SULLIVAN GYM – With two of their last three games being called off thanks to Mother Nature, the Wildcats seemed to receive a delayed winter break. It has been 13 days since the Wildcats last took to the court. The timing of this rescheduled matchup with the Preppers of University School may not have been optimal with tonight’s game being so important, but the Wildcats shook off the rust and handled their business with a 71-52 victory in Sullivan Gym Friday night.
start Friday night vs. University School
With last year’s result, and a look at the Preppers early season results, there was no question the rotation for Coach Becker with the all important game vs. St. Eds the next day. Juniors Lukas Bielek and Nate Hubbard made their first career varsity starts. Senior Josh Ozanne, who has stepped up his game vs. Cathedral Prep and St. Vincent-St. Mary also joined the starting five.
The Preppers came out hot and took advantage of the Wildcats’ edited rotation. TJ Kelly knocked down early shots for the Preppers and gave them an early seven point lead and were up 16-11 at the end of the first.
increased playing time Friday
Once the Preppers started to feel the tempo and energy pulling their way things got intense in Sullivan Gym as the Wildcats fought to keep the Preppers in check. As the Preppers continued to fight, things got pushy underneith the hoop for several possesions leading to a technical foul being assessed to Univeristy.
The Wildcats scrambled in the second quarter and took a 33-30 lead at halftime.
Tevin Jackson and Jon Barnes, two of the Wildcat’s elite defenders, returned to the floor in the second half and didn’t hesitate to make an impact on the game. Jackson put tremendous pressure on the ball as he has done all season long, forcing multiple turnovers in the third quarter. With the help of Jackson, the Wildcats picked up the intensity on defense holding the Preppers to eight points in the third and scoring 18 points themselves. The third quarter run from the Wildcats was enough to hold of the Preppers in a 71-52 victory.
Friday night drives to the basket
Now the Wildcats look forward to tonight, as the Eagles fly into a packed Father Sullivan Gymnasium at 7:00 PM. As expected tonight’s game is officially sold out. Saint Edward is one of the many extremely tough opponents on the Wildcats’ schedule. St. Ed’s is currently ranked #2 in the Cleveland.com Boys Basketball Top 25. The Eagles are coming off of their third loss of the season to Toledo St. John Jesuit, their other two losses coming on their still successful trip to the Torrey Pines Holiday Classic in San Diego, California. The Wildcats defeated the Eagles twice last season, both in Sullivan Gym and in Lakewood, and both victories took overtime to get the job done. The Wildcats look to get revenge for loss to Ed’s in the District Final last season.
St. Eds is a high caliber team just like Solon. The difference between tonight and the loss to Solon earlier on in the season is that the Wildcats are as healthy as can be. The only question is whether one game in 13 days not enough leading up to tonight’s game, or did the Wildcats successfully shake off all the rust in last nights victory.
If you couldn’t land a ticket to join us in the thrilling chemistry of Father Sullivan Gym tonight, you can catch every last second of the Wildcat-Eagle rivalry on SIBN with seniors Matt McKenzie and Brad Anderson.
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