AKRON, Ohio – Bitter rivals aren’t supposed to come away from a game both feeling good.
Yet that is what seemed to happen Tuesday as Archbishop Hoban left St. Vincent-St. Mary following their boys basketball game. STVM, the No. 2-ranked team in the cleveland.com Top 25, came away with a 59-57 overtime win.
The Fighting Irish (13-4) won their seventh straight game.
They also halted a 15-game win streak for fifth-ranked Hoban (15-2).
These schools are only 3.3 miles apart, yet the short drive wasn’t why Hoban coach T.K. Griffith stood outside his team’s school bus with a positive demeanor.
“We can play with anybody,” he said. “This is probably one of the best teams in the state in Division II, but they can probably beat a lot of D-Is.”
Hoban is one of those D-I teams. STVM is 8-1 against Division I schools this season.
The Knights and Irish won’t meet again this year. That usually isn’t the case when they play football and other sports.
See how Hoban fared against its nearby Catholic school rival in the video below. The above video highlights how STVM won behind 28 points from senior guard Jayvon Graves.
Here is what else happened Tuesday:
No. 7 Copley 69, No. 21 Wadsworth 60: Austin Brenner led the way with 19 points, Brian Roberts Jr. added 15 and Copley extended its regular-season win streak to 42 games by taking this Suburban League crossover on the road.
No. 12 Maple Heights 64, No. 24 Brecksville 63: An early double-digit deficit couldn’t keep the Mustangs down. They rallied and held on after two Keyshawn Ford free throws during the final stretch.
No. 14 Villa Angela-St. Joseph 60, Gilmour 55: A potential Division III tournament preview, VASJ rallied from a three-point deficit in the fourth quarter behind Jerry Higgins’ 15 points and Alonzo Gaffney’s 13.
Olmsted Falls 55, Berea-Midpark 41: The Southwestern Conference shook up Tuesday, as the Bulldogs pulled within a game of Berea-Midpark for first place. Olmsted Falls, Avon and Avon Lake are all a game back of the Titans, who struggled at home beyond 15 points from senior guard Chad Elliott.
Josh Goodwin led all scored with 20 points. Goodwin is up for cleveland.com Player of the Week. Big performances last week netted him a nomination for Game Balls. Click here to vote.
CLICK HERE FOR TUESDAY’S SCOREBOARD
WHO TURNED OUT THE LIGHTS?
Notre Dame-Cathedral Latin and Chagrin Falls will continue their game Wednesday. A power outage stopped their matchup in the second quarter at NDCL. Chagrin Falls led, 26-25.
Pic of the night. @NDCLstudentsec. We finish the game tomorrow. #GoLions pic.twitter.com/jQ9qC9plNP
— NDCL Basketball (@HoopsNDCL) February 8, 2017
WHAT’S AHEAD
Games through Friday night can leave an impression on coaches voting this week in the respective districts for seeding. The Northeast District Athletic Board gave coaches until noon Saturday to rank teams in their respective districts.
Teams will then select their place on their district brackets Sunday afternoon in order of seed.
Here are the games that could make an impact.
No. 1 St. Ignatius (12-4) at No. 3 St. Edward (13-4), Friday: One of these two teams should be the top seed in the Division I Strongsville District. Last time they met, St. Ignatius broke free in the final two minutes of overtime for a 90-80 victory.
Lutheran East (12-7) at No. 6 Garfield Heights (14-4), Friday: This game is more about preparation than postseason positioning with Division IV Lutheran East testing itself against Sonny Johnson’s Bulldogs. Marreon Jackson led Garfield Heights on Tuesday with 23 points, seven rebounds and seven assists in a 74-41 win against Beachwood.
Gilmour (11-6) at No. 8 Cornerstone Christian (13-4), Friday: Rarely can a team help itself by beating a smaller foe, but that is what Gilmour can earn when it visits defending Division IV state champion Cornerstone. Coach David Pfundstein’s Lancers are looking for momentum before the Division III Garfield Heights District.
No. 18 Medina (15-4) at No. 9 Elyria (14-3), Friday: Can the Pioneers beat the Bees for a second time? Antonio Blanton is coming off another buzzer-beating 3-pointer Saturday to beat Elyria Catholic. Here’s what happened last time Elyria faced Medina in Greater Cleveland Conference play.
No. 12 Maple Heights (13-3) vs. No. 13 Cleveland Heights (11-6) at Warrensville Heights, Friday: The loser is eliminated from Lake Erie League contention and perhaps a top-two seed in its district. Maple Heights should have the inside track on a high seed at Solon, which includes Garfield Heights and Shaker Heights. The Tigers must contend with defending champ Solon, Mentor and Brush, among others, in the Euclid District.
Bay (13-6) at No. 23 Elyria Catholic (12-5), Friday: Rockets senior guard Jack Jelen was cleared for contact and made his debut Tuesday. That should make the Rockets a more frightening matchup down the stretch.
CLICK HERE FOR FRIDAY’S SCHEDULE
These games won’t affect district seeding, but they are still intriguing matchups.
No. 10 Holy Name (15-2) at No. 19 Central Catholic (10-6), Saturday: Both teams are capable of reaching the regional tournament in Division II, but Holy Name (North Ridgeville District) and Central Catholic (Stow District) have no chance to meet again unless they reach Columbus.
No. 15 Solon (13-5) at No. 1 St. Ignatius (12-4), Saturday: Coach Tony DeCesare’s Comets had their Cinderella run last season end against his alma mater at Cleveland State. Solon enters this one enjoying a better year after entering last postseason with a sub-.500 record.
CLICK HERE FOR SATURDAY’S SCHEDULE
JANUARY’S BEST
See the top plays from last month and click here to vote for your favorite.
Contact sports reporter Matt Goul on Twitter (@mgoul) or email (mgoul@cleveland.com). Or log in and leave a message below in the comments section.
Our editors found this article on this site using Google and regenerated it for our readers.
