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Slow start, fast finish for Irish
Mooney domination fades down stretch
YOUNGSTOWN
The Ursuline High School boys basketball team went scoreless in Friday’s opening quarter, then scored 72 in the final 28 minutes (including overtime) to beat Cardinal Mooney, 72-64.
Senior R.J. Clark made six free throws in overtime to finish with a game-high 24-points.
“I think we were frustrated at halftime when Coach [Keith A. Gunther] told us to be patient and things would come,” Clark said. “We weren’t getting [defensive] stops, but then we did in the second half and that was the game.
“Coach told me to be patient if they double-team me, swing [the ball] and it’ll come back to you,” Clark said, “That’s what I did in the second half.”
After a 57-57 regulation score, Vince Armeni scored six of his eight points in overtime.
“I was just staying patient and waiting my turn,” the junior said. “A couple of my shots didn’t fall early. Later in the game, I came off the bench and tried to pick up the team because we were down.”
Gunther thought it was a character-building, gut-check showing.
“Our kids couldn’t make shots in the first quarter and [we] weren’t getting stops,” he said, comparing it to the North Carolina State-Miami game from the night before.
“I was watching N.C. State, a 12-1 team, and they looked horrible before a gut-check ending.”
Against Mooney, Gunther said that Clark struggled in the first half then did a great job when he was trapped.
“We moved the ball the second half and Clark had some big shots down the stretch,” Gunther said.
Armeni snapped the 57-57 tie with five straight points.
Travis Easterly added 14 points and Daysean Harris had 11 for the winners (7-4).
“We just didn’t finish,” Mooney coach Carey Palermo said.
“Whether it was them beating us up on the offensive glass,” he said of a breakdown after being up by seven points after a John Murphy basket with 1:38 to go in regulation.
”Then a couple lazy passes, a couple errant passes,” Palermo said. “Their pressure sped us up, but we just didn’t finish [on the offensive end] is what it comes down to, unfortunately.”
Palermo said that his Cardinals (4-3) didn’t execute defensively.
“We didn’t finish and we didn’t rebound,” Palermo said. “You can’t give up 57 points in three quarters.
“Even when Ursuline made its run in the second and third quarters, I thought we handled it well, but we needed to get buckets,” Palermo said. “Under three minutes to go in the fourth quarter, we didn’t.
“Although Ursuline sped us up, I don’t think it was great pressure, I think it was us making lazy passes. When you’re playing a rival, you’ve got to finish.
Pete Haas had 17 points to lead the home court Cardinals, while Anthony Fire and Mike Pelini chipped in 12 apiece.
“We were scoring, but they were scoring; they were scoring off the offensive rebounds. They were scoring because we didn’t stick our chest in the help. Those are little, but important, things.”