Vicenza’s Ben Harlow goes to the basket against Naples’ Davion Bowie in the boys Division II final at the DODEA-Europe basketball championships in Wiesbaden, Germany, Feb. 17, 2024. Vicenza beat Naples 76-37 to capture the title. (Michael Abrams/Stars and Stripes)
WIESBADEN, Germany – Ben Harlow elected to play for a local Italian team following his freshman campaign at Vicenza High School.
The team he left had lost most of the third-place finishing squad from the DODEA European Southern Basketball Championships during the COVID-19-induced split tournament of 2021-2022. His sophomore season had a roster of nine freshmen, as well as a handful of other players.
Harlow returned to DODEA basketball one year later. And the 6-foot-2 guard couldn’t believe the change he saw in those players.
That improvement ended in a Division II DODEA European basketball championship. On Saturday afternoon at Wiesbaden Sports and Fitness Center on Clay Kaserne, the Cougars hammered Naples, 76-37.
“It’s crazy how far everyone has come,” Harlow said. “It’s been the best season of my life. From Day 1, just working hard, knowing that we would have an opportunity like this.”
The victory marked Vicenza’s first title in a decade, according to longtime coach Jesse Woods.
The Cougars (15-4) also clinched a perfect record in division play, while also tripling their win total from 2022-2023.
Like Harlow, the Vicenza coach noticed a vast improvement from his nine returning players.
“After coming here and winning one and done after a couple days (in the past), this feels good,” Woods said. “Last year, we didn’t win very many games. We were really young, and that young group worked over the summer, and they got a whole lot better.”
The title game wasn’t really in doubt from the start.
The Cougars opened on a 14-2 run over the first four-and-a-half minutes, and that was as close as it was the rest of the way. Even when Harlow picked up his third foul at the 2-minute, 7-second mark in the first quarter and sat the rest of the first half, Vicenza continued to push out the lead.
Vicenza enjoyed a 21-point advantage midway through the second quarter before the Wildcats (10-7) clawed it back to 14 points with a minute and a half before the break.
The Vicenza Cougars celebrate their Division II title after defeating Naples 76-37 in the boys Division II final at the DODEA-Europe basketball championships in Wiesbaden, Germany, Feb. 17, 2024. (Michael Abrams/Stars and Stripes)
Vicenza’s Joe Kelly aims for the basket against a defending Jeramiah Robinson of Naples in the boys Division II final at the DODEA-Europe basketball championships in Wiesbaden, Germany, Feb. 17, 2024. Vicenza won the game 76-37. (Michael Abrams/Stars and Stripes)
Vicenza’s Simon Gilbert pulls down a rebound in front of Naples’ Camden Kasparek, left, and Jettyn Jones in the boys Division II final at the DODEA-Europe basketball championships in Wiesbaden, Germany, Feb. 17, 2024. Vicenza won the game 76-37. (Michael Abrams/Stars and Stripes)
Naples’ Camden Kasparek gets past the Vicenza defense in the boys Division II final at the DODEA-Europe basketball championships in Wiesbaden, Germany, Feb. 17, 2024. Vicenza took the division crown, defeating the Wildcats 76-37. (Michael Abrams/Stars and Stripes)
Naples’ Jettyn Jones finishes a fast break ahead of Vicenza’s Dylan Horrigan in the boys Division II final at the DODEA-Europe basketball championships in Wiesbaden, Germany, Feb. 17, 2024. Vicenza defeated Naples76-37 to take the title. (Michael Abrams/Stars and Stripes)
Harlow, who amassed 23 points and eight thefts, said he wasn’t surprised by the quick start against Naples, a team the Cougars already had beaten three times this season.
“We knew if we executed our stuff, we would get the win,” the Division II tournament MVP said. “They’re a great team, but we’re a lot to handle.”
The defensive pressure proved to be too much for Naples. The Wildcats committed 26 turnovers before the mercy rule was enacted midway through the fourth frame, including nine in the first quarter.
And the Cougars used that to their advantage on the other end. Vicenza scored 18 fast-break points off steals, and that’s not including the number of layups missed or the putback buckets that came off them.
Woods stressed conditioning as the main reason for the relentless nature of his players’ defensive pressure, whether it be jumping passing lanes or picking ballhandlers’ pockets.
“These guys just didn’t get tired,” he said. “I’m impressed by the way they just keep coming and coming and coming.”
To go with Harlow’s performance, sophomore guard Dylan Horrigan came off the bench to score 12 points, sophomore forward Simon Gilbert had 11 points and eight rebounds and junior forward Joe Kelly chipped in with 10 points.
For Naples, junior guard Jettyn Jones provided a spark in the second quarter by scoring nine of his 15 points in the frame.
Coach Craig Lord admitted the Wildcats were shellshocked by the blitzing start from Vicenza, and they struggled to recover.
Still, even getting to the title game was an accomplishment, Lord said. Naples lost 60 percent of its lineup from the 2022-2023 championship season.
“If we could knock on opportunity’s door, that’s what we wanted to do,” Lord said. “Obviously, it didn’t come out the way we wanted, but we were just so happy to make it here and accomplish what we did.”
As for the future, Woods is optimistic it won’t be another 10 seasons before Vicenza returns to the top.
With nine of 10 guys expected to return, it’s hard not to think about a repeat already.
“We get a chance to work with these guys another year,” Woods said.