OTTAWA – The first annual Ottawa Glandorf Winter Classic kicked off with a bang on Saturday afternoon as the Ottoville Big Green and senior Josh Thorbahn put together a record smashing performance on the way to a 100-31 victory over Toledo Rogers.
Thorbahn, already committed to play collegiately at the University of Findlay showcased a wide array of jumper and showed off his slashing ability early and often against the Rams.
Ottoville’s first possession of the ballgame saw the 6’5 senior put his team on top with a lead they would never relinquish and then begin to add to his total with a pair of makes that helped up the lead to 9-2 and force the Rams to take a timeout.
Unfortunately for Rogers their offensive struggles would continue out of the timeout until a basket by Devin Morgan cut their deficit to 17-4 and ended a nearly six minute drought without a score.
Senior Jack Langhals buried a pair of three pointers in the opening stanza and joined Thorbahn in the scoring column as he himself connected on a pair of shots from deep on his way to 12 opening period points.
Trailing 27-6 to open the second stanza the Rams again found themselves staring at the scoreboard watching the Big Green point total raise as the duo of William Miller and Ryan Suever tossed in eight and joined Thorbahn’s point parade as he finished off the first two quarters of play with a game leading 29.
Rogers only make of the second came with 5:46 before the half on a shot that cut the lead to 34-9 and ended a second long drought with no scoring.
“For Will and Ryan and Josh it’s hard to guard three when they’re doing what they’re doing, they’ve figured out how to be complimentary and play off each other” said Ottoville boss Keith Utendorf on his teams performance in the first half.
Entering the second half of play Thorbahn continued his assault on the Big Green record books in an attempt to become the schools all-time leading scorer. Having already added an exclamation point to the frame with a fast break slam dunk in the first half, Thorbahn raced into the corner and snagged a pass from a teammate and knocked down a three pointer to break the mark set by former Ottoville standout Josh Vorst who had held the top spot since taking it over from Jerry Hoersten in 2006.
Leading 74-31 entering the final eight minutes Ottoville again turned to Thorbahn on the offensive and and watched as he broke another school record, this time the single game scoring mark held previously by Hoersten against Delphos Jefferson in 1968 of 43 points on a connected jumper that saw him finish off the three point play with a foul shot as well.
“At the half we knew he was in a pretty good rhythm and at that point you better just let him go, it was a pretty special night for him” said a proud Utendorf. “He and I have a pretty special relationship, he’s a special kid from a special family that I consider part of my own. For him to do it here and in this event is really gratifying for me as a coach, not for me but for him and for him to have a night like he had today with the adversity he’s faced means the world to me,” Utendorf said about Thorbahn’s performance.
Following a raucous round of applause from the limited spectators in attendance and a seat on the bench, Thorbahn’s teammate kicked their scoring into high gear in the final moments as a trio of three point goals from Kellen and Trae Schlagbaum found the bottom of the nets as did baskets by seniors Kyle Manns and Kaiden Trentman.
Ottoville reached the century mark for the ninth time in school history late in the contest on a basket by Caden Edelbrock to finish off a 100-31 victory and set the tone for a day of high caliber basketball in Ottawa.
“We tend to have some good starts, but we had so many guys really have good nights and we just hope that they can carry that confidence going forward” Utendorf remarked on the overall play of his team that saw 10 players score.
As a team the Big Green also broke a school record as they connected for a record 14 makes from beyond the arc.
Rogers (3-8) was led in scoring by the duo of Nate Houston and Jordan Kynard each with nine. Entering Saturday’s contest the duo combined for almost 30 points per contest. Next up for the Rams is a Monday evening tilt at Toledo Scott.
Thorbahn’s mark of 45 paced the Big Green (16-2) but was eclipsed by Shawnee’s George Mangas just a few hours later in a Shawnee victory that saw the reigning D2 Ohio Player of the Year erupt for 57.
Next up for Ottoville is a Friday night home contest against Lima Central Catholic and a trip to Leipsic on Saturday evening as both games can be heard live on WZOQ Radio
Scoring:
Ottoville (100):
William Miller 12
Trae Schlagbaum 5
Kyle Manns 3
Ryan Suever 7
Grant Kortokrax 8
Kellen Schlagbaum 19
Josh Thorbahn 10
Caden Edelbrock 2
Kaiden Trentman 2
Jack Langhals 8
FG: 39/52
3PT: 14/20 (Thorbahn 7, Miller 2, K. Schlagbaum 2, Langhals 2, T. Schlagbaum)
FT: 8/10
TO: 0
Rogers (31):
Nate Houston 9
Jordan Kynard 9
Jordan Brown 3
Pharrell House 1
Devin Morgan 4
Shawn Coleman 3
Josiah Holland 2
FG: 11/36
3PT: 5/12 (Houston 2, Kynard 2, Brown)
FT: 4/8
TO: 6