Ryan Porter has been a pretty good player for Bainbridge-Guilford for a long time. He came up as a freshman, and led his team in scoring. He was having a fine sophomore campaign, but lost the last third of the season due to injury. Last year, he was among the area’s leading scorers at just under 14 points per game, and led his club in scoring for the third straight year.

Porter was almost an automatic double-double in points and rebounds the past three years, but his individual success did not coincide with team success. Let’s be fair, the Bobcats were a below-par team in the Midstate Athletic Conference for half a dozen years, and they went a combined 15-40 (27 percent) during Porter’s first three years. Other than the fans of Bainbridge-Guilford, not too many people took notice of Porter.

As a senior, Porter and his teammates are finally tasting more victories than defeats, and clinched the team’s first MAC playoff berth in six years. “He’s a competitive kid, and he’s always wanted to win since I’ve known him,” said B-G head boys coach, Greg Warren. “It’s been refreshing for him this year to have some success.”

Porter is averaging 18.2 points, 12 rebounds, and nearly 2 1/2 blocked shots a game on a B-G team that has won 10 of its last 12 games. During the current five-game winning streak, all Porter has done is ratchet up his season statistics, and his 25-point, 20-rebound game over Unadilla Valley last week stands out as his premier game in a season full of great games.

Porter scored a game-high 24 points earlier this week as B-G clinched its playoff spot, and his efforts have garnered him our honor as Smith Ford Supercenter/Evening Sun Athlete of the Week.

“He works hard and is a good kid. With his potential, I don’t think he believed he could play as well as he has this year,” Warren said. “He knew he was a good player, but he’s a humble kid. He’s a real team player, and if anything, I had to force him to be a little more selfish.”