#3 Findlay Prep
Key Players
With a collection of high majors who bring ultra-athleticism and upside, the up-tempo oriented Pilots are loaded. Collectively the team averages a shade below 100 points (actually 99.9) and shoots well-above-average, 58% from the floor. The roster is laden with 9 players in the junior class, led by 6-8 power forward P.J. Washington (#19 in the ESPN 60) who is a gazelle on the break and a beast on the boards (16.9 ppg, 9.4 rpg, 4.1 apg). Baylor-bound Tristan Clark (9.6 ppg, 5.7 rpg), a 6-9 forward, operates around the rim, shooting an astounding 78%. At 5-11, junior Markus Howard (#32 in the ESPN 60), an undersized scoring guard who averages 18.6 ppg and has drained 99 of 189 3-pointers (52%), runs with seniors 6-4 Carlos Johnson (14.7 ppg) and Skylar Mays (10.5 ppg, 5.4 apg). Juniors Shakwon Barrett and 6-3 marksman De’Von Cooper (8.2 ppg, 45 3-pointers) round out the backcourt. Up front, the active 6-8 Canadian O’Shae Brissett (10.4 ppg, 5.4 rpg) and 6-7 Lamine Diane (8.8 ppg, 67% FG) are two juniors that can finish in transition and rebound in heavy traffic.
Road to the DICK’S Nationals
Findlay (28-1), which is an independent program and does not compete for a state championship, played a majority of its schedule on their home court going unbeaten. They are the only school to compete in all seven previous DICK’S Nationals/NHSI’s. Their lone loss this season was a 77-71 neutral-court decision to instate rival Bishop Gorman (Las Vegas) on January 23 at the South Point Arena along the Las Vegas Strip. Gorman went on to win the Nevada Division I state championship in February. A week earlier at the Hoophall Classic in Springfield, Mass., the Pilots overwhelmed DICK’S Nationals participant St. Benedict’s (NJ), 91-67. The Pilots have recorded quality wins over Arizona state champion Shadow Mountain, O’Gorman (SD), DICK’S Nationals participant Wasatch Academy (UT) as well as teams from New Zealand and Canada.
Did you know?
Findlay’s tradition is impressive. Since the Pilots took off on the national scene nine years ago, they are 280-18 overall, winning this event three times (2009, 2010, 2012). If you like offense, Findlay scores in bunches, averaging just under 90 points per game over the last seven seasons and are nearly flawless at home with an eye-popping 133-1 record. Their alumni regularly play at the next level, with 10 players who have played in the NBA (Cory Joseph, Tristan Thompson, Avery Bradley, Kelly Oubre Jr. to name a few) and 43 who have signed on with Division I programs. Additionally, nine players have landed professional careers overseas and ten players have been named McDonald’s and Jordan Brand All Americans.
