The News Herald (Willoughby, OH)
Mentor finds heights at Shaker for key win
Mentor’s celebration started two-tenths of a second early at Shaker Heights.
By then, though, the Cardinals’ 83-79 victory was secure.
After the final fractions of a second ticked off, Luke Chicone sprinted toward the bench and chest-bumped Cael Gray while Luke Floriea pumped his fists and flexed near midcourt.
“I own this place!” Floriea barked to a rabid student section backing the Cardinals’ bench.
The 6-foot senior guard led all scorers with 26 points. Any time the Raiders appeared poised to assert control of the game, Floriea almost always countered — whether via a physical drive to the basket against a taller defender, 3-pointer or kick out to an open man.
Due in large part to the player who embodies the elite mental toughness Coach Bob Krizancic covets, Mentor left Shaker Heights with its second win on the Raiders’ home floor in as many years. More importantly, the Cardinals remained tied atop the Greater Cleveland Conference standings with Medina.
“Coach K always says, you’ve got to hate to lose more than you love to win,” Floriea said. “That’s what showed tonight. We did not want to lose that game at all.”
Mentor improved to 14-5 and is 11-2 in GCC play.
Behind Floriea, Chad Rogers added 21 points, Andrew Witte scored 14 and Luke Chicone finished with 13.
Shaker Heights clung to Mentor’s shooters on the perimeter, which prevented plenty of driving lanes for the Cardinals’ ballhandlers. When a defender helped from the weak side, Mentor found the open man, which led to 12 3-point makes. The Cardinals’ offensive efficiency hedged against the plethora of second-chance points accumulated by Shaker Heights’ long, athletic frontcourt.
Floriea helped Mentor build an early lead and the Cardinals were up, 19-16, after a quarter following his layup to end the quarter.
When Shaker Heights made its run in the second quarter, Witte stepped up with his most clutch performance of the season. The 5-foot-11 senior knocked down three 3-pointers in the frame, which helped Mentor take a 39-34 lead into halftime.
“Everyone chipped in, got it done,” Witte said. “Everyone rebounded, scoring, making free throws really helped.”
The teams matched blows throughout the third. Dakota Cochran scored 10 of his team-high 23 points in the quarter, and his 3-pointer gave Shaker Heights a 52-51 lead midway through the third.
Following Shammah Scott’s dunk, Rogers tipped back a Mentor miss and Floriea canned a 3 to put the Cardinals back ahead before Scott tied the score again at 56. Chicone responded with a layup and free throw that preceded a signature Mentor sequence.
Inside a minute to play in the quarter, Rogers drove and kicked out to Kyle Culler for 3. Culler then poked the ensuing inbounds pass loose to Floriea, who dribbled once and pulled up a 3-pointer. In the blink of an eye, Mentor stretched its lead to nine, 65-56, headed to the fourth.
“That’s just bustin’ butt right there,” Krizancic said. “We did a lot of little things tonight. We didn’t do a great job on the boards and we need to take care of the ball better but the tempo, I really liked it. The amount of points that we had and to play against a quality team at this time of the year, it’s just a win-win-win situation for us.”
Shaker Heights opened the final quarter with a 7-0 run, but drew no closer than two points throughout the fourth.
Witte canned his fourth 3 with three minutes to play that provided slight breathing room, 74-69.
Cochran responded with a 3 and Floriea converted an and-one layup at the other end. The Cardinals closed out their victory at the foul line and gained momentum headed into their final three games.
“I’m very excited,” Floriea said. “I think we’ve got a lot of potential. When Caleb (Piks) comes back, we’ll be a great team. A lot of the bench guys got more playing time, so they’re going to be ready to step in when they come off the bench. I think we’re going to be dangerous come tournament time.”
Shaker Heights fell to 16-4 and is 10-3 in league play. The Raiders close their season against Akron St. Vincent-St. Mary and Euclid.
Cochran, a Central Michigan football commit, finished with 23 for Shaker
Heights on his senior night. Scott and Dante Benjamin chipped in 17 apiece while Eric Mudd scored 13.
Coach Danny Young said it’s frustrating to lose a game against a high-caliber opponent so close to the postseason, especially when he thought the Raiders suffered from self-inflicted miscues.
“We just had too many defensive breakdowns,” Young said.
“And then, of course, Mentor made us pay every time we made a mental mistake in terms of not helping short side, they kick it and make a big 3. I tip my hat off to Mentor, they played well, made their shots when they needed them, made their free throws down the stretch and got the win.”