CINCINNATI — Moments after the horn sounded in Sunday’s Division III regional final, the euphoria was palpable for the Aiken High School boys basketball team and anyone associated with the program on the Cintas Center floor.
There were hugs, photos and smiles everywhere in front of 5,000 fans at Xavier University. Aiken defeated Trotwood-Madison 71-50 to capture the Falcons’ second regional title in program history.
However, Aiken boys basketball coach Derrell Black stayed on the bench. He held a basketball with emotion in his eyes. He later said he was overwhelmed with gratitude.
“I was late here today because I was at church,” Black said. “I told the guys I can’t miss going to church. I’ll be here when I get here. And it just shows you how great God is to us all.”
Aiken (26-1) avenged its only loss of the season when host Trotwood-Madison won 78-76 Feb. 13.
The Falcons are a regional champion for the first time since 2016. Aiken advances to play Sandusky in a Division III state semifinal at 3 p.m. March 16 at Wright State University’s Nutter Center.
For the second time in the regional tournament,Aiken rallied yet again in the second half.
“It’s an all-around good feeling for sure,” Aiken senior guard Jaiden Arnold said. “Coach Black means everything to me. He said he was going to get emotional. This means a lot to him. We still got a lot to go.”
Aiken trailed by three points at halftime (22-19) Sunday, but just like the entire postseason tournament — the Falcons never wavered in their belief that they would find a way to rally.
“We’ve been the best third quarter team in the state all year,” Black said.
Aiken rallied to lead 45-41 at the end of the third quarter and never looked back.
Arnold scored 16 points and had four rebounds, two assists and two steals. Senior guard James Burnett Jr. scored 15 points and had four rebounds, three steals and two assists.
“Preparation is everything with us,” Arnold said. “We just fought hard. We knew what we wanted. We just executed. We bounced back for sure and got the win.”
Aiken is one of three Greater Cincinnati boys basketball teams to have earned regional titles since Saturday. Lakota West (Division I) and Summit Country Day (Division V) advanced to the state semifinals in their respective divisions. Wyoming (Division IV) plays Alter in a regional final Sunday afternoon.
