Quoth the Raven Nevermore! Leopards Win 59-49
FULL VIDEO HIGHLIGHTS
Louisville 59, Ravenna 49
Mike Kelly scored 11 of his game-high 27 points in the fourth quarter as the Louisville Leopards defeated the Ravenna Ravens 59-49 Tuesday Night at Ravenna High School. Jake O’brien also poured in 12 points and Alex Schooley scored 10 for the now 7-11 Leopards.
With the score tied at 40-40 heading into the final quarter, the Leopards ignited. O’brien drove and scored on a lay-in and then swished his second three-pointer of the night a little later to put Louisville up 45-43 with under five minutes remaining.
After O’brien, it was Kelly’s turn. He tipped a pass and caught it out of the air on the other end giving Louisville the ball back. Then he dribbled the length of the court and took it to the rack to put the Leps up 47-43.
A few possessions later, Kelly drove to the hole off a feed from O’brien for another basket and then Trevor Hostetler provided an assist on another Kelly field goal not long after. He was also fouled on the play as well and altogether went 3-of-3 from the charity stride for the quarter. One more fast-break layup by Kelly off a feed from Billy Lairson all but sealed the Ravens fate as Louisville led 56-46 with 1:30 remaining.
Earlier in the contest both teams struggled from the field. In the first quarter, both teams combined to shoot just 7-of-33 (21%) from the field. However, the Leopards rebounded from their early efforts and finished the night by making 43% of their shots from the floor. The Ravens also hit 7 of 18 three-pointers, including 3 from Tyler Bayless who finished with 9 points for Ravenna.
Kelly also led the Leopards efforts in the second quarter by putting up double figures in the period and consequently Louisville opened up a 28-18 advantage. Yet, the lead evaporated fast as Ravenna closed the half with an 8-0 run in the final 1:18. Bayless and Tate Bennett each hit three-pointers during the run to cut the Louisville halftime lead to 28-26. Bennett would finish as the Ravens lead scorer with 10 points on the evening.
A victory on the road up north was the sweetest of all treats for the boys in blue this Valentine’s Day. This Leopards team that was once 0-5 has now won 3 of its last 4 games and is gelling as tournament time approaches. They will close NBC play this Friday with a trip to the house of the league’s newest foe in Salem, before returning home for Senior Night next Tuesday against Lake.
STATISTICS
LEOPARDS: Kelly 10 4-5 27, O’brien 5 0-0 12, Schooley 2 6-9 10, Cheezan 2 1-2 5, Lairson 2 1-2 5, Crank 0 0-1 0. TOTALS 21 10-19 59.
TEAM FG: 21-49 43%
TEAM 3PT: 5-16 31% | Kelly (3), O’brien (2)
TEAM FT: 10-19 53%
RAVENS: Bennett 3 2-2 10, Bayless 3 0-0 9, Spellman 3 3-3 9, Plaso 3 1-2 8, Vanhoose 2 1-4 6, Justice 0 5-8 5, Gintert 0 2-2 2. TOTALS 14 14-21 49.
TEAM FG: 14-49 29%
TEAM 3PT: 7-18 39%
TEAM FT: 14-21 67%
Team 1-2-3-4-Total
Louisville 13-15-12-19–59
Ravenna 8-18-14-9–49
Rebounds: Louisville 32-29
Fouls: Louisville 21-20
Records: Louisville 7-11, Ravenna 9-9
NEXT UP: The Leopards will next travel to Salem to take on the Quakers on Friday, February 17. JV will tip at 6:00 and Varsity will follow at approximately 7:30.
PICTURES
JV REPORT
Louisville 45, Ravenna 30
Ravenna shrunk the Leopards lead to 36-30 with about three minutes remaining before Louisville closed the game out on a 9-0 run to take the contest 45-30. Ronnie Carter led all scorers with 9 points, while Alex Hollifield and Blake Hoover each added 8. Both teams struggled at the outset as Louisville took a 6-2 advantage after one, but once the offense kick-started the Leopards pulled out to a 22-12 lead at the break. They also kept their 10-point advantage heading into the fourth before closing out the Ravens. Ravenna’s lead scorer was Ty-Shawn Dukes who scored 8 points. Joe Duckworth also scored 7 for the 11-7 JV Leps.
JV PICTURES
JV STATISTICS
LEOPARDS: Carter 4 1-2 9, Hollifield 2 4-9 8, Hoover 3 2-5 8, Duckworth 1 5-6 7, Parks 2 0-0 5, Andy Minster 1 2-2 4, AJ Minster 0 2-2 2, Shaheen 1 0-0 2. TOTALS 14 16-26 45.
3PT: 1 | Parks (1)
TEAM FT: 16-26 62%
RAVENS: Conley 3 0-0 8, Dukes 4 0-0 8, Rosalez 3 0-0 7, Morgan 1 2-4 5, Heller 0 2-2 2, Perry 0 0-2 0. TOTALS 11 4-8 30.
3PT: 4 | Conley (2), Morgan (1), Rosalez (1)
TEAM FT: 4-8 50%
Team 1-2-3-4–Total
Louisville 6-16-11-12–45
Ravenna 2-10-10-8–30
Fouls: Ravenna 20-8