OHIO TEAMS WIN 4 OF 5 GAMES AGAINST KENTUCKY OPPONENTS

2012-01-15T18:45:00.000-08:00

Ohio high school basketball teams won four of five games against their Kentucky opponents during the 2012 Bluegrass-Buckeye Charity Classic that was played Saturday, Jan. 14 at two local high schools.

Proceeds from the games will be donated to the Ruth Lyons Children's Fund, Neediest Kids of All and Chicks-n-Chucks, a breast cancer awareness organization. Our sincere thanks to all of the teams who participated in this worthwhile event and the fans who came out and supported it.

Here is a rundown of the BBCC games:

COLERAIN 68, COVINGTON CATHOLIC 60 (overtime)

Colerain let a 13-point lead slip away in the second half, but the Cardinals made eight of 10 free throws in overtime to come away with the victory.

Colerain junior guard Milton Davis made four free throws in overtime and finished with a game-high 23 points. CovCath's leading scorers were junior guard Nick Fredrick with 18 points and sophomore guard Nick Ruthsatz with 16.

With less than two seconds left in the fourth quarter, CovCath senior Ryan Hayden scored off an inbounds pass to tie the score at 58-58 and send the game into overtime.

DIXIE HEIGHTS 66, LAKOTA WEST 61

Sophomore guard Brandon Hatton made five throws with 1.3 seconds left to give Dixie Heights the lone victory for Kentucky teams in the classic.

Hatton was fouled while attempting a three-point shot. He made three free throws as a result of that penalty and made two more because a technical foul was called against Lakota West coach Sean Van Winkle for protesting the first call.

Hatton got 14 of his game-high 25 points at the free throw line. He has been a double-figure scorer in each of Dixie's games this season. Lakota West's leading scorers were junior guards Monty Boykins (20 points) and Ali Barnes (17 points).

FINNEYTOWN 75, CONNER 57

Finneytown took a 36-23 lead in the second quarter even though senior team leader Demarco Hunter was on the bench with three fouls. The Wildcats extended the margin to 58-37 in the third quarter and coasted to the victory.

Finneytown junior guard Bradley Nelms scored 12 of his 15 points during the first half to help his team take an early lead. He shared game-high honors with Conner senior guard Carter Byrns, who got 10 of his 15 points in the fourth quarter.

OAK HILLS 37 RYLE 34

Oak Hills senior forward Jack Pflum scored his team's last six points to seal the victory in the low-scoring game.

Ryle took a 16-4 lead in the first quarter, but the Raiders had a hard time putting the ball in the basket after that opening surge. Oak Hills came charging back in the second quarter and took a 23-21 lead on a driving basket by Pflum just before the half ended.

Pflum and teammate Mitch Richmond each scored 14 points and accounted for nine of Oak Hills' 11 field goals. Ryle's leading scorer was Tate Mullins with 10 points.

LaSALLE 69 CHRISTIAN COUNTY 35

LaSalle controlled the game with its aggressive defense that forced 32 turnovers and set up numerous fast-break scoring opportunities.

The Cardinals ended up scoring 35 points off turnovers with most coming in the first half when they took a 45-17 lead. The defending Ohio Division I state champs also did a good job on the offensive boards, getting a total of 18 second-chance points.

LaSalle senior guard Josh Lemons finished with 14 points, 10 rebounds, five steals and two assists. Christian County's top scorer was Cj Cotton with 10 points, but he also had a team-high five turnovers for the defending Kentucky state champs.

LAST YEAR'S CLASSIC DONATED $10,000 TO LOCAL CHARITIES

2011-02-05T12:25:00.000-08:00

High school basketball teams that participated in the 2010 Bluegrass-Buckeye Charity Holiday Classic raised $10,000 for local charities.

Organizers of the classic made the check presentation on Feb. 1 at Oak Hills High School. The money went to the Ruth Lyons Children’s Fund, Neediest Kids of All, WSNS Academy and Chicks-n-Chucks, a breast cancer awareness organization.

In its nine-year history, the Bluegrass-Buckeye Charity Holiday Classic has donated more than $98,000 to local charities.

Oak Hills was one of 10 boys' high school basketball teams from Ohio and Kentucky that played games in the ninth annual classic last December at Northern Kentucky University's Bank of Kentucky Center.

The other Ohio teams were Colerain, Aiken, Princeton and St. Xavier. The Kentucky teams were Dixie Heights, Ryle, Covington Catholic, Mason County and Holmes.

The photo above was taken during the check presentation on Feb. 1. Pictured from left to right are Dick Murgatroyd (BBCHC board member), JJ Wales (Executive Director for Neediest Kids of All), Sheree Paolello (TV5 News Anchor representing Ruth Lyons Children's Fund), Dwight Malloy (WSNS Academy) and Bob Griffin (BBCHC board member).