Joe Howard, the Akron Public Schools program manager for interscholastic athletics, announced the following dates for City Series championships:

- The boys and girls bowling meet will take place in Tuesday at 10 a.m. at Midway Lanes, 1070 E. Tallmadge Ave. in Akron.

- Firestone and Kenmore have clinched spots in the girls basketball final, which is Thursday at 7 p.m. at North High School.

- Kenmore will host the wrestling championship meet on Feb. 11. That event starts at 10 a.m.

- The boys basketball final will tip-off at 7 p.m. on Feb. 17 at Firestone High School. East, Firestone and Kenmore remain in contention to play in that game. East is ranked No. 10 in the AP Division II state poll.

Freshman forward Larry Nance, a 2011 Revere High School graduate, throws down a big dunk for Wyoming against visiting San Diego State on Tuesday night.

This play was No. 1 on SportsCenter’s Top Plays for Tuesday.

Archbishop Hoban junior basketball player DeAllen Jackson is likely out for the remainder of the season, according to Knights coach T.K. Griffith.

Jackson fractured a bone near his eye on Saturday afternoon following an accident at home. He is still recovering at Akron Children’s Hospital after surgery to insert a dissolve-able plastic piece and to repair the fracture and muscle damage in the eye area.

Jackson was leading Hoban (8-3) in scoring this season, averaging 16.4 points per game. He made 70 percent of his free throws and 44 percent of his field goals.

“I feel terrible for this kid,” Griffith said. “He loves basketball and is crushed.”

Kara Murphy has signed a professional contract to continue her basketball playing career with Umea Comets of the Swedish Damligan – the most competitive women’s league in Sweden.

Murphy, a former St. Vincent-St. Mary High School and University of Akron standout, will join the team for the second half of the Damligan season.

Murphy finished her UA career as the school’s all-time leading scorer with 1,777 points and started 123 consecutive games. She holds program records for scoring in a season (580 points), free throws in a season (166), free throws in a career (480), and is third in career 3-pointers (127).

She also finished her career ninth on the career rebounds list (630). She twice scored a career-high 32 points in a Zips game.

Murphy received All-Mid-American Conference honors in each of her four seasons, including All-MAC First Team and All-MAC Tournament Team honors in 2009-10.

Former Walsh Jesuit basketball standout Evan Payne reportedly is set to leave his prep school in West Virginia.

Payne was back in Akron today at Firestone High School, but has not officially enrolled according to principal Larry Petry and Falcons basketball coach Dave Milo.

Even if he does in enroll, Milo said the Ohio High School Athletic Association will not make him eligible to play because he already played games this season for Huntington Prep.

“He is ineligible to play here,” Milo said. “He already played this year.

“I’m not sure what he is going to do.”

Payne, a 6-foot-2 and 190-pound guard, has scholarship offers and receiving interest from several colleges.

“He was in today talking with the enrollment people,” Petry said. “He lives in the district and he is entitled to go here.”

Payne’s family lived in the Firestone neighborhood in West Akron while he attended Walsh. He transferred to Huntington Prep this past summer in hopes of gaining more national exposure.

Payne was an Associated Press Division II All-Ohio selection last season and the All-Northeast Ohio Inland District Player of the Year. He averaged 24.5 points in the regular season and contributed four rebounds, four assists, three steals and two blocks per game.

Payne led Walsh to a 76-70 victory over host Firestone one year ago on Jan. 4 with 28 points.

He also shined against the Warriors biggest rivals last season, scoring 22 points against Archbishop Hoban and 30 points in one meeting against St. Vincent-St. Mary.

Payne’s most memorable basket last season came on March 12 when he launched an off-balance 3-pointer from just beyond mid-court with less than two seconds to go in overtime to defeat Buchtel 63-60 in a Division II district final at Stow. Payne grabbed a rebound, then dribbled to his right and proceeded up the court to his left when he shot the ball off the backboard and through the net to give him 18 points.

He scored 16 points in Walsh’s 63-51 loss to eventual state champion St. V-M in a regional semifinal in Canton on March 17.

Payne set the Walsh single-game record for scoring, twice reaching 37 points. His first 37-point game came against visiting Hoban in a 71-66 win on Jan. 22, 2010 and his second 37-point game came against visiting Cleveland St. Ignatius in a 65-58 win on Feb. 6, 2011.

The University of Akron, Cleveland State, Loyola (Ill.), Nebraska, Southern California, Central Florida, Kent State, Texas Christian, Central Michigan and Toledo have all been involved in recruiting Payne.

Huntington Prep is a self-described “basketball factory” that features sophomore Andrew Wiggins, a 6-foot-7 forward from Toronto, who is the No. 1 college recruit in the class of 2014 according to rivals.com, scout.com and espn.com. Wiggins has scholarship offers from several colleges.

The Express also have Missouri recruits Negus Webster-Chan (6-foot-6) and Stefan Jankovic (6-foot-10) who are from Toronto and West Virginia recruit Elijah Macon (6-foot-8) who hails from Columbus.

Coach Rob Fulford started the basketball academy three years ago in Huntington.

The University of Akron men’s basketball program has offered a scholarship to Cincinnati Walnut Hills junior center Isaiah Johnson, according to the Cincinnati Enquirer.

Johnson, who is 6 feet 9 and 275 pounds, was offered Dec. 15. He averages 15.8 points, 11.5 rebounds and 1.5 assists for the Eagles, who are a Division I program just north of downtown Cincinnati. Walnut Hills (2-2) plays in the Fort Ancient Valley Conference.

For those ready to greet the high school basketball season, the Buchtel Griffins will host a preview of teams from Northeast Ohio at the school on 1040 Copley St.

The Richmond Heights Spartans will face off against Cleveland Collinwood at 6 p.m. followed by the Griffins vs. Cleveland East Tech at 7 p.m.

Memphis (Tenn.) East High School senior small forward Earvin Morris has reportedly given an oral commitment this afternoon to play basketball at Kent State, according to Scout.com.

The website said Morris will attend a post graduate year at South Kent School (Conn.) before committing to Kent State’s 2013 class.

St. Vincent-St. Mary senior forward Lorenzo Cugini has verbally committed to play at High Point University, according to St. Vincent-St. Mary athletic director Andy Jalwan.
High Point recruited Cugini over a three-week period, said Irish coach Dru Joyce.
“They went all out recruiting him,” he said, “beginning with an assistant coach, the head coach then the entire staff.”
He took notice, even after attracting interest from Western Carolina, Central Michigan and Colgate University.
“It was important to him because Lorenzo is a relationship kind of guy,” Joyce said.
Cugini, who is 6 feet 7, averaged 14 points, 6.9 rebounds and shot 52 percent from the field last season. He was also 29 percent for 3-pointers and 80.5 percent from the free-throw line.
A four-year varsity letter winner, he was a member of the school’s 2011 and ’09 Division II state championship teams.
The Big South Conference program is in High Point, N.C.
National signing day for basketball is Nov. 9.