Golden Bears’ Goodwin named Mr. Basketball

Dane Goodwin’s many successes on the basketball court can be traced to a boyhood spent tagging along with his father Damon, the long-time Capital University coach and a standout player himself at the University of Dayton.

But that only begins to explain how Goodwin carved out a record-setting high school career at Upper Arlington, which culminated in him being selected winner of the coveted Ohio Mr. Basketball Award on March 21. The Ohio Prep Sportswriters Association assumed sponsorship of the award from The Associated Press.

“Look, Dane is the one who invested all the time and hard work to become the player he is,” Damon Goodwin said. “He has spent a lot, and I mean a lot, of time shooting in our driveway. Just ask our neighbors. They’ll tell you.

“It doesn’t matter if it’s cold, windy, raining or snowing. He’ll spend a couple hours at a time, either on our court or any one he can find, just shooting. He has kind of an old-fashioned approach to training. He doesn’t have a ‘guy’ who trains him and he doesn’t spend much time in the gym or weight room. A lot of kids today play AAU to develop their individual skills and become known. Dane played AAU, but he most cherishes that time he spends in the backyard.”

Goodwin, who also recently won Gatorade Ohio player of the year, averaged 24.1 points and 9.6 rebounds per game in helping Upper Arlington to a 23-2 record. In his four years as a starter, the Golden Bears went 87-15 with three conference titles and two district championships. The 6-foot-5 swingman finished as the program’s career leader in points (1,951) and rebounds (817).

Other finalists for the award were Jerome Hunter of Pickerington North, Cameron Brooks-Harris of Zanesville, Darius Bazley of Cincinnati Princeton, Justin Ahrens of Versailles, Kollin Van Horn of Proctorville Fairland, Sincere Carry of Solon, Michael Bothwell of Cornerstone Christian, Pete Nance of Revere and Vincent Williams of Toledo St. John’s.

“After being a finalist last year, Mr. Basketball was definitely a goal of mine coming into the season,” Goodwin said. “To be held in that standing with so many great players is a huge honor. It’s cool to be part of that tradition. I’ve always followed the award and I’m pretty sure I can name the past five or six winners.”

In many ways, Goodwin is the prototypical coach’s son. He learned the game and its intricacies at his father’s practices and games.

“Dane has a very high basketball IQ, which he obviously acquired being around the game virtually his whole life,” Upper Arlington coach Tim Casey said.

“He’s also one of the most naturally gifted players I’ve had in 33 years of coaching. He has unbelievable handeye coordination, savvy and timing. Dane has a competitive edge about him. When the game’s on the line, he has another gear and can raise his game to another level. I can’t begin to count how many game-winning baskets he made for us.”

Goodwin, who has an older brother (Grant) and sister (Addie) who played basketball at Hilliard Davidson, places a high value on family. In 2015, Damon Goodwin was diagnosed with hairy-cell leukemia and had to take a six-month hiatus from coaching in treatment.

“Obviously, Dad and I have a unique relationship,” he said. “I spent my whole childhood around him. As I got older, there were times we didn’t see each other as much because of commitments to our teams. But when he got ill, it really bonded us even more. During that time off, we spent a lot of quality time together.”

After verbally committing to Ohio State as a mere freshman, Goodwin re-opened his recruitment last summer after Thad Matta was fired. He eventually signed with Notre Dame.

“Nothing at all against the new coach, but I had formed a relationship with Thad and his staff and that was hard to recreate,” he said. “I had visited Notre Dame when I was a freshman and already knew (coach) Mike Bray. They were one of the first programs to jump in after I reopened my recruitment. It just felt right. I grew up a Notre Dame fan and had gone to football and basketball games there.”

In part to facilitate commutes to watch Dane play, the Goodwins recently purchased a second home on Lake James in Steuben County, Ind., about 80 miles east of South Bend. And, yes, the home features an outdoor hoop.