LOUISVILLE ― Darryl Peterson II didn't think his son Darryn would want to grant an interview request with emotions still so raw Saturday night after Cuyahoga Valley Christian Academy's season-ending loss.
However, the 16-year-old Peterson demonstrated the type of maturity about which his teammates rave by telling his father he would speak to the Beacon Journal despite feeling the sting of a 58-48 defeat to Cleveland Glenville in a Division II district final at Louisville High School.
"He really took on the role of being the leader of the team both on and off the court," CVCA senior guard Jonathan Fridline said. "We looked to him for everything.
"When he sees adversity, he runs to it. He doesn't shy away from it. So I know he's going to be working his tail off this offseason. Unfortunately, I won't be around to see it, but I know he's not going to let this happen again."
Darryl, Darryn Peterson push each: Brothers from Northeast Ohio have dreams of playing in NFL, NBA
CVCA (18-7) was eliminated from the Ohio High School Athletic Association boys basketball tournament by Glenville (17-8) with a district championship at stake for the second consecutive year .
The game's leading scorer with 29 points, Peterson said falling short his freshman and sophomore seasons will remain on his mind and drive him as he works to improve for his junior year.
"We definitely lost at a spot we didn't want to lose at," said Peterson , one of the nation's top college hoops recruits. "We've got to all look ourselves in the mirror and tell ourselves we need to get better. We have to win next year."
Fourth-seeded CVCA appeared to be ready to avenge its 2022 loss to seventh-seeded Glenville when the Royals led 15-4 at the end of the first quarter and 26-17 at halftime.
However, Glenville charged back with a 14-2 run to start the third quarter. A steal and slam dunk by Peterson tied the score 33-33 with 7:52 remaining in the fourth quarter, but Glenville answered with junior Eugene Totten's 3-pointer with 7:04 left to play and never trailed again.
"It sucks losing to them twice in a row when we had the lead going into halftime both years" said CVCA senior guard Jackson Shelby, who finished with eight points.
CVCA hasn't won a district championship since 2013.
Peterson began Saturday's game on fire and stayed hot through the first two quarters. He shot 5 of 5 from the field and 2 of 2 from the free-throw line en route to 14 points in the first half.
What proved to be problematic for CVCA, though, is Glenville hit its shots at a scorching rate in the second half and scored 25 points in the fourth quarter. In the final quarter, freshman guard Theo Castro scored seven of his team-high 16 points and senior Jakobi Laster added seven of his 12 points.
"There were a few plays at the tail end of the first half that kind of switched the momentum, and we weren't able to switch it back," said Fridline, who scored nine points for CVCA. "They definitely came out firing. Everyone saw it at the beginning of the second half."
Peterson credited Glenville for its efficient shooting.
"We couldn't get stops, but we fought hard," he said. "I gave it all I got, but it wasn't enough."
Peterson is aware how valuable deep playoff runs are to his high school basketball legacy. His older brother, Darryl Peterson III, won three state championships in football at Archbishop Hoban.
And Darryn Peterson is hungry for a title of his own.
"I'm the only one that ain't won nothing big yet, so I've got to get that," he said. "[I've] got to live up to my brother and get some rings."
Fridline and Shelby will soon graduate from CVCA, but they'll both continue to track their well-known teammate.
"That's my guy," Fridline said of Peterson. "I'm going to be watching him draft night when he's going up on that stage getting drafted in the NBA."
"As a freshman, he was still the greatest player on the court," Shelby said. "But his transition from freshman to sophomore year was just something like I've never seen before.
"I'm going to follow [his career] all the way ― hopefully a lottery pick here in a couple years."
If only they could have advanced past Glenville and played more games together.
Nate Ulrich can be reached at nulrich@thebeaconjournal.com.
On Twitter: @ByNateUlrich .
This article originally appeared on Akron Beacon Journal: Darryn Peterson, CVCA lose to Glenville in OHSAA district final
