The News Herald (Willoughby, OH)
Regional semis await on road to Columbus
Nate Barnes gets you ready for tonight’s regional boys basketball semifinals involving area teams, as Mentor and Euclid take on D-I tilts at Cleveland State and VASJ and Benedictine battle in Canton.
CANTON » If defense wins championships, Richmond Heights appears to be on the right track to the Spartans’ first state berth.
Richmond Heights locked down on Bristol in a 66-34 Division IV Canton Regional semifinal win over the Panthers on March 12. The Spartans advance to the Canton Regional final March 15 against New Middletown Springfield.
Against Bristol, Richmond Heights forced 27 turnovers and blocked 11 shots.
Bristol’s leading scorer Gage Elza averaged 26 points per game during the regular season. Twice, the 6-foot senior guard notched 40-point performances.
Guarded by the likes of Richmond Heights’ Jamarr Talbert Jr., Jevontae Jones and Curtis Houston, Elza finished with nine points.
“Everybody on the team can guard every position, for the most part,” Talbert said. “I think our athleticism gives us a good advantage on the defensive side.”
A game prior, the Spartans locked up Open Door’s all-time leading scorer, Trey Brooks. The D-IV Northeast District Player of the Year went scoreless in the first half, then finished with 13 points as Richmond Heights won the Norton District title.
So far, in the postseason, only Rittman’s Connor Stuart has cracked the 20-point threshold against Richmond Heights. Still, the Indians fell to the Spartans, 70-54, in a Norton District semifinal.
Coach Quentin Rogers builds his defensive game plans around slowing an opponent’s primary option, then fills in the rest of the puzzle.
“We circle the leading scorers,” Rogers said. “That’s who we attack first, then we try to apply pressure on the other ballhandlers.”
As a team, Richmond Heights is allowing 46.8 points per game through its four tournament wins.
The Spartans held a team in the 30s for the second time this postseason. Richmond Heights held Bristol scoreless for a four-minute, 48-second span in the second quarter that helped the Spartans turn a three-point lead into a 17-point halftime advantage.
“We played alright defense,” Jones said.
“We was trying to be long, play in the passing lanes, not let them shoot a lot of 3s, just what Coach said to us.”
The Spartans’ defensive strength lies in their athletic ability. Rogers and his coaching staff teach their players the fundamentals of all five defensive positions, so Richmond Heights is able to effectively switch everything against most teams.
On the perimeter, Houston, Jones, Talbert and Gbolahan Adio are all rangy, long and quick enough to contest jump shots or stay in front of ballhandlers trying to attack the basket. Anthony Maxie controls the paint with his outstanding leaping ability that allows him to protect the rim and dominate the glass.
Off the bench, BJ Carter and Isaiah Martin add energy and defensive grit to the Spartans’ game plan.
All in all, Richmond Heights defensive versatility makes an opposing coach’s offensive preparation a demanding task.
“It’s impossible to simulate the athleticism they have and their length,” Bristol coach Craig Giesy said. “They’re long at every position, one through five. They just keep throwing guys out there who are long, lanky and athletic.” Boys basketball tournament capsules