VANDALIA, Ohio — Woodward High School senior point guard Paul McMillan IV passed LeBron James on the Ohio High School Athletic Association's all-time boys basketball scoring list Thursday night.
McMillan scored 23 points to help lead the Bulldogs in a 68-42 win over Roger Bacon in a Division II regional semifinal at Vandalia Butler High School.
McMillan's layup with 3:30 remaining of the fourth quarter moved him past James and into sixth place on the OHSAA career points, according to Woodward statistician Dan Wright.
McMillan has 2,651 career points and is 29 points behind Geno Ford (1993 Cambridge graduate) for fifth place. James, a Los Angeles Lakers superstar, scored 2,646 career points in high school before he graduated from Akron St. Vincent-St. Mary High School in 2003.
Woodward coach Jarelle Redden said it was a surreal moment to watch McMillan pass James on the state scoring list.
McMillan, a three-time Cincinnati Metro Athletic Conference player of the year, is a longtime fan of James.
"I know how much Paul likes LeBron," Redden said. "For him to pass somebody he's always looked up to and respects was major. I was just happy and glad to be a part of it."
McMillan has plenty of items related to James including jerseys, shirts, hooded sweatshirts, posters and video highlights.
McMillan told WCPO last monthhe is humbled by being mentioned in the same sentence as the NBA legend in regards to OHSAA basketball history.
"I'm truly blessed and humbled by it," McMillan said. "Anything LeBron did I wanted to be better than LeBron."
McMillan scored 12 of his 23 points in the fourth quarter Thursday night.
Junior guard Kanye Moreland had nine points with six assists. Senior forward Keliese Frye had eight points with seven rebounds, three blocks, and four steals, and sophomore guard Ru Mills had six points with five assists and four steals.
Woodward (23-3) plays Alter (24-2) in the regional final at 11 a.m. Saturday at Vandalia Butler. It is Woodward's first regional final appearance since 1990, according to Wright.
Alter, which defeated Linden McKinley 60-53 in Thursday's other regional semifinal, was ranked No. 2 in the season's final Associated Press state poll while Woodward was ranked No. 3.
Woodward is trying to reach the state Final Four for the first time since 1990 when it was a Division I state runner-up.
