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03/18 - 6:15 PM Boys Basketball Final Medina 44 Shaker Heights 53
CLEVELAND, Ohio -- Shaker Heights' Esa Ahmad recorded a double-double to help the Raiders boys basketball team beat Medina, 53-44, in Wednesday's Cleveland State region semifinal at the Wolstein Center.
The Bees came out ready to play. After winning the opening tipoff, Medina's Jon Teske put up a quick two points inside, one of the few quality shots the Raiders would allow down low.
Beginning the second quarter trailing, 14-10, Shaker Heights found some momentum early in the period, led by Ahmad, who finished the opening half with 15 points.
Ahmad's inside scoring capability proved more effective down the stretch than Medina's efforts to score from beyond the 3-point arc. Kaleb Roy and David Wright stepped up their scoring games in the second half to help take some pressure off Ahmad.
"I'm just proud of my guys for not giving up because Medina made a couple runs to cut the score to within two or one," said Shaker Heights coach Danny Young. "But then we responded as we have done all year."
Young said he planned to have senior forward Justin Johnson guard Teske for the most part and get secondary help from Ahmad as needed, which worked well in the end as Teske finished with just 12 points, far fewer than in his 27-point performance in the Copley district final against Massillon Jackson.
"Coach Young did a great job switching that zone," said Medina coach Chris Hassinger. "Teske had two (big guys) around him constantly and made it very difficult for him to touch the ball."
The Raiders had a one-point advantage to start the second half and were able to extend their lead to three by the start of the fourth.
Some sharp-shooting by Medina's Evan Schreck and Ben Geschke kept the Bees close in the third but the Raiders surrendered just seven points in the fourth to seal the victory.
Medina lived on mid- to long-range shots most of the night, with spotty consistency, as the Raiders' defense near the basket remained tight throughout the game.
What it means
Shaker Heights moves on to play in the regional final on Saturday at 7 p.m. at the Wolstein Center against Garfield Heights, which defeated Uniontown Lake.
Critical runs
1. Down by four to start the second quarter, the Raiders opened the frame with a 6-0 run to take their first lead.
2. Shaker Heights began the third with a 12-4 run, which included back-to-back 3-pointers by Roy and Wright.
Who stood out for Shaker Heights
Ahmad: The senior forward finished with 25 points. He also grabbed 11 rebounds for a double-double.
Roy: The senior guard scored 12 points, 10 of which came in the second half.
Wright: The junior guard scored eight points and grabbed six rebounds.
Who stood out for Medina
Teske: The junior center did not have big rebounding numbers but made his presence felt inside with his shot-blocking ability. Teske swatted a game-high six shots and also scored 12 points.
Schreck: The senior knocked down a trio of 3-pointers in the second frame to finish the half with 11 points. He managed just two more in the second half, however. He grabbed five rebounds to lead the Bees in that department.
Geschke: The sophomore guard went 3 for 4 from 3-point range to finish with nine points.
Shaker Heights sound bites
Young on Roy: "Kaleb, the last few games, has been the anchor of our success. A lot of people and other coaches said early that Achilles heel, our weakness was our guard play. So I listened to that and about a month ago, I allowed (our assistant coaches) to do skill development the first 30 minutes of practice. Coach Anthony Wells was a quality guard who played at Cleveland State and finished at IUP (Indiana University of Pennsylvania) so he's been teaching Roy how to get control of the ball, how to get into the lane, float and shoot and he's really developed."
Young on winning as a team: "That was a quality, team win. Everybody contributed and that's something we talked about. Together, everybody adds more."
Young on Teske: "We talked to a lot of coaches and I saw a lot of video and (Teske) had a special run where he was really scoring well. We wanted to make sure we pushed him a little bit off his spot where some of his shots didn't fall and we tried to contain all their shooters as well."
Ahmad on preparing for the regional final: "We just need to have great practices and get ready mentally and physically."
Ahmad on second chance efforts: "I knew those second chance-points would be big. We try to get every 50-50 ball. That's what the coach preaches to us. Those second-chance points win games."
Medina sound bites
Hassinger on Ahmad: "Esa just takes over. He's so good. He was just unbelievable tonight. We had to help on him so much they just killed us on the boards tonight with second-chance points."
Hassinger on missed shots: "Other games this year we've been able to hit many of those mid-range jumpers we missed tonight. It just came from fatigue."
Teske: "We got this far and it was just a great team effort all around. We were just trying to contain them and trying to double Esa every time he got the ball. They're a great defensive team and I give them a lot of credit tonight. They did a great job tonight and deserved to win."
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