elijah allen - steadfast
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8/3/2019 Elijah Allen - Steadfast
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By Jason Lawrence
Asst. Sports Editor
Headline: Journey leads senior forward down road to success
Over 11 hours and 700 miles away from Maryville, in
Columbus, Ohio, senior forward Elijah Allen began his
journey to be the first in his family to earn a college degree
and brought his skills on the court to the Bearcats.
Allen was a four-year letter winner in basketball at St.
Francis DeSales High School in Columbus. He graduated as
the schools all-time leading scorer with 1,312 points.
His scoring ability is what got him noticed by college
coaches. Northwest was one of only two Division II schools
that Allen visited as several Division I schools were also in the
mix to add him to their team.
Former Northwest coach Steve Tappmeyer got the six
foot- four inch forward to put pen to paper and sign a national
letter of intent with the Bearcats.
I really liked the campus and the coaching staff with
Coach Tapp, so thats why I chose to come here, Allen said.
But the culture shock was nonetheless a big one, going
from a metropolis to what Allen calls the country.
That was the biggest change, Allen said. Basketball-
wise, I think it was just listening to the coaching staff. In high
school I was kind of hard headed, so when I got here, I wanted
to change that.
Allen came into a winning program, the Cats went 24-7
in 2006-07 and helped the team to a 24-8 record and an
appearance in the South Central Regional Tournament his
freshman year.
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During his sophomore season, Allen became a starter and
averaged 13.1 points per game, second on the team, but the
ball still did not seem to be bouncing his way.
Then Tappmeyer abruptly retired after the team went 12-
15 and missed out on the MIAA Tournament.
That same scoring ability that undoubtedly caught
Tappmeyers eye is the first thing Northwest head coach Ben
McCollum noticed about the forward two years ago.
Hes a great scorer, really has a knack; a great instinct to
find opportunities to score, McCollum said.
With Tappmeyer and star center Hunter Henry gone, the
role of leader fell directly on Allens shoulders.
There were growing pains, with four transfers and two
freshmen on the roster, but Allen stayed positive and took his
new role in stride under the less-strict McCollum.
He earned All-MIAA honorable mention and posted
team-highs with 17.6 points and 6.8 rebounds, but the team
struggled again. The Bearcats lost their last three games and
missed the MIAA Tournament for a second consecutive
season.
Tired of the losing, Allen knew he had to step up. Not
only did he grow up on the court, he grew as a person off of it.
Hes matured quite a bit, McCollum said. I think hes
really handled adversity a lot. As the time goes on, he
continues to handle it better and better in the moment instead
of reflecting back and then handling it.
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Hes become a smarter player and I think hes become
more unselfish as a person and I think those things will take
him a long way.
The Cats have struggled again as Allens career in the
green and white nears its end. Northwest dons an 8-14 record
with four games left. Allen averages 14.6 points and a team-
high 6.8 rebound per game.
Still, Allen kept positive and received the biggest
compliment McCollum could give.
Hes loyal, McCollum said. To me, thats the greatest
compliment you can give somebody. Through thick and thin,
hes maintained his loyalty to the program and to seeing this
program have success.
I think that means a lot to his teammates, to his program.
Hes gained a lot of respect from anybody thats come in
contact with him throughout the community because of the
way he acts, his attitude and from what he came from.
Last week Allen etched his name in the Northwest record
books, eclipsing the 1,200 point mark. He currently occupies
ninth place on the schools all-time scoring list with 1,225
points, and could get as high as seventh before the season
ends.
This summer, Allen will graduate with a degree in
business management, but does not have any plans to put that
degree to use right away.
Allen and his coach both believe he has some basketball
left in him and thinks he could follow in the footsteps of
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Henry and former guard Edriss Floyd, who continued their
basketball careers after their time at Northwest.
I think hes got a great chance, McCollum said. He can
score very handily. Hes very long, very athletic and hes got a
great attitude. I think thats the most important thing, hes a
hard worker with a great attitude and he can play.
I could see him doing that, its just something that hes
got to set his mind to and he has.
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PULLOUT NUMBERS
1,312 Points Career High School Points
70 Wins in High School
27 Losses in High School
1,225 Points Career College Points
56 Wins in College
50 Losses in College
17.6 PPG as a junior
14.6 PPG as a senior
6.2 RPG as a junior
6.8 RPG as a senior