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Garfield Heights offs Harding for 1st regional trip in 61 years
SOLON
In a sense, Garfield Heights had a bearing on Warren Harding’s back-to-back losses in Division I district championship games at Solon High School.
A year ago — almost to the day: March 13, 2010, Harding lost the district title game to St. Ignatius following the Raiders’ semifinal win over Garfield Heights two days earlier.
The quick turnaround after an exhausting double-overtime win may have indirectly contributed to Harding’s loss to Ignatius.
On Saturday, Garfield Heights played a more direct role as the state’s top-ranked team rocked the Raiders, 75-61 to earn the district crown.
Throw Penn State-bound Trey Lewis into the mix, too.
Lewis scored 30 points, including a pair of big buzzer-beating 3-point goals to end the first and second quarters.
Garfield Heights’ last district championship game appearance was five years ago when the Bulldogs lost in overtime to Solon at the buzzer. But Garfield Heights’ last regional appearance was in 1950.
“Trey was huge because we knew the only way we’d have a chance is if our guards outplayed their guards,” Garfield Heights coach William “Sonny” Johnson said. “He created, not just for himself, but for others. He drew so much attention that it freed a lot of people, like Mike Davis, who stepped up believably.”
Davis added 17 for the Bulldogs (22-1), whose only loss came via a three-point overtime loss to Strongsville a few weeks ago.
“They made some shots,” Harding coach Steve Arnold said of Lewis and his clutch shots. “That’s why he’s going to Penn State. “Wow. They were deep — and with a hand in his face. That, in a nutshell, was the game.”
Tre’ Brown had 17 points, Craig McFerrin 14 and Jesse Hardin 11 for Harding (18-5), which got only four points from its two other starters: Rashid Gaston and Quenten Jackson.
Tony Farmer had 10 points and a team-high 11 rebounds for Garfield Heights.
The Bulldogs’ bulk also caused problems, especially wide-bodied Jermaine Davis.
A junior, Jermaine Davis only had four points but played a role as big as his body.
“Usually, when we scout Warren Harding, they have us beat in size,” Johnson said. “But I think Jermaine gave them a few problems.”
Another problem-by-the-pound for Harding was Mike McQueen.
“It was mass-on-mass down there,” Arnold said. “Those guys are 6-8 and 300 pounds and pretty athletic. They were able to bump us a little, whereas, usually, we’re bumping the opponent’s post players and pushing them around a little bit.”
The pair’s presence had a ripple effect down court.
“I think we did a good job neutralizing their transition game and I think we did a decent job boxing out,” Johnson said of his Bulldogs’ success in pushing the ball that may have eventually taken its toll on the Raiders.
Harding led early, 13-9, then fell behind by as many as 14 points [27-13] and didn’t catch up.
“What they did to us — defensive pressure, especially in the first half, took us out of some of the things that we wanted to do,” Arnold said. “It wasn’t so much that they caused turnovers as they disrupted our continuity.”