D-I Regional Boys Basketball: Elyria brings depth into today's final against St. Edward

ELYRIA — A little bit by accident, a little bit by design but one of Elyria's strengths going into today's regional final battle with St. Edward is its depth. "Playing eight, nine guys helps us," said coach Brett Larrick, who is in his 18th year. "The goal is for us to play and be fresh and I think (Wednesday) you could see where it kind of wore (Brunswick) down." Larrick knew coming into the season he had some veteran players. Kendyll Compton was coming off a nearly 400-point junior season, when he averaged nearly 17 points. Jermiah Daniels, coming back for his third year as a starter, averaged 7.3 points, had 39 steals and 112 assists a year ago, and Cam Bell has been on the varsity all four years. He averaged 8.3 points last year with 146 rebounds. The team graduated its all-time leading scorer in Jayden Crutcher (1,501 career points) and a dependable scorer, ballhandler and defender in Taylor Blanton, and a couple of good role players in Pierre Alston and Nic Rogers, who came back from an injury to play the final 10 games last year. When both Daniels and Tink Shelton were hurt earlier this season, Larrick had no problem calling on freshman Micha Jackson and junior Seth Wilkerson to fill the void, along with sophomore Ethan Rogers, younger brother of Nic and Christian. The surprise on last year's team may have been Christian Rogers, who was pressed into duty when Daniels was injured early in the season, and his older brother Nic was still rehabbing from an injury. Rogers didn't score much but he handled the ball, played exceptional defense and finished with 25 assists and 30 steals. He's back in that same role this season and relishing it. This year, he's had 46 assists, 18 steals and 39 rebounds. Christian had one of those 'wow' moments during the football season when he picked up a kickoff at the 1-yard line against Avon and ran it all the way back for a 99-yard score. "I was watching the film and (Avon) was kicking it into the end zone every time," he said. "This one stopped at the 1 and I was thinking 'this is the last football game I'm ever going to play in high school. Like, why not just pick it up and run?'" His name is in the OHSAA record book for a 99-yard kickoff return. His grandfather, Brian Rogers, played at Elyria from 1983-85. "We used to be at my grandpa's house all the time since he has a hoop set up cemented to the ground," said Christian. "He knew we wanted to be out there all the time. As soon as we got there, if there was food ready, we'd eat and then we go straight outside and go hoop. "I've always been faster, stronger than a lot of guards my size. I try to make them uncomfortable as best I can. I'd pick them up full-court and not let them get their offense set." His younger brother Ethan is in the same mold and also credits his grandfather. "My grandpa taught me a lot," said Ethan. "He's always telling me to keep my head up. I love him. He's the one that keeps me going. I'm gritty. I get the boards, I get some steals. I've got some offensive game, too. We go into every game with the same mentality, 'Why not us? Why not Elyria?'" Ethan's had 62 rebounds, 27 steals and a few crowd-pleasing dunks. Wilkerson has been a steady influence on the team. He can score, rebound, handle the ball and play defense. He's averaging just a shade under 10 points, but has had a couple when he led the team. He scored 22 in an early-season win at Cleveland Heights and he's had several others when he's scored in double figures. He's also had 70 rebounds, 37 steals and 27 assists. He's made 60 percent of his field-goal attempts. "I'll do whatever this team needs," he said. "Whether its rebounding, guarding the best player, like (Brunswick's Sean) Barnett, I felt like I did a good job on him. And doing anything the team needs, pretty much. "It was a team effort. Jerry (Jermiah Daniels) started on him then I came in. We all kept the pressure on him." Jackson joined the team from the beginning. His 3-point shooting ability made everyone notice but his defensive work and ballhandling have been just as important. He's had a couple games when he's contributed 16, 17 points. He's averaging eight per game. "At first, it was weird," said Jackson of being the new kid in school. "But I'm used to it. Wherever they need me, I'm going to be there. I play hard no matter what and get the job done. I had never come off the bench. As the season got on, I adapted to it and I know that's not where I'm going to be next year." Jackson nearly enrolled at St. Edward. "I'm very excited," he said. "Crazy story. I was supposed to go there and now we get a chance to avenge the last couple years when they beat us." Larrick was quick to praise his other seniors, Isaiah Hill, Mike Lawrence and Khalil Washington for their work. The three don't get a lot of playing time, but the coach says their work during practice has made everyone better. "We've got three seniors that are incredible kids," he said. "Mike, Khalil and Isaiah have been great all year. They've been unbelievable for us. Those are guys you want to have in your program." Larrick feels good about today. He figures if the team plays up to its ability, they have a chance to win. "The last two weeks, we're in a good spot, a good space," he said Larrick. "I think our guys are in a good space, they're having fun, loose. It's enjoyable. We keep telling them, 'keep making memories.' These are moments they're going to remember forever. Nobody's going to remember the individual stats, but they'll remember this group forever now. They've made history here at Elyria High." Contact Tim Gebhardt at (440) 329-7135 or timothygeb@msn.com.