Cedarville has won three conference titles since joining the OHC in 2001. This season’s title is the second conference championship during Indians coach Ryan Godlove’s 13-year stint in Cedarville.
Cedarville has won 16 or more games each of the past five seasons, including four straight 20-win seasons from 2019 through 2023. However, the OHC South has been super competitive with several district qualifiers over the last five seasons, meaning each conference championship is worth celebrating, he said.
“The OHC is a really competitive league,” Godlove said. “I feel like any time you can win a league title it’s a big deal. We’ve got a big group of seniors. They’ve been dedicated to the program for the last four years, as well as the two sophomores who have contributed valuable minutes for us this season. It’s rewarding for them to see their hard work and dedication pay off with a league title.”
In the OHC, each league game counts, including the crossover games with the North Division. The Indians two losses came at the hands of OHC North co-champions West Jefferson and Fairbanks by a total of six points.
“It’s definitely a challenge,” Godlove said. “I think it’s valuable, especially this time of the year when you’re getting into tournament time. With the teams in our conference, you always feel like you’ve been well-tested because it’s so competitive. The fact that the North games count puts pressure on you and helps you get ready for tournament time, playing challenging teams and games that matter. It’s tough.”
The Indians are led by seven seniors, including point guard Tyler Cross, wing Brayden Criswell and post player Mason Johnson.
Cross leads the OHC in assists at 7.0 per game and is also averaging 12.7 points and 2.2 steals per game. He’s also one of the top shooters in the OHC, shooting 30.7 percent from the 3-point line.
“He’s valuable in his ability to see the floor and he takes pride in being able to create opportunities for his teammates and he’s unique in that for being such a talented offensive player,” Godlove said. “He loves seeing his teammates score and setting them up. That’s what makes him so special.”
Johnson leads the team in scoring at 14.9 points per and leads the entire conference in rebounding (9.5 rpg) and field goal percentage (59.6 percent).
“We’ve been super impressed with how he’s grown from last year to this year,” Godlove said. “The improvement that he’s made and his ability to finish inside and be an inside presence for us has been huge.”
Criswell is averaging 14.6 points and 7.3 rebounds per game. He also ranks among the top shooters in the OHC, hitting 32.5 percent of his 3-point attempts.
“He’s a tough matchup for anyone,” Godlove said. “This year, we’ve been impressed with his ability to move from just being a 3-point shooter to also being able to score inside. Sometimes that’s off the dribble and sometimes that’s in the post and other times he’s spreading the floor with his ability to shoot outside. When you’re 6-4, 6-5 and you can spread the floor like that, I think it makes him a tough matchup for anybody.”
The Indians will now turn their attention to the postseason. They earned the No. 3 seed in the Division IV Southwest North district and will play No. 24 Fairlawn (2-19) in the North 1 upper bracket at 6 p.m. Feb. 22 at Piqua High School. With a win, the Indians would advance to play No. 25 Mississinawa Valley at 6 p.m. Feb. 27 at Piqua.
Cedarville faces a possible district semifinal matchup against No. 2 seed Troy Christian, which beat the Indians 69-48 on Feb. 6. During the tournament draw, the Eagles passed and later chose to place themselves on the opposite side of Cedarville’s bracket.
“They’ve played a tough schedule and are having a really great season,” Godlove said. “We’re just taking it one game at a time because we don’t want to overlook anyone. We have one more regular season and two tournament games before we would have the opportunity to play them. We’d love the opportunity for a rematch.”
The key to their success this season has been the players fully buying into the program, Godlove said.
“(The seniors) feed off each other and they get excited for each other,” he said. “That’s been big for us. Guys are buying into their roles.”
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