the top 2 scorers return, and will be bolstered by a good freshmen class and better depth off the bench. SR Connie Thomas led the Trojans in scoring last season, tallying 17 PPG while SR Daequan Woods averaged 13 PPG. The return of SR Logan Adkins from injury should add some offensive punch. Adkins missed all of last season due to a knee injury suffered in football 2 years ago. The rest of the starting 5 will come from a pool of players that includes some freshmen who recorded an undefeated season a year ago as OVC champions. Here is a list of the players who played last season, varsity, JV, or JH: (C.Thomas, D.Woods, L.Adkins should make up 3 of the 5 starters)

Dontavion (Dee) Parker...5-10 SR
Olynshay McKinley.........6-5 SR
Kaleb Johnson.............6-1 SR
Tyreke Lewis...............5-9 SR
Crisshawn Dukes...........6-0 JR
Jay Lofton..................6-0 JR
Tyson Craft.................5-11 JR
Fernando Poxes............5-9 JR
JJ Henderson...............5-10 JR
Jayden Harrington.........5-9 JR
Darius English..............5-10 JR
Dodrick Bertram...........6-1 SO
Joe Greene.................6-0 FR
Mekhi Berry.................6-3 FR
Manny Thomas.............5-8 FR
Liam Livingston............6-2 FR
O'Ryan Graybell............6-2 FR

Darius English and Dodrick Bertram added to the roster 10/31/25. Added Tyreke Lewis 11/3/25.

Portsmouth last won a sectional title in 2024, and the last district championship was in 2015, which in the same year they won the OVC. 3 times in the last 4 seasons South Point has eliminated the Trojans in tournament play, and in 2017 the Pointers beat PHS 59-42 in the district semifinal.

Coach Aaron Smith enters his 2nd season at the helm of the varsity, and by all indication plans for the Trojans to play an uptempo game to take advantage of the athleticism that PHS has plenty of.

Chesapeake is the defending OVC champion. Ironton and Fairland have new coaches.

Here is a decade by decade record of Portsmouth HS basketball, with some added historical notes:

1913--1919.......71-27........1919 team posts 21-1 record
1920--1929.......118-46.......2 Final 4 appearances in 1927 and 1929
1930--1939.......145-55.......State Champions in 1931 and State Runnerup in 1934, State Appearance in 1939
1940--1949.......121-93.......State Appearance in 1941 and district title in 1948
1950--1959.......135-84.......6 district titles; 2 Regional Finals
1960--1969.......139-69.......1961 State Champions; 6 district titles
1970--1979.......133-74......1972 district champions, 1978 State Champions, 1979 AP Poll Champions 18-0
1980--1989.......197-50.......6 district championships, 1980 State Runnerup, 1988 State Champions
1990--1999.......136-87.......1990 State Runnerup, 4 district championships, 1 regional final
2000--2009.......100-121......2001 district championship
2010--2019.......163-80.......2011 State Semifinalist, 2012 State Runnerup, 3 district titles, 1 regional final
2020--2025.......62-72........Sectional title 2024

Total All Decades: 1,521--858 (plus 1908 win over Ironton)

From 1947--1991, PHS recorded only 5 losing seasons (1957, 1958, 1959, 1962, 1985); PHS has missed the state tournament in only 2 decades (1950-1959, and 2000-2009). PHS is the last SE district school to have won a game in the Final 4 (74-66 win over Ottawa-Glandorf in 2012).

All Time Leading Scorer: Kyre Allison (2013-2016) 1,688 points
Winning Seasons: 81
20 Win Seasons: 19 (4 straight from 1981-1984)
Best Record: 27-1 1988 D2 State Champions
State Tournament Games Played: 27 (4th in Ohio)
State Tournament Appearances: 15 (4th in Ohio)
Earliest Game That I Could Find: May 5, 1908 vs. Ironton (PHS won 22-4)

Portsmouth is one of only 12 schools in Ohio that has won a state title in boys and girls basketball, and has at least 5 state titles total.

Where can I find Portsmouth’s schedule?

Portsmouth Trojans 2025-26 schedule:

PRESEASON SCRIMMAGES:

11/8.......at Johnstown Time TBD
11/15.....at Canal Winchester 10 AM
11/15.....at Bexley 4 PM
11/18.....at Lynchburg Clay 5 PM

REGULAR SEASON: Games are 6:00 JV and 7:30 Varsity unless otherwise indicated

11/28...........H vs. Minford........PHS 49, Minford 41; JV won
12/13...........A Shawnee State vs. Racine Southern 2 PM.....PHS 67, Racine 59......Daequan Woods 30 points
12/15...........A vs. Coal Grove.....PPD, makeup date TBD
12/18...........A vs. Rock Hill.......PHS 52, Rock Hill 38......Daequan Woods 17, Connie Thomas 15....JV won (2-0) Manny Thomas 16
12/22...........A vs. Fairland........Fairland 92, PHS 70......Daequan Woods and Connie Thomas with around 17-20 each unofficially
12/27...........A vs. Wheelersburg.......Burg 73, PHS 63.....Daequan Woods 22, Logan Adkins 16, Connie Thomas 13
12/30...........H vs. Valley.......Valley 46, PHS 45.............Daequan Woods 12, Logan Adkins 11......JV lost 44-26 (3-2)
1/3..............A vs. Manchester.......PHS 79, Manchester 70.....Connie Thomas 24, Logan Adkins 18, Mekhi Berry 15, Daequan Woods 10; JV won
1/5..............H vs. Gallia Academy.....GAHS 57, PHS 42.........Connie Thomas 19; JV won and are now 5-2 on the season
1/8..............H vs. Ironton......PHS 73, Ironton 72.........Daequan Woods 24, Connie Thomas 22, Logan Adkins 11; JV lost (5-3)
1/10.............A vs. Coal Grove......PHS 61, Coal Grove 51......L. Adkins 14, C. Dukes 13, O.McKinley 11, D.Woods 11; varsity (6-4); JV won (6-3)
1/12.............H vs. South Point.....PHS 68, South Point 30.....D.Woods 22, C.Thomas 15, L.Adkins 12; varsity 7-4; JV won and is 7-3
1/13.............A vs. Eastern Pike....PHS 71, Eastern Pike 47....D. Woods 19, C.Thomas 15, O.McKinley 13, L.Adkins 12
1/15.............A vs. Chesapeake....Chesapeake 81, PHS 57.....no official scoring available (L.Adkins 4 trifectas) JV won and is 9-3
1/17.............A vs. Lewis County, KY......Lewis County 65, PHS 55.....Daequan Woods 23, Connie Thomas 12 PHS now 8-6
1/20.............H vs. Coal Grove......PHS 53, Coal Grove 43.....D.Woods 14, L.Adkins 14, C.Thomas 12 PHS 9-6, JV won and are 10-3 (only 1 OVC loss)
1/23.............H vs. Rock Hill.........PHS 66, Rock Hill 54.......D.Woods 21, L.Adkins 15, C.Thomas 14, Jay Lofton 2, 3 freshmen 12 pts. JV won 11-3
1/27.............A vs. South Webster
1/30.............H vs. Fairland
2/3...............A vs. Gallia Academy
2/6...............A vs. Ironton
2/10..............A vs. South Point
2/13..............H vs. Chesapeake

Does Portsmouth keep up in the ovc? Hearing rumbling the parker kid is ineligible that is a big hit for the Trojans

burgboy23 wrote: Tue Oct 28, 2025 11:41 am Does Portsmouth keep up in the ovc? Hearing rumbling the parker kid is ineligible that is a big hit for the Trojans

Dee? Why would he be ineligible?

PTrojan59 wrote: Tue Oct 28, 2025 1:04 pm

burgboy23 wrote: Tue Oct 28, 2025 11:41 am Does Portsmouth keep up in the ovc? Hearing rumbling the parker kid is ineligible that is a big hit for the Trojans

Dee? Why would he be ineligible?

Heard he’s ineligible for playoffs because he hasn’t been showing up to school, missed too many days which also means the start of basketball

burgboy23 wrote: Tue Oct 28, 2025 1:25 pm

PTrojan59 wrote: Tue Oct 28, 2025 1:04 pm

burgboy23 wrote: Tue Oct 28, 2025 11:41 am Does Portsmouth keep up in the ovc? Hearing rumbling the parker kid is ineligible that is a big hit for the Trojans

Dee? Why would he be ineligible?

Heard he’s ineligible for playoffs because he hasn’t been showing up to school, missed too many days which also means the start of basketball

Ahh no clue honestly. Good depth/bench piece in basketball.

Dontavion (Dee) is not projected to be a starter on the varsity, but he is one of the best defenders in the program. As far as his eligibility, we'll just have to wait and see on that.

OVC finishes by PHS since they joined the conference in 2015:

2015: 1st
2016: 2nd
2017: 3rd
2018: 4th
2019: 7th
2020: 5th
2021: 6th--Tie
2022: 6th
2023: 6th
2024: 2nd
2025: 6th--Tie

Portsmouth's overall record in OVC play vs. each team:

Fairland: 4-18
Ironton: 8-14
Gallia Academy: 10-12
Chesapeake: 10-12
Coal Grove: 14-8
South Point: 13-9
Rock Hill: 19-3

Overall Record: 78-76

30 Point Games by Trojans vs. OVC schools since 2015:

DeAndre Berry: 36 vs. South Point 2024; 38 vs. Ironton 2024; 31 vs. Gallia Academy 2024; 40 vs. Rock Hill 2024; 31 vs. Gallia Academy 2023; 30 vs. Rock Hill 2023; 30 vs. Coal Grove 2023

Dariyonne Bryant: 31 vs. South Point 2022; 34 vs. Coal Grove 2022

Matthew Fraulini: 46 vs. Rock Hill 2019

Kyre Allison: 32 vs. Fairland 2015

PTrojan59 wrote: Tue Oct 28, 2025 1:34 pm

burgboy23 wrote: Tue Oct 28, 2025 1:25 pm

PTrojan59 wrote: Tue Oct 28, 2025 1:04 pm

Dee? Why would he be ineligible?

Heard he’s ineligible for playoffs because he hasn’t been showing up to school, missed too many days which also means the start of basketball

Ahh no clue honestly. Good depth/bench piece in basketball.

I heard that he managed to find a loophole to regain eligibility for the start of the season.

As Coach Aaron Smith enters his 2nd season as the Trojans HC, he has history on his side as to how his 2nd season could play out. Historically, 11 of the last 14 coaches who have coached at least 2 years at PHS have had a winning season. Listed below are those 11 coaches:

2nd Season:

Red Hopkins.........1927.........14-4..........State Semifinals; lost to Dover
Paul Jenkins.........1938.........13-5
Bill Rohr..............1948.........17-6..........beat Lancaster for district title
George Heller.......1953.........15-6
Bob Doll.............1970..........10-9
Dick Hopkins........1977.........12-8
Tom Smith...........1983.........20-4.........beat Wheelersburg for district title
Joe Suboticki.......1989.........21-4..........beat Wellston for district title
Mike Haley..........1994.........16-6..........beat Greenfield McClain for district title
Jim Rhea............1997.........13-10
Eugene Collins......2011........21-5..........State Semifinals; lost to Cleveland Central Catholic

Added Tyreke Lewis, Dodrick Bertram, and Darius English to the roster above.

While we're waiting for the season to start, it's a good time to go back into the history books and look at some of the great teams in PHS history. The following is the roster and scores for the 1931 Class A (Big School) State Champions. Some are missing first names.

Roster: George Noel (All-Ohio), Charles Kirsch, Carlos Parker, Cropper (Captain), Moore, Doll, Bricker, Chapman, Boren, Scott, Rardin, Grimm, Horr, Dale, Woods

Coach Red Hopkins: This was the 3rd appearance for Hopkins in the state tournament. He led PHS to the 1927 and 1929 Final 4, in which PHS lost both years to Dover. Hopkins compiled a 168-58 record overall, the 3rd winningest coach in PHS history, topped only by Eugene Collins(201-130) and George Heller (224-137).

Regular Season:

PHS 33, New Boston 9
PHS 22, Marietta 10
PHS 24, Lima Central 20
PHS 26, Hamilton 24
PHS 34, Columbus North 22
PHS 30, New Boston 19
PHS 24, Huntington WV 16
PHS 16, Corinth KY 14
PHS 15, Dayton Stivers 10
PHS 29, Ironton 14
Middletown 8, PHS 7
PHS 20, Huntington WV 13
Zanesville 22, PHS 19
PHS 42, Athens 12
PHS 32, Cincinnati Walnut Hills 12
PHS 16, Ironton 15

Tournament:

PHS 36, Hillsboro 14
PHS 33, Chillicothe 6
PHS 37, Greenfield McClain 11 (District Championship)
PHS 30, Toledo Waite 21
PHS 16, Akron West 15 (State Semifinal)
PHS 20, Canton McKinley 19 OT (State Championship)

Final Record: 20-2

The win vs. Canton McKinley gave PHS a 3-0 record vs. the Bulldogs. McKinley is the winningest program in Ohio history, and has made 28 appearances in the state tournament, more than any other school. PHS is 3-2 all time vs. McKinley.

The 1934 Portsmouth Trojans State Runnerup Team in Class A (Big School):

Final Record: 20-5

The team had 4 seniors: Howard Wedebrook, George Carr, Earl Bender, and Chester Boren

In the regular season, PHS defeated Middletown, Columbus Central, Columbus East, Norwood, and Ironton. They split a series with Huntington WV, while Springfield and Chillicothe topped PHS.

In the tournament, Portsmouth beat Pomeroy (now known as Meigs)19-15 for the district title, which advanced them to the state tournament, which was in a Sweet 16 format. PHS beat Tiffin Columbian in the state semifinals 23-18, then lost in the state championship game to Dayton Roosevelt 46-30. Portsmouth trailed 23-15 at the half, and were unable to mount a comeback. 6 of the 7 players who played for the Trojans scored, with Earl Bender and Harold Monk scoring 8 points apiece. Monk was the youngest player on the team, yet was selected All-Ohio. This team was the last of the Red Hopkins era to advance to the state tournament.

The 1950 Portsmouth Trojans District Championship Team (Big School)

The 1950 Trojans scored the 1st of 6 district titles that they would win in this decade. Coach: Bill Rohr (80-29 career record at PHS)

In the regular season, PHS opened with a 65-28 win over Portsmouth East. Ironton was defeated twice, while the Trojans also beat Columbus East, Huntington East WV, Cincinnati Elder, Hillsboro, Greenfield, and Dayton Stivers. PHS beat Chillicothe 46-45. Portsmouth posted a 3-2 mark in the Greater Ohio League.

In the tournament, PHS defeated Jackson and Portsmouth East. Then in the district semifinal, a player with one of the most colorful nicknames in Trojan history would make a game deciding play. James "Sweetwater" Douglas made a steal and bucket to give PHS a 49-48 win over Lancaster. In the district final, Portsmouth would edge the Chillicothe Cavaliers again, this time by a 51-49 score. In the regional, Hamilton got payback for an earlier defeat by PHS as they topped the Trojans 47-44 in the regional semifinal.

Bert Barney made 1st team All-Ohio, and would later be inducted into the Portsmouth HS Hall of Fame.

The 1955 Portsmouth Trojans Greater Ohio League and District Champions (Big School)

Final Record: 20-4......Coach: George Heller (224-137 overall 1952--1968 at PHS)

Roster:

Curt Gentry..............6-0 SR
Milt Parker...............6-0 SR
Bill Clifford..............5-10 SR
Jerry Higgins............6-2 JR
Duck Frazier.............6-2 JR
Bruce Johnson..........6-0 JR
Jim Duncan.............6-3 JR
Mike Williams..........5-10 JR
Bill Spinks...............5-9 JR
Chester Corbitt........6-3 JR
Larry Sunafrank........6-1 JR
Jerry Copley............5-10 JR

Regular Season:

PHS 68, Greenfield 46
PHS 78, Ashland KY 46
PHS 79, Hamilton 53
PHS 54, Dayton Dunbar 43
PHS 73, Lancaster 62
PHS 65, Springfield 49
PHS 81, Middletown 60
PHS 64, Cincinnati Roger Bacon 37
PHS 62, Ironton 53
Columbus East 60, PHS 56
PHS 59, Springfield 55
PHS 56, Middletown 41
PHS 67, Cincinnati Western Hills 43
PHS beat Hamilton (No score given by yearbook)
PHS 59, Ironton 40
PHS 62, Lima South 43
Mansfield 64, PHS 53
Lima Central 88, PHS 80

Tournament:

PHS 90, Minford 72
PHS 64, Chillicothe 47
PHS 24, Athens 22 (slowdown game)
PHS 95, Greenfield 64 (district championship)
PHS 70, Tecumseh 66
Cincinnati Hughes 59, PHS 57 (tip in at the buzzer by Hughes) Regional Final

At one point of the season Portsmouth was ranked #1 in the state. High Scoring Games: Billy Clifford 28 vs. Middletown, Curt Gentry 27 vs. Greenfield, Jerry Higgins 24 vs. Minford, Curt Gentry 24 vs. Middletown, Milton Parker 20 vs. Cincinnati Western Hills, Curt Gentry 23 vs. Hamilton, Milton Parker 20 vs. Tecumseh, Jerry Higgins and Milton Parker 20 each vs. Lima Central, Jerry Higgins 24 vs. Minford.

Curt Gentry was inducted into the PHS Hall of Fame, and would later go on to play for the Chicago Bears of the NFL.

Portsmouth won the 1st Greater Ohio League championship in school history, as it swept Hamilton, Middletown, and Springfield for the 1st time in school history.

Really hoping for a solid season and post season run for the Trojans.

Thanks, MeanJoeGreene, for the encouragement. I think this could be a good year because I really believe we have a good combination of size, athleticism, and depth. But we have a lot to prove to show Southeastern Ohio that the Trojans are on the rise.

The 1961 Portsmouth Trojans Class AA (Big school) State Championship Team.

Roster: Jim Malone SR, Dick Spencer SR, Jim Fuller SR, Stan Burgess SR, Bill Parker JR, Steve Robinson SR, Dozier Carter SR, Clem Hartley SR, Rudy Shively SR, Mike Haley SR, Jim Nagle SR.

Coach: George Heller

Final Record: 22-3 (at the time the 22 wins was the most in PHS history)

Regular Season:

PHS 90, Lancaster 56
PHS 55, Grandview 33
PHS 63, Springfield 54
PHS 68, Lima 61
PHS 64, Ironton 58
Hamilton Garfield 55, PHS 48
PHS 85, Lima 61
PHS 81, Columbus Central 58
PHS 74, Hamilton Garfield 65
PHS 63, Springfield 49
PHS 68, Chillicothe 60
PHS 79, Columbus East 58
Middletown 61, PHS 48
PHS 79, Ironton 54
Ashland KY 87, PHS 74
PHS 90, Logan 47
PHS 76, Middletown 60

Tournament:

PHS 70, Northwest 55
PHS 78, Minford 47 (Sectional Championship)
PHS 82, Sheridan 46
PHS 52, Chillicothe 51 (District Championship)
PHS 61, Cambridge 38
PHS 46, Canton McKinley 38 (Regional Championship)

State Tournament:

PHS 54, Elyria 52
PHS 50, Urbana 44 (State Championship......Urbana was 25-0 coming into the game)

Portsmouth went 6-2 in the Greater Ohio League, sweeping Springfield and Lima. Mike Haley led the team with a 22 PPG average. He had 20 points in the state championship game. Clem Hartley scored 22 to lead in the Semifinal.