In the season of giving, one Felicity-Franklin High School basketball player has become known for taking.
Senior Zander Marlow was honored before the Cardinals’ Dec. 6 game vs. Williamsburg for setting the Ohio High School Athletic Association record for steals in a single game – 13, vs. Robertson County, Kentucky, Dec. 27, 2023. Marlow received a plaque with the OHSAA logo and relevant statistics from the game, including six deflections – from the game, a 75-18 Felicity-Franklin win. He also scored 12 points that night, on six-of-11 shooting. For the season, Marlow averaged 3.1 steals per game, which was second in the Southern Buckeye Athletic and Academic Conference to Wilmington’s Mikey Brown (3.3). This season he has 3.0 steals per game, tied with Williamsburg’s Colton Fink and East Clinton’s Peyton Lilly for the conference lead.
Marlow believes in sharing as well. His 5.0 assists per game are second in the league to Goshen’s Braylon Settelmayer (8.0). In fact, he had 10 assists that night vs. Williamsburg, along with 15 points and five steals, in a 74-67 win. The 18-year-old senior, who grew up in Bethel before moving to the Felicity0franklin district in seventh-grade, answered questions from The Clermont Sun:
When did you start playing basketball? What got you into the sport? What keeps you in the sport?
“I got into basketball when I was 5-years-old. If I’m being honest my mom got me into the sport. When I was younger she would show me and my big brother (Zachary) her trophies and pictures in the newspaper from when she played. Our childhood wasn’t the easiest so basketball was an outlet me and my brother used to keep us from getting in trouble and keep our heads on a straight path. The thing that keeps me in basketball is how much love I have for the game and the family I have built over the years from playing. It’s truly more than just a game to me, it’s my life.”
What do you remember about the game against Robertson County in which you set the single-game steals record?
“I remember my teammates showed up to play. We were all talking on defense, moving the ball on offense, and taking smart shots. Without my teammates’ communication that game I would have never broke the record.”
What is the key to having a lot of steals? What makes you so good at it?
“I think the key to having a lot of steals is really studying the offensive game of the person you are guarding. If you watch film, most kids in high school have one or two go-to moves that they will use throughout the course of the game. Once you learn the offensive player and get them out of their game, the steals will come naturally throughout the course of the game. I think the reason I’m able to read defenders so well is because of the competition I’ve played growing up in AAU and playing with my older brother.”
What other games/moments from your high school career stand out?
“If I had to choose a game from my high school career that really sticks out to me, I would have to go back to Dec. 10, 2021, my freshman year, Coach Jason Thompson gave me the opportunity to play against my big brother Zachary Marlow when we hosted the Bethel-Tate Tigers at home.”
Zander Marlow scored three points, with a rebound, assist and steal in Felicity-franklin’s 57-50 win. Zach Marlow had six points, two rebounds, an assist and a steal for the Tigers.
What are your goals and the team’s goals for this season? How would you assess your performances so far?
“My goal is to continue to grow and develop into a better player. There’s always room for improvement so I take it one day at a time, giving it my best so I can be the best teammate I can possibly be and further my basketball career. My goal for the team is for us to get better as a team. If we each take the time to improve where we need to individually, and fix the little things as a team, when we bring it all together, I strongly believe that we’ll be unstoppable with coach (Nate) Bogan’s new expectations and game plans.”
Outside of sports, what high school memories stand out?
“Some high school memories that stand out to me would be freshman year when (I) and my friends still went to the same school and were all taking the same classes.”
Do you know what you plan to do after high school?
“After high school I plan to try and further my basketball career while earning some type of degree in college.”
Felicity-Franklin is 3-3 heading into the 2025 portion of the schedule, which begins Friday night at home vs. East Clinton. The Cardinals have wins over Williamsburg 74-67, Whiteoak 70-61 and Blanchester 68-41, and losses to Clinton-Massie 58-45, Georgetown 57-55 and Bethel-Tate 69-58. They were 8-15 overall and 3-9 in the SBAAC National Division in 2023-2024.
Senior Jordan Blevins is the team’s leading scorer (18.3 points per game), with a 25-point game vs. Whiteoak and 22 vs. Williamsburg. Blevins is second in blocks per, 1.3, behind Clermont Northeastern’s Connor Yeager (3.0). Another senior, Landon Forbes, is 11th (13.5) and Marlow 12th (13.3). Forbes averages 9.8 rebounds per game, second in the SBAAC. He had 14 vs. Williamsburg and 10 vs. Clinton-Massie. Blevins is eighth, at 6.3 per game and Marlow 14th (5.8).