Ignatius Basketball

Wildcats1886 said:
Game added vs Medina Saturday night. Should be an interesting one, they’re led by one of the best players in the area in Senior G Corey Tripp. Good test for the Cats in this young season.
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It's at Medina, too if anyone was wondering. I wonder if the teams will play again later in the season (as originally scheduled) or this replaces it. The game was picked up/moved ahead because Medina is going into at least a two-week pause after tomorrow.

Tripp, fwiw, had about 25 tonight as Medina beat Green 72-53 in their opener.
 
SVillegrad said:
It's at Medina, too if anyone was wondering. I wonder if the teams will play again later in the season (as originally scheduled) or this replaces it. The game was picked up/moved ahead because Medina is going into at least a two-week pause after tomorrow.

Tripp, fwiw, had about 25 tonight as Medina beat Green 72-53 in their opener.
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This game on Sat is the only date/time that it is shown on the Ignatius schedule. However, schedules are going to be pretty fluid this season and who knows what schools will be playing and when. So, it's possible there could be another game later in the season
 
bluengold said:
This game on Sat is the only date/time that it is shown on the Ignatius schedule. However, schedules are going to be pretty fluid this season and who knows what schools will be playing and when. So, it's possible there could be another game later in the season
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You're right, I got it mixed up with Ed's which Medina is scheduled to play at Shaw in a tournament in February (Ed's-Medina was originally supposed to be at a Christmas tournament in Medina). But Medina-Iggy were supposed to scrimmage a couple weeks ago but Medina had to pause due to some COVID cases. Now, will be pausing again after tomorrow. You're right though, the schedule is going to be fluid.

So far, Medina was supposed to have played Buchtel (which was pushed back from Tuesday to tonight and then Buchtel canceled yesterday and Green agreed to play at the last second). Tonight, was originally supposed to be Euclid but they have been shut down for the time being. Medina, officially picked up both tonight's Green game and tomorrow's Ignatius game this morning.

No surprise, but it's going to be a crazy year with games being picked up the day off in some cases.
 
Varsity: Ignatius 62 Medina 60. final. Raynor w/ 17, Effertz w/16
JV: Ignatius 49 Medina 46, OT final
Nice wins by the Cats' varsity and JVs over very good Medina teams
 
Kudos to Coach Joyce and staff on a big win. Great game all around in the Varsity match-up. I thought the Cats had a great gameplan defending Tripp, and a number of guards played big minutes as the primary defender on him. Effertz shot the ball very well, and has shown so far an ability to be more than just a spot-up shooter. I still think his minutes at the point will need to be limited against the better teams on the schedule, and Little will need to continue to grow throughout the season. So far, it looks like he is up to the challenge.
 
Medina is very good and plays aggressively, tough and physical. I thought the Cats played well versus that style, also being physical and much better than they have in the past. 2 good wins to start the season.
 
Yes, that game is happening with Brush tomorrow. Will be on the SIBN. I’m not sure if it is the first matchup of the season for the Arcs.

Should be a tough challenge. Brush has some good talent with Jr. G Elmore James (excellent defender) and So. F Williams. They had one of the most touted sophomores in the state in Marlon Barnes but he transferred to Emoni Bates’ “Ypsi Prep” team earlier this year.

Jamal Sumlin just transferred to Ypsi as well, from Rhodes via Heights High. Not sure he even finished one semester at Heights.
 
Cats go to 3-0 with a 51-49 win over Brush. Close game the whole way.
Brush's Elmore James scored 27, including a long, off-the-backboard 3 pointer with <2 secs left.
Cats led by the guards - Effertz 16 and Fletcher, who made key baskets and free throws in the 4th quarter and scored 11.
Again, another tough, physical game
 
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Ignatius struggled with the athleticism and physicality of the Brush defense tonight, but came away with a tough, gritty win. Effertz was outstanding, and Fletcher made some great plays in the clutch.

Ignatius defended very well. Impressed with the way they switched back off mismatches when off the ball - great communication and teamwork. I do think they can switch more freely when Yarian isn’t on the floor - some of the hedging on pick and rolls looked a little extreme.

Brush was very physical and good on defense, but were pretty careless with the ball at times and took some poor shots. That was enough to make up for Ignatius’ struggles at the line.

Also caught the JV game. There is talent, but they need a lot of work offensively. They won, but it was a bit painful to watch.
 
After beating Green 54-46 in OT last Friday, in which the Cats struggled with too many turnovers and dry spells and yet woke up in OT to outscore Green 10-2, the Wildcats have now 4 games scheduled for the next 11 days

tonight - 1st home game of the season vs. Richmond Heights
Tues Dec 29 - @ Lutheran East (re-scheduled after the 12/9 game date was postponed)
Thurs Dec 31 - home vs SVSM
Sat Jan 2 - @ Hilliard Bradley (1-0)

With this level of competition, the Cats need to step up their game.
 
Great game by the Wildcats in a 63-60 loss to Lutheran East, a team that entered the year ranked #2 in the area by Cleveland.com. Tough ending to the game with a poor inbound, but some excellent defense and timely offense. This team will be a lot of fun to watch this year. Coach Cam has this team in a great spot to succeed.
 
ClevelandCat1 said:
Great game by the Wildcats in a 63-60 loss to Lutheran East, a team that entered the year ranked #2 in the area by Cleveland.com. Tough ending to the game with a poor inbound, but some excellent defense and timely offense. This team will be a lot of fun to watch this year. Coach Cam has this team in a great spot to succeed.
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Agree. The kids gave it their all tonight, but unfortunately the steal of the inbound pass with 8 seconds left turned into a Lutheran East basket instead of the Cats having the last shot to win the game. Lutheran East is impressive - plays a really tight defense and they were unconscious in their shooting in the 1st half. Jon Effertz played perhaps his best game as a Wildcat - 22 points against a very tough defense. Cats needed a 3rd scorer besides Effertz (22) and Raynor (17). In prior games, someone would step up to score 10-11-12 points, but not tonight.

2 more tough games this week versus SVSM (3-1) at Sullivan and at Hilliard Bradley (4-0)
 
Great effort from the boys, but thought they played pretty sloppy tonight. A lot of turnovers (and credit the fast, physical, defense of Lutheran East for that), and also missed a lot of shots at the rim. Effertz was excellent - definitely his best game as a Wildcat. He has improved drastically this year and turned himself into a real scoring threat. I also take back my earlier comments about Effertz not playing the point - he looks like a bona fide PG out there and is the team's best option as a primary ballhandler. Freshman CJ Little will clearly inherit that mantle eventually, but he's not there yet.

This team is headed in the right direction. If they can clean up the turnovers and improve the shot selection a bit, they can be very good by year-end.
 
This past week was a tough one for the Cats with 3 losses in 5 days – Lutheran East (5-0), SVSM (6-1) and Hilliard Bradley (5-0) with 4 players, including 2 key starters, out for the Bradley game. Defense has played well throughout, but offense has struggled as of late with turnovers and just not shooting well. Hopefully kids return, the Cats re-group and step up for games at St. Edward (4-0) and home vs. Maple Heights (1-1) this coming weekend.
 
bluengold said:
This past week was a tough one for the Cats with 3 losses in 5 days – Lutheran East (5-0), SVSM (6-1) and Hilliard Bradley (5-0) with 4 players, including 2 key starters, out for the Bradley game. Defense has played well throughout, but offense has struggled as of late with turnovers and just not shooting well. Hopefully kids return, the Cats re-group and step up for games at St. Edward (4-0) and home vs. Maple Heights (1-1) this coming weekend.
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Three losses, but to three very good teams. Hilliard Bradley handed Ed's their only loss last year, and we know how loaded LE and SVSM are. Good experience heading into Friday's game against an Ed's team that hasn't taken the court in three weeks. The results from common opponents (Brush and Richmond Hts.) have been similar.
 
Ignatius got back to winning ways Saturday against Maple Heights. The offense has improved the last couple games, although free throw shooting was a pain point against St. Ed's.

Coach Joyce has mixed up the starting lineup with Yontek taking over for Yarian and Freshman G CJ Little taking over for Mattimore. Mattimore has been out, but I think LIttle has shown he probably deserves to stay in the starting lineup. Very impressed with his vision and passing ability, as well as his speed and finishing ability in transition. Also a great defender who did an excellent job guarding Ed's Bova in the second half. He has the potential to be a special one. At times against the Eagles, he looked like the best player on the floor for the Cats.

Another Freshman G (Sean Martin) was moved up to Varsity and scored against Maple Heights. A lot of talent in this 2024 class, although seems to be very deep at G with less strength at the F spots.
 
Ignatius now at 11-4, going into the final 6 games of the regular season. The season has been up .. then down … then back up. The Cats started the season with 5 victories over very good, NEO-ranked opponents with 4 of them being close games. Then came 4 losses, all against teams ranked currently in the top 5 in Ohio in their division. The last 6 games have all been victories versus teams with .500 or losing records, with 5 of the wins being pretty lopsided. Now, the final 6 games bring much tougher competition – St. Edward (could be #1 in Ohio, Div. 1 after wins this weekend over Lima Senior and Central Catholic, combined with Elder’s 17 pt. loss to St. Xavier), @ Shaker Heights (the only team to beat St. Edward), Rossford (currently undefeated and ranked #4 in Ohio, Div. 2) and @ Massillon Jackson (currently #4 in Ohio, Div. 1).

The Cats have several basic keys to be successful for the final 6 games of the season and into the tournament.
  • Exploit the Cats’ height and depth advantages, especially the offensive skills of 6-7 Raynor, 6-7 Yontek, 6-4 Green, 6-10 Yarian. Pound the ball inside.
  • Keep up the defensive pressure and intensity they have displayed the last several weeks.
  • Use Raynor and the freshmen Little and Jackson to defend their opponents leading scorers. Raynor’s length and mobility can be disruptive (he defended SVSM's Malaki Branham quite well). Little and Jackson have the athleticism to defend quicker guards, especially those that prefer driving to the basket.
  • Have Little handling the ball offensively as he’s better handling ball pressure with his athleticism and poise.
  • Don’t ‘hurry’ offensively and keep the turnovers down. They can play fast, but do so under control.
  • Need a healthy Effertz for the outside 3-point shooting to balance the inside game. Effertz can create outside shots on the move and is more productive scoring by roaming the perimeter and running off screens.
  • Make their free throws.
Go Cats! Beat the Eagles on Friday!
 
The Wildcats beat St. Edward 52-44 after a slow start where they made 1 of their first 15 shots. Effertz leads the way with 20. Effertz and the 2 freshmen, Little and Jackson, spearheaded the Cats' run during the critical 2nd quarter when they outscored the Eagles 24-11. Otherwise, a very physical game where the refs let the kids play. At times, the game was pretty ugly for both teams. However, a win over your arch-rival, ranked #1 in Ohio, is a confidence booster.

Ignatius JVs beat St. Edward 65-44.

The Wildcats have 7 impressive freshmen with 5 playing on JV and 2 playing on varsity.
 
Been watching bits and pieces of the Sullivan showdown held for freshman teams from the area. As I watched the Cats teams, I checked the rosters of the Ignatius teams. I was stunned by their heights. Also checked the JV team roster. Given the average boy's height growth in high school, I think the Ignatius team in the next three years is not going to have any kind of height problem. Also watched the Rossford game on Saturday. I was very impressed with the Ignatius defense.
 
arizonawildcat said:
Been watching bits and pieces of the Sullivan showdown held for freshman teams from the area. As I watched the Cats teams, I checked the rosters of the Ignatius teams. I was stunned by their heights. Also checked the JV team roster. Given the average boy's height growth in high school, I think the Ignatius team in the next three years is not going to have any kind of height problem. Also watched the Rossford game on Saturday. I was very impressed with the Ignatius defense.
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The current freshman class is very talented and has strong players contributing at all three levels, no doubt. That said Ignatius graduates two really good bigs in Raynor and Yontek after this season that will be tough to replace. But the overall talent level is going up for sure. It is hilarious to read some of the posts a few pages back in the thread, stating that the hoops program was doomed with the Joyce hire and that the talent gap with Ed’s would be growing.

Big game this Saturday at Mentor. Kudos to both ADs and staffs for getting that done. I’ve always wondered why the two schools haven’t played more in other sports given the great and very competitive football rivalry over the last 15 years.
 
Wildcats1886 said:
The current freshman class is very talented and has strong players contributing at all three levels, no doubt. That said Ignatius graduates two really good bigs in Raynor and Yontek after this season that will be tough to replace. But the overall talent level is going up for sure. It is hilarious to read some of the posts a few pages back in the thread, stating that the hoops program was doomed with the Joyce hire and that the talent gap with Ed’s would be growing.

Big game this Saturday at Mentor. Kudos to both ADs and staffs for getting that done. I’ve always wondered why the two schools haven’t played more in other sports given the great and very competitive football rivalry over the last 15 years.
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That goes to show you how much that series was about Triv/Chico. As Mentor falls off a bit in the years ahead and more opponents are willing to schedule them, I wonder how long the series will continue. Once Kyle and Triv are gone, who knows?
 
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