Utica closed out a doubleheader at KIPP Columbus on Jan. 17, falling 80–63 in the boys basketball matchup.
Both teams came out hot, with Utica starting the game with seventeen points and Kipp with twenty. However, Utica fell behind in the second quarter when Kipp Columbus tallied twenty-four points, and the Redskins trailed with fifteen. Kipp continued their aggressive offense in the third, netting twenty-one points. Utica trailed with eleven points, making the score 65-43 going into the last quarter.
Utica found its footing in the fourth, but it was too little too late. The Redskins scored twenty points compared to Kipp’s fifteen, but were already trailing by too much to come back.
Utica’s Hunter McKinney led scoring for the Redskins with twelve points. Sam Krueger closely followed with eleven, and behind him was Gavin Dugan with ten.
The dominant scorer for the night was Kipp Columbus’ Jonathan Amos, who netted thirty-seven points on the night, greatly contributing to his team’s win. The remainder of the team's points were largely a team effort, led by Emmen Pettigrew, who was Kipp’s second-highest scorer with twelve points.
Utica’s next game is at Licking Valley on Tuesday, Feb. 3.
Utica and Licking Valley last squared off on Feb. 4, 2025, when the Redskins came up short in a 48–39 loss.
