Carson Francis, Staff Writer

Southern Ohio Sports Authority is presented by OhioHealth.
BELPRE — There hasn’t been a lot to cheer about for Southern basketball in recent years.
The Tornadoes came into this season on the heels of five straight losing seasons and had gone without a league championship since 2014. It seemed as if winning was a rarity in Southern’s program.
That all changed this season, however.
Southern’s juniors and seniors all trusted the process and bought in this season, and it paid off. Though they faced a fair share of challenges, the Tornadoes ended their winning-season drought and have also been victorious in every league game on their schedule.

CREDIT: Tanner Wright/SOSA
And when the Tornadoes had a chance to clinch the top spot in the TVC-Hocking all for themselves, they took full advantage of the opportunity. Forcing 21 turnovers on the night, Southern was able to hold off Belpre on Friday evening for a 48-41 victory – earning itself a long-awaited league title.
“I feel like none of our games have been easy this year. We’ve definitely had to work to achieve this goal. Sometimes it’s not pretty, but our guys have always played hard, they’ve always given great effort,” Southern head coach Jeff Caldwell said. “I’m so proud of them because they’ve come a long way. This is a huge win for us and for our program. Our seniors have stuck with it. They’ve kept working and we’ve mixed them in with these younger guys and it’s been a real honor to coach them.”
The Golden Eagles wouldn’t make it easy, however. After Brandon Laudermilt gave Southern a 5-4 lead early with an old-fashioned three-pointer, Belpre stormed back with a 6-0 run to make it a 10-5 advantage at the 2:27 mark.
From there, Belpre would extend its lead to 14-7 before the Tornadoes answered with a 5-0 run of their own in the final minute. Kase Nelson knocked down a triple from the left wing before Andre Chandler stole the ball and scored on a fast break, cutting the deficit to 14-12 after the opening frame.
Basketball is a game of runs, and Southern (16-3, 9-0 TVC) went on another big one in the second quarter to reclaim the lead.
After Belpre (8-11, 5-3 TVC) extended the lead to 18-12 with 4:18 until halftime, the Tornadoes picked up the tempo and regained control of the game. Jake Wickline received the inbound pass and went coast-to-coast for a contested layup before sinking the bonus free throw.
Then, Chandler swatted a Belpre pass and scored on the other end before grabbing a rebound on the following possession and finding Landon Emerson in the paint for another two points. With 2:08 left, Southern had capped off a 7-0 run to go up by a 19-18 count.
The Tornadoes never looked back and never trailed for the rest of the night.
After the lead progressed to 23-20, Southern’s Noah Leachman banked in a three-pointer as the halftime horn sounded, giving his team a 26-20 lead going into the break.
With momentum well on their side, the Tornadoes took the momentum and ran with it.
“When we went into halftime, we knew we had to pick it up if we wanted to pull it out,” Chandler said. “We pulled ourselves together, came out with more energy, came out more focused and were better on the offensive and defensive ends. So I feel like at halftime we just pulled ourselves together and pulled away.”
Belpre opened the second half with a Chris Copen layup, but Southern had an answer and then some in the form of Andre Chandler. The junior would respond to the opposing bucket by going on his own 8-0 run, stretching the lead out to 34-22 with 5:38 left and forcing Belpre into a timeout.
The Golden Eagles weren’t going down without a fight, however. With Southern leading by 13, AJ Copen buried one from outside to cut the deficit back to ten in the final seconds of the third quarter, making it 42-32 heading into the fourth.
It didn’t stop there, as Belpre continued to climb back in the final period. Trailing by 10 with 5:08 left, AJ Copen again scored from the block to bring the deficit back to single digits. Then, Nasaih Spencer converted an and-one for three points before Chris Copen scored in the post with 2:20 left, making it a 44-41 ball game
Southern’s double-digit lead had dwindled down to just three. The Golden Eagles were in perfect position to spoil Southern’s celebration.
The Tornadoes didn’t let that happen, though.
While the score remained the same into the game’s final minute, Belpre pressed the length of the floor and looked to burn its fouls. But with 34 seconds left, Chandler received the inbound pass and broke free from Belpre’s press before finding Emerson wide open under the basket for a layup.
The Tornadoes then forced a miss on the other end before Jake Wickline sealed the game with 8.6 seconds left, knocking down both shots from the charity stripe to put the finishing touches on a 48-41 final – giving Southern its first TVC-Hocking crown in 11 years.
“It ended up being very important that we got that big lead. We were up by 15 at one point, and [Belpre] came all the way back and cut it down to three. Belpre is so athletic, and it’s hard to simulate that in practice. Some of our turnovers, we just attribute that to them and how they got after us,” Caldwell said. “Finally, we broke the press at the end and got that layup. All season, our guys have just found ways to win and I hope we can continue that the rest of the season.”
“It feels great, especially with it being my senior year, but we still have more work to do,” Landon Emerson said. “We start off practice every day doing closeout drills and working on our defense. Our JV puts in all the hard work in practice against us and works as hard as they can. We’ve got to keep moving and take it day by day.”
Chandler led the Tornadoes offensively with 18 points, seven rebounds and five assists. Landon Everson followed with eight points and four rebounds of his own. Jake Wickline and Kase Nelson also had seven points each.
Belpre was led by Chris Copen, who put up 11 points and six rebounds while blocking three shots. Malik Currie added eight points while AJ Copen and Nasaih Spencer each tallied seven points.

CREDIT: Tanner Wright/SOSA
After a loss to Fort Frye on Saturday, Belpre looks to rebound with a trip to Eastern Meigs on Tuesday. Meanwhile, Southern, after a win over Miller on Saturday, is back in action the same evening, hosting Chillicothe Southeastern.
With the tournament draw looming, Caldwell wants his Tornadoes to focus on finishing the regular season strong before setting their sights on a tournament run.
“Our whole thing this season has been one day at a time,” Caldwell said. “These guys have bought into that. They come in each day at practice focused. Each game is a new game, and we’re just trying to enjoy the moment and prepare the best we can each day.”
SPONSORED BY VINTON COUNTY NATIONAL BANK
