by PRESS RELEASE PER THE OHSAA
COLUMBUS, Ohio – Senior Marcus Johnson of Garfield Heights High School was named 2026 Ohio Mr. Basketball on Thursday by the Ohio Prep Sports Media Association, becoming the seventh player to earn the award twice since it was first handed out in 1988.
Marcus won the award last year as a junior, giving his family the first father-son Ohio Mr. Basketball combination. His father, Sonny, the head coach at Garfield Heights, won the award at Garfield Heights in 1998.
Johnson was also a Mr. Basketball finalist as a sophomore and has been an All-Ohio first-team selection since his freshman year. The state’s reigning Mr. Basketball has been even better this season, averaging 30.1 points with 7.1 rebounds, 5.6 assists and 2.7 steals.
Johnson won this year’s award with 99 points from the statewide panel. Delphos St. John’s senior Cam Elwer was the runner-up with 91 points. Elwer was the runner-up last season, but significantly closed the gap after receiving 48 points in 2025, while Johnson had 110 points last year. Other finalists included Brunswick senior Trey Drexler, Maysville senior Gator Nichols, Tri-Village senior Trey Sagester, Columbus Academy senior Jason Singleton and Lakota West junior Josh Tyson.
Now in its 39th year, the prestigious Ohio Mr. Basketball award was first given by the Associated Press in 1988. It has been voted on by the Ohio Prep Sports Media Association since 2017.
