by Canton, Ohio – The Lutheran East Falcons defeated Cardinal Mooney, 54-43, in the Division III Canton regional final Saturday afternoon at the Memorial Fieldhouse.
The Falcons got off to a good start early on. Ronald Taylor hit a basket to give the Falcons an early lead. After Jesse McCulloch split a pair of free throws, a triple increased the margin to 6-0.
The Falcons would lead 14-6 after the first quarter.
Lutheran East would increase their lead to 28-14 at the half. Four different Falcons scored, including Jesse Mcculloch. He had his first basket of the game at the 3:25 mark of the second quarter. The Michigan State commit finished with seven points and blocked five shots. The defense kept the pressure up, holding Mooney to two field goals.
Cardinal Mooney went on a 5-0 to begin the third quarter, thanks to a triple from Jibri Carter and a layup from Ashton O’Brien. Lutheran East responded with a triple from Anthony Bruce and a layup from Ronald Carter. The Falcon defense held Mooney to three points the remainder of the quarter, taking a 39-22 lead after three.
But Cardinal Mooney was not finished yet. The Cardinals went on a 12-2 run, intensifying the pressure on defense. Baskets from Ashton O’Brien, Jibri Carter, and Nico Genova helped towards the effort, as the Lue East lead was down to 41-34.
Senior forward Ronald Taylor had a slam dunk on the next possession, increasing the lead to 43-34. After the two teams traded buckets, freshman guard Chris Hill drew contact for the finish, increasing the Falcon lead to 47-36 with 1:43 left.
From there, the Falcons wrapped it up, punctuating their 7th straight regional championship. They were led by senior guard Anthony Bruce and senior forward Ronald Taylor, who each scored ten points.
Cardinal Mooney was led by senior forward Ashton O’Brien, who finished with 18 points, followed by senior guard Jibri Carter with 13.
Full highlights below:
