“I’m very proud of the kids and I’m very proud of the program to win it in my second season here,” Brian Smith said. “I’m very proud of these seniors. They’ve had a tremendous career here, a lot of wins at Kenton Ridge. Now we’ve got to get ready for the tournament.”
Kenton Ridge seniors Ckai and Canye Rogan each scored 15 points on Senior Night as the Cougars improved to 17-5 and 8-2 in the Kenton Trail Division. Urbana beat Jonathan Alder 61-52 to improve to 13-8 and 8-2 in the division, earning a share of the title.
“It’s good to get it off our chest,” said Cougars senior Braden Smith. “It has been our goal since the beginning of the year. We saw it in the banners all year that we hadn’t won since 2009 and that was our one goal.”
Sophomore Chase Stafford had 18 points and senior Noah Cassell added 10 as Tecumseh finished the regular season 5-17.
“Our effort has been good for the most part throughout the course of the season,” said Tecumseh coach Kyle Leathley. “It’s not always easy, but our goal has been to improve daily. I think for the most part you take steps forward and you take a couple back, but you go out and compete every game. Even though our record hasn’t been great, our kids have played hard.”
The Cougars jumped out to a 14-2 lead thanks to three 3-pointers by Canye Rogan and another by senior Logan Fyffe. Tecumseh followed with a 7-0 run capped by a 3-pointer by Stafford.
The Arrows cut the lead to one point at 18-17 after back-to-back 3-pointers by Tecumseh senior DJ Wehener. A 9-3 gave the Cougars a 27-20 lead, but a buzzer beater by Stafford made it 27-22 at the half.
Kenton Ridge pulled away in the third quarter, outscoring Tecumseh 12-7 to increase their lead to 39-29 on a layup by senior Tyrinn Robinson.
The Arrows cut the lead to six points early in the fourth quarter but wouldn’t get any closer.
It was the final home game for the Cougars six seniors — Bryce Smith, Braden Smith, Ckai Rogan, Canye Rogan, Fyffe and Robinson.
“I can’t say enough about my seniors,” Brian Smith said. “They played so well. All week they said they just refused to lose. They bought in and just refused to lose and at the end of the game, you could see it. They weren’t going to lose.”
After the game, the Cougars cut down the net and it was the first time for many of them.
“There was coaching to do and we’re happy we had to teach them,” Brian Smith said. “During the week, they kept asking me if we could cut down the net and I had to turn their focus to just winning the game.”
The victory was even more special for the seniors as they played in front of their home crowd one last time.
“It’s the best way to walk out,” Braden Smith said. “I know the roads weren’t the best, so for people to come out and support, it was awesome and for the people who couldn’t make it and were watching at home, we appreciate them. It means a lot to us.”
“I’m so happy for them and so happy for the program,” Brian Smith said. “We opened a new gym and were able to win a league title here for the first time in 15 years. It was a good way to start it.”
Kenton Ridge will now set its sights on its next goal — advancing to the Division II district tournament at UD Arena. The Cougars (17-5) will play Bellbrook (11-10) at 5:30 p.m. Monday, Feb. 26, in a first-round game at Trotwood-Madison. Kenton Ridge beat Bellbrook 74-67 on Jan. 13.
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