The News Herald (Willoughby, OH)
Gilmour earns ‘signature win’
Gilmour coach David Pfundstein’s schedule is designed to help prepare the Lancers for the postseason.
If Gilmour loses to elite opponents like Lutheran East, Akron Hoban and Villa Angela-St. Joseph, Pfundstein expects the Lancers to learn and improve.
Against Lake Catholic in the Dunk4Diabetes Shootout at John Carroll on Jan. 28, Gilmour earned what junior point guard C.J. Charleston called a signature win. In part, the victory derived from past shortcomings.
“We didn’t start off well in a couple of those games,” Charleston said. “Today we got off to a very good start. We just controlled the pace the rest of the game.”
Charleston scored 22 points to lead the Lancers, and Dechlan Kirincic added 14 in a 59-54 win against the Cougars.
Charleston capped the victory with personal redemption. His dunk at the buzzer came a game after he missed a dunk attempt at VASJ in a one-possession game, and was whistled for a technical foul when he hung on the rim.
Throughout the game, Charleston tipped the game in Gilmour’s favor. His comprehension of when to assert control of a game is paramount to the Lancers’ fortunes.
“What he’s getting better at is understanding we need the ball in his hands in tight situations,” Pfundstein said. “He can’t shy away from those things. He is a guy that can attack and get to the rim, but what I also like is he finds other guys.”
Gilmour opened the game with a 10-2 run and led, 24-10, after a quarter. Two 3-pointers by Ryan Coan pushed the Lancers’ lead to 40-24 at halftime.
Lake Catholic held Gilmour to three points in the third quarter. The Cougars closed the period on a 12-0 run to cut Gilmour’s lead to 43-40 headed to the fourth.
Brandon Horton brought Lake Catholic within one, 46-45, with a 3-pointer early in the fourth. Gilmour countered to go ahead by eight, 53-45, on a Charleston 3.
“I think we did a better job of running our offense but understanding we wanted to take good shots,” Pfundstein said. “We wanted layups or uncontested 3’s instead of one pass and shoot it. I think we learned a lot from that game.”
Horton led the Cougars with 17 points. Luke Frazier added 14 and Luka Eller finished with 12 as Lake Catholic was unable to overcome a sluggish start.
“I just wish we could get the first half back,” coach Matt Moran said. “We came out and buckled down a little bit, we held them in check a little bit. But sitting there at 43-40 for a couple minutes, neither team could score and that was our opportunity.”
Lake Catholic lost for the second time this season and fell to 12-2. Gilmour improved to 10-3 and helped avenge losses to VASJ, Hoban and Lutheran East.
“Those are supposed to be staple wins for us,” Kirincic said. “We didn’t get them. Beating Lake Catholic was important for us to show we’re still up there, we’re still an important team to play against and someone to reckon with.”
Benedictine 58, Revere 47
Andy Barba earned Division I scholarship offers as a freshman. Now a sophomore, the 6-foot-6 wing doesn’t lack for overall confidence.
But Benedictine coach Rob Stircula’s hoped for Barba to develop trust in more areas of his game, namely attacking the basket. Barba says he models his game after the Celtics’ Gordon Hayward, and Barba has tried to incorporate more of the All-Star forward’s slashing into his own game.
“I think I have it more than I show it,” Barba said. “But I need to develop it a lot more, now and during the offseason I’m really going to focus on getting quicker and stronger.”
Barba mixed drives to the basket with his lethal jump shot to score 14 points in Benedictine’s 58-47 win over Revere Jan. 28 in the Dunk4Diabetes Shootout at John Carroll. Barba earned game MVP honors with performance Stircula’s sought.
“He attacked the rim,” Stircula said. “He did a whole bunch of different things. That’s what we’ve been trying to get through to him all year is attack the rim. Stop being a stereotypical shooter and get to the rim. You’re way better than that. You can do more things.”
Senior Chris Jefferson led the Bengals with 15 points and sophomore Jashun Cobb chipped in 14 points off the bench.
Barba’s output helped replace the scoring lost by injured guard Davin Zeigler, the team’s leading scorer. Consistent performances from Barba like his game Jan. 28 would make the Bengals dangerous upon Zeigler’s return.
“He’s one of our best players,” Barba said. “For us to go, he’s got to pick it up, Jeff’s got to pick it up. When Dav comes back, hopefully he comes back, he picks it up.”
Benedictine led early before Jefferson’s three-quarter court heave tied the score, 14-14, after a quarter. The Bengals led, 31-26, at halftime and held their five-point lead headed to the fourth quarter, 45-40.
Benedictine clamped down to hold the Minutemen to seven points in the final period.
Northwestern commit Pete Nance led all scorers with 16 points. Chris Richardson added 14 and Daniel Miller chipped in 12.
Stircula credited Jerwon Thomas’ effort against Nance as the senior assumed the challenge of guarding the 6-foot-10 forward.
“Jerwon Thomas plays the hardest defense I’ve seen,” Stircula said. “DIII’s better starting picking up on him because he’s an excellent defender, a great kid and he battled Nance all 25 minutes he was in, just making his life a living hell.”
Akron Hoban 85, VASJ 64
Villa Angela-St. Joseph endured a rough weekend.
Less than a full day after the Vikings fell to St. Edward, Akron Hoban awaited VASJ in the Dunk4Diabetes Shootout at John Carroll Jan. 28. The Vikings’ tired legs coupled with the Knights’ electric offense translated to 85-64 victory for Hoban.
VASJ’s back-to-back left the Vikings battered. Coach Babe Kwasniak hopes his young team will benefit from a pair of double-digit losses to top-tier competition.
“We played three great quarters last night,” Kwasniak said. “Played two OK quarters today, so we’ll kind of see what happens. We’re so damn young and still inexperienced. In big moments, it just shows.”
Garrett Houser led all scorers with 23 points for Hoban. Jake Snyder added 17 points, Quan Easterling scored 12, Dominick Moegerle added 11 and Matt Salopek chipped in 10 points.
Jerry Higgins led the Vikings with 18 points. Jason Priah scored 14 and Jaden Hameed finished with 13.
Hoban and VASJ played to a 22-22 draw after a quarter. The Knights led by two, 41-39, at halftime.
“I didn’t think we played good in the first half,” Kwasniak said. “At least we hung in there.”
Hoban asserted momentum soon after halftime. A pair of 3-pointers by Snyder and Moegerle’s dunk spurred a run that put the Knights up 52-42. VASJ scored eight points in the period as Hoban opened a 20-point lead, 67-47, after three quarters.
Hoban led by as many as 25 points as the Knights rebounded from a loss to Walsh Jesuit on Jan. 26. Coach T.K. Griffith emphasized tempo to kick-start his team’s transition offense.
“Trying to play faster but yet stay smart with it,” Griffith said. “Don’t call out as many sets and let your guys move and cut and feel each other out. We’re trying to make a jump to that.”
VASJ next plays at Warren JFK on Jan. 30 before matchups with Trinity on Feb. 2 and Mentor Feb. 3. The Vikings look to build on this weekend’s experience with the postseason weeks away.
“I did not set us up for success,” Kwasniak said. “But you know what, you don’t need to be set up for success now. You need to be set up for success in March.”