H.S. Basketball: Elyria’s huge rally beats rival
Tim Gebhardt | The Chronicle-Telegram
EATON TWP — Desire, determination, dogged defensive effort — you name it — it was Elyria High on Thursday night.
Down by 18 points with 5:22 left in the third quarter and still down 58-44 with just 6:34 remaining in the game, the Pioneers battled all the way back to sideline Strongsville — its biggest tournament nemesis of late — 68-64 to earn a spot in Saturday’s Division I district final against Olmsted Falls.
Strongsville, the two-time defending champion at Midview, was looking for a three-peat of eliminating the Pioneers, but it was not to be. The Mustangs turned the ball over 10 times in the final quarter under Elyria’s relentless back-court pressure. Meanwhile, the Pioneers didn’t commit a turnover the final eight minutes.
“We don’t want to go home,” said senior guard Demetrius Dalton, who scored 24 points to lead the way. Dalton, known as “Putt” by his teammates, climbed into fifth place all time on Elyria’s scoring charts with 1,065 points, three better than former Mr. Basketball Robert Nelson, a 2003 graduate.
“They beat us two years in a row,” Dalton said. “We don’t want that again.”
Talk about ironies. When these two met at Strongsville exactly a month ago, it was the Mustangs who galloped from behind by outscoring Elyria 31-10 in the final quarter. Thursday, the Pioneers returned the favor, 31-12.
“We talked all week,” said Elyria coach Bob Walsh. “(Assistants) Brett (Larrick), Todd (Brubaker) and I talked about the simple fact that Strongsville had a deep bench. We knew we could pressure them but the bottom line was how long could we continue to do it without wearing down.
“We got them rattled.”
“It unraveled,” said Strongsville coach Joe Lynch. “It’s a classic thing of when momentum swings and a team starts to make a run, it magnifies everything. A turnover and (Elyria) gets a basket then our kids are thinking, ‘I don’t want to do that.’ We got very, very tentative.”
A 12-point run brought Elyria within 58-56 following a 3-point dagger from Strongsville’s John Hamilton that appeared to put the game out of reach with 6:34 left.
In fact, it looked hopeless almost from the opening tap as Strongsville appeared to be getting the crucial calls and the momentum. The frustration was mounting for Elyria but it somehow survived long enough to turn the game around.
“We talked to them a lot about not getting involved with the officiating,” said Walsh. “Just keep on playing the game and play together. There’s nothing you can do about calls.”
“Coach told us we had to play hard,” said senior pivot Seryrell Davis, who grabbed a game-high 17 rebounds, many just by pure desire. “We had to get rebounds. Promis (Cabbil) stepped up. Rayshawn (Camel) stepped up. Putt stepped up. We really want the district.”
“This is our last season (together),” said Cabbil, Elyria’s senior point guard and the glue who put the game on ice with a pair of free throws. “We just tried to leave it all on the floor.”
That they did. As the game progressed into the late stages, the Pioneers were all over the floor, forcing bad decisions and turnovers that turned the tide. Elyria was able to take 21 shots in the fourth quarter to just 11 by the Mustangs.
“Nobody gave up,” said Camel, who hit a couple of big shots in the fourth quarter and forced a couple of big turnovers. “Everybody kept their focus.”
Strongsville’s terrific senior Tim Kamczyc scored 27 points but had only four in the final quarter. Senior Matt Fegan, who triggered the Mustang rally a month ago, was held to six points.
Elyria will have just a day to regroup for Olmsted Falls, a district champion in Division II a year ago.
“We need to rest a little,” Walsh said. “Olmsted Falls is a very good team, a very good tournament team. Pat Donahue will have them ready. Hopefully we’ll have our guys ready.”
Presale tickets are available today at Elyria High.
Contact Tim Gebhardt at 329-7135 or ctsports@chroniclet.com.
STRONGSVILLE (64): Chris Svancara 2-4-10, John Hamilton 2-0-6, Matt Fegan 2-2-6, Kris Hall 0-0-0, Tim Kamczyc 12-2-27, John Grant 1-0-2, Justin Bendzuck 2-0-6, Aaron White 3-0-7, Ray Hamilton 0-0-0, Grant Vanco 0-0-0. Totals 24-8-64.
ELYRIA (68): Promis Cabbil 3-4-11, Demetrius Dalton 10-0-24, Rayshawn Camel 7-0-16, Seryrell Davis 3-0-6, Travis Noble 2-2-6, Mykel Williams 1-1-3, John Yeaples 1-0-2. Totals 27-7-68.
Strongsville 22 15 16 12 — 64
Elyria 15 8 14 31 — 68
Three-point goals: Strongsville 8-18 (Svancara 2, J.Hamilton 2, Bendzuck 2, Kamczyc, White), Elyria 7-28 (Dalton 4, Camel 2, Cabbil). Field Goals: Strongsville 24-50 (48 percent), Elyria 27-69 (39 percent). Free Throws: Strongsville 8-15 (53 percent), Elyria 7-11 (64 percent). Rebounds: Strongsville 39 (Kamcyck 8), Elyria 41 (Davis 17). Turnovers: Strongsville 21, Elyria 7. Fouls: Strongsville 14, Elyria 17. Technical Foul: Noble. Fouled Out: Noble.
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Filed by Tim Gebhardt | The Chronicle-Telegram February 29th, 2008 in Sports. Popularity: 26% |
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