Greater Cleveland Conference

Strongsville beat Medina 72-64 in OT.

I didn't realize this thread existed until a second ago, but Strongsville being vastly improved shouldn't be a surprise. They returned 11 of 12 from last year (though still missing Nolan Beard).
 
Mentor set an incredibly fast pace from the start, scoring 35 points in the 1st quarter. The pace certainly favors exactly what Mentor wants to do. Mission accomplished as they scored over 100 in the win yesterday at Heights. Iopollo and Biddell continue to score at elite levels. They both played very well yesterday. Mentor's role players didn't necessarily score much, but they all starred in their roles well.

On a personal note, it has been since Mentor left the LEL (2011) since I went to a basketball game there. The renovations look really nice. But I do miss the old gym. And I miss the old crowds of the 2000's.
 
SVillegrad said:
Strongsville beat Medina 72-64 in OT.

I didn't realize this thread existed until a second ago, but Strongsville being vastly improved shouldn't be a surprise. They returned 11 of 12 from last year (though still missing Nolan Beard).
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This Strongsville season really has caught me by surprise. In the first game of the season, Mentor dominated most of the first half before Strongsville went on a 41-12 run from the last minute of the half all the way through the end of the 3rd quarter. At the time, I pegged it as a failure by Mentor more than a success by Strongsville. After seeing how the Mustangs have played this season, I can now tell I sold them short. Strongsville is a team to be reckoned with in the league. Mentor's win over Strongsville was their only loss of the season.

Looks like the Mentor home game against Strongsville in two weeks could be a big one in deciding the league. Mentor still has two big games against Brunswick though.
 
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cardzfan1234 said:
Mentor set an incredibly fast pace from the start, scoring 35 points in the 1st quarter. The pace certainly favors exactly what Mentor wants to do. Mission accomplished as they scored over 100 in the win yesterday at Heights. Iopollo and Biddell continue to score at elite levels. They both played very well yesterday. Mentor's role players didn't necessarily score much, but they all starred in their roles well.

On a personal note, it has been since Mentor left the LEL (2011) since I went to a basketball game there. The renovations look really nice. But I do miss the old gym. And I miss the old crowds of the 2000's.
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I believe I saw you guys,I sat above the Heights bench they gave me and two other guys recognition as being long time alumni fans for attending Heights games for other 50 years at halftime but your absolutely right, Mentor does what Mentor does, not
Surprising.
 
GCP441 said:
I believe I saw you guys,I sat above the Heights bench they gave me and two other guys recognition as being long time alumni fans for attending Heights games for other 50 years at halftime but your absolutely right, Mentor does what Mentor does, not
Surprising.
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I saw you get your award. Congrats!
 
For those who didn’t realize, there were some major changes to the way the postseason is determined. For one, all 76 NE teams are lumped into one big pool (last year it was split in half by East/West). Second, the coaches aren’t doing the seeding but it will be determined by RPI computer rankings. The first set of rankings was released on Wednesday. Here is how the GCC ranks:

4. Strongsville
7. Brunswick
9. Mentor
24. Cleveland Heights
25. Medina
52. Shaker
57. Euclid
 
Unfortunately, Shaker Heights just doesn’t have the kind of talent I got used to seeing during the earlier years under Danny Young while they were in the NOC and GCC part 1. Mentor cruised in this game from the start, up 38-11 after the 1st quarter. Mentor maintains their undefeated record in league play. Their biggest GCC test comes next Friday at Brunswick.

The Blue Devils beat Medina tonight, 74-61.

Anyone else have scores from the rest of the league?
 
cardzfan1234 said:
Unfortunately, Shaker Heights just doesn’t have the kind of talent I got used to seeing during the earlier years under Danny Young while they were in the NOC and GCC part 1. Mentor cruised in this game from the start, up 38-11 after the 1st quarter. Mentor maintains their undefeated record in league play. Their biggest GCC test comes next Friday at Brunswick.

The Blue Devils beat Medina tonight, 74-61.

Anyone else have scores from the rest of the league?
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Shaker has fallen off compared to a couple years ago, but they still are decent, with a win over Glenville and no real bad loss before tonight. And losing to Mentor isn't exactly a bad loss, though losing by 25-plus is somewhat surprising. Euclid, for that matter, also isn't horrible and they also have a solid win against Gilmour. Both will have a tough time racking up many more wins so could drop even further in the max prep rankings. I wouldn't exactly be thrilled to have to face them in the opening round if I was a coach and that is who ended up being the draw.

Overall, the league is looking solid. Medina is another team with a poor record, but is better than what it shows. Then Strongsville's emergence along with adding Cleveland Heights to the fold has helped.

Speaking of Medina, they did a good job battling back tonight after Brunswick jumped on them early. They were down by 18 at the half and cut it to 6 late in the third before Brunswick stretched it back out to 12. Medina again cut it to 6 in the fourth but couldn't get any closer.

I may have to try to make it out to Brunswick next week because Brunswick-Mentor are the two best teams in the league. When Brunswick is on like they were against Cleveland Heights and in the first half against Medina, they can play with anybody in the state. They don't have any glaring flaws outside that it's a program that tends to underachieve a bit. And tonight it seemed like they took their foot off the pedal while Medina kept attacking the rim and forcing some miscues to get back into the game.
 
Results from yesterday:

Medina beats Wadsworth 62-55
Solon edges Shaker 48-45
SVSM crushes Heights 61-33
Strongsville hung on to beat South 61-58
Brunswick beat Green 45-41
 
RPI Updated Rankings:

4. Strongsville
6. Brunswick
11. Mentor
28. Medina
29. Cleveland Heights
56. Shaker
61. Euclid

Big ones ahead for Mentor as they play Moeller on Sunday and hosts Strongsville on Tuesday.
 
Mentor 114
Strongsville 100

Cardz, were you there?

From looking at the updates from X, seems like a huge 3rd quarter by Mentor was the difference. Crazy that Mentor had exactly 57 points in each half while Strongsville had 51 and 49.
 
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In the other two GCC games:

Cleveland Heights 55
Medina 54

Brunswick 82
Euclid 61

Heights had a 55-51 lead late and Medina hit a 3 with 20 seconds left and then stole the inbound. They called TO with 7 seconds left but turned the ball over and fouled. Heights missed both but there was only 1.8 left and the second one got batted around and time expired.

As for the league race, looks like it will likely come down to the two Mentor-Brunswick games.

The current standings are:
1. Mentor 6-0
2. Brunswick 5-1
3. Strongsville 4-2
4. Cleveland Heights 4-3
5. Medina 3-4
6. Shaker 1-6
7. Euclid 0-7
 
SVillegrad said:
Mentor 114
Strongsville 100

Cardz, were you there?

From looking at the updates from X, seems like a huge 3rd quarter by Mentor was the difference. Crazy that Mentor had exactly 57 points in each half while Strongsville had 51 and 49.
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I was there. Mentor's M.O. this season (even more than usual) is to punt on their half court defense and instead dare the other team to try and score more than them as they run it up at an incredible pace. More often than not, it works out. Tonight, Mentor was incredibly efficient on offense. I guess when you score 114 in 8 minute quarters, that kind of goes without saying. Mentor was up 26 midway through the 4th quarter before Strongsville went on a late run to cut it as close as 12 points. For the most part, Mentor was in control of the game as I never felt the outcome was in doubt.

Their top two elite players (Iopollo and Biddell) were hot as usual. These two are absolute scoring machines. It is a sight to see. Biddell scored 46 points tonight and hit the career 1,000 point milestone. He joins his fellow senior teammate Iopollo, who hit that achievement in the regular season finale last February.

Mentor has handed Strongsville their only two losses of the season.

The Mustangs have some weapons, but not a lot of answers for Mentor's offense. Few do.
 
cardzfan1234 said:
I was there. Mentor's M.O. this season (even more than usual) is to punt on their half court defense and instead dare the other team to try and score more than them as they run it up at an incredible pace. More often than not, it works out. Tonight, Mentor was incredibly efficient on offense. I guess when you score 114 in 8 minute quarters, that kind of goes without saying. Mentor was up 26 midway through the 4th quarter before Strongsville went on a late run to cut it as close as 12 points. For the most part, Mentor was in control of the game as I never felt the outcome was in doubt.

Their top two elite players (Iopollo and Biddell) were hot as usual. These two are absolute scoring machines. It is a sight to see. Biddell scored 46 points tonight and hit the career 1,000 point milestone. He joins his fellow senior teammate Iopollo, who hit that achievement in the regular season finale last February.

Mentor has handed Strongsville their only two losses of the season.

The Mustangs have some weapons, but not a lot of answers for Mentor's offense. Few do.
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Was it like an NBA all-star game? For high school, both teams hitting the century mark in regulation is a ridiculous amount of points
 
bluengold said:
Was it like an NBA all-star game? For high school, both teams hitting the century mark in regulation is a ridiculous amount of points
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I can see that conclusion. I'm not excusing this for a great all around game. But it was a great performance of offense. I wouldn't say the teams played "no defense" like you see in an All-Star game, but Strongsville leaned into the pace that Mentor set. Mentor is content surrendering 5-10 easy layups per game in transition if it helps them set the pace they want. Mentor has scored 90+ in almost every game this season.

Both teams were excellent shotmakers, especially from behind the arc. I don't have the numbers, but it was an impressive execution of shotmaking from both sides. Strongsville hit their first eight shots and 12 of their first 14. Strongsville hit 15 three-pointers. Mentor hit at least that many. And both teams were shooting it at a very high percentage.

This team is not too different from the 2012 football team. Score a bunch, don't worry about defense too much, and hope that it all works out in the end. Eventually, their season will end with a loss. It is more likely to be against a disciplined and talented team that can play really good halfcourt defense while also being athletic enough to take advantage of Mentor's press. Mentor got beat pretty good by Moeller on Sunday. A team like St Ignatius fits that mold as well. This isn't sustainable to win 4-5 straight games against great teams. But Iopollo/Biddell are about as good of a scoring combo as I have seen at Mentor. They are fun to watch.
 
Does anybody know if there will be a stream of tonight's Brunswick-Mentor game?

I have a feeling with the way Mentor wants to get up and down and Brunswick being a team that can also play at that pace that this will be a fun game to watch on top of being for all intents and purposes a chance for Mentor to wrap up at least a share of the GCC title since they would be two games up on both Brunswick and Strongsville.

I'll be rooting for Brunswick just to keep some intrigue alive in the GCC title race. Obviously Brunswick would be tied with Mentor but it also would keep Strongsville around with an outside shot.

Here are the standings/schedules remaining of the teams still mathematically alive in the league race

1. Mentor 6-0: @Brunswick, @Medina, @Euclid, Cleveland Heights, @Shaker Heights, Brunswick

2. Brunswick 6-1: Mentor, Shaker Heights, @Strongsville, Medina, Mentor

3. Strongsville 5-2: @Cleveland Heights, Euclid, @Medina, Brunswick, Cleveland Heights

4. Medina 4-4: Mentor, Strongsville, @Brunswick, Shaker Heights

4. Cleveland Heights 4-4: Strongsville, @Mentor, Euclid, @Strongsville
 
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Brunswick 76 Mentor 68

Big win for the Blue Devils. Tough loss for Mentor. They are falling down on the RPI and that is important. This was a win they could’ve used. The season finale at Mentor will determine the winner of the GCC.

Mackey has proven over and over that he is an excellent coach. He really prepares for Mentor as well as just about any coach. Even in times Brunswick has less talent (this year is not one of those), they play Mentor tough.
 
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Heights came out with a defensive adjustment in the second half, missed the whole third quarter being interviewed by Channel 3 but Tigers overwhelmed the Mustangs 72-57

Great Win 🏅
 
GCP441 said:
Heights came out with a defensive adjustment in the second half, missed the whole third quarter being interviewed by Channel 3 but Tigers overwhelmed the Mustangs 72-57

Great Win 🏅
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I saw that Heights outscored Strongsville 45-15 in the second half. That was one heck of an adjustment lol.

That was the only league game tonight but in non league play you had:

Brunswick 75, Nordonia 57

Norwayne 55, Medina 52 (Norwayne played Medina to the wire last year and hit a buzzer beater tonight for the win)

Walsh Jesuit 63, Euclid 60

Garfield Heights 69, Shaker Heights 39
 
Most recent RPI rankings:

5. Brunswick
7. Strongsville
14. Mentor
28. Cleveland Heights
38. Medina
63. Shaker
66. Euclid

If Mentor hovers around this 12-15 range, that is the equivalent of a 2/3 seed across six districts. Personally, I think they should've been a team capable of being a 1 seed or at worst, the top 2 seed. Five losses already at this point is just not going to cut it. This will mean a tougher draw for Mentor. They can't rely on coaches giving them the benefit of the doubt and vote for them higher. The record is what it is.

Brunswick and Strongsville are in great position right now. I could see them ending up in the same district as the top two seeds together. Probably Elyria after Ignatius takes the other Westside district (Lakewood).

A team like Mentor won't have the luxury of prioritizing location over draw. If they were one of the top seeds, they would likely be all over Euclid. But now they will have to assess the landscape and choose the path of least resistance. But as long as they aren't in a district with Ignatius or Garfield, I think their best is good enough to win.
 
Medina got a big win tonight over Mentor 73-62. The Bees looked a lot better than the couple other times I've seen them. They handled Mentor's press, attacked the rim and controlled the glass. They also were knocking down 3s, something they struggled with at least in the losses to Brunswick and Strongsville.

Mentor got off to a quick start with 24 in the first quarter but then got cold from outside and most of their shots at the rim were contested. While Mentor missed some shots that they usually make, i thought Medina's defense had a lot to do with it. Mentor had been dropping 90 and 100 plus with ease and scored 24 in the first quarter, but then were held to something like 30 from that point until the 2 minute or so mark in the 4th.

The other GCC finals were

Brunswick 83, Shaker 56
Strongsville 83, Euclid 61

Standings:
Brunswick 8-1
Mentor 6-2
Strongsville 6-3
Medina 5-4
Cleveland Heights 5-4
Shaker Heights 1-8
Euclid 0-9

Brunswick is now controls their destiny for the outright title but they still have a home game against Medina and road games at Strongsville and Mentor left. They are probably the best team in the league but I'm not ruling out them losing any of those final league games.

Mentor has an easier path left and can still clinch at least a share of the title if they win out. I guess Strongsville at 6-3 isn't out out of it but barring something crazy, they would have to win out and even then would probably be at least a two-way and maybe a 3-way split.
 
Big win for Medina. Huge loss for Mentor. It was a rough week for the Cardinals. They are continuing to slip down the RPI and have now gotten themselves stuck in a very precarious position. They will be lucky to be the 3rd highest seeded team at whatever district they end up at. Could be the 4th highest. That means they will need to beat two teams seeded ahead of them.

It's not like this is a state championship level kind of team. But anything short of a district final this season was going to be a huge disappointment. The number of obstacles to a district title continue to increase with every regular season loss.
 
cardzfan1234 said:
Big win for Medina. Huge loss for Mentor. It was a rough week for the Cardinals. They are continuing to slip down the RPI and have now gotten themselves stuck in a very precarious position. They will be lucky to be the 3rd highest seeded team at whatever district they end up at. Could be the 4th highest. That means they will need to beat two teams seeded ahead of them.

It's not like this is a state championship level kind of team. But anything short of a district final this season was going to be a huge disappointment. The number of obstacles to a district title continue to increase with every regular season loss.
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I think Mentor will be in decent shape. The win over East Tech (who appears to be the RPI version of a Harbin cow in football, lol) looks like it bumped them up from I believe 22 to 16 and they have two winnable games this week. Win those and worst case, Mentor stays around where they are (but I guess would likely bump them up a couple spots). I think that will put them in position for a No. 2 spot opposite of either St. Ignatius or Garfield Heights since I think one or possibly both will be open. Just looking at the top 15 now and slotting where teams may go, I think that playing at Euclid as the No. 2 seed opposite Garfield Heights is a real possibility. But even picking a No. 3/4 seed spot may not be that bad since they will be locking in their likely semifinal opponent.

But who really knows what will happen at the draw since this set up is new on two fronts: Using RPI to determine draw order and lumping all 76 Northeast District teams into a six-district mega draw.
 
SVillegrad said:
I think Mentor will be in decent shape. The win over East Tech (who appears to be the RPI version of a Harbin cow in football, lol) looks like it bumped them up from I believe 22 to 16 and they have two winnable games this week. Win those and worst case, Mentor stays around where they are (but I guess would likely bump them up a couple spots). I think that will put them in position for a No. 2 spot opposite of either St. Ignatius or Garfield Heights since I think one or possibly both will be open. Just looking at the top 15 now and slotting where teams may go, I think that playing at Euclid as the No. 2 seed opposite Garfield Heights is a real possibility. But even picking a No. 3/4 seed spot may not be that bad since they will be locking in their likely semifinal opponent.

But who really knows what will happen at the draw since this set up is new on two fronts: Using RPI to determine draw order and lumping all 76 Northeast District teams into a six-district mega draw.
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I think Mentor would elect to be the 3rd or 4th seeded team at a different district than go to be the second highest team with Ignatius or Garfield. But that's just a hunch. I think at Mentor's best, the only two teams that stand out to me as still very capable of beating Mentor's A game would be Ignatius or Garfield. No other team gives me that kind of concern. St Ignatius would be a matchup nightmare for Mentor.

This process will be very interesting with all 76 teams.
 
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