First basketball game is won by Warren JFK

The 2 p.m. tipoff signaled the inaugural varsity contest at the facility.
By JOHN BASSETTI
VINDICATOR SPORTS STAFF
YOUNGSTOWN -- Trailing by two points at the half, Warren JFK High coach Shawn Pompelia wasn't happy.
About 40 minutes later, after beating Western Reserve Academy by 14 points, Pompelia's raised voice from the Eagles' locker room was anything but celebratory.
What's goes here?
Turns out that the second-year coach wasn't upset at the 67-53 victory, he was just emphatically conveying to his players, specifically the guards, that they needed to share the wealth.
"We stressed at halftime that we wanted our big guys to be involved under the basket and get some sugar," Pompelia said of spreading the points around among five potential scorers on the floor.
It would also benefit those outside shooters because, by feeding the ball down low, the Eagles (3-0) were able to draw WRA defenders away from the perimeter.
If the middle was open, it also enabled guards to get nice 5- to 7-foot shots rather than standing around taking 3s.
One player who benefited was J.J. Townsend.
"J.J. created great space," Pompelia said of the junior who finished with a game-high 26 points, none of which were 3-pointers.
It wouldn't have happened if the point guard wasn't temporarily benched.
"At the beginning of the game, J.J. had seven turnovers. He doesn't like coming out, but after that he was sitting. He came back and did what we asked him to do -- dish to the big guys and take some himself. That shows the character of that kid," Pompelia said of the student who is also the football team quarterback.
Ball for all
"I'm not looking for one guy, for that basketball to be in the middle and everybody trying to get it. We want to cut up that basketball and give everybody a piece. That's one thing we're learning among ourselves."
Another issue Pompelia was trying to clarify with his players was their frustration at not being part of the offense.
"If they play good defense, that effort, to me, is just as good as offensive effort. It might not show [in the stats], but defense is going to keep us in ball games and win us ball games. We've made that a point of emphasis. Personally, I love the guy who gives me defense, 'cause he's playing with his heart."
After trailing, 25-23, JFK's 9-0 run established a strong second-half start. It was aided by several WRA turnovers.
"The second-half defensive pressure was tremendous," Pompelia said. "That wasn't the case the first half. Later, we got steals and took off with the ball in transition. That turned into points."
Following Townsend's 26, senior TaShawn Walker added six goals and two free throws for 14 points for the Eagles.
Chris Deighan had 20 points for Academy (2-2), whose first loss was to Soelbury from Philadelphia. WRA's wins were against Gilmour Academy and Columbus Wellington.
WRA pulled within 38-37 late in the third quarter before JFK outscored the Pioneers, 23-14 in the final quarter.
bassetti@vindy.com