SCOL history: John Denen voted Player of the Year
By
Bob Patton-
Continued from last week.)
Probably the game of the year in the SCOL was played at Miami Trace Feb. 9, 1977, when county rival Washington C.H. visited. In a wild and woolly catfight, the Lions outlasted the Panthers, 71-68.
Schlichter and Denen each racked up 23 points, but Denen added 16 rebounds, which sealed MT’s fate. The win for WCH kept them in the hunt for the SCOL title, with a 6-1 league mark. The loss left MT at 3-4 in the league, and effectively ended Coach John Woolums’ tenure at Miami Trace.
Hillsboro got their second league win by downing Madison Plains, 71-56, as the Indians had four men in double figures. The Golden Eagles were in a severe slump. Later in the week, the Indians traveled to Washington for an important league match-up with the Blue Lions. This game was critical to Coach Gary Shaffer, as his team trailed the league leaders by only a half game. After a torrid battle, the Blue Lions came out on top when a last second shot by Hillsboro’s Gary Coffman rimmed out at the buzzer, giving the
home team a 53-51 win.
On Saturday, Feb. 12, the Blue Lions played Madison Plains at MP. This figured to be a breather for the Blue Lions. But somebody forgot to tell Madison Plains. The Eagles put up a terrific battle, but the Blue Lions escaped with a 67-66 win. At Miami Trace, the same night, Art Schlichter scored 25 points and teammate Bill Hanners added 20 and the Panthers took the measure of the Hillsboro Indians, 76-63. Tim Fuller’s 20 points was Hillsboro’s best.
The final week of the season (which had been extended a week) saw Miami Trace bury McClain at Greenfield, 90-60, behind Schlichter’s 26 points. Also, Washington played at Circleville and put the hurt on the red and black, 79-60, with four men in double figures; while Wilmington crushed Madison Plains, 57-33, and Hillsboro lost a non-league game to Cincinnati Turpin, 67-66. On the final playing date, Washington beat McClain, 81-66, Wilmington, playing at home, fought off a determined Miami Trace squad, 70-65.
The final SCOL game was played after the tournaments began. Circleville bested Miami Trace, 71-69, in double overtime, with Schlichter scoring 25 for Miami Trace and Bensonhaver 25 for Circleville. Schlichter took the individual scoring title in league games (22.1 ppg) and also overall (23.8 ppg) with Hillsboro’s Fuller coming in second in the SCOL race and Denen of WCH second overall.
As sectional tournaments got under way, Miami Trace met talented Portsmouth at Athens. MT’s won/lost record was not that impressive, especially against AAA competition. Most of the “experts” were taking Portsmouth. But Schlichter (20), Glass (19) and Hanners (18) combined to rack up 57 points and the Panthers won the game 73-68.
The Panthers would meet tough Logan on the Ohio University floor in five days. Washington drilled Vinton County by 20 points in the Paint Valley Sectional as Denen hit for 21 points. They would square off against Greenfield McClain next. Circleville clipped Bishop Ready, of Columbus, in their first-round sectional game by a score of 52 – 44. McClain’s Tigers came into their tournament game against Washington with high hopes of an upset, but committed an unbelievable 40 turnovers, and the Blue Lions waltzed to an easy 76-40 win. They would face Waverly in the championship game.
Waverly had reached the finals by virtue of a 70-62 decision over Hillsboro. But they were no match for the Blue Lions, who jumped out to a 16-4 first quarter lead and romped to an 82-54 win.
The Lions would advance to the district tournament at Athens where they would battle Nelsonville York.
Surprising Circleville defeated London to win the Teays Valley Sectional Tournament championship and advance to the district tournament at Columbus, where they would meet Columbus Mifflin. But most of the SCOL teams had important league games to make up because of all the cancellations during the season. Circleville was scheduled to meet Wilmington, at Circleville the night before their district tournament contest with Mifflin.
Coach Jim Bailey made a crucial decision, which caused widespread controversy. He started an all-senior lineup against Wilmington and rested his normal starters. The normal starters did play. But they played only half of the game, or less. He knew that Mifflin would be a tough test for the Tigers at best. If his players were worn out from a rugged battle the night before, they would have little chance, he reasoned.
But some thought Circleville was capable of upsetting the Hurricane under the right conditions. And Washington had only lost one league game. Wilmington trounced the all-senior Circleville Tigers, 64-45, and won the SCOL title with a perfect 12-0 mark. To make matters worse, the Tigers lost to Mifflin the following night, 53-42, to end their season.
Bailey was widely criticized for his decision. The next day, he stepped down as coach of the Circleville team. Bailey had a fine 35-10 record at Circleville. His 1975-76 team captured the SCOL basketball championship and went all the way to the regional finals, where they were defeated by Dayton Roth, who won the state championship. This year’s team finished 13-8 in what most people considered a rebuilding year.
Wilmington was defeated in tournament play, after a memorable season, by Dayton Colonel White. Both Washington C.H. and Miami Trace bowed out of tournament play the same night, as MT dropped a tough 81-77 game to Cambridge at Marietta College with Gifford scoring 19 points and Schlichter and Hanners 17 each.
In the Convocation Center in Athens, Nelsonville York was outscored by WCH, 58-44, from the field. But they outscored the Blue Lions, 20-2, from the free throw line and took a 64-60 win.
When the SCOL coaches met to select the 1976-77 All-SCOL basketball squad, Washington’s John Denen was named “Player of the Year.” Joining him on the first team were Gary Williams of Wilmington, Tim Fuller of Hillsboro, Art Schlichter of Miami Trace, Tony Berlin of Wilmington and Eric Dunson of McClain. All were seniors except Schlichter, a junior. Frank Merrill and Brent Wright, both of Circleville were named to the All-SCOL second team, along with Dan Gifford of Miami Trace, Dee Foster of Washington and Doug Sifrit of Madison Plains. All were seniors.
Later, John Denen was named Southeast District “Player of the Year,” and Tim Fuller was named to the Southeast District All-Star Team. In AAA, Art Schlichter was named to the Southeast District All-Star first team, and teammate Dan Gifford to the second team.
Bob Patton is a Highland County sports historian and a contributing writer to The Highland County Press.[[In-content Ad]]
Probably the game of the year in the SCOL was played at Miami Trace Feb. 9, 1977, when county rival Washington C.H. visited. In a wild and woolly catfight, the Lions outlasted the Panthers, 71-68.
Schlichter and Denen each racked up 23 points, but Denen added 16 rebounds, which sealed MT’s fate. The win for WCH kept them in the hunt for the SCOL title, with a 6-1 league mark. The loss left MT at 3-4 in the league, and effectively ended Coach John Woolums’ tenure at Miami Trace.
Hillsboro got their second league win by downing Madison Plains, 71-56, as the Indians had four men in double figures. The Golden Eagles were in a severe slump. Later in the week, the Indians traveled to Washington for an important league match-up with the Blue Lions. This game was critical to Coach Gary Shaffer, as his team trailed the league leaders by only a half game. After a torrid battle, the Blue Lions came out on top when a last second shot by Hillsboro’s Gary Coffman rimmed out at the buzzer, giving the
home team a 53-51 win.
On Saturday, Feb. 12, the Blue Lions played Madison Plains at MP. This figured to be a breather for the Blue Lions. But somebody forgot to tell Madison Plains. The Eagles put up a terrific battle, but the Blue Lions escaped with a 67-66 win. At Miami Trace, the same night, Art Schlichter scored 25 points and teammate Bill Hanners added 20 and the Panthers took the measure of the Hillsboro Indians, 76-63. Tim Fuller’s 20 points was Hillsboro’s best.
The final week of the season (which had been extended a week) saw Miami Trace bury McClain at Greenfield, 90-60, behind Schlichter’s 26 points. Also, Washington played at Circleville and put the hurt on the red and black, 79-60, with four men in double figures; while Wilmington crushed Madison Plains, 57-33, and Hillsboro lost a non-league game to Cincinnati Turpin, 67-66. On the final playing date, Washington beat McClain, 81-66, Wilmington, playing at home, fought off a determined Miami Trace squad, 70-65.
The final SCOL game was played after the tournaments began. Circleville bested Miami Trace, 71-69, in double overtime, with Schlichter scoring 25 for Miami Trace and Bensonhaver 25 for Circleville. Schlichter took the individual scoring title in league games (22.1 ppg) and also overall (23.8 ppg) with Hillsboro’s Fuller coming in second in the SCOL race and Denen of WCH second overall.
As sectional tournaments got under way, Miami Trace met talented Portsmouth at Athens. MT’s won/lost record was not that impressive, especially against AAA competition. Most of the “experts” were taking Portsmouth. But Schlichter (20), Glass (19) and Hanners (18) combined to rack up 57 points and the Panthers won the game 73-68.
The Panthers would meet tough Logan on the Ohio University floor in five days. Washington drilled Vinton County by 20 points in the Paint Valley Sectional as Denen hit for 21 points. They would square off against Greenfield McClain next. Circleville clipped Bishop Ready, of Columbus, in their first-round sectional game by a score of 52 – 44. McClain’s Tigers came into their tournament game against Washington with high hopes of an upset, but committed an unbelievable 40 turnovers, and the Blue Lions waltzed to an easy 76-40 win. They would face Waverly in the championship game.
Waverly had reached the finals by virtue of a 70-62 decision over Hillsboro. But they were no match for the Blue Lions, who jumped out to a 16-4 first quarter lead and romped to an 82-54 win.
The Lions would advance to the district tournament at Athens where they would battle Nelsonville York.
Surprising Circleville defeated London to win the Teays Valley Sectional Tournament championship and advance to the district tournament at Columbus, where they would meet Columbus Mifflin. But most of the SCOL teams had important league games to make up because of all the cancellations during the season. Circleville was scheduled to meet Wilmington, at Circleville the night before their district tournament contest with Mifflin.
Coach Jim Bailey made a crucial decision, which caused widespread controversy. He started an all-senior lineup against Wilmington and rested his normal starters. The normal starters did play. But they played only half of the game, or less. He knew that Mifflin would be a tough test for the Tigers at best. If his players were worn out from a rugged battle the night before, they would have little chance, he reasoned.
But some thought Circleville was capable of upsetting the Hurricane under the right conditions. And Washington had only lost one league game. Wilmington trounced the all-senior Circleville Tigers, 64-45, and won the SCOL title with a perfect 12-0 mark. To make matters worse, the Tigers lost to Mifflin the following night, 53-42, to end their season.
Bailey was widely criticized for his decision. The next day, he stepped down as coach of the Circleville team. Bailey had a fine 35-10 record at Circleville. His 1975-76 team captured the SCOL basketball championship and went all the way to the regional finals, where they were defeated by Dayton Roth, who won the state championship. This year’s team finished 13-8 in what most people considered a rebuilding year.
Wilmington was defeated in tournament play, after a memorable season, by Dayton Colonel White. Both Washington C.H. and Miami Trace bowed out of tournament play the same night, as MT dropped a tough 81-77 game to Cambridge at Marietta College with Gifford scoring 19 points and Schlichter and Hanners 17 each.
In the Convocation Center in Athens, Nelsonville York was outscored by WCH, 58-44, from the field. But they outscored the Blue Lions, 20-2, from the free throw line and took a 64-60 win.
When the SCOL coaches met to select the 1976-77 All-SCOL basketball squad, Washington’s John Denen was named “Player of the Year.” Joining him on the first team were Gary Williams of Wilmington, Tim Fuller of Hillsboro, Art Schlichter of Miami Trace, Tony Berlin of Wilmington and Eric Dunson of McClain. All were seniors except Schlichter, a junior. Frank Merrill and Brent Wright, both of Circleville were named to the All-SCOL second team, along with Dan Gifford of Miami Trace, Dee Foster of Washington and Doug Sifrit of Madison Plains. All were seniors.
Later, John Denen was named Southeast District “Player of the Year,” and Tim Fuller was named to the Southeast District All-Star Team. In AAA, Art Schlichter was named to the Southeast District All-Star first team, and teammate Dan Gifford to the second team.
Bob Patton is a Highland County sports historian and a contributing writer to The Highland County Press.[[In-content Ad]]