CANFIELD 12-0 run sparks Cards to victory

Chad Baker's 17 points helped Canfield defeated Boardman, 65-61.
By CHUCK HOUSTEAU
VINDICATOR CORRESPONDENT
CANFIELD -- The Canfield High basketball team used a 12-0 run early in the third quarter to turn a two-point deficit into a 42-34 lead and then held on to beat Boardman 65-61 in Saturday's non-conference matchup.
Chad Baker scored eight of his 17 points in the quarter and Karim El Raddaf also tallied eight of his 14 points in the period to lead the comeback.
Frank Turocy scored seven points in the quarter including two two-handed slam dunks that seemed to ignite the Cardinals and the overflow crowd.
Canfield (2-2) trailed the Spartans (1-3) 30-26 at halftime.
"Once we got a lead on them, I think it forced them to do some things they really didn't want to do," Canfield coach John Cullen said. "That forced them to play catch-up and that's really not their style."
Twelve-point edge
Canfield continued to push the lead over Boardman to as many as 12 points, 51-39, at the outset of the fourth quarter on a shot by Baker.
Boardman however quickly got back into the contest behind the hot shooting of Matt Marks and the inside scoring of Jay Davis.
Marks scored 11 of his game-high 26 points in the final period while Davis scored seven of his 13 points down the stretch.
The Spartans got as close as 56-53 on a Marks jumper with 1:55 remaining.
Canfield pushed the lead back out to 60-53 on baskets by Matt Sonnett and Rick Banna.
The Cardinals then hit free throws in the final minute to seal the win.
"I was happy with how we competed tonight," Cullen said. "We got beat bad on the boards at Lakeview the other night but tonight we rebounded much better."
Rebounds
Canfield outrebounded the much taller Spartans 36-26, including 14 second half offensive rebounds.
"Canfield deserves all the credit in the world," Boardman coach Dan Gorski said. "They came out and did what they had to do to win the basketball game."
Gorski said that it is a matter of his team focusing more to get out of the early-season slump plaguing the Spartans.
"We are not paying attention to detail," Gorski said. "Obviously are three losses have been by four points. Until we start to hone in and pay attention a little closer, its going to be a tough season."
Boardman seemed to establish control of the tempo of the game in the second quarter after falling behind 14-9 to the Cardinals in the first period.
Boardman outscored Canfield 21-12 in the second quarter by using its height advantage and getting strong shooting efforts from Marks and Tom Zetts.
But Cullen knew the key was to limit the shots by Marks and Mike DeOnofrio in the second half.
"We concentrated on trying to stay closer to those two guys and limit their shots," Cullen said. "Those two are dangerous and can take over a game."
Marks only shot the ball three times in the third quarter as Canfield made its run to overtake Boardman.
Canfield got a balanced effort as eight players scored points.
"A lot of guys who haven't played well, really stepped it up tonight," Cullen said. "It was a nice team effort."