The News Herald (Willoughby, OH)
Outside game carried James to 50 vs. Mentor
NOTABLE » In a win against Ashtabula St. John, Martin connected on 24 of 37 from the floor and 9 of 10 free throws. He also had 13 rebounds, 10 assists and 10 steals. Rod Coffee, a longtime coach for Painesville schools, is a 1995 Harvey graduate and watched from the stands as a member of the junior varsity squad in 1993. “He was unstoppable that night, but he shared the ball,” Coffee said. “He was all over the court. The great thing about that game is that he made it look so easy.” STEVE ROBINSON, RICHMOND HEIGHTS » 50 in 1996 RIAN POWELL, BENEDICTINE » 50 in 2000 QUINTIN DOVE, EUCLID » 50 in 2016 NOTABLE » Dove’s 50-point night came against Mentor. Said the Cardinals’ Andrew Valeri about that game: “Watching him, it was dominant. Fifty points, the last person to do that against Mentor was LeBron (James), so that’s pretty good company.” James scored 50 points vs. Mentor in 2003. Shaker Heights’ Christian Guess scored 57 against the Cardinals Dec. 15, 2017. ALEX SULKA, CHARDON — 53 IN 2018 NOTABLE » Sulka scored 39 points in the second half Feb. 6 vs. Eastlake North, and for the game made 24 of 26 free throws.
Bob Krizancic remembers seeking out advice in 2003 before his Mentor team played LeBron James.
James was a senior at Akron St. Vincent-St. Mary, the nation’s No. 1 player on the nation’s No. 1 team, and was set to be the No. 1 pick in the 2003 NBA Draft by the Cavaliers.
Prior to the Jan. 14, 2003, game at the University of Akron, the Mentor boys basketball coach was contemplating how to defend James. He called former Cavaliers coach Mike Fratello and then-Akron coach Keith Dambrot for input.
Krizancic decided to collapse the interior of the defense and leave the perimeter open.
“(Fratello and Dambrot) both said, ‘OK, but if he gets hot, you’re in trouble.’ “said Krizancic.
James got hot from the outside. The Cardinals were in trouble. In a little more than three quarters, James lit up the scoreboard for 50 points in a 92-56 win.
In front of a standingroom only crowd of 5,942 — which was the norm that season as the Irish traveled the country to play their games — James was 11 of 17 from 3-point range.
He scored the game’s first two points on a reverse dunk, then went to work from the outside. James made four 3s in the first quarter, three in the second, then four more in the third before calling it a night with 6 minutes, 27 seconds left in the game. The final 3 of his night was at the third-quarter buzzer.
“He was a man,” said Krizancic, recalling the game. “You’re talking a high school kid who was 6-foot-8, 240 pounds. With a player that big, it’s frustrating (trying to guard him). But until you saw him in person, it was different.”
Said James afterward in the understatement of the night: “I was in the zone tonight, and it is tough to stop me when I’m in the zone.”
He finished 19 of 25 from the field, and had nine rebounds, four blocks, two assists and two steals.
Like many, if not all, in attendance that night, Mentor senior guard Eddie Zienkowski was in awe.
“This performance in front of that crowd was incredible,” he said in the postgame. “Seeing him score like that was frustrating. We were almost helpless.”