Legacy Christian vs. Troy Christian: Five Takeaways
Friday night was a historic night in Xenia, OH. For the first time in school history, Legacy Christian Academy were crowned winners of the Metro Buckeye Conference after a 50-42 victory over visiting Troy Christian. Not only was this a…
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Continue ReadingFriday night was a historic night in Xenia, OH. For the first time in school history, Legacy Christian Academy were crowned winners of the Metro Buckeye Conference after a 50-42 victory over visiting Troy Christian. Not only was this a team celebration, but an individual celebration for Legacy senior Erik Uszynski (2019) as he joined the 1,000 point club on senior night. The 6’5 forward played a pivotal role on both ends of the floor throughout the night, helping the Knights fend off a Troy Christian team that found themselves still in the hunt for a conference title. Here were Five Takeaways from the evening.
Legacy’s underclassmen came to play
On a night about the Knights seniors, it was the underclassmen that caught my eye from start to finish throughout the game. Roman Newsome (2021) ran the point for the Knights and made his presence known on the offensive end. Equipped with a dagger of a jump shot, Newsome was able to get hot early on with his midrange pull-up. Even in the 2nd half, when Troy Christian made adjustments to stick on him, Roman still found ways to knock down his shot. Defensively, he moves well laterally and controlled himself using his body and not his hands. Mike Sharavjamts (2022) did not start, as the Knights started several seniors, but rather changed the aspect of the game when he came on the floor for the first time. At 6’6, Mike was disruptive defensively altering multiple shot attempts in the paint. Offensively, he played the majority of his game on the perimeter and played with great patience. If not for Uszynski’s 1,000th point, Sharavjamts would have had the play of the game on a putback dunk late in the 4th quarter to squash any remaining momentum from the Eagles.
Freshman phenom for the Knights deserves more credit
Sharavjamts has received a lot of attention as the season has progressed. For a 6’6 center, he has impressive ball handling skills and was able to handle perimeter pressure from several Troy Christian defenders. When he is not on the floor, the Knights definitely played differently as Mike creates so many more mismatches with his height and skill level. There is no doubt he is one of the top freshman in the Dayton area, and may even be considered one of the best 2022 prospects in the state. With all the hype and playmaking ability, one can not ignore there are still areas where he can improve. For starters, Mike is only a freshman and as such is listed at 140 lbs. Whichever position he chooses to play, he will need to put on some muscle if he is going to play at the next level. In addition, I would like to see a more aggressive side of him on the defensive end. Playing the top of a 1-3-1 and 1-2-2 half-court zone, Sharavjamts allowed opposing guards to dribble through him, taking away the whole concept of trapping. Again, with him only being a freshman, these are typical weaknesses that will improve as Mike gets older.
Eagles guards stepped up in 2nd half
Going into the game, I expected Troy Christian forward Jackson Kremer (2019) to have a huge part on the offensive end. He never really got into a groove as Legacy Christian defended him well and their zone defense did not allow the Eagles to feed Kremer on the block. As a result a trio of guards stepped up and gave the Eagles a spark. After a first half where the Eagles offensively were struggling as a unit, Coach Zawadzki changed his strategy and had his guards take over the scoring. Izaak Frantom (2020) handled the point and was able to move the ball side to side against the zone, opening up driving lanes for his teammates. Connor Case (2019) got into the paint off his dribble drive and knocked down some big shots from behind the arc. Connor Peters (2020) utilized his dribble drive and got to the rim multiple times and playing strong though contact. As a result, Sharavjamts drew 3 fouls in the 3rd quarter alone.
Post defense helped Troy Christian
Every time Uszynski touched the ball in the paint, he lured a double team. This took away several easy looks, as he was forced to work for his points. All credit is due to the Eagles defense as they did a great job taking away the paint from the Knights. Sharavjamts and Keano Hammerstrom (2019) were unable to get inside the paint very often and were forced to keep the ball on the perimeter. If the Eagles offense had not struggled as much, this defensive effort may have allowed a much closer game. Regardless, this gives us optimism the Eagles will be able to handle bigger players come tournament time.
The road ahead looks bright
I asked Keano Hammerstrom what the focus is now that the Knights have won the Metro Buckeye Conference.
“We have a hard week of practice. We have one game left and then we have tournament.”
Legacy Christian should be the #1 seed in Dayton, but could drop to #2 if coaches vote Springfield Catholic Central #1 instead. As long as no injuries occur between now and sectionals, we expect the Knights to have a much deeper run come postseason play this year. Even in a losing effort, Troy Christian has a lot to look forward to. In last week’s TTI Rankings, the Eagles were #7 among Dayton Division III teams. Although this is not a direct or guarantee the Eagles will receive this seed, it shows the Troy Christian Eagles should still have a higher seed come tournament draw tomorrow.