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01/06 - 7:30 PM Boys Basketball Final St. Vincent-St. Mary 78 Cleveland Central Catholic 69
CLEVELAND, Ohio -- A gritty opponent and a hostile road crowd weren't enough to slow down St. Vincent-St. Mary boys basketball, as the Irish held off Central Catholic for a 78-69 win on Tuesday.
St. Vincent-St. Mary (9-0), which is ranked No. 3 in the cleveland.com Top 25 poll, got 29 points from senior Josh Williams in the win over No. 2 Central Catholic (7-1).
Williams proved to be the difference in crunch time for the Irish.
"He wants the ball in his hands in those moments, and he's not afraid of the time with the lights on," said St. Vincent-St. Mary coach Dru Joyce. "Sometimes guys can't handle that, but we're thankful that he can."
This game was entertaining from the very beginning, and neither team led by more than a possession in the second quarter. Behind 17 points from Antwon Lillard, the Ironmen hit the break with a 39-38 lead.
Adding to the importance of the game was that St. Vincent-St. Mary was ranked No. 2 and Central Catholic was ranked No. 3 in the Division II state AP poll, which was released on Monday.
What it means
By going into Central Catholic and coming out with a victory, the Irish solidified themselves as the team to beat in Division II, although they may not admit it.
"We don't want to make it more than what it was," Joyce said. "It wasn't an easy place to play. I thought our guys showed a lot of patience, and we handled their pressure."
With Williams leading the way, St. Vincent-St. Mary can not only go back to Columbus but also win it.
With the way the Irish shoot the ball from long-range (10 3-pointers on Tuesday) and the emerging presence of the improved Jibri Blount inside, St. Vincent-St. Mary has everything you could ask for in a team.
While Central Catholic falls by nine points in this game, the Ironmen still represented themselves well. This team plays together well and has the length inside to cause trouble in every game. Expect the Ironmen and Irish to meet again in March.
Play of the game
With St. Vincent-St. Mary up 68-65 and less than a minute to play, Central Catholic junior Tervell Beck put up a 3-pointer to tie the game. Either a missed foul call or some very tight defense forced a miss, and the Irish sank a free throw on the other end. It was the last time the game was within one possession.
Crucial run
Through the entire second quarter and half of the third quarter, the game was played within one possession. Then a 7-2 run that started with a Johnnie Robinson 3-pointer put the Irish in firm control of the game with a 61-52 lead.
Who stood out for Central Catholic
Beck: Despite missing most of the first quarter after a hard fall, Beck finished with 17 points. If he was involved more earlier, the Ironmen might have won.
William Hullum: After Beck went out, Hullum gave the team a huge lift off the bench. He led all reserves with nine points.
Lillard: For most of the game, Lillard was the toughest player to guard one-on-one. His mix of shooting and crafty interior moves led to 25 points.
Who stood out for St. Vincent-St. Mary
Henry Baddley: While Williams was the closer for the Irish, Baddley got them started with a quick 10 points in the first quarter. He finished the game with 21 points.
Blount: Despite missing part of the game due to foul trouble, Blount hit all of his shots from the field and ended with 12 points.
Williams: The senior leader of the Irish was tough to stop all night. His game-high 29 points were fueled by four 3-pointers.
Central Catholic sound bites
Coach Jeremy Holmes on the team's first loss: "I look at it like a learning experience. We'll have another opportunity to see them, and it will be for the money."
Holmes on the big picture: "It's just a bump in the road. I told them we need to continue to get better and work the same way. Our relationships don't change. We just ran into a team that was better than us tonight."
St. Vincent-St. Mary sound bites
Joyce on the 3-point shooting: "I got a group of guys who are committed to getting up shots. There are no shortcuts to this thing."
Joyce on pulling away at the end: "You can't survive like that. They're too good a team to let this go down to the end in their house."
Williams on the win: "It ignites more of a fire that we already had. Our chemistry is going well right now, and we are going to keep fueling off of our wins and our chemistry."
Williams on the chemistry: "It's exciting to know that you're playing with a group of guys that you like so much and that you're going into battle with."
What's next
Central Catholic hosts No. 5 St. Ignatius on Saturday at 7:30 p.m.
St. Vincent-St. Mary hosts Mansfield Senior on Saturday at 7:30 p.m.
Follow our new high school sports Twitter account @NEOvarsity and tag your high school sports Tweets and score updates with the #NEOvarsity hashtag.
Contact high school sports reporter David Cassilo by email (dcassilo@cleveland.com) or Twitter (@dcassilo). Or log in and leave a message in the comments section below.
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