Marysville’s Jack Christian (4) goes up for a shot over North Union’s Hudson Davis on Saturday. Christian scored eight points to become MHS’ all-time boys basketball scoring leader. (Journal-Tribune photo by Tim Miller)
There are a great many numbers associated with any game of basketball.
The most important ones consist of the final score.
On that end, the Marysville Monarchs came out on the top side of the ledger with Saturday evening’s 55-44 victory over neighboring North Union.
There were, however, several other numbers that played a huge role during the game.
Take for instance, the eight points scored by MHS senior Jack Christian.
Those markers elevated him to the top of Marysville’s all-time boys roundball scoring list.
Christian went into the game needing seven points to surpass the late Ed Nicol’s career total of 1,208.
Monarch fans were on the edge of their seats, ready to celebrate the milestone.
The first quarter went by as Christian scored two points.
The second stanza concluded and still no record as Christian didn’t find the basket.
The suspense was at a fever pitch when the Monarch sharpshooter nailed a three-pointer during the third quarter.
That left him just two points shy of breaking Nicol’s record that had stood for 65 years.
A free throw with 1:41 left in the quarter allowed Christian to tie the mark.
MHS fans, however, had to wait until very late in the game to celebrate.
Christian, who dished for several assists during the contest, scored a bucket with 2:31 left in the battle to establish the new record of 1,210 points.
“This is the result of a lot of hard work I’ve been doing since I was a kid,” said Christian.
The Wildcats put a lot of pressure on Christian throughout the game, as several of his shots failed to find the mark.
Instead, at times he made sure the ball was in the hands of teammates.
“I just wanted to find them for baskets,” he said. “North Union beat us last year, so all of us really wanted this game.”
MHS coach Ryan Grose echoed what he has said about Christian for the past four seasons.
“This is proof that all of Jack’s hard work has paid off,” said Grose. “He’s always been the first in the gym and the last one out.”
The top five scorers in Marysville High School boys basketball history are as follows:
1. Jack Christian-1,210;
2. Ed Nicol-1,208;
3. Shawn Waller-1,176;
4. Jon Neely-1,140;
5. Buddy Hoffman-1,086;
6. Bryian Burson-1,063;
7. Mike Griffith-828;
8. Jack Mackan-823;
9. Bill Coder-822;
10. Ian Quick-821.