Star-studded semifinal round set in Division II

Names like Dunbar,Kellogg, Oden and Diebler will highlight Thursday's state games.
By JOE SCALZO
VINDICATOR SPORTS STAFF
Alex Kellogg might be the second-most famous high school player on the Value City Arena floor on Thursday night, but it's probably more for his last name than his game.
Both are pretty good.
Kellogg, the son of former Ohio State standout Clark Kellogg, is averaging 18.5 points per game for Columbus DeSales this season. His younger brother, Nick, is a freshman for the Stallions.
They'll be playing Dayton Dunbar, which won last year's Division II state title with a guy named Daequan Cook, who was named Big Ten Sixth Man of the Year as a freshman with the Buckeyes this season. Dunbar's junior center, Anthony Oden, has an older brother named Greg who plays at Ohio State. (You may have heard of him.)
Add Upper Sandusky's Jon Diebler to the mix and you've got a pretty star-studded semifinal round in Div. II that includes Poland.
"I think it's going to be a great tournament for the fans," said Upper Sandusky coach Mark Diebler. "There's gonna be some great players and, along with that, people should realize there's some good players around those players."
One of biggest teams
DeSales (22-3), which is making its second straight state tournament appearance, is one of the biggest teams in the state, with Kellogg (6-foot-7) and junior center Sean Hoobs (7-1) manning the inside and senior forward Elijha Allen (6-4, 18.4 points per game) creating matchup problems inside and outside.
"Our execution in the half-court is a big key for us because I don't think we can keep up with them [in the open court]," said Dunbar coach Peter Pullen, whose team is pretty athletic, too. "We're hoping to get some people [on DeSales] in foul trouble."
Dunbar (22-4), who was ranked sixth in the final Div. II Associated Press poll, counters with pretty good size of its own, led by 6-10 junior center Joshua Benson (10.1 ppg) and 6-9 senior forward Aaron Pogue.
"Dunbar creates matchup problems for anyone in the state," DeSals coach Blair Albright, whose team will play at 5:15 p.m. Thursday in the first Div. II game. "It gives us some relief that they've got to match up with us as well."
Dunbar routed rivals
Dunbar was known for its athleticism last season, crushing its two opponents in the state tournament by scores of 74-48 (over Akron St. Vincent-St. Mary) and 73-46 (over Wooster Triway). The Wolverines returned two starters from that team: Pogue and senior guard Norris Cole.
"Last year, I think we were a little more flamboyant," said Pullen. "We had some high-flyers and our point guard was pretty battle-tested.
"This year's bunch tried that, but we didn't have the go-getters that could get the ball out of nowhere. It was a little hard pulling that out of them because they were like, 'You let us do that last year.'"
The Wolverines can still run, but they prefer to pound the ball inside, running the offense through Pogue, who is an excellent scorer and passer.
DeSales, meanwhile, wants to turn Thursday's game into a track meet.
Running game expected
"We expect to have an up and down game," said Albright. "It should be pretty entertaining for everbody."
That won't include Clark Kellogg, whose responsibilities as a CBS NCAA Tournament analyst will likely prevent him from attending.
"Right now, it's not looking good for him [to attend] and he's very, very upset about that," said Albright.
Still, Kellogg's impact will be felt, and not just because of his sons.
"He's been an invaluable part of our success," Albright said. "He's been around quite a bit and he's certainly someone I use as a resource. He's been one of our most productive parents and he handles himself very, very well."
scalzo@vindy.com