Taft boys basketball ends revenge tour with OHSAA Division III title
DAYTON – Sunday morning postseason parishioners gathered at the University of Dayton Arena for a 10:45 a.m. service. The offering was Taft High School and Ottawa-Glandorf, two Division III semifinalists from a year ago.
The two teams delivered messages with six lead changes, then Eian Elmer slammed the sermon home for a late six-point lead. Mekhi Elmore’s driving layup was Taft’s final score at 2:09 and the Senators hung on for the Hallelujah chorus with a 48-45 victory and a Division III state championship.
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Coach Demarco Bradley raised his hands to the sky and just after noon, the basketball benediction ended the mid-morning celebration. For the first time in 11 years, the Senators are Ohio basketball champs.
“I can’t even describe it!” Bradley said still with his arms in the air as Taft fans erupted in joy.
Elmore led Taft in his final high school game with 18 points, four assists and a series of clutch moves to the hole. Many felt he took over the game.
“For sure, I had to,” Elmore said. “I had to control the team and just lead.”
Southwest District Division III Player of the Year Rayvon Griffith had 12 points and five rebounds but fouled out with 1:22 remaining, having to watch the rest from the bench. That left Elmore and senior Brandon Cromer as the veterans on the floor. The 6-foot-7-inch Griffith, who coined the 2022 season “The Revenge Tour,” was ecstatic his teammates held on for the state shining moment.
“Everybody doubted us at first, but we’re here and we did it!” Griffith said. “We all said ‘Revenge Tour’ and that’s what we came out and did!”
Freshman 6-foot-8-inch Kieran Granville-Britten had eight points and six rebounds for the Senators and junior Elmer fought foul trouble to collect seven rebounds and six crucial second-half points.
“My teammates believed in me so I gave them all I have,” Elmer said.
The current group of Taft Senators were either preschoolers or just beginning their elementary education when the Senators took home the state trophy in 2011.
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Mark Mitchell was the coach and that team featured future college football standouts Adolphus Washington Jr. (Ohio State) and Dwayne Stanford (Oregon). Demarco Bradley was an assistant on that team.
Bradley was also part of a state title team with Woodward in 1988 under coach Larry Miller and assistant Jim Leon (now head coach at Lakota West). In college, he was a student manager at Wichita State. He has paid his dues.
Now, a banner will be hung in Taft’s gym adjacent to their last state championship photo.
“That means the world to me right now,” Bradley said. “It’s the greatest feeling that there is, that you’ve done it on your own. It feels great.”
Added Griffith, “Every time we go out to practice, we looked at those guys up on the wall and said, ‘We’re going to do that this year!’ There was no doubt in our mind that we were going to do it.”
Taft’s last loss was Feb. 5 to Cincinnati Metro Athletic Conference Red Division champion Woodward who is in Division II. They outshot the Titans 46.7% to 35.6%. They ended the season on a nine-game win streak to finish 19-8.
Ottawa-Glandorf finishes 25-3 with their first loss in 16 games. The Titans were led by sophomore Colin White with 18 points, their only player in double figures.
After a quarter, Taft was outshooting the Titans 41% to 15% but only led by two. Ottawa-Glandorf was outrebounding the Senators as starter Elmer had to leave with two quick fouls.
The Titans would go on a 9-0 run to lead 17-10 before Elmore stopped the bleeding with 4:35 left in the half. The Titans went up seven again but the Senators answered with a 7-0 run. Elmore’s 3-pointer late gave the Senators a six-point lead at the half.
By the third, it was all tied at 38 on Elmer’s jumper, leading to the frantic fourth.
With a two-point lead, Elmore and Elmer scored back-to-back to open a 46-40 lead. But, Carson Fuka answered with a trey. Elmore added a layin but the Senators wouldn’t score in the game’s final two minutes. Ottawa-Glandorf would get a final possession, but White’s corner 3-point attempt went high off the glass. The floor immediately erupted.
Cincinnati mayor Aftab Pureval joined Taft at midcourt as part of the post-game presentation.
“This is so exciting,” Pureval said. “Frankly it’s consistent with all of the success Cincinnati has had. They’re bringing back a championship to the championship city. (I) couldn’t be prouder of them.”
OTTAWA-GLANDORF 8 15 15 7 45
TAFT 10 17 11 10 48
OG Schimmoeller 1 0 2 Kuhlman 1 0 2 Schmenk 3 1 8 White 6 6 18 Maag 2 1 5 Fuka 1 0 3 Stecheschutte 2 0 5 Erford 0 2 2
T Cromer 2 0 4 Griffith 5 0 12 Elmore 8 0 18 Elmer 3 0 6 Granville-Britten 3 2 8
Read More: Taft boys basketball ends revenge tour with OHSAA Division III title