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The Portsmouth Trojans will enter the 2025-26 season coming off a 7-15 campaign a year ago. The good news for PHS is that the top 2 scorers return, and will be bolstered by a good freshmen class and better depth off the bench. SR Connie Thomas led the Trojans in scoring last season, tallying 17 PPG while SR Daequan Woods averaged 13 PPG. The return of SR Logan Adkins from injury should add some offensive punch. Adkins missed all of last season due to a knee injury suffered in football 2 years ago. The rest of the starting 5 will come from a pool of players that includes some freshmen who recorded an undefeated season a year ago as OVC champions. Here is a list of the players who played last season, varsity, JV, or JH: (C.Thomas, D.Woods, L.Adkins should make up 3 of the 5 starters)

Dontavion (Dee) Parker...5-10 SR
Olynshay McKinley.........6-5 SR
Kaleb Johnson.............6-1 SR
Crisshawn Dukes...........6-0 JR
Jay Lofton..................5-9 JR
Tyson Craft.................5-11 JR
Fernando Poxes............5-9 JR
JJ Henderson...............5-10 JR
Jayden Harrington.........5-9 JR
Darius English..............5-10 JR
Dodrick Bertram...........6-1 SO
Joe Greene.................6-0 FR
Mekhi Berry.................6-3 FR
Manny Thomas.............5-8 FR
Liam Livingston............6-2 FR
O'Ryan Graybell............6-2 FR

Darius English and Dodrick Bertram added to the roster 10/31/25.

Portsmouth last won a sectional title in 2024, and the last district championship was in 2015, which in the same year they won the OVC. 3 times in the last 4 seasons South Point has eliminated the Trojans in tournament play, and in 2017 the Pointers beat PHS 59-42 in the district semifinal.

Coach Aaron Smith enters his 2nd season at the helm of the varsity, and by all indication plans for the Trojans to play an uptempo game to take advantage of the athleticism that PHS has plenty of.

Chesapeake is the defending OVC champion. Ironton and Fairland have new coaches.

Here is a decade by decade record of Portsmouth HS basketball, with some added historical notes:

1913--1919.......71-27........1919 team posts 21-1 record
1920--1929.......118-46.......2 Final 4 appearances in 1927 and 1929
1930--1939.......145-55.......State Champions in 1931 and State Runnerup in 1934, State Appearance in 1939
1940--1949.......121-93.......State Appearance in 1941 and district title in 1948
1950--1959.......135-84.......6 district titles; 2 Regional Finals
1960--1969.......139-69.......1961 State Champions; 6 district titles
1970--1979.......133-74......1972 district champions, 1978 State Champions, 1979 AP Poll Champions 18-0
1980--1989.......197-50.......6 district championships, 1980 State Runnerup, 1988 State Champions
1990--1999.......136-87.......1990 State Runnerup, 4 district championships, 1 regional final
2000--2009.......100-121......2001 district championship
2010--2019.......163-80.......2011 State Semifinalist, 2012 State Runnerup, 3 district titles, 1 regional final
2020--2025.......62-72........Sectional title 2024

Total All Decades: 1,521--858 (plus 1908 win over Ironton)

From 1947--1991, PHS recorded only 5 losing seasons (1957, 1958, 1959, 1962, 1985); PHS has missed the state tournament in only 2 decades (1950-1959, and 2000-2009). PHS is the last SE district school to have won a game in the Final 4 (74-66 win over Ottawa-Glandorf in 2012).

All Time Leading Scorer: Kyre Allison (2013-2016) 1,688 points
Winning Seasons: 81
20 Win Seasons: 19 (4 straight from 1981-1984)
Best Record: 27-1 1988 D2 State Champions
State Tournament Games Played: 27 (4th in Ohio)
State Tournament Appearances: 15 (4th in Ohio)
Earliest Game That I Could Find: May 5, 1908 vs. Ironton (PHS won 22-4)

Portsmouth is one of only 12 schools in Ohio that has won a state title in boys and girls basketball, and has at least 5 state titles total.

Where can I find Portsmouth’s schedule?

Portsmouth Trojans 2025-26 schedule:

PRESEASON SCRIMMAGES:

11/8.......at Johnstown Time TBD
11/15.....at Canal Winchester 10 AM
11/15.....at Bexley 4 PM
11/18.....at Lynchburg Clay 5 PM

REGULAR SEASON: Games are 6:00 JV and 7:30 Varsity unless otherwise indicated

11/28...........H vs. Minford
12/13...........A Shawnee State vs. Racine Southern 2 PM
12/15...........A vs. Coal Grove
12/18...........A vs. Rock Hill
12/22...........A vs. Fairland
12/27...........A vs. Wheelersburg
12/30...........H vs. Valley
1/3..............A vs. Manchester
1/5..............H vs. Gallia Academy
1/8..............H vs. Ironton
1/12.............H vs. South Point
1/13.............A vs. Eastern Pike
1/15.............A vs. Chesapeake
1/17.............H vs. Lewis County, KY
1/20.............H vs. Coal Grove
1/23.............H vs. Rock Hill
1/27.............A vs. South Webster
1/30.............H vs. Fairland
2/3...............A vs. Gallia Academy
2/6...............A vs. Ironton
2/10..............A vs. South Point
2/13..............H vs. Chesapeake

Does Portsmouth keep up in the ovc? Hearing rumbling the parker kid is ineligible that is a big hit for the Trojans

burgboy23 wrote: Tue Oct 28, 2025 11:41 am Does Portsmouth keep up in the ovc? Hearing rumbling the parker kid is ineligible that is a big hit for the Trojans

Dee? Why would he be ineligible?

PTrojan59 wrote: Tue Oct 28, 2025 1:04 pm

burgboy23 wrote: Tue Oct 28, 2025 11:41 am Does Portsmouth keep up in the ovc? Hearing rumbling the parker kid is ineligible that is a big hit for the Trojans

Dee? Why would he be ineligible?

Heard he’s ineligible for playoffs because he hasn’t been showing up to school, missed too many days which also means the start of basketball

burgboy23 wrote: Tue Oct 28, 2025 1:25 pm

PTrojan59 wrote: Tue Oct 28, 2025 1:04 pm

burgboy23 wrote: Tue Oct 28, 2025 11:41 am Does Portsmouth keep up in the ovc? Hearing rumbling the parker kid is ineligible that is a big hit for the Trojans

Dee? Why would he be ineligible?

Heard he’s ineligible for playoffs because he hasn’t been showing up to school, missed too many days which also means the start of basketball

Ahh no clue honestly. Good depth/bench piece in basketball.

Dontavion (Dee) is not projected to be a starter on the varsity, but he is one of the best defenders in the program. As far as his eligibility, we'll just have to wait and see on that.

OVC finishes by PHS since they joined the conference in 2015:

2015: 1st
2016: 2nd
2017: 3rd
2018: 4th
2019: 7th
2020: 5th
2021: 6th--Tie
2022: 6th
2023: 6th
2024: 2nd
2025: 6th--Tie

Portsmouth's overall record in OVC play vs. each team:

Fairland: 4-18
Ironton: 8-14
Gallia Academy: 10-12
Chesapeake: 10-12
Coal Grove: 14-8
South Point: 13-9
Rock Hill: 19-3

Overall Record: 78-76

30 Point Games by Trojans vs. OVC schools since 2015:

DeAndre Berry: 36 vs. South Point 2024; 38 vs. Ironton 2024; 31 vs. Gallia Academy 2024; 40 vs. Rock Hill 2024; 31 vs. Gallia Academy 2023; 30 vs. Rock Hill 2023; 30 vs. Coal Grove 2023

Dariyonne Bryant: 31 vs. South Point 2022; 34 vs. Coal Grove 2022

Matthew Fraulini: 46 vs. Rock Hill 2019

Kyre Allison: 32 vs. Fairland 2015

PTrojan59 wrote: Tue Oct 28, 2025 1:34 pm

burgboy23 wrote: Tue Oct 28, 2025 1:25 pm

PTrojan59 wrote: Tue Oct 28, 2025 1:04 pm

Dee? Why would he be ineligible?

Heard he’s ineligible for playoffs because he hasn’t been showing up to school, missed too many days which also means the start of basketball

Ahh no clue honestly. Good depth/bench piece in basketball.

I heard that he managed to find a loophole to regain eligibility for the start of the season.