Say this much about 2026 Northwestern forward commit Tyler Kropp: he's cool under pressure.
Last Saturday, Kropp went to the free-throw line with no time remaining and his Powell (Ohio) Olentangy Liberty team trailing crosstown rival Olentangy by one, 53-52.
But #KlutchKropp, as he was dubbed on X, said he didn't feel any undue pressure. He calmly sank both free throws to give the Patriots a 54-53 win before getting mobbed by his teammates.
"I was thinking, there really wasn't pressure," said Kropp. "I've shot a million free throws, I know how to shoot free throws and I've played in some pretty big environments."
Even the lack of other players in the key didn't faze him.
"I kind of liked it, I got to focus on myself," he said. "It was a hostile game with our rivals. I hit my free throws, took a quick peek at the other sideline then celebrated with my teammates."
You can see video of Kropp's dramatic moment below.
Kropp has led Liberty to a 13-3 start to its season and a No. 3 ranking in Ohio's Division I Central District, with six games to go in the regular season.
"We're Top 5 in the state, we're doing good," he said. "We played four games last week and won all four, the only team we've lost to in Ohio is our district rival, [No. 1] Olentangy Orange. But we see them in another couple weeks we'll get another crack at them."
The 6-foot-9, 220-pound forward estimates he's averaging around 20 points and 10 rebounds per game for Liberty, a team that has had to coalesce quickly. Kropp played for Argentina's U-18 national team this summer, and many of Liberty's two-sport athletes were late arrivals to the season since the football team won the OSHAA's Division I state title.
"Our football players missed all the way through our first game," Kropp said. "We had like three days of practice with our team together before we played Upper Arlington, and they have a kid going to Ohio State."
Kropp squared off with three-star, 6-foot-9 Alex Smith, a future Buckeye in the Class of 2026. Kropp and the Pats picked up an early signature win, 59-47. The two future Big Ten combatants will have a rematch on Friday night at Upper Arlington.
The goals for Kropp and Liberty this season are simple: win their conference, and then win their district. For now, Orange, their principal rival, is unbeaten. If both teams win out, Kropp & Co. will have an opportunity for revenge and a tie for the conference crown when they play at Orange for their regular season finale on Feb. 21. If Orange loses before then, the stakes become an outright conference title.
Kropp has been to Northwestern once since his commitment, in early January for the Wildcats' loss to Michigan State. But he also saw them play on the road at Dayton back in November. He plans to see the Wildcats play again this season, but in Columbus, a short trip from his hometown, when they play Ohio State on Feb. 20.
"It's been a tough season, they've been in there for so many close games," Kropp said. "The Big Ten is a gauntlet. I knew that coming but now that I'm really following Northwestern, what you go through every night in the Big Ten is crazy...
"I was in the locker room after Michigan State and it's really good how they're fighting every game. They're scrapping...you see Barnhizer bleeding, fighting through injuries...it's been cool to see such a high level of basketball. I can't wait to play in that."
