OHSAA Division III boys basketball: Harvest Prep's run ends in lopsided state semi loss
Dave Purpura
DAYTON — The size differential between his team and Cleveland Heights Lutheran East was Harvest Prep boys basketball coach David Dennis Sr.’s biggest concern entering Saturday’s Division III state semifinal.
That played out repeatedly during the Warriors’ 65-44 loss at University of Dayton Arena, and it did not help that Harvest Prep was without its tallest player and leading scorer in senior forward Nyelle Shaheed.
Lutheran East wreaked havoc with a front line of 6-foot-7 freshman T.J. Crumble and 6-9 junior Jesse McCulloch. The tandem combined for 34 points and 20 rebounds, and Crumble — who finished with a game-high 23 points and eight rebounds — kick-started a decisive second-quarter run by scoring 12 points in the period.
The Falcons (21-5) used runs of 11-0 to close the first half and 10-2 run in the third quarter to advance to Sunday’s state final against Ottawa-Glandorf (25-3). They held Harvest Prep (21-7) to one field goal in a stretch of 18:09 from early in the second quarter to midway through the fourth, outscoring the Warriors 44-11.
Harvest Prep, which was making its first state appearance since 2019 and seventh overall, played without the 6-5 Shaheed, their only four-year starter and leading scorer at 15.9 points per game, for what Dennis called “personal reasons.”
Dennis said he learned Thursday that Shaheed would not play. Junior guard/forward Alan Chiles, who is 6-3, made his first start of the season in Shaheed’s place.
Shaheed, who also averaged 6.3 rebounds, 2.0 steals and 1.6 assists, was on the floor with his teammates during pregame warmups but wore slippers instead of basketball shoes.
Sophomore guard Brandon Roddy’s 17 points led Harvest Prep, which was outrebounded 38-13 and, after making seven of 11 shots in the first quarter, connected on only two of its next 21 spanning the middle periods and eight of 31 for the game.
Roddy took Harvest Prep on his back at the start, scoring the team’s first 10 points to stake the Warriors to a seven-point lead.
“The ball was going in the hole for me so I kept attacking and it kept falling,” Roddy said. “My teammates were behind me. They were also doing their parts.”
Harvest Prep made only one of 12 shots in the second, coinciding with the span in which Lutheran East began to establish dominance inside.
Crumble scored 12 points in the quarter, including layups on three consecutive possessions just before the half. A McCulloch layup made it 29-20 at halftime.
“They were small and scrappy and we played into their style of play by taking more jump shots,” Falcons coach Sam Liggins said. “We started taking our time, throwing it inside and getting more easy baskets.”
Zyaun Hutson finished with 11 points for Harvest Prep.
Cody Head added 13 points and four assists for Lutheran East.