This is a remake of an article that was erased due to an outage earlier this week.
Portsmouth Junior High/Elementary tournament on June 5th:
PJHS went 3-0, beating Ironton, West Union, and Notre Dame. 5th and 6th grade teams won, beating Clay. The 2nd week of play will be on June 12th, starting at 10:00.
Varsity Summer Schedule:
June 8th: At Northwest: Portsmouth scrimmaged Northwest and Piketon, quarter scores were not kept, and there were no officials. The Trojans had a total of about 15 players, about 6 were freshmen and sophomores.
June 14th: Portsmouth will play at Waverly, starting at 6:00........the Trojans played their starting 5 for 2 quarters, and played the Tigers very competitively, trailing 19-18 after a 10 minute quarter and 40-36 after 20 minutes. The last 2 quarters saw Waverly's second unit beat Portsmouth's subs convincingly. The first 5 for the Trojans, though, showed a lot of quickness and ability to play fast up the court, which gave Waverly trouble. WHS had a decided size advantage, and had some putback baskets, but the Trojans overall held their own on the boards. PHS was missing a couple of key players, and the 2nd five had a freshmen and a couple of sophomores. Overall, the Trojans played much better against Waverly than they did vs. Northwest and Piketon. Waverly is the heavy favorite to win SOC II next season.
Starting 5 vs. Waverly..........6-0 Donovan Carr, 5-9 Drew Roe, 5-9 Amare Johnson, 6-0 Devin Lattimore, 5-10 Reid Pendleton. DeAndre Berry did not play due to a sprained ankle.
June 17th: Portsmouth will host Russell (KY) starting at 5:30........Portsmouth beat Russell 89-62 in five 10 minute running quarters. The Trojans' quickness overwhelmed the Red Devils which in turn forced numerous turnovers. In this scrimmage not only did the starting 5 play well, but the bench was outstanding. The starting 5 was Carr, Roe, Johnson, Lattimore, and 6-3 Luke Stine (Reid Pendleton out of town). PHS had as much as a 30 point lead. It was the Trojans' best basketball of the summer so far. They played with an emphasis of getting the ball up the court fast.
June 18-19: Portsmouth will play at Boyd County High School vs. Belfry at 2:30. Then PHS will play at Boyd County Middle School (Summit Junior High) at 5:00 vs. Boyd Co. The Trojans will play on the 19th at Ashland Blazer vs. Dublin Coffman at 12:45. The Trojans defeated Belfry (KY) in the first game, and lost to Boyd County (KY) in the second contest. Portsmouth trailed Dublin Coffman by 12 at halftime, but don't have the final score. Devin Lattimore had 12 points vs. Coffman at halftime.
June 24: Portsmouth will host Peebles starting at 5:30.
Peebles scrimmage: The Trojans started slow vs. the Indians, as Peebles closely won the first 2 quarters. After that, Portsmouth completely dominated Peebles, outscoring them by almost 45 points in the last 4 quarters. The Trojans' quickness was the difference, which forced numerous Indian turnovers. Peebles was missing one of the top shooters, while the Trojans were missing their starting PG.
Portsmouth will scrimmage at Huntington Ross, starting at 6:00 PM.
Huntington Ross scrimmage: Portsmouth dominated from start to finish in a 6 quarter scrimmage, scoring 91 points. The Trojans showed a lot of prowess from the 3 point line, as about a half dozen players knocked down the trifecta.
2nd week of Portsmouth HS Junior High/Elementary League June 12th: Portsmouth JH defeated Notre Dame, lost to Buckeye Storm, lost to Ironton. 5th and 6th grade won 3 vs. Clay, lost 2 vs. Valley. 5th and 6th grade did have a starting 5 but only 1 sub.
3rd week of Portsmouth HS Junior High/Elementary League June 19th: Portsmouth JH defeated Notre Dame, lost to Buckeye Storm (but gave them a better game this time), and beat West Union on a buzzer beater by Caleb Johnson. Portsmouth Elementary team lost their game but I don't know who they lost to.
4th week of Portsmouth HS JuniorHigh/Elementary League June 26th: Portsmouth 5th and 6th grade lost to Valley, beat Clay. Portsmouth JH beat Notre Dame, lost to Buckeye Storm travel team.
The Portsmouth Varsity will be scrimmaging at Valley on Friday, July 2nd. Valley scrimmage: Valley defeated the Trojans in a 7 quarter scrimmage with 10 minute running clocks. Both teams played mostly starters the first 4 quarters, and Valley led all the way, but PHS cut the lead to 59-58 in the 4th period. Turnovers kept the Trojans from taking the lead. The Portsmouth reserves beat the Valley reserves in the 5th and 6th quarter. In the 7th quarter, both teams returned their starters and Valley won 21-14. The Indians won the scrimmage on their 3 point shooting prowess, making probably close to 15 trifectas. On the positive side for PHS was that they played fast, pressed virtually the whole time which caused Valley problems. They do have to guard the 3 pointer better. Tyler Duncan had a fantastic game, knocking down about six 3's with maybe only 1 miss. Portsmouth did show a deep bench, as about 10 players gave some good minutes. Valley should be a winning team next season if they can shoot the ball like they did vs. PHS.
Portsmouth will host Zane Trace on Monday, July 5th at 6:00 PM. Zane Trace scrimmage: Portsmouth played its best basketball of the summer in a 96-71 win over ZT on Monday night in a 6 quarter scrimmage. The Trojans dominated from start to finish, and their perimeter defense which vs. Valley was not good instead was outstanding vs. the Pioneers. The Trojans pressed full court as they have all summer, creating turnovers, and also did a great job on the glass, outrebounding the taller Pioneers. PHS also pushed the ball up the court for quick buckets, quite a few by Daryionne Bryant. The Trojans also were effective offensively in the half court, as Kenny Sanderlin time and again muscled his way into the paint for buckets or FT's. Bryant and Sanderlin were outstanding for PHS, but overall it was a very good team effort. ZT was down 2 starters, and their 6-8 big sprained his ankle midway in the 2nd quarter. Still, Portsmouth was clearly the better team on this night. Zane Trace has a good ballclub, and will be a strong contender for the Scioto Valley Conference title.
Portsmouth will host Northwest tonight @PHS starting at 6:00 PM. Northwest scrimmage: Portsmouth dominated from start to finish, scoring over 130 points in 9 quarters. The entire roster of about 12 players contributed positive plays. The starting 5 was Daryionne Bryant, Donovan Carr, Drew Roe, Kenny Sanderlin, and Devin Lattimore. Off the bench, Tyler Duncan, LeVaughn Cobb, and DeAndre Berry knocked down 3's, while Amare Johnson was a hawk on defense. It was a very good way to end the summer scrimmage season, and if the Trojans can survive football season without injury, this group could be the best Trojan team since 2017 when PHS went 17-8 and made the district semifinals. Portsmouth should absolutely be a strong contender for the OVC crown. From the summer scrimmages I have seen over the last 5 years or so, this was the most positive play that the Trojans have shown.