The Morning Journal (Lorain, OH)
Fairview boys turn back Firelands
Warriors’ senior Filkill wins game with free throw in wild finish
It was a wild and shocking finish at Fairview as the Warriors edged Firelands, 50-49, in a Division II sectional semifinal on Feb. 28.
After trailing by as many as 10 midway through the third quarter, Firelands stormed back to tie the game, 49-49, with 52 seconds to play. In a crazy final three seconds, Fairview’s Noah Mesaros missed a jumper, and it seemed Firelands forward Richard Maggard came down with the rebound. After knocking the ball loose, Warriors senior Josh Filkill went up for a layup and drew a questionable foul that set up the game-winning free throw with less than one second on the clock.
“I just knew I had to take a deep breath,” Filkill said. “I’m not the greatest free-throw shooter, so it was great to hit that one.
“Because my legs were so tired, I just (told myself), ‘Calm down, relax, take a deep breath and just go through the same routine (you) always do.’”
It was a call that had most fans shaking their heads if not shouting at the official as
most everyone in the gym, both teams included, were preparing for overtime, but Firelands coach Alan Januzzi said it’s now his job as a coach to teach his players how to learn and grow through adversity.
“We coach because we’re here to teach life lessons to kids, and life is full of injustices,” Januzzi said. “What I say is when you go through the season of basketball, which I compare to a lifetime, you have good things that are going to happen and you have trials that are going to happen.
“If you can go through that process and you can learn how to deal with those adversities and you can learn how to be humble in those successes, than I think we’ve taught them something that they can carry on as they move forward.”
Firelands mounted quite a comeback after getting rattled early on by the Fairview zone, and was down, 16-4, at the end of the first quarter.
Fairview coach Bill Harvey said he’s tried to implement a 2-3 zone mashup he learned while watching film on the University of Cincinnati because his team is usually on the losing end of a size difference each game.
“With us being so small, last year we got beat up inside ... so, we usually run a 2-3 mashup,” Harvey said. “Well, (Nick) Denney was giving us fits on the wing and (Colin) Myers was giving us fits in the corners, so I changed it to a 3-2, and for most of the game it gave (Firelands) fits.
“That’s happened this year where we’ve run a 2-3 mashup and people didn’t know, and it’s helped us inside.”
Fairview is now 17-6, the first time the program has reached 17 wins since the 1952-53 season. The Warriors have done it all with just two seniors on the roster and, maybe more impressively, with a steady stream of freshmen earning playing time.
Freshman Luke Howes finished with 12 points and a pair of rebounds and his brother, junior Grant Howes, chipped in another 12 points for the Warriors.
“You go find me another program that has 17 wins with two freshmen on the floor besides a major Division I school. It’s not happening,” Harvey said. “I told them to be patient, relax. I think I was more nervous than them. I think one time I looked over and Luke was just sitting there like, ‘OK, I’m ready.’ ”
When it came down to the end, though, it was Filkill, a seasoned upperclassmen, who came through when Fairview needed it most, especially considering the Warriors are not exactly known for their free-throw shooting.
“My senior, Josh, he just always comes up big with little things,” Harvey said. “I can’t say enough about him.
“Josh stepped up there and just kind of looked over at me. I looked over at him and I thought, ‘This is going to be good,’ and it was nothing but net.”
Firelands senior Doc Januzzi led all scorers with 19 points, including a game-tying 3-pointer in the fourth quarter for the first lead change since the 5:37 mark in the first. Denney added 10 points and seven rebounds, and Myers had nine points and four rebounds for the Falcons.
“From my standpoint, I love what my kids did on the floor tonight,” Coach Januzzi said. “To end a season like that on the road, with the passion and enthusiasm they played with to make that comeback against (Fairview) on the road, I could not be prouder.
“I am so proud of my guys, I really am . ... I’m just proud of what they did this season and how they handled themselves tonight.”
Fairview advances to a sectional final on March 4 to face Padua on the road.
Firelands finishes 13-10.