Canfield's defenders too much for Quakers

Salem's inside game vanished in a 59-41 loss to the Cardinals.
By ERIC HAMILTON
VINDICATOR CORRESPONDENT
SALEM -- Lately, it seems that whenever the Canfield High boys basketball team faces Salem, everything comes up aces.
Friday was no exception as the Cardinals' defense shut down the Quakers' inside game and dealt Salem a 59-41 loss in a key Metro Athletic Conference tilt.
The victory keeps Canfield (11-3, 7-1) a game behind league-leader Poland (11-2, 8-0).
While the Cardinals didn't hit 14 3-pointers like they did against Salem in their first meeting, they didn't need them.
The Cardinals' defense took center stage this time, all but eliminating the Quakers' post game. When Salem did get the ball inside, Canfield was there to secure the defensive rebound.
"Our schedule prepares us for teams bigger than us," Canfield coach John Cullen said. "Salem is an excellent inside team and if they get the ball inside, it's going to be trouble.
"Our plan was to pressure the high post so they couldn't get the ball into the low post," Cullen said. "I think we did a decent job of that tonight and we rebounded with attitude."
Baker sets record
Canfield's Chad Baker, known more for his scoring, made history on the boards. The 6-6 senior broke the school record for rebounds in a career with 516 and counting.
The Cardinals used a strong performance on the glass to overcome poor shooting in the first quarter (4-of-17), grabbing five offensive rebounds to score on second-chance opportunities.
That rebounding edge, coupled with Salem's 1-of-9 shooting effort, gave Canfield a 10-2 lead.
The Cardinals started to heat up in the second quarter, running out a 19-5 advantage.
Salem's Tom Jesko canned a pair of 3-pointers to bring the Quakers back, 21-15.
Cullen went to his bench to end Salem's surge. Ken Preston and Kyle Melewski hit back-to-back 3-pointers during an 11-2 run to pad Canfield's lead to 32-17 at intermission.
"The key stretch was when they hit those 3-pointers after we got the lead down to six," Salem coach Jeff Brink said. "It was so pivotal for us to stay in the game before the end of the half, but we had some defensive lapses there. You can't do that against Canfield."
The second half was just a formality as Canfield led by as much as 20 points.
Excellence
"They did an excellent job taking us out of our offense," Brink said.
Canfield's defense limited Salem's leading scorer, Joe Smith, to no field goals and just three points.
The Cardinals were led offensively by Andrew Havas (13 points including three 3-pointers). Frank Turocy added 11 and John Virotsko chipped in with nine.
Tyler Pierce led Salem with 12 points. Jesko added 11 points, including three treys.