Portsmouth Trojans 2020-2021

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trojandave

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The Portsmouth Trojans enter the 2020-2021 season with an all time record of 1,468--793. PHS is coming off 2 consecutive losing seasons (8-16, 10-13) for the first time since 2008-2009. The 16 losses in the 2019 season were the 2nd most in school history, behind the 1-17 Trojans of 1962, the year after PHS won the 1961 Class AA big school state title.

Leading scorer from last season, Matthew Fraulini (17 PPG) is gone, but 4 starters return...........6-2 SR Miles Shipp, 6-0 JR Donovan Carr, 5-9 JR Drew Roe, and 5-8 JR Amare Johnson. Rounding out the starting 5 will probably come down to 2 players, 6-3 JR Daryionne Bryant, or 6-0 SR Chris Duff. Shipp leads the returnees in scoring as he averaged 10 PPG last season.

Portsmouth finished 6-8 in the Ohio Valley Conference, as they swept Gallia Academy, Coal Grove, and Rock Hill, while being swept by Ironton, Chesapeake, South Point, and Fairland. Fairland is once again the prohibitive favorite to win the conference for the 6th straight season. PHS was the last team to win the OVC besides the Dragons, capturing the crown in 2015 on their way to a regional final loss to Columbus Eastmoor.

Coach Eugene Collins enters his 12th season at PHS, with an overall record of 173-93, a record that makes him the 2nd winningest coach in Trojan history. Collins led PHS to back to back Final 4's in 2011 and 2012. Portsmouth lost the 2012 D3 state championship game to Cincinnati Summit Country Day 53-37. It was Portsmouth's 8th state championship game appearance, where the Trojans have gone 4-4. The state titles were in 1931, 1961, 1978, and 1988, while the runnerup finishes were in 1934, 1980, 1990, and 2012.

As far as this season, with all the Covid restrictions with very limited attendance and mask wearing at all times, I have decided that I won't be attending any games. However, I will try my best to post scores and any other information available.

Portsmouth opens its season on Dec.5th at home vs. Portsmouth West. PHS will play in 2 tournaments, the Buckeye Elite in early December and the Alexander Invitational (Albany Alexander--Athens County) in early January. PHS will play 21 games, with the possibility of adding 1 more. The OVC schedule is 14 games.

The Trojans could very well post an above .500 season, even though there isn't much size on the roster. What Portsmouth does have is plenty of athleticism and quickness. What could be intriguing is the incoming 7th grade group, which has already been touted as the next great class of basketball talent.

GO TROJANS!!
 
 
2020-2021 schedule for the Trojans:

Dec. 5 Portsmouth West H......postponed to Jan.30
Dec. 8 South Point H..........postponed to date TBD......rescheduled for Tues.Dec.22
Dec. 11 Chesapeake A.......postponed to date TBD
Dec. 12 Buckeye Elite A Opponent TBD.....postponed or canceled
Dec. 15 Fairland A...............rescheduled to play Wed.Dec.23
Dec. 18 Rock Hill H.............postponed to date TBD
Dec. 29 Minford A
Jan. 2 Alexander Invitational A Opponent TBD
Jan. 5 Gallia Academy H
Jan. 8 Ironton H
Jan. 9 West Union H
Jan. 12 Coal Grove A
Jan. 15 South Point A
Jan. 16 Wheelersburg H
Jan. 19 Chesapeake H
Jan. 22 Fairland H
Jan. 26 Rock Hill A
Jan. 29 Gallia Academy A
Feb. 2 North Adams H
Feb. 6 Ironton A
Feb. 12 Coal Grove H

Update 12/17/20: Rescheduled games could be rescheduled again due to Covid. It is a challenge to keep up with the schedule.
 
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The Portsmouth West game has tentatively been rescheduled to Jan. 30 due to some positive Covid tests within the program. Practice has been stopped and it is uncertain when it will resume. No official word yet on the South Point game.

South Point has been rescheduled for Tues.Dec. 22. Could change with the Covid situation.
 
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Portsmouth has postponed games until the Dec. 18 game against Rock Hill.............Covid has hit the program pretty hard.

Rock Hill has been rescheduled for a later date.
 
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Here is the varsity basketball roster for the 2020-2021 Trojans:

Miles Shipp.......................6-2 SR*..........leading scorer returning 10 PPG; career high 27 vs. Ironton
Chris Duff..........................6-0 SR
Daryionne Bryant...........6-3 JR*
Drew Roe..........................5-8 JR*
Amare Johnson..............5-8 JR*
Donovan Carr.................6-0 JR*
Michael Duncan............6-1 SR
Reid Pendleton..............5-9 SO
Tyler Duncan..................5-10 SO
Daewan Spence............6-1 JR
Dante Hamrick..............5-10 SR

Shipp, Duff, Bryant, Roe, and Johnson are projected to be the starting lineup.

* indicates that player has starting experience from last season.
 
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The Trojans officially open their season tonight at home vs. South Point. Tomorrow Portsmouth travels to Fairland as a rescheduled game from Dec.15.
 
Portsmouth is 1-1 on the season........they opened with a 58-40 win at home vs. South Point. Last night PHS dropped a 70-42 contest at OVC
The Trojans have lost 11 in a row to the Dragons. Fairland hit 11 of 28 three pointers.


Portsmouth is scheduled to play at Minford on Dec. 29th.
 
Portsmouth is playing at Chesapeake today, Mon.Dec.28 as a rescheduled OVC contest. Tomorrow, Tues.Dec.29, the Trojans will host Rock Hill as a rescheduled OVC contest. Saturday, Jan.2, PHS is scheduled to travel to Albany Alexander to play in their invitational. Any game on the schedule is subject to being rescheduled due to Covid concerns which has already affected Portsmouth's schedule.
 
Portsmouth was blown out for the second consecutive game as the Trojans lost 66-43 at Chesapeake. PHS is now 1-2 in OVC play. Portsmouth is scheduled to host Rock Hill on Wednesday, Dec.30 in another OVC contest.

Chesapeake has now beaten Portsmouth 3 straight times with an average margin of defeat being around 30 points.
 
Portsmouth evened its record at 2-2 with an 80-58 win over Rock Hill @PHS. Miles Shipp led the Trojans with 12 points, while freshman Devin Lattimore made his varsity debut with 4 pts. PHS is now 2-2 in OVC play, and are scheduled to play Nelsonville-York in the Albany Alexander Invitational on Saturday. Portsmouth's JV squad dropped its 4th game in a row and are now 0-4 on the season.
 
Portsmouth traveled to Nelsonville-York and raised their record to 3-2 with a 67-56 win over the Buckeyes. Dariyonne Bryant had a good scoring game for PHS, as he tallied 22 points. Miles Shipp added 19 points. The Trojans led only 49-46 after 3 quarters, but some layups and FT's by PHS led to the final margin.

Portsmouth is scheduled to play Gallia Academy on Tues. Feb.5 at home.
 
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I believe I brought this up before; I remember Portsmouth taking out Willard in 80 and Malabar in 88; each school's 1st trip to State. Malabar closed its doors 18 months later and merged with Mansfield Senior.
 
Maple City Fan: I remember those games well; John Willoughby was the star player for undefeated Willard who went on to play for Miami of Ohio. Malabar was led in the Portsmouth game by 6-5 SR Brian Beauford, who scored 24 points. The final score was 68-65 and it was every bit as close as the score.

The most recent trip to the state for Portsmouth was in 2012, when the Trojans beat Ottawa-Glandorf 74-66 in the semifinals. PHS then lost to Cincinnati Summit Country Day 53-37 in the D3 state championship game. Ottawa-Glandorf won the 2013 D3 state title. Portsmouth also went to the state in 2011, losing to Cleveland Central Catholic 58-47 in the D3 semis. The 2011 and 2012 back to back state appearances was the first time that Portsmouth basketball had ever accomplished that feat.
 
The Trojans raised their record to 4-2 with a 58-55 win over Gallia Academy @PHS. Portsmouth held a 49-29 lead late in the 3rd quarter before Gallia Academy's press started to chip away at the Trojans' lead. GAHS whittled Portsmouth's advantage to 56-52 with just over a minute remaining but PHS held on to go 3-2 in OVC play. SR Chris Duff had 26 points for Portsmouth, while SR Miles Shipp added 10. 6-6 Isaac Clary led GAHS with 13 pts.

Portsmouth's home game with Ironton on Friday, Jan. 9th has been moved to Feb. 9th due to Covid in the Ironton program. The Trojans play host to West Union on Saturday. The Dragons were 1-7 coming into their game on 1/8 with Eastern Brown.
 
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Portsmouth won its 4th straight game with a 61-56 win at West Union. The Trojans trailed 20-16 after 1 quarter, and the Dragons took a 27-18 lead midway in the 2nd period. Portsmouth then took control and established an 11 point lead in the 2nd half, but WU cut that advantage to 4 points late. PHS then sealed the game with FT's by Drew Roe and Chris Duff. 6-3 JR Dariyonne Bryant led the Trojans with 17 points, while 6-2 SR Miles Shipp helped out with 13 and a lot of rebounds.

Portsmouth travels to Coal Grove on Tuesday for an OVC contest, and go to South Point in another league tilt. Then Saturday PHS entertains Wheelersburg. PHS leads the series against Wheelersburg 23-20, but the Pirates have won the last 3 games, including a 69-32 rout of the Trojans last season.
 
Portsmouth dropped a last minute 62-60 contest @Coal Grove. The Trojans fell to 5-3 on the season and 3-3 in the OVC. PHS led for much of the game, holding as much as an 8 point lead, but the Hornets took a 4 point advantage with less than 2 minutes to go. Donovan Carr of PHS made a bucket and FT to cut the lead to 1 point. Portsmouth fouled CG twice in the last minute, but both times couldn't get the rebound, and the Hornets ran more time off the clock. The Trojans did get the ball with 8 seconds to play, but a last minute shot by Drew Roe was blocked, and CG held on for the win. Chris Duff had 16 points in the first half, but CG defended him well in the last 2 quarters. Miles Shipp scored in double figures and continued to be the most consistent player for the Trojans.

Portsmouth travels to South Point on Friday and host Wheelersburg on Saturday.
 
Portsmouth scored just 2 points in the 3rd quarter after having a 23-22 halftime lead, and the disastrous 8 minutes after halftime led to a 56-46 loss at South Point. The Trojans had beaten the Pointers 58-40 to start the season, but last night went stone cold in the 3rd period. PHS fell to 5-4 overall and 3-4 in the OVC. Portsmouth entertains undefeated Wheelersburg tonight.
 
Wheelersburg started quickly against Portsmouth with a 17-7 first quarter lead, and never were threatened as the Pirates routed the Trojans 66-41 at PHS. WHS came out and hit 4 trifectas in the first 8 minutes, and carried a 36-21 lead into halftime. Wheelersburg expanded their lead in the 3rd quarter, and the Trojans had no answer offensively. Chris Duff led PHS with 11 points, while Miles Shipp added 9. The Burg remains undefeated, while Portsmouth dropped to 5-5. The Trojans entertain Chesapeake in an OVC contest on Tuesday.
 
Portsmouth's game with Fairland next Friday has been postponed due to Covid. Makeup date TBD. Portsmouth travels to Minford on Saturday.
 
Covid has once again delayed Portsmouth's schedule. The Trojans were scheduled to play Chesapeake last Tuesday, Fairland tomorrow, and at Minford on Saturday, but those games are all postponed, makeup date TBD. Portsmouth's games next week have been postponed and makeup dates are TBD. Non-conference games may not be made up due to OVC regulations that conference games must be played. As the season progresses toward February, there may not be enough time to play non-conference games.

Through the first 8 games, SR Chris Duff is the Trojans' leading scorer at 14 PPG, while SR Miles Shipp is 2nd at 12 PPG. JR Dariyonne Bryant is 3rd at 9.4 PPG. Duff leads PHS with 25 three pointers, and his career high point game is 26. Shipp leads the Trojans in rebounding with 77, while JR Donovan Carr is 2nd with 33. Duff is making 73.9% at the FT line, and is the only Trojan above 52%. Of the starters, Shipp leads Portsmouth in FG% at 53%.
 
Portsmouth is now scheduled to play at Gallia Academy on Friday, and then play host to Portsmouth West on Saturday. The West game may be cancelled because the Trojans as of right now still have 6 OVC games after Gallia remaining until the end of the regular season, which is supposed to be Feb.12. PHS also has non-conference games with North Adams and Minford, and they could also be cancelled due to OVC obligations. Portsmouth still has OVC games with Rock Hill, Ironton(2), Fairland, Chesapeake, and Coal Grove.
 
The updated schedule is as follows: Friday, Jan. 29 at Gallia Academy, Sat. Jan.30 home vs. Portsmouth West, Tues. Feb. 2 home vs. North Adams, Fri. Feb. 5 at Ironton, Fri. Feb. 12 home vs. Coal Grove, Sat. Feb. 13 home vs. Fairland.

Portsmouth still has to play Ironton at home and Rock Hill away, but those dates have not been determined. The game scheduled for Feb. 23 at Minford most likely has been canceled.
 
Portsmouth at 5-5 will be trying to avoid its 3rd losing season in a row. That hasn't happened since 2007-2008-2009, when those 3 seasons ended a period of 7 straight losing seasons from 2003-2009, the longest stretch of losing seasons in PHS history. From 1947--1991, Portsmouth experienced only 5 losing seasons, those being in 1957, 1958, 1959, 1962, and 1985. Ironically, in the 6 year period from 1957--1962, PHS also advanced to the Class AA regionals in 1960, losing to Canton Timken, and then in 1961 won the Class AA state title, beating previously undefeated Urbana 50-44. Then in 1962, Portsmouth posted its worst record in school history, going 1-17 after losing all but 1 player from its 1961 state championship team. The 1985 Trojans posted a 10-12 mark, 1 year after PHS had 7 great consecutive seasons, going 19-7 in 1978 and winning the Class AA state title, 21-1 in 1979 and winning the AP Poll title with a regular season mark of 18-0, 21-6 in 1980, losing in the Class AA state championship game to Hamilton Ross 45-44, and then from 1981--1984, Portsmouth posted 4 consecutive seasons of 20-4, winning 2 district titles.

Current head coach Eugene Collins hit a 15 foot baseline jumper at the buzzer in 1983 to beat Columbus East 62-61, one of the most memorable shots in the history of the 8th St. Gym, which was home to the Trojans from 1965--2005. PHS during those 40 years won 14 district titles, 4 regional titles, 2 state runnerups in 1980 and 1990, and 2 state championships in 1978 and 1988.

Portsmouth's last conference championship came in 2015, when the Trojans won the Ohio Valley Conference in their very first season. Since that year, Proctorville Fairland has won the conference each year, and in fact have lost only 2 conference games in 5 years, both on the road, to South Point and Gallia Academy. Portsmouth won the SEOAL outright in 2012 and tied for 1st in 2011.

Portsmouth is the last SE district school to have won a game in the state tournament, that being a 74-66 win over Ottawa-Glandorf in the 2012 D3 state semifinals. That was the Trojans' 2nd win over OG in the state tournament. PHS also beat the Titans 59-43 in the 1978 Class AA state semis. The Trojans are 2-0 all time vs. OG in state tournament play.
 
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Portsmouth scored only 5 points in the 3rd quarter and it proved to be costly as Gallia Academy extended a 29-24 halftime advantage en route to a 54-42 win over the Trojans. PHS dropped to 5-6 overall, and 3-5 in OVC play. Senior Miles Shipp had 20 points for Portsmouth, but didn't get any other offensive help.

Portsmouth plays at home vs. Portsmouth West on Saturday.
 
For the 2nd consecutive night, Portsmouth scored 42 points and once again ended up as a Trojan defeat, as Portsmouth West squeezed by PHS 43-42 at PHS on Saturday. The Trojans had a chance to win the game with 5 seconds to play, but a missed layup and a following scramble for the ball on the final play preserved the win for the Senators. SR Miles Shipp led PHS with 22 points and half of the Trojans' 27 rebounds. West improved to 12-4 on the season, while Portsmouth dropped its 5th in a row to fall to 5-7 overall. PHS's offensive struggles continue, as it was the 5th time this season that Portsmouth has scored 46 points or less.

Portsmouth hosts North Adams tomorrow in a non-league game, then travels to Ironton on Friday before returning home to host Chesapeake on Saturday.
 
The North Adams game was canceled or postponed due to weather. Don't know if it will be made up, but with only 2 weeks left in the regular season, and still 6 OVC games to be played, chances are it won't be rescheduled.
 
Portsmouth scored its lowest point total of the season in a 52-38 loss to the Ironton Fighting Tigers on Friday night @Ironton. The Trojans went 1-15 from 3 point range, and had only scored 24 points going into the 4th quarter. PHS is now 5-8 on the season, with 6 straight losses, while Ironton is now 6-4. Portsmouth is in 7th place in the OVC with a 3-6 record, while the Fighting Tigers are 6-4 in conference play, having played all their games in conference. Although IHS has won 5 in a row vs. PHS, the Trojans still lead the all time series 92-71.

Portsmouth hosts Chesapeake tonight, a team that has dominated the Trojans over the last couple of years. The Panthers have beaten PHS by an average of almost 30 points over the last 4 meetings.

Since 2019, when PHS went 8-16, the Trojans have had 14 games scoring in the 40's, and 11 games in the 30's. Including years 2019-2020-2021, Portsmouth is 23-37 and have averaged only 53.1 PPG. This season PHS is averaging only 52.0 PPG, the lowest total in the 12 year career of head coach Eugene Collins. There just isn't very much basketball talent to go along with the athleticism that the Trojans have. What has been bad this year will probably be much worse next season, as the two leading scorers and leading rebounder are seniors. The junior class is severely offensively challenged, and it will take a miracle of sorts for PHS to stay out of the basement of the OVC, and a 20 loss season is not out of the question.

Sounds like doom and gloom, but this next season is crucial to get the basketball program headed back in the right direction. Another bad season and it could take several more years to restore the winning ways of Trojan basketball that the program has been known statewide for.
 
Portsmouth beat Chesapeake 60-57 at PHS as JR Donovan Carr scored 20 points, and 3 others had double figure scoring. FR Devin Lattimore scored 8 points. The game was close all the way, with the largest lead by either team being 7 points. PHS secured the win when JR Drew Roe made 3 of 4 FT's with less than a minute remaining. Levi Blankenship of Chesapeake had 22 points. CHS had beaten the Trojans 66-43 earlier in the season.

Portsmouth is now 6-8 on the season, and host Ironton tonight, Coal Grove on Friday, Fairland on Saturday, and North Adams next Monday. The Trojans' final road of the season is scheduled to be next Tuesday at Rock Hill. PHS is 4-6 and in 6th place in OVC play. If Portsmouth can manage to beat Ironton, Coal Grove, and Fairland, then they will have split with every team in the conference. That would be a major improvement considering that the Trojans were swept by Fairland, Ironton, South Point, and Chesapeake. Currently South Point leads the OVC after upsetting Fairland on Saturday. The Pointers' only OVC loss was at Portsmouth in December.
 
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