Ohio City - In his usual humble and basketball savvy style, Saint Ignatius' gifted senior guard Neeko Melendez spoke about what was another nice "bounce back" victory by Coach Brian Becker's Wildcats, a 68-57 triumph over the Canton McKinley Bulldogs in Father Sullivan Gymnasium on Saturday night.
"I think this was huge, especially coming off Solon where we didn't play well at the offensive end, or the defensive end for that matter," said Neeko of last week's 18-point setback to the undefeated and area's third-ranked Solon Comets. "This was the first time we all got to play together. It was really fun to go out there as a whole team. It was a nice bounce back victory and now we have to focus on Warren Harding."
In improving to 4-2, the Wildcats, who fought through injuries and illness in their first five games, will enjoy Christmas with their family and friends for two days, hit the practice court on Tuesday and then take on the Raiders of Warren G. Harding High School on Wednesday night (Dec. 27) at Father Sullivan Gymnasium. The Varsity tip off will be 7 PM.
"Even in the first half tonight, I thought were were still a little stale on offense," said Melendez, who solved McKinley's defense for a game-high 20 points that included six 3-pointers. Five of Neeko's treys came in the second half, when Coach Becker's 'Cats began to take control.
With its 1-2 senior punch of Aymin Bahhur and Dom DiNunzio doing their usual relentless work down low and off the glass, and senior forwards Josh Ozanne and Luke Wiskes providing an offensive spark, the Cats led, 26-20, after Wiskes buried a buzzer-beating, fade-away jumper to end the first quarter.
Saint Ignatius, continuing to hurt the Bulldogs in the paint, stretched that six-point lead to 37-22. with 6 minutes and 6 seconds remaining in the second quarter.
At that point, McKinley, now 3-3 on the young season, went on an 8-0 run and cut the deficit to seven points.
A 3-pointer by Melendez had the 'Cats on top by 10 points and some more second-effort play by Bahhur kept the Bulldogs at a 10-point distance until McKinley's senior wing Za'Vonte Howell converted a three-point play with 2:21 to go in the first half.
Keeping its composure, Saint Ignatius responded with a smooth turn-around jumper in the lane by Melendez. Coach Rick Hairston's "Pups" came right back with a trey from 6-foot-5 senior post Jaedyn McCallup, only to watch Coach Becker's Wildcats stretch their lead to 54-40 off a three-point play by Bahhur that came courtesy of an assist from Ozanne, two free throws by Ozanne and a three-point play by oh so promising sophomore guard Chase Toppin.
The Wildcats, who entered Saturday night's game as the 14th-ranked program in the seven-county area, rode two 3-pointers by Melendez, a two-handed slam dunk in transition by Wiskes and a 3-pointer by senior guard Jon Barnes to a 21-point advantage with 5:30 remaining to be played.
McKinley, which defeated Saint Ignatius by three points in last year's meeting at the Bulldogs' storied Memorial Fieldhouse, didn't head back to Stark County quietly.
The night belonged to the strong-minded Wildcats, however, as they put No. 4 in the win column behind two more clutch clutch treys by Melendez and the floor generalship of sophomore point guard Tevin Jackson.
"I think we're at our best when we are on the break, running the floor," said Neeko, who opened the season with five 3-pointers during a dominant victory over John Hay in the Great Lakes Classic at Cleveland Heights High School. "In the first half, I didn't think I shot the ball particularly well. But the coaches told me to keep shooting, they have the confidence in me. As a shooter, you have to have a little sense of amnesia. Just forget about the last miss and keep shooting."
Along with running the floor, Coach Becker has instilled in his team the ability to and the appreciation for moving without the ball. Saint Ignatius' willingness to keep working to get open hurt the Bulldogs' defense on more than one occasion. Is that the late Hall of Famer Red Holzman I see smiling through a pre-Christmas sky?
In complementing the long distance production by Melendez, the Wildcats got 11 points from DiNunzio, 10 points courtesy of Ozanne, eight points from Wiskes and seven points from both Bahhur and Barnes. Jackson dished out six assists and had three steals.
McKinley was led by a 16-point night from its talented senior guard Deontae McCollum, 11 points from McCallup and nine points via Howell.
Saint Ignatius won the battle of the boards, 29-23, shot 73 percent from the foul line and 46 percent from the field. The Bulldogs turned the ball over 18 times and the 'Cats had 15 turnovers.
FROM COACH BECKER: "Tonight was the first time that we actually had our complete team," said the man who will also lead his Wildcats against the Fighting Irish of St. Vincent-St. Mary on New Year's Eve in the atmosphere-rich LeBron James Arena on the campus of SVSM. The tip off will be 3:30 PM.
"That (the full roster) allows you to get a feel for the right rotation, having the right guys in at the right time and know what you should be running," Coach Becker continued. "The guys played hard, which is a really good sign. We still made somme mental mistakes and I think we have to take care of the basketball a little better.
"Thank God Neeko has a short memory, because he didn't shoot it real well in the first half, but made everything he looked at in the second half. Dom, Aymin and Luke (Wiskes) played off the boards really well and Josh gave us some big moments on offense."
CONGRATULATIONS GO OUT ONCE AGAIN TO SAINT IGNATIUS' GIFTED JUNIOR VARSITY WILDCATS, WHO IMPROVED TO 6-0 BY TURNING AWAY THE JV BULLDOGS, 55-51, ON SATURDAY EVENING.
Sophomore post Michael McNamara, one of the Wildcats' top all-around young athletes, scored 12 points, sophomore guards Caleb Blake and Sean Armen each had eight points, and sophomore guard Daniel Nunez contributed seven points.
Freshman guard Xavier Black led McKinley's Jayvees with a game-high 15 points that included four 3-pointers.
The JV 'Cats will look to roll a seven when they host the JV Raiders from Warren Harding on Wednesday at 5:30 PM.
May God Bless You and Yours this Christmas and here's hoping for a wonderful 2018.