'It's hard to compare:' Colonel Crawford's special group gears up for state semifinal

NORTH ROBINSON - David Sheldon is no stranger to championships in his 19-season tenue at the helm of the Colonel Crawford boys' basketball program.

But there are two that have evaded him in his nearly two decades of coaching — a regional title and a state championship.

Last weekend he was able to cross one of those off as the Eagles won their first regional championship in program history to advance to this weekend's Division VI state semifinal against Marion Local.

What makes this team different than the rest?

"All those teams were very good teams, it's hard to compare," Sheldon said. "We've won 31 championships in 19 years, and every team is special.

"But when you look at this group, the interesting thing is that seven of my top eight guys, their dads are coaches at the high school level. This group understands their roles and that's huge with the way we play to be successful."

Colonel Crawford's Parker Weithman controls the ball near midcourt.

Roles are something Sheldon and his coaching staff stress each season. Not everyone can be the star scorer, or leading rebounder, or lockdown defender, or three-point specialist. What makes Colonel Crawford teams so consistently good is getting players to buy in to what the program is about — knowing your nole, and executing.

"The neat thing about this group is how much better they've gotten over the last four months," Sheldon said. "They've just improved day after day for four months. It's on and off the court. These guys hang out on the floor, all they want to do is win.

"It's not about who gets the accolades, it's about what we can do to win night in and night out, and that's why we've been on a roll for 25 games. Then off floor, they all hang out … (that's) what we call a brotherhood."

This is an Eagles team that hasn't lost a game since Nov. 30 reeling off a quarter-century of wins en route to a Northern 10 title, another district title for the trophy cabinet, and the elusive regional. And a major part of that has been the style of play they've embraced this season.

"That football mentality," Sheldon said. "Every one of the guys on my roster is a football guy, and that companionship comes out the way we guard night in and night out, and we adjust depending on who we're playing. This group has really bought into the defensive end of the floor."

In 26 games played heading into the state semifinal, Colonel Crawford has allowed 995 points, or a mere 38.27 points per game over the course of the season. The Eagles have allowed 50-plus points just four times and that included the season opening loss to Crestview, along with a pair of overtime games against Mohawk.

Colonel Crawford's Brayden Holt crosses midcourt with LCC's Jaxon White defending.

And to go along with the outstanding defense is one heck of a junior point guard leading the offense in Brayden Holt. The Northern 10 player of the year, District 6 player of the year, and Northwest District co-Player of the Year established himself as not only the best player in the greater area, but arguably the best player in the entire state at the Division VI level.

"It starts with the point guard, and what Brayden does possessing the ball … he can score, he can facilitate it — that's huge — then the way the guys play around him," Sheldon said. "And that's what makes us versatile. We've got a very good point guard that runs the show and reads what defenses do, and then you got the DeGray boys (junior Payne and sophomore John) inside, and we put shooters on the wings."

Holt came over from Wooster Triway in the summer and didn't take long to adjust to life as an Eagle.

"It started in June when his family moved here, that's why June basketball is so key," Sheldon said. "We got the flow with him and what it was all about … and I think it was huge continuing into football season and being with him every day. The neat thing with Brayden is his pace at the game and his emotions, it's the epitome of what you need from your point guard. He has seen double teams, he finds people, he can shoot it, he can get it to them.

"He's just a special player."

Special players make those around them better, and that's exactly what Holt has done. His ability to dictate tempo of a game allows players like the DeGrays to find opportune chances in the paint, or run a play designed to get sharpshooters like Logan Goddard easy looks from 3-point range.

"Every day after practice, Logan's in the gym still getting up shots," Sheldon said. "He spends a lot of time on his craft, and the other thing that goes unnoticed that people need to know is he's an unbelievable defender. He was guarding Priddy, one of the best guards we've seen all year, last week in the regional finals and holds him 11. He's a little gnat out there, if I had to go to a street fight in a back alley, I want Logan Godard because he is just a tough kid, and a kid that wants to prove people wrong.

"And that's what he's done, you love seeing kids going out their senior year with a bang."

Colonel Crawford's John DeGray pulls up over LCC's Brady Parker.

And the emergence of sophomore Parker Weithman has just made this already dynamic team even deeper. After carving out a role on the varsity squad, he has proceeded to have a phenomenal postseason on both sides of the ball.

"Parker is a gamer," Sheldon said. "He loves to compete, it doesn't matter what it is. We're fortunate to have three point guards on varsity with Brayden, Parker, and Lucas (Foy). In the beginning of the year he started on JV, but he made his mark and showed that we gotta be playing him at the varsity level.

"The area that he's grown the most in is defensively. We really challenged him, he had to get better defensively at the varsity level which is a staple of our program. He's hit big shots for us throughout the tournament run."

And though Sheldon is no stranger to the state tournament, this one just means a little more.

"I've been going to the final four since I was a third grader; I missed every Thursday and Friday, then into the weekend to go watch final fours," Sheldon said. "I got to experience it as a fifth and seventh grader as a ball boy for my father, I got to experience it when my wife made a run in the early 2000s to the final four. It's special because you can't take it for granted. It's so hard to get this level and there's so many legendary coaches that I have relationships with across the state — retired and still coaching — and and I told our kids they're going to look back on this and remember the rest of your life.

"You're going to tell your boys and girls when you have kids about 2025 and the run I made with some of the guys to the final four."

zholden@gannett.com | 419-617-6018 | Twitter/X: @Zachary_Holden

This article originally appeared on Bucyrus Telegraph-Forum: OHSAA boys hoops: Colonel Crawford's special group readies for state

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