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TWINSBURG, Ohio– The Mentor Cardinals haven’t been tested much this season but a Division I, Region II semifinal game against Massillon Jackson was their biggest test of the season.
Behind Luke Chicone’s game-high 23 points, Mentor was able to sneak away with a 60-53 win, advancing to the regional championship game Saturday against Medina.
“This is really the first game we’ve been tested like this,” coach Bob Krizancic said. “You don’t want it this close but I think it’s was a great game for us to play. We need to play in some close ones and take care of the basketball.”
With the Cardinals holding onto a 52-50 lead with 3:10 left to play in the fourth quarter, the Polar Bears didn’t decide to guard the ball. That led to two minutes being burned off the clock prior to them fouling Steven Key.
The senior guard would end up missing the free throw but did get an offensive rebound and followed with a layup to put the Cardinals up four with one minute left in the fourth quarter.
“That was a lot of time to go off the clock,” Krizancic said. “I thought our kids handled it really, really well.”
The Polar Bears were unable to capitalize on the offensive end and the game started to get out of reach after a couple made free throws from Luke Chicone and a layup from Jonah Waag.
However, the game ended in an emphatic way. Steven Key was able to get behind the defense and close out the final seconds with a dunk, sending the Cardinals onto the Elite 8 on a high note.
“It felt great,” Key said. “I felt like that was the perfect way to end the game.”
FINAL: @MentorAthletics defeats @PurpleNGoldCrew 60-53 to advance to the regional championship Saturday against Medina.@Steven_Key_ll ends the game with a bang! @SportsKee1 pic.twitter.com/oieBFnnGNg
— Michael Trivisonno (@MichaelTriv_) March 11, 2021
Jonah Waag finished with 16 points, Key had 12 and Andrew Smith made his presence felt with seven crucial points to follow along with Chicone’s 23 during the win.
It was a swift start for the Cardinals, getting out to an early 6-0 lead behind Chicone’s back-to-back 3-pointers. They maintained a lead for most of the first half, but the Polar Bears kept clawing back,
They eventually took their first lead of the game midway through the second quarter.
Ben Sullivan’s 3-pointer gives Massillon Jackson its first lead of the game; 24-23 with 3:20 left in the first half. pic.twitter.com/POVOLGP3DU
— Michael Trivisonno (@MichaelTriv_) March 11, 2021
Mentor kept responding and held a 34-31 lead at the break.
In the second half, the Polar Bears controlled the tempo. They slowed the game down for Mentor and played within the half-court, something Krizancic’s team responded well with late in the game.
“People think we’re just an offensive team that shoots threes,’ Chicone said. “Realistically, we proved time and time again that we can defend. Tonight we had a couple breakdowns but in the end of the game I thought we defended pretty well.”
The Cardinals made just five field goals in the third quarter and didn’t sink one three in the second half. It’s something they had to adapt to as the game went on with the Polar Bears’ stingy defense.
Ben Sullivan had 11 second half points for Massillon Jackson but couldn’t put together a big enough run in the end. He ended the night with a team-high 19 points followed by 13 and 9 points from Kevin James and Jovan Jovicic.
With the win, Mentor will play Medina for a shot to go to Dayton for the state semifinal. It’ll be the third time these teams will play against each other, with the Cardinals sweeping the season series throughout the regular season.
“This game will give us more confidence on Saturday,” Krizancic said. “We’ll enjoy this for 10 minutes and we’re starting to prep on the bus. We know them pretty well and they know us so it’s probably the way it should be.”
