Upper Arlington boys basketball sweeping through Columbus, Ohio

There might not be a team in central Ohio with more to play for over the next three-plus weeks than the Upper Upper Arlington (Columbus) boys basketball team.

Although the Golden Bears aren't ranked among the Top 10 in the Division I state poll, they enter their game Friday against visiting Dublin Coffman (Dublin) at 19-0 overall and 13-0 in the Ohio Capital Conference-Central Division.

UA, which has won 39 consecutive regular-season games, also put itself on a possible collision course with one of the state's top teams at the district seeding meeting last Sunday. If the Bears advance to a district final next month, they likely will have to get past the state's second-ranked team, Northland (Columbus).

"It's not about the opponent; it's about the approach," UA coach Tim Casey told ThisWeekSPORTS.com. "If you continue to play the right way, the score will take care of itself. This is a mature group that understands that."



"The coaches are always saying, ‘One game at a time; give everyone your best shot,'" senior Brian Sullivan said. "I think the other thing (that helps) is that we went through this last year, and so we know that, especially in conference, every game's a big game."

Sullivan is the biggest reason Upper Arlington has become one of central Ohio's most successful teams the last two years. The Miami University signee moved into third on the Bears' all-time scoring list earlier this season and has scored more than 1,000 for his career.

After averaging 18.1 points a year ago, Sullivan is averaging more than 20 points this season.

To close the regular season undefeated, Upper Arlington must beat a Dublin Coffman team which it edged 53-52 on Jan. 14. Sullivan scored 29 points and senior post player Wes Richter added 16 points in that matchup.

The Shamrocks are 15-3 overall and 12-1 in the OCC-Central and are looking to share the conference title with the Bears.

"Like (Casey) said, we really don't want to share (the league title) with anybody, especially Coffman, who we all consider our main rival," Richter said. "We want to win on Friday so that we get the title outright."



MaxPreps Ohio boys basketball Freeman Rankings

NORTON GIRLS UPSET RAVENNA
The Ravenna girls were handed their first loss Monday night when they fell to Norton 58-47 in a Portage Trail Conference-Metro Division game.

The Ravens, who are the state's second-ranked team in Division II, were held to 19 first-half points and fell behind by as many as 20 during the second half as they slipped to 18-1. Norton received 15 points from Jaclyn Fortner and 13 from Alyssa Kraus as it improved to 14-5.

MaxPreps Ohio girls basketball Freeman Rankings

JOHN HAY BOYS WIN TITLE FOR FIRST TIME SINCE 1993
The John Hay (Cleveland) boys basketball team beat Glenville (Cleveland) 68-57 last Saturday to win its first Senate League title since 1993 and just its fourth in 74 years.

Chaz Rollins finished with 25 points, including 15 in the second half.

"This is the first Senate championship in any sport since the school reopened (in 2006)," John Hay coach Christopher Sanders told the Cleveland Plain Dealer. "Hopefully this is the start of something."

MEDINA, FAIRPORT HARDING SEEK FOOTBALL COACHES
Medina and Harding (Fairport Harbor) each had their football coaches recently resign, according to the Plain Dealer.



Larry Laird led Medina to a 9-3 record in his first season last fall after the Bees went 4-6 in 2009.

"With the financial problems the school district is faced with, there was a very good chance I wouldn't have been able to get a teaching position for the 2011-12 school year," Laird told the Plain Dealer.

John Lipps has stepped down as Fairport Harding coach after his teams won 12 games in six seasons.

CLYDE GIRLS BLAST MILLBURY LAKE
In a matchup of state-ranked teams, Clyde beat Lake (Millbury) 63-44 on Monday. Clyde, which was No. 4 in the Division II state poll, received 20 points from Spencer Robles and 16 points and nine rebounds from Amanda Cahill as it improved to 19-0. Lake, the state's No. 4-ranked team in Division III, had a 61-game regular-season winning streak snapped and fell to 18-1.

Continue reading{PAGEBREAK}TOP PERFORMERS
* Lauren Langenderfer, Evergreen (Metamora) girls basketball: Langenderfer finished with 22 points, including 14 during the second half, to lead the Evergreen past Ottawa Hills (Toledo) 61-50 last Monday. The Vikings improved to 17-2 while handing the Green Bears (17-1) their first loss this season.

* Ian Robertson, University School (Hunting Valley) hockey: Robertson scored both goals for University School during a 2-1 victory over Lake Catholic (Mentor) in the Baron Cup I championship game last Sunday in Brooklyn.

* Raven Ferguson, Africentric girls basketball: The Africentric Early College (Columbus) girls basketball team won its fifth Columbus City League championship in six years last Saturday by beating Northland (Columbus) 60-52 as senior Ferguson finished with 22 points, nine rebounds, three blocked shots and two steals.



COMING THIS WEEK
* Northland (Columbus) vs. Walnut Ridge (Columbus), boys basketball: The Northland boys basketball team will face Walnut Ridge (Columbus) for the Columbus City League championship at 12:30 p.m. Saturday at East (Columbus). The Vikings have won four consecutive City titles and are ranked third in the state in Division I. They are 18-1. The Scots are 16-3 and will be making their first appearance in the conference championship game.

* Garfield Heights vs. Brunswick, boys basketball: The Garfield Heights boys basketball team, which is ranked sixth in the Division I state poll and won its first 17 games, will face Brunswick in a Northeast Ohio-Valley league game. During the first round of conference play, Garfield Heights beat Brunswick 84-68 on Jan. 14.

* Firestone (Akron) vs. Boardman (Youngstown), girls basketball: The Firestone (Akron) girls basketball team will look to complete a perfect regular season when it travels to Boardman (Youngstown) on Thursday. Firestone was ranked sixth in last week's Division I state poll.

RECRUITING NEWS
Strongsville seniors Matt Bianco (RB), Ryan Aske (WR/DB) and Zach Sedivy (LB) will be signing letters of intent next week with Football Championship Subdivision schools, according to the Plain Dealer. Biano and Aske are expected to sign with Dayton and Sedivy will sign with Butler. Dayton and Butler both play in the Pioneer Football League. … Buchtel (Akron) strong safety Darren McGinnis from the 2012 recruiting class has received a scholarship offer from Indiana according to various outlets including ScoutingOhio.com. Also according to the Web site, Indiana has offered scholarships to Jarrod Wilson of Buchtel and Demetrious Davis and Chris Davis from Austintown-Fitch (Youngstown). ScoutingOhio also reports that Cleveland Heights junior offensive lineman Kyle Dodson received a scholarship offer from North Carolina State. He previously received offers from Illinois, Michigan State and West Virginia as well.

BRIEFLY
The postseason got underway last Saturday with various Division I and II sectional swimming meets throughout the state. Wrestling will begin its postseason Saturday at the sectional level, and girls basketball begins its various district tournaments this week. … Marion-Franklin (Columbus) won its fourth consecutive City League wrestling championship last Saturday at South (Columbus). The Red Devils had two individual champions and finished with 202 points to win the 16-team tournament. … Bishop Ready (Columbus) won its first Central Catholic League title since the mid-1990s last Saturday at Bishop Watterson (Columbus). The Silver Knights had six individuals, including four freshmen, win titles as they scored 256.5 points to win the five-team meet.

Jarrod Ulrey covers Central and Northern Ohio for MaxPreps.com. He covers prep sports for ThisWeekSPORTS.com and can be reached at julrey@thisweeknews.com.