The News Herald (Willoughby, OH)
Tireless Mentor mauls South
The week has been a grind for Mentor, which played its third of four games this week against visiting South on Feb. 5. The Cardinals’ 99-62 win over the Rebels wasn’t of the grind-it-out variety, however.
Senior Luke Chicone scored 30 points for Mentor, which included six 3s overall and 25 points before halftime on 10 for 10 shooting.
Senior Jonah Waag added 22 points, seven rebounds and four steals. Mentor bolted out to a 2713 first-quarter lead and pushed it to 56-32 at halftime.
The Cardinals forced 12 firsthalf turnovers with full-court pressure and collectively drilled nine first-half triples.
“I do think that we’re a very good shooting team. Luke showed it tonight,” Mentor coach Bob Krizancic said. “Steven (Key) has been shooting lights out, Jonah can knock down the 3.
“I think we’re a really hard matchup. A lot of teams try to play zone against us because we’re very athletic. Hopefully we can continue to shoot the ball well, and I think our press will be better in a couple weeks, and we’re not going to miss the open man.”
South (0-4), playing just its second game since returning from a 17day layoff, was one of those teams employing a zone defense against Mentor, starting out with a 3-2 look.
“Hopefully we can continue to shoot the ball well, and I think our press will be better in a couple weeks, and we’re not going to miss the open man.” – Mentor coach Bob Krizancic
The Cardinals opened the game on a 12-1 run and sank each of their first five 3-point attempts in taking a 21-7 lead later in the frame.
The Rebels at times in the first half struggled to get the ball out of their own end, and turnovers turned quickly into points for Mentor.
“They’re active with their hands, and they’re superaggressive,” South coach Doug Barber said regarding the Cardinals. “I don’t know how many balls there were where we’d catch it, and they’d get a deflection because we’re not strong with it. They turned us over, and it got them easy points.”
Mentor, now 11-0 on the season, kept up the pressure in the third quarter.
The Cardinals’ lead reached 64-34 when a Chicone steal turned into a layup by Key. After an inside bucket by Waag at the end of the frame gave Mentor a 79-48 lead, the Cardinals’ starters took a seat on the bench for the fourth quarter.
Twelve players saw the floor for Mentor, and nine scored, as the Cardinals continue to look to build depth with the postseason
approaching.
“We want to develop that sixth, seventh, eighth, ninth guy off the bench,” said Mentor 6-foot-5 junior forward Sean Collins, who normally serves as the Cardinals’ sixth man. “When they come in they’ll bring even more energy to the court, and that will make us that much better.”
There was a welcome sight for the Cardinals as senior Kyle Culler, who has been out with an injury, made his first appearance on the court this season.
“It’s nice having (Culler) back,” Collins said. “He’s a great defender and shooter, so having him back will be big for us.”
Seniors Will Hagwood (22 points) and Tyree Talley (15 points) once again provided South with a solid 1-2 scoring punch. Barber viewed the contest with
Mentor as a learning experience for the Rebels, who will host Mayfield on Feb. 6.
“At this point, we need games,” Barber said. “We were supposed to play Madison tonight, and then they got shut down, so we picked up Mentor. It’s good to play a team like this, and we can learn what makes them good and hopefully incorporate it into our own game.”
Mentor’s busy week continues with a road game at Lakewood on Feb. 6. As far as Krizancic is concerned, the week’s already been a big success.
“The win at Brunswick and the home win against Medina were huge,” Krizancic said. “I think they can compete with most teams in the state of Ohio, especially Medina. So to get those two ‘W’s in three days is huge.”
It’s good to play a team like this, and we can learn what makes them good and hopefully incorporate it into our own game.” South coach Doug Barber