The News Herald (Willoughby, OH)
RH returns to final 4
CANTON >> Warren JFK went on a run at the end of the second quarter that cut Richmond Heights’ lead in half of the Division IV Canton Regional final on March 15.
But the Spartans came out of the half with a response.
An early run gave pushed the Spartans advantage back over 20 points and propelled them to a 9561 victory. It’s the fourth consecutive season Richmond Heights will be in the state round.
The Spartans will face Russia in its semifinal at the University of Dayton on March 21.
The run by Warren JFK didn’t come as a shock to Coach Quentin Rogers. The Eagles had four players who averaged double figures and also fought against a strong schedule this season.
He knew they were going to make a run at some point.
“We told them before the game that they were coming in ready for a battle,” Rogers said. “Coach (Mark) Komlan has coached a great team against other great teams all year. He’s going to come into this game with his guys prepared. His team isn’t going to back down. It was more of the wakeup call we needed that they weren’t going to go away.”
Richmond Heights had an early lead on the back of Demarris Winters shooting, as he had three first-quarter 3-pointers. He finished with 17 points for the Spartans.
While Winters is the sharpshooter of the bunch, he and his teammates hang their hats on the defensive side of the court.
Richmond Heights forced 22 Warren JFK turnovers in the contest. Winters highlighted the extra emphasis that the coaching staff put on the defensive side of the ball this season.
“We preached not letting up on anyone,” Winters said. “We don’t take any of our opponents lightly, so before the game we were getting as many shots up as we could. Things like that really helped us succeed in games like tonight. They’re an amazing
scoring team, but we preach defense a ton. We were in the gym all week working slides, after practice getting shots up, that’s the heart and soul of our team.”
The Spartans were led by Dorian Jones who had 24 points, 14 of which were in the second half.
Jones knew he and his teammates couldn’t start to look to far into the future with how strong of a team Warren JFK is. He helped the Spartans rebuild their lead with a pair of dunks to swing the momentum back.
“We all came out and stayed locked in,” Jones said. “Coach told us to not underestimate any team, especially one as good as Warren JFK. Any team can make a push at this point in the season. Our season and practices really helped us be more prepared for the postseason. Our practices are tough, and the coaches always are tough on us so that really helped us be ready for the postseason.”
Hosea Steele (16 points) and De’Erick Barber (13 points) were also in double figures for the Spartans.
Richmond Heights had an up-and-down start to the season. The Spartans juggled a national schedule along with playing many of the top teams in Ohio.
Despite having a record of 5-8 early in January, Rogers knew the team still had time to reach its stride.
The Spartans have won 12 of their last 13 to return to the state round as Rogers saw the team persist through several different challenges.
“At first with the injuries in the beginning, everything was thrown out of whack,” Rogers said. “Not only that but we’re playing against some of the best teams in the country. We’re going to have those types of bumps. But these guys are resilient. We told them that whatever they wanted, it was going to click. It was just a matter of when.”
Warren JFK was led by junior Nick Ryan, who had 22 points and eight rebounds, both of which led the Eagles. Michael Condoleon had 16 points, 10 in the second half.