Newton Falls shows good and bad sides in victory

March 7, 2010 at 12:00a.m.

By JON MOFFETT

HOWLAND

Newton Falls High head coach Roy Sembach said his team has the talent to compete with any team in the Division III boys basketball tournament, and the inconsistency to be beaten by any of them.

Both of those were evident in a 66-44 victory against Garfield High on Saturday.

The Tigers (17-4) opened up a 20-point lead after one quarter before the G-Men (0-21) could even blink. But just as quickly, the No. 13 seed Garfield opened up a 13-0 run against the No. 1 seed Tigers in the second quarter.

A frustrated Sembach could be heard outside the team locker room making his point with volume.

“I told them I thought for the first 12 minutes we played up to our standards and capabilities,” he said. “And if we do that, we will be a tough out for anybody. But if we get careless, lackadaisical, selfish or lose focus, we’ll be turning our uniforms in Wednesday.

The mid-quarter slump was a glaring negative in an otherwise positive outing for the Tigers defense. Newton Falls forced 30 G-Men turnovers, 19 off of steals, and brought down 29 defensive rebounds.

Conversely, the Tigers turned the ball over 21 times and allowed the G-Men defense to snag 25 opportunities off the glass.

When asked if he was ever concerned about a potential upset, Sembach gave a rationalized response.

“It all happened right there at the end [of the half]” he said. “I’m concerned about every single possession of the game, but in terms of winning and losing, that’s too early [to tell].”

Newton Falls was guided by sophomore Cody Dillon, whose 17 points were a game-high. Dillon added seven rebounds and four steals an assist and two blocked shots.

Teammate Brian Moser, also a sophomore, added 13 points, four rebounds and two steals.

Leading the way for the G-Men was junior Teddy Christopher. His 12 pints led the team, and he added a blocked shot and a steal.

Teammate Kevin Davis had 13 rebounds.