On Jan. 3, Ashland University's men's basketball team defeated Ohio Dominican, 70-69, at the Sherrill Hudson Court at Kates Gymnasium – as junior wing
Destin Logan hit two free throws to cap an 11-0 Eagle run, then blocked the Panthers' final shot at the buzzer.
That's how Logan's 2026 started. And he knows that this year will be vastly better than how 2025 began and continued.
"I love it," Logan said. "It's been a blessing to be up here at Ashland. Ashland saved my life, to be honest. 2026 is a fresh start. With our team this year, we've got a really good chance to go far in the tournament. I think we'll be prepared.
"It's going to be a good year."
Going into the Ashland men's basketball (10-5 overall, 4-3 Great Midwest) game on Thursday (Jan. 15) at 7:30 p.m. at Tiffin (4-10, 0-7), Logan has played in all 15 games (11 starts) so far in 2025-26, averaging 5.7 points, 3.1 rebounds and 1.5 steals over 20.7 minutes. He has made 47.1 percent from the field, 36.8 percent from 3-point range and 80.0 percent from the free-throw line.
This is the fresh start that Logan needed. Because at the start of 2025, Logan's father,
Sam, passed away just eight days in from pancreatic cancer. Destin said he got the call to come home from Lewis – where he played his first two collegiate seasons – because the cancer had taken its toll on his father.
The day before his father passed, Destin said he thought he was going to be released.
"I'm glad he's at peace," Destin said.
While Destin is an Eagle now, he could have originally been an Eagle coming out of The Skill Factory Prep in Atlanta, Ga., following a visit to Ashland in 2022 with then-coach
Jay Slone – a former Ashland player. Destin said it then was between Ashland and Lewis, but he ultimately chose to go to Lewis to start his collegiate career.
"We liked him. He was a very coachable kid. You could tell that stuff," said Ashland head coach
John Ellenwood. "Jay had nothing but good stuff to say about him.
"It didn't work out at Lewis. He was looking for a new beginning. The timing worked out where he was looking for a place, and we were looking for somebody that fit his characteristics. He's been a great addition to our team."
Following the passing of his father, Destin returned to Lewis in February, finished his school work for the academic year, then began the process of transferring. It didn't take long for him to choose Ashland.
"I didn't want to waste any time," he said. "It's really full-circle, because not only did coach Slone play here, but my mom had just moved up to Cincinnati last year. It just happened to be the perfect opportunity for me. I knew it was a really good program at the same level I was playing at, and I didn't want to waste any time."
"To come up here again and have a fresh start…my teammates have been great people, on and off the court. Coach Ellenwood and everybody else has opened their arms to me, so it's been a blessing. It's such a family here. We all care about each other a lot."
Before the 2025-26 season began, the Eagle men hosted "A Night With Clark Kellogg" on Oct. 15 at Mount Vernon Estates just outside of town. The longtime CBS college basketball studio analyst was someone Destin was prepared to grill when the opportunity cane.
"My mom sent me to sports broadcasting camp since I was probably 10 years old," he noted. "I had my own podcast when I was younger. I always want to communicate, I always loved sports broadcasting. Huge, huge role model, and a huge person I want to aspire to be. So I was really excited to meet him. I just wanted to ask the questions and pick his brain."
Then there was the home win over ODU, which was special for another reason than just the ending and the result.
"It was a blessing, because my little sister and my step-mom actually surprised me and came to both of those games," Destin said of that game and the Jan. 5 home contest vs. Findlay, a 105-104 double-overtime victory. "That's the only two games they'll get to see this year."
"You could tell that it was like a relief to get up here for him," said Ellenwood. "It was a tough six, seven months from when his dad passed to when he got here. For basketball to be on his mind, that's something else. He's a tough kid. The way he handled that whole situation, I'm very proud of him."
