SHARONVILLE — Cooper Ollis figured it was time to make some things happen Wednesday night.
After all, it is the postseason.
The Badin High School senior guard scored a team-high 22 points — including 17 in the second half — to lead the Rams to a 53-43 victory over Greater Catholic League Coed rival McNicholas in a Division III district semifinal at Princeton.
“Playoff time. It’s win or go home,” Ollis said. “I felt like personally I had to step up. Props to my team, they also stepped up. I feel like it was a team win tonight. We got the job done at the end.”
Badin (18-6) has won three in a row and five of its last six. The Rams play Franklin — which beat Tippecanoe 66-62 — in a district final at 11:30 a.m. on Saturday at Middletown.
“In the tournament, it’s kind of the motto — survive and advance,” Badin coach CJ Fleming said. “McNick came at us and threw everything at us. Credit to them. But even more so, credit to our guys for stepping up to the challenge.
“I say it all the time, if you want to go far in the tournament, your best players have to be at their best. Coop was unbelievable tonight, but at the same time, not a one-man show.”
Badin went 16-11 following a 3-8 start in Fleming’s first season at the helm last year and reached the regionals for the first time since 2002.
“The mindset right now is win,” Ollis said. “It’s win or go home, so you’ve got to do what you’ve got to do. We’re going to get after it tomorrow at practice — keep going.”
Grant Waters finished with a game-high 23 points for McNicholas, which finished the season 12-12. The Rams have beaten the Rockets the last three meetings.
“I liked our path. I really did,” McNicholas coach Tim Monahan said. “I thought it was the right place to go, and I would do it 100 times over again.
“We know them, they know us,” Monahan added. “We’ve had close battles. You always want your GCL teams to go as far as you can, but to us, we thought this was the right path to go to get us as far as we can.
“Tip your hat to them. They did a really good job. CJ does a great job with them. They play hard. It’s a tough one to swallow, for sure.”
The score was knotted up at 8-8 heading into the second quarter before Badin went into the locker room with a 24-20 lead.
Badin had a 39-38 lead with just under three minutes left to play, and the Rams pulled away down the stretch.
“Playing a GCL team, it’s obviously going to be a dogfight. It’s a rival,” Ollis said. “We kind of took it personal when they were like, ‘We want to play Badin in the playoffs.’ That’s probably a mistake by their part. We made it hurt for them.”
McNicholas did its fair share of face guarding Ollis. Monahan said that was part of the defensive scheme.
“He’s a good player,” Monahan said of Ollis, who averages 14.5 points a game. “I liked our game plan. We executed it well. Our goal was to cut the head off the snake and make the other guys beat us. I think their role players hit some big shots. I think that was it.”
Cade Cummins and Cody Knapp came off the bench to provide a spark for the Rams with a couple clutch 3-pointers. Eli Stroud added 11 points.
“Those were some huge 3s,” Fleming said. “I’m just so happy for our guys. So proud that we get another opportunity on Saturday.”
LAKOTA EAST 64, WEST CLERMONT 29
MASON — Trey Perry scored a game-high 27 points and the Thunderhawks rolled to a Division I district semifinal victory on Wednesday night at Mason.
Lakota East (16-7) has won three in a row and will face Centerville in a district final at noon Saturday at Mason.
FRANKLIN 66, TIPPECANOE 62
CENTERVILLE — The Wildcats are headed to the district finals for only the second time in school history.
Kai Cook scored 27 of his 32 points in the second half to lead Franklin, and Roberts added 11. The Wildcats led 15-9 after one quarter and 30-25 at the half.
The Wildcats (15-8) held on down the stretch to advance to play Badin in a Division III district final at 11:30 a.m. on Saturday at Middletown.
TAFT 53, FENWICK 48
MONROE — The Falcons saw their season come to a close with a Division IV district semifinal loss on Thursday at Monroe.
Fenwick (8-16) started the season 2-14 before winning six of its last eight. The Falcons graduate seniors Jacob Long, Brady Cole, Joey Costello and Eddie Ferraro.
