University Heights, Ohio - On Sunday John Carroll University hosted the annual Cleveland Scholastic Play By Play Classic. Here we recap three of the top games during the morning and afternoon.
Jason Levis of Lutheran West accepts his MVP Award for game 1
The first game of the bunch was Lutheran West going up against Shaker Heights. The first quarter was pretty entertaining, a really close battle. However in the second quarter, Lutheran West came out to play, ending the quarter up eleven points with the score being 36-25.
In the third quarter, Shaker Heights started playing more aggressively on the defensive end, sending double teams and full-court presses. However, Lutheran West made their adjustments to this, and was still able to succeed offensively. In the final period, Shaker Heights started cooking offensively, cutting the lead to two at one point. However, Lutheran West was able to pull out the victory, winning 60-53. Lutheran West’s Jason Levis dropped 22 points, including four 3-pointers in the first half leading his team to victory.
I spoke with Jason Levis after the game.
The third game of the Play By Play Classic was between Garfield Heights and Imani Christian. The first quarter of this game was much like the first game today, very competitive and very closely contested. No team really took a huge advantage or had a sizable lead in the first. However, in the second quarter Garfield Heights was able to take a solid lead, going up by ten points at halftime. The score was 31-21.
In the third quarter it was pretty much the same, Garfield Heights keeping their lead while Imani Christian was trying to play catch-up. In the fourth quarter, Garfield Heights went on a run going up by eighteen at one point. Their offense kept rolling along as they put the game away 66-48. Garfield Heights Marcus Johnson led the way with 25 points.
I spoke with Garfield's Marcus Johnson after the game.
St. Ignatius Ace Buckner and Mentor's Ian Ioppolo accept their MVP awards
The fifth game of this evening was Mentor vs St. Ignatius. Another matchup of two really good teams. To start the game Ignatius was dominating Mentor. They kept pounding the ball inside, and getting steals leading to transition buckets. Ignatius was already up by fifteen points at the end of the first quarter. In the second quarter, it was more of the same. Ignatius kept their hot streak alive, while Mentor tried to get back into the game. Ignatius was up by 23 at halftime.
In the second half, Ignatius was still dominant getting what they wanted both inside & outside. Their offensive rebounding was spectacular as well. Ignatius was up 31 at the end of the third looking too dominant for Mentor’s team. Ignatius started the fourth well getting multiple dunks in transition. They put this one on ice early cruising to an 84-47 win. Ace Buckner dropped 20 points for Ignatius leading them to victory while Ian Ioppolo led Mentor with 15 points.
I caught up with St. Ignatius coach Cameron Joyce after their big win.