CLEVELAND, Ohio — In a season of parity and unpredictability, cool hands often prevailed.

Naturally, the cool left hand of Luke Skaljac kept Brecksville-Broadview Heights among Northeast Ohio’s best teams for the second straight year. The Bees have won 43 games the last two seasons and made consecutive OHSAA Division I district finals with Skaljac playing a leading role.

Brecksville still has another yet with its point guard, who is the cleveland.com boys basketball Player of the Year. Read more below about him and the rest of the Fab 50, which comprises first and second teams (four guards and one forward) with a 40-player honorable mention — from a seven-county area between Cleveland and Akron — plus the coach of the year:

PLAYER OF THE YEAR

Luke Skaljac, Brecksville-Broadview Heights

Height: 6-foot-2

Year: Junior

Position: Point guard

About Skaljac: Kent State, Ohio and Toledo were the early college to jump on Skaljac last summer with scholarship offers. This season, and potentially this spring and summer, could set his recruiting path on a different trajectory. Brecksville won its third straight Suburban League National Conference and made it to a Division I district championship game for the second straight year with Skaljac leading the way. He averaged 23.2 points, 5.5 assists and 2.8 steals.

FIRST TEAM

Darryn Peterson, Cuyahoga Valley Christian Academy

Height: 6-6

Year: Sophomore

Position: Point guard

About Peterson: Northeast Ohio’s leading scorer, Peterson averaged 31.4 points per game with 9.8 rebounds and 2.8 steals. He finished among the top players in most statistical categories and is the highest touted player in the area for any class, currently fifth in the nation, according to the ESPN Top 25 for the Class of 2025. He is the top sophomore in Ohio and in the top six nationally, according to 247Sports. Ohio State and Kentucky lead a slew of offers already received by Peterson.

Khoi Thurmon, Buchtel

Height: 6-1

Year: Senior

Position: Point guard

About Thurmon: One of the most decorated players, Thurmon started all four years of his high school career. He began at Copley as a freshman and sophomore before transferring to Buchtel. The Griffins fell short in last year’s district finals without two starters because of a scuffle in the semifinals. They came back this season on a mission, winning the Division II state championship — a 51-49 win vs. Lutheran West after handing Columbus Bishop Ready its first loss, 60-50, in the semifinals — with Thurmon steering a balanced squad. He averaged 19.1 points, 4.2 assists and is headed to Purdue Fort Wayne (formerly known as IPFW).

Marcus Johnson, Garfield Heights

Height: 6-1

Year: Freshman

Position: Guard

About Johnson: The Bulldogs don’t make their first Division I regional final run since 2017 without the freshman, whose go-ahead free throw lifted them to a 38-37 win against St. Ignatius. Garfield Heights played at a low pace this season with many of its games in the 40s and 50s, thanks to a scrappy defense with junior C.J. Little on the perimeter and 6-9 junior Deandre Jones on the interior. That makes Johnson’s point production more impressive, as he averaged 20.4 points with 2.4 assists. Alabama, Arizona State, Cincinnati, Georgia Tech, West Virginia have offered scholarships to Johnson, who has an invitation to play this summer at USA Basketball’s minicamp in Houston.

Jesse McCulloch, Lutheran East

Height: 6-9

Year: Junior

Position: Forward

About McCulloch: No player has transformed himself into a high-major college prospect in the last three seasons like McCulloch, who watched Lutheran East win a Division III state championship in 2021. He became their focal point the last two years, leading a March to the 2022 semifinals and helping them back to Dayton this year for the school’s fourth state championship in program history. While “The Lue” had balance with All-Ohio guard Cody Head and freshman sensation T.J. Crumble, McCulloch’s impact showed in a December loss to Cleveland Heights that came with him sidelined for much of it because of an injury. McCulloch recovered, averaging 17.3 points, 11.0 rebounds and 3.0 assists, as did “The Lue.” Alabama and several Big Ten schools, including Ohio State, have offered him scholarships.

SECOND TEAM

Ace Buckner, St. Ignatius

Height: 6-2

Year: Junior

Position: Point guard

About Buckner: Strength of schedule sometimes goes under rewarded, and Buckner had no breaks as he took over the point for the Wildcats. The reached the regional semifinals, dropping that one-point game to Garfield Heights after 19 wins. Buckner, who is the son of Cavaliers associate head coach Greg Buckner, has a growing list of scholarship offers as a combo guard. Kent State, Cleveland State, Duquesne and Ohio are among the early ones. Buckner averaged 13.4 points with 4.0 assists and 1.5 steals.

Jonas Nichols, Archbishop Hoban

Height: 6-3

Year: Junior

Position: Point guard

About Nichols: When Nichols’ shooting failed him, he turned to his defense and ramped up his distribution. That helped Hoban to the Division I state championship with a 53-47 upset of Pickerington Central, as Nichols led an elite defensive performance by the Knights with four steals and five assists. He averaged a team-best 16.0 points with 5.6 rebounds, 2.6 assists and 2.3 steals. He has offers from Kent State, Akron, Eastern Michigan and Toledo.

Jayson Levis, Lutheran West

Height: 6-0

Year: Junior

Position: Guard

About Levis: Lutheran West made its first final four appearance since 1998, the only other time the Longhorns made it to the final weekend of the season. This time, they came a split second of forcing overtime vs. Buchtel in the Division II state championship. Levis led the Longhorns’ surge with fellow junior point guard Derek Fairley under second-year coach Jordan Duke. Levis, who averaged 19.1 points with 3.2 assists and 2.9 steals, has picked up interest from Fairmont State and West Liberty.

Dorian Jones, Richmond Heights

Height: 6-5

Year: Sophomore

Position: Guard

About Jones: Richmond Heights’ 49-game win streak is the longest active mark in Ohio with two straight Division IV state championships, and Jones has been there for all of it. He paced the Spartans’ march to another state crown with 20.1 points, 6.5 rebounds and 3.0 steals, but also made the difference in their biggest games, including an 83-80 win at St. Edward and 57-54 victory vs. Lutheran East on a neutral floor. His list of offers includes Ohio State, Arizona State and Cincinnati.

Ian Ioppolo, Mentor

Height: 6-6

Year: Junior

Position: Forward

About Iopollo: As coach Bob Krizancic said, Ioppolo hasn’t met a shot he didn’t like. Iopollo’s game often resembled Dirk Nowitzki with his turnarounds and fadeaway jumpers, propelling the Cardinals to a Greater Cleveland Conference championship. Ioppolo averaged 22.7 points and 7.1 rebounds for the Cardinals.

COACH OF THE YEAR

T.K. Griffith, Archbishop Hoban

Always looking for an inspirational edge to give his team, Griffith found one with Hoban’s regional rematch against St. Edward. The Eagles beat them last year in the Elite Eight, and Hoban emerged in this year’s Division I regional semifinals with a 44-40 win at Kent State in which Griffith called it getting on “the radar.” With that out of the way, he looked to reach “orbit” in the Knights’ 56-37 win against Walsh Jesuit to reach the final four. They finally “stuck the landing” by beating Toledo St. John’s Jesuit, 49-36, in the state semifinals before upsetting Pickerington Central for the title. It’s Hoban’s second state championship in program history, but the first since Griffith played as a senior in 1989. Hoban also was Division III back then. This run came in his 30th season as coach (following pupil Dan DeCrane as last season’s coach of the year), and it came with reworking Hoban’s lineup after a mid-season injury to senior forward Jayvian Crable, the emergence of 6-8 freshman forward Sam Greer and contributions up and down the lineup with impressive defensive performances along the way. Griffith’s motivational tactics worked, but his staff’s strategies set the foundation.

FAB 40 HONORABLE MENTION

Solomon Callaghan, Wadsworth, sr.; Reece Raymond-Smith, Stow-Munroe Falls, jr.; A.J. Pestello Jr., Stow-Munroe Falls, sr.; Cody Head, Lutheran East, sr.; Will Scott Jr., Archbishop Hoban, sr.; Zach Halligan, Walsh Jesuit, sr.; Shemarion Hardy, Cleveland Heights, sr.; De’Erick Barber, Richmond Heights, so.; Quinn “Turtle” Kwasniak, Cornerstone Christian, so.; Hosea Steele Jr., Richmond Heights, jr.; Nathan Lurie, Beachwood, sr.; Derek Fairley, Lutheran West, jr.; Kevin Hamilton, St. Vincent-St. Mary, sr.; Matthew Stuewe, Avon Lake, sr.; Brady Rollyson, Green, jr.; Ryan Walsh, Elyria, sr.; Jake Boynar, North Ridgeville, sr.; Marcel Boyce Jr., Buchtel, sr.; T.J. Crumble, Lutheran East, fr.; Amire Robinson, Buchtel, sr.; Kenyon Giles, Rhodes, jr.; Cameron Grant, St. Edward, sr.; Kyle Irwin, Mayfield, sr.; Chase Garito, Brecksville-Broadview Heights, sr.; Tommy Morgan, Brunswick, jr.; Tyler Williams, Brush, sr.; Jaeden Lawson, Cleveland Heights, sr.; Jayden Crutcher, Elyria, so.; Brandon Rose, Gilmour Academy, sr.; Jake Cubbison, Perry, sr.; Charlie Fox, Riverside, sr.; Aidan Fitzgerald, Lake Catholic, sr.; Landon Naylor, Nordonia, sr.; Kellon Smith, Shaker Heights, sr.; Sean Register Jr., Eastlake North, jr.; J.P. Dragas, Madison, jr.; Griffin Turay, North Ridgeville, jr.; Luke Klanac, Medina, sr.; Devyn Zahursky, Berea-Midpark, jr.; Justin Wypasek, Strongsville, sr.

Contact sports reporter Matt Goul on Twitter (@mgoul) or email (mgoul@cleveland.com).