King James

SVSM takes third state title behind prep superstar

James' 25 points helped his team survive its toughest test of the year. AP

COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) -- Before his final high school game tipped off, LeBron James walked slowly toward the Akron Saint Vincent-Saint Mary student section holding his finger in the air to signal "No. 1."

Whether he was referring to himself or his team doesn't matter. Both are correct.

James, likely to be the top pick in this year's NBA draft, scored 25 points and had 11 rebounds as the Fighting Irish (24-1) won their third state championship in four years by beating Kettering Alter 40-36 Saturday in Division II.

Doug Penno led the Knights (18-9) with 12 points and Eric Laumann had 11.

Alter had been beaten 73-40 by the Irish earlier this season. The Knights weren't about to let it happen again, slowing the game and refusing to let the Irish push the tempo.

It didn't matter. James was too spectacular and just too dominant when he needed to be. The only three-time Mr. Basketball in Ohio history was head-and-shoulders above everyone on the court and able to take control when needed.

James made a pair of free throws to give put the Irish up 31-25 with about five-and-a-half minutes left. The inbounds pass was tipped and James gathered it in and nailed a long 3-pointer to make it 34-25, holding the follow-through and again holding one finger in the air.

After Eric Laumann made a 3-pointer for Alter, James took the ball after a timeout, knifed through the defense and scored on a twisting layup.

It looked like it was over, but Alter wasn't done. They cut it to 40-36 with less than a minute to play on a three-point play by Adam Gill.

James then took the inbounds pass and threw it over Corey Jones' head and out of bounds. Alter missed a 3-pointer and Romeo Travis was fouled after pulling down the rebound. He missed the first shot of a one-and-one, but James got the rebound and passed to Dru Joyce III, who dribbled out the clock and threw the ball straight up.

The Irish opened the second half on a 11-2 run to take a 25-21 lead. The run included two beautiful blocked shots by James, one left-handed on a fast-break, and was capped by a 3-pointer by Corey Jones from the top of the key.

Alter came right back. They scored six straight points to tie it at 25 before Romeo Travis scored on a short jumper with about five seconds left in the third quarter to give SVSM a 27-25 lead.

The first quarter ended with SVSM holding an 8-6 lead as Alter slowed the game down, making multiple passes before each basket in an attempt to keep James and the high-octane Irish from running out for easy baskets.

It worked for the entire first half, which ended with Alter up 19-14. James had one breakaway early in the second quarter that he capped with a brutal two-handed slam, but the Irish had to earn the rest of their points in their halfcourt offense.

The Irish appeared confused at times in the first, as the Knights were patient, but attacked when they had openings. Alter scored 13 points in the second quarter while holding SVSM to six. James finished the first half with 12 of his team's 14 points.

The Irish shot 6-for-17 in the first half, while Alter, patiently moving the ball around the perimeter before taking an open shot, shot 8-for-16. Doug Penno had nine points in the half.

After James made 1 of 2 free throws to give the Irish a 14-12 lead with 3:30 to play, the Knights closed the half on a 7-0 run.

The game opened with SVSM's usual theatrics, as James slipped past his man, took a pass down low and threw down a two-handed dunk 19 seconds in, drawing cheers and gasps from the state-tournament record crowd of 18,454.

The game featured the first female referee in the history of the boys tournament, Marie Anthony of Columbus.

 

Related information

Stories

LeBron James Timeline LeBron leads team to berth in title game

Multimedia

Visit Video Plus for the latest audio and video