Coach Sean O'Toole's Wildcats increased a five-point lead at halftime to 12 points entering the fourth quarter, and stretched that to a 15-point advantage with 6 minutes and 57 seconds remaining en route to improving to 8-1 on Friday night.
Coach O'Toole '87, who is currently in his sixth season as the head basketball coach at his alma mater, will enter Saturday night's home game versus Walsh Jesuit with a record of 95-31 at Cleveland's Jesuit Preparatory School. Walsh Jesuit will come into Sullivan Gymnasium with a record of 8-2 and riding a six-game winning streak after dominating Benedictine.
University School, which drew Coach O'Toole's praise for the toughness and the endless hustle Coach Terry Lipford's Preppers displayed all night, is now 5-2 on the season.
Senior post Eric Black led Saint Ignatius in the scoring column with 16 points, while junior wing Andre' Wilford and sophomore guard Deven Stover contributed 9 and 8 points, respectively. The 'Cats also got some nice efforts off the bench from junior post Mikal Outcalt and junior forward Jaylin McDonald.
University School, which saw its four-game winning streak come to an end, was the recipient of a 13-point performance from junior forward Kyle Scadlock and nine points from the grit and hustle of senior post James Johnston.
Coach Chris Salata's Junior Varsity Wildcats improved to 9-0 by defeating the jayvee team from University School, 70-26. A JV recap will follow the varsity story.
HERE IS THE CORNER'S VARSITY GAME STORY
University Heights, Ohio - Before commenting on anything else, Saint Ignatius head basketball coach Sean O'Toole wanted to speak about University School after his Wildcats defeated the Preppers, 55-41, at John Carroll University on Friday night.
"First of all, I want to congratulate University School," Coach O'Toole said. "They played harder than us, they got the loose balls and they played smarter. I give them credit. The definitely were a major reason why we struggled."
The Wildcats, ranked third in this week's Associated Press Division I state poll, improved to 8-1. However, Coach O'Toole emphasized more than once that his team struggled its way to the 14-point victory over a Preppers team that is now 5-2.
"We struggled from the line (11 for 22 from the charity stripe), we struggled with decision making and in execution is where we struggled," said Coach O'Toole. "These are good teams, you can not be inconsistent with your execution, can not be inconsistent with your effort and you can not be inconsistent in the non-negotiable intangibles. What we need to win every time we play are the loose balls, the hustle and the enthusiasm.
"There's nights the ball won't fit and we'll live with that," Coach O'Toole continued. "But they have to be good shots, they have to be high-percentage shots. I just don't think we got that tonight."
Saint Ignatius, which is also ranked third in the cleveland.com Top 25 area poll, rode a 3-pointer by senior point guard Danny Bova and two treys by junior wing Andre' Wolford to a 13-9 lead with 1:48 remaining in the first quarter.
A strong move to the basket by senior guard/forward Isiah Barbra, two free throws by Barbra off a rebound and an assist by senior post Eric Black, and a pull-up, buzzer-beating 3-pointer by sophomore guard Deven Stover saw the Wildcats take a 20-9 advantage into the second quarter.
After University School closed to 20-13 on a free throw by senior post James Johnston and a 3-pointer by sophomore guard Regan Mohler, Wolford answered with his third 3-pointer and sophomore point guard Kyle Kalish offset a layup by Johnston by burying a shot from beyond the arc.
The Preppers of Coach Terry Lipford wouldn't be discouraged, however, as they responded with five straight points by junior forward Kyle Scadlock - a 3-pointer and a second-effort layup - and trailed, 26-20.
Saint Ignatius' promising junior forward Jaylin McDonald took it down the lane and to the rim in giving his team an eight-point advantage, but University School junior guard Chris Cercelle sent home a 3-pointer from deep in the left corner and the Wildcats clung to a 28-23 lead at halftime.
The third quarter action got started with a basket down low by Eric Black. However, University School, which averaged more than 80 points in its previous four games (all victories), cut its deficit to three points on a two free throws by Scadlock and a follow by Johnston.
Responding like a highly ranked team, the Wildcats got some breathing room on a 3-pointer by David Black, Eric's twin brother, two free throws by David Black off a steal and an assist by Barbra, and a 3-pointer by Eric Black.
A three-point play by Stover, a three-point play by Eric Black off his offensive rebound and a two-handed slam in transition by Eric Black staked Saint Ignatius to a 12-point lead entering the final eight minutes. Eric Black scored 12 of his game-high 16 points in the second half.
The 'Cats' decisive fourth-quarter points came off another Eric Black basket down low and a driving one-hander by Bova, who battled foul trouble all night.
Saint Ignatius finished with eight 3-pointers and the Preppers hit four shots from beyond the arc. University School was 7-of-14 from the foul line and went through a tough scoreless streak for part of the third quarter, a stretch that saw the team from Hunting Valley hurt itself with turnovers and missed free throws.
"We won the game and obviously that was the goal walking in," said Coach O'Toole. "But I don't like how we played tonight. Their (University School) guards played well and their bigs out-banged us. We have assets, like depth, but we have to play smarter than we're playing. We tried defensively to create some turnovers and it was not five guys in unison. And the schedule is way too hard to not have all five guys on the same page."
Following Saturday night's home game against a well-schooled Walsh Jesuit program, the Wildcats travel to St. Edward on Jan. 18 for a match up with the No. 1-ranked team in the state and the seven-county area.
WILDCATS JAYVEES TURN IN ANOTHER IMPRESSIVE PERFORMANCE.
There were contributors galore, as the now 9-0 Saint Ignatius junior varsity team quickly took command of the JV team from University School and went on to a 70-26 victory.
A 3-pointer from sophomore guard Ryan Berger, two three pointers by sophomore guard Kyle Kalish (who splits time between the JV and varsity) and some strong play from sophomore forward Ian Burry, sophomore guard/forward Jake Gawlik and freshman post Matt Davet helped lead the JV 'Cats to a 23-4 advantage after the first seven minutes.
A Burry layup off an assist from sophomore guard/forward Mike Hollis and another Davet basket, this time courtesy of a picture-perfect assist from sophomore guard Nolan Meehan, were among the many highlights in the second quarter.
After a strong second-effort by Davet resulted in his three-point play and a 36-6 Saint Ignatius lead, University School closed out the first half on a 7-2 run.
It was Katy Bar The Door in the third quarter, however, as Burry struck again down low, sophomore guard Joe Evans buried a 3-pointer, Burry scored off a smooth reverse layup along the baseline and Evans again dialed from long distance.
Coach Chris Salata's depth left no doubt, as the 'Cats moved to a 58-21 lead entering the fourth quarter. Among the finishing touches were two free throws by sophomore guard Joe Palmer, a layup by Palmer off a sweet dish from sophomore guard Nate Ellifritt and 3-pointers from Ellifritt and Palmer.
Palmer and Ryan Berger led the Wildcats with 12-point efforts, Burry and Kalish each scored 10 points and Ellifritt finished with 8 points. University School freshman Brandon Scadlock had a game-high 13 points.
*Please excuse this proud grandpa for sending out congratulations to my granddaughter, Caitlin Patton, who has qualified for the Power of the Pen Ohio Interscholastic Writing League area regionals, which will held in March at St. Joseph Academy. Caitlin is in the seventh grade at Our Lady of Angels in West Park.