Lions’ motor keeps running to defeat Wolverines

“Our main guys all stepped up,” said Lions’ Coach Michael Cruz. “It was not the most exciting game especially early but we played good defense, protected the basketball and forced them to come out and guard us in space which we felt like was our advantage.”

According to the third-year coach, a small Orange squad became thinner when one starter was sidelined with an injury along with several bench players also being unavailable.

“Right now we are pretty banged up,” said senior guard Devin Bell. “I will say this group can go far in the playoffs if we all stick together and we all lock in together because we beat West Geauga with one of our best players out and we just pulled through.

Only five players with actual varsity experience were available, so the Lions (7-14, 5-10) plucked junior center Luke Daberko from the junior varsity team.

“A big shout out to Luke for stepping up,” said Cruz. “It was his first varsity game of the year where he played meaningful minutes and was in the rotation. He just continues to mature and get better every single day.”

A slow start to the season had Orange sitting at 1-9 spurred by an eight-game skid, but the Lions have turned a corner and posted a 6-5 record, resulting in a three-game winning streak, their longest one of the season.

At the beginning of the season, Cruz was hopeful that Orange would start playing its best basketball leading up to the postseason.

Although the Lions were seeded 24th in the Ohio High School Athletic Association Division II Northeast 1 Region 1 Boardman bracket, Cruz’s prophecy has been fulfilled.

“I think early in the season when we through that losing streak our guys would get really discouraged the second something went bad and would splinter,” Cruz said. “As the season has gone on our guys have gotten more connected and when things get tough, whether we miss a tough shot or a good look they are doing a better job at just continuing to play on to the next play so I am really proud of them.”

Belle explained that Orange finally started finding success once each individual player started embracing their role.

“We are all playing together right now and we have to keep playing together,” the 6-foot-3 guard said. “When it is the playoffs, we all have to play together.”

The Wolverines (10-12, 9-10) appeared to have momentum at the beginning of the first period when they opened the game on a 7-2 run but Orange responded with a 7-0 surge to take a two-point lead at the end of the quarter.

West Geauga tried burying the Lions with the 3-point shot but only connected on one-of-six from the outside.

The Wolverines continued firing away from long distance but that played perfectly into Orange’s hand.

“We did a good job of squeezing the lane and making it tough,” Cruz said. “We did a good job of baiting them into some shots. Obviously that is a risky strategy because the Wolverines have shown they are capable of hitting shots. We did not want senior forward Jerry Kline-Ruminski to get the ball in the paint. That is where West Geauga runs its offense so we said, let’s make them not be able to be beat us with their best option.”

The Wolverines only hit one 3-pointer in the second quarter and Orange started pulling away with a 16-10 lead and then pushed its advantage to double digits, sparked by some sharp-shooting from the outside.

Junior guard Ernest Pryor heated up and scored eight points in the second period, including a pair of consecutive 3-pointers, sparking a 6-2 surge to hold a 22-12 advantage at the half.

West Geauga continued living and dying by the 3-point shot, shooting only 2-of-11 in the second quarter and settled for multiple one-and-done possessions because the Lions kept them off the glass.

The Orange limited the Wolverines to only 12 points in the first half and outrebounded them by a 19-10 margin.

“Our identity for this team is defense,” said Belle. “Coach Cruz tells us to buy in on every single quarter and hold them to under nine points and we did that.”

Even with a 10-point lead at halftime, it seemed like the Lions’ engine would run out at any given moment but the Lions went on a 10-3 run at the start of the third quarter, increasing its lead to 32-18.

“We have been doing it for most of the year and our guys are accustomed to it which is nice,” Cruz said. “I think we are pretty well-conditioned at this point and prepared for it.”

The Wolverines finally started to heat up from the outside and hit three 3-pointers in the third quarter but Orange still held a 36-21 edge at the end of the period.

The teams traded baskets in the fourth period but Belle kept the Lions in front and scored 10 points in the final quarter to close the game.

“Devin is obviously one of the best players in our league and in the area,” said Cruz. “He is the type of dude who makes a coach look smarter than he is but he also can go get a bucket on his own and he did a really good job on the glass.”

The Lions will finish their regular season with a road contest against University School at 7 p.m. Friday at the Weatherhead Gymnasium in Hunting Valley.

Meanwhile, the Wolverines will prepare for the playoffs and take the court again when they play Jefferson Area in the first round of the OHSAA Division II Northeast 2 Region 1 Notre Dame-Cathedral Latin bracket on Feb. 21 at 7 p.m. in Ashtabula.