Battles for rebounds and loose balls by Andrew Elwer and his teammates played a role in St. John’s ability to create more possessions. (Press Pros Feature Photos By Julie Wright-Daniel)
Pregame and mid-game delays and a better than advertised opponent can’t stop the No. 1 Blue Jays – not when Cam Elwer is scoring 32 points or when the defense creates offense at key moments.
Vandalia, OH – An ear-splitting, false fire alarm cleared the Butler gym Wednesday night late in the first half of No. 1 Delphos St. John’s Division VII regional semifinal.
Minster Bank proudly sponsors the best in area sports coverage on Press Pros Magazine.com.
But the most alarming event was the state of the scoreboard: Cincinnati College Prep 22, DSJ 20.
Bewildered fans stood outside or sheltered in their cars while the fire department cleared the threat. They wondered how long the delay would last. They wondered if the unbeaten Blue Jays would be an epic upset victim to a 12-7 team.
Veteran columnist Jeff Gilbert writes the OHSAA and Ohio State sports for Press Pros Magazine.com. Follow on X @jw_gilbert
Thirty minutes later: one potential crisis averted. Everyone returned to the gym and the teams warmed up. Then, after a red-hot final stretch of the first half and a fast-burn second half: upset crisis averted.
The Blue Jays emerged from the bonus halftime with fire in their eyes. They finished the final 2:55 of the half with an 11-3 run for a six-point halftime lead.
“It was super important,” St. John’s senior Cam Elwer said. “That kind of spurted us to get over the hump offensively, and defensively we were starting to get stops.”
Then, while DSJ coach Aaron Elwer was encouraging a second half to match the way the first one ended and CCP coach Reggie Revels was imploring his young team not to be snuffed out, the game staff in Butler’s Student Activity Center lightened the mood.
Cam Elwer was guarded tightly but that didn’t stop him from making four 3-pointers and scoring 32 points.
As they did a couple years ago after another fire-alarm incident, their halftime music selections included “Ring of Fire” and “Great Balls of Fire.” And with the passion of Johnny Cash and the pizzazz of Jerry Lee Lewis, St. John’s stopped playing with fire, made two defense-driven decisive runs, and emerged from the long day’s night with a 71-57 victory.
To get back to the regional final and one step from state where the Blue Jays (26-0) were knocked off a year ago, took a bit longer than they expected. A game scheduled to tip at 6 p.m. ended at 8:20. The tipoff was 30 minutes late because CCP got caught up in President Trump traffic trying to head north out of Cincinnati on I-75.
In addition, the effort to reach Saturday’s 5 p.m. final at Butler against Botkins, a 66-55 winner over Lehman Catholic, required more than anyone in blue and gold expected. They especially felt that way after their Blue Jays bolted to a 13-2 lead.
Westrich Furniture gladly sponsors the MAC on Press Pros Magazine.com.
The St. John’s faithful were cheering the usual: Cam Elwer for three, Andrew Elwer for three, Cam Elwer driving hard for two, Easton Elwer for three. But the Lions, starting a lineup of two freshmen, two sophomores, one senior and a sixth-man freshman charged with sticking to Cam Elwer like glue, finally ignited and got over the lag of their long bus ride.
Brayden Klaus did little things and made big plays to help the Blue Jays.
In CCP’s run to the 22-20 lead, and many other times when they needed a basket or two, leading scorer and senior Ja’Cion Johnson would hit a 3-pointer, freshman point guard Evan Davis would make a difficult driving layup, others would make a 3-pointer and long possessions would result in a wide-open layup.
“When I saw them play Cedarville, I thought they’re better than what I think people may give them credit for,” St. John’s coach Aaron Elwer said. “And what scared me the most was their ability to shoot the three, and that was evident in the first quarter.”
The Lions (12-8) made 10 3-pointers, including four in the second half by sophomore Kenyon Revels that gave his team hope. But St. John’s had too much firepower with nine 3-pointers and difficult layups in traffic and through contact.
Cam Elwer, the Furman signee and Mr. Basketball finalist, scored 17 points in the first half and 15 in the second half for 32. Andrew Elwer scored 12 of his 15 in the second half. Easton Elwer scored 11 of his 14 in the first half.
Tyce McClain’s speed made for a couple of big layups in the second half as St. John’s gained more and more control.
St John’s ignited its first important second-half run with full-court pressure, an addition to their repertoire in the past month. The key play in the 6-2 spurt was Easton Elwer’s steal and quick pass to Tyce McLain for a layup and 50-39 lead with 1:57 left in the third.
CCP continued to hang around, trailing by 10, when Brayden Klaus’ steal led quickly to Cam Elwer 3-pointer with a hand in his face. Then Klaus scored off another turnover caused by the press, pushing the lead to 15 with 4:30 left.
“That game completely flipped when we started to press,” Aaron Elwer said. “They’ve been pretty methodical, so we had it in our back pocket, waiting for the right time. We executed really well. We sped them up.”
That created more possessions for the Blue Jays, always a goal for a team that shoots as well as they do.
Wilson Health/Orthopedics proudly sponsors the best in area sports and the OHSAA Basketball Tournaments on Press Pros.
CCP face guarded Cam Elwer as tightly as possible in the second half, leaning on him, grabbing him, bumping him. Unfazed, he still scored and the no-help defense opened driving lanes for Andrew Elwer. When they were on the same side of the floor, Cam’s man couldn’t help on Andrew and he took full advantage with five driving layups, each of them answering a CCP basket.
St. John’s Brayden Klaus draws a charge on CCP’s Ja’Cion Johnson early in the fourth quarter. The foul was the fifth on the Lions’ lone senior starter and leading scorer.
“So proud of Andrew’s growth, and tonight that was on display again,” Aaron Elwer said. “He’s more than just a three-point shooter. He’s a really good basketball player, and that was evident tonight.”
With each big play caused by the increased defensive pressure, plus several made shots, Aaron Elwer was pumping his fist. The plan had come together.
“Our full court pressure made them uncomfortable,” he said. “I’m really, really proud of our guys to allow us more possessions as the game went on.”
A big play in the fourth quarter came at the 6:32 mark with the Jays up 57-50. CCP’s Johnson, a 14 points per game scorer, fouled out when Klaus took a charge. Johnson only scored six points, but his veteran presence was gone.
Johnson fouling out was part of Revels’ complaints after the game. He cited the fact that his team was called for 18 fouls while St. John’s was called for eight. Revels kept saying, “it’s OK,” as he talked talked about it, but the discrepancy clearly wasn’t OK with him.
Athletes In Action is proud to be a presenting sponsor of area basketball on Press Pros Magazine.com. Call now for camp opportunities for your team in summer, 2026.
“Good enough to be a better game than that I thought,” Revels said. “The refs had a lot to do with that. Look at how many fouls – the calls they were calling, but it’s OK. I played college basketball at a high level, I understand that. Honestly, give the kids a chance. That’s not right.
“They’re a good team. I’m not taking anything away from them, but let’s keep it even and let’s do it the right way. Look at the total fouls. It was a good basketball game and we were both playing really hard. It’s OK.
Nothing brings people together like state tournament basketball.
“We played competitive enough for it to be a better game. It’s OK.”
CCP, if the core of good young players stays together, will be back at regionals in the coming years more experienced and ready. No one will wonder if they belong.
When the game finally finished, Cam Elwer was happy his team had been in a hard-fought game after tournament margins of 55, 43 and 52 points. Not pushed to the brink but made to play well.
“We knew they were capable, which is obviously kind of scary, and they showed out tonight,” he said. “I kind of expected that in a big game. It’s a regional and we’re kind of done with the teams that aren’t going to make as many shots. It’s definitely good for us to see that kind of team and that kind of style.”
Precision Strip, in Minster, Ohio, is proud to be the presenting sponsor of the OHSAA state finals on Press Pros Magazine.com.