South Outslugs Leps in Classic Showdown at Red Ash
FULL VIDEO HIGHLIGHTS
Canton South 39, Louisville 34
After battling back and forth the entire evening, the Canton South Wildcats pulled ahead of the Louisville Leopards with a late 7-0 run to take the game 39-34 at Charles “Red” Ash Gymnasium Friday. Bill Lairson led all Leopards scorers with 9 points, while Mike Kelly added 6.
The Leopards shot just 29% from the field and were out-rebounded 14-9 in the first half. Yet, they trailed only 20-19 at the break. The key was their tenacious play on the defensive end that forced several Wildcat turnovers. Louisville’s defense also committed just four fouls in the half and limited Canton South to no free throw attempts. Lairson also boosted the Leopards on offense scoring 7 of his team-high 9 points in the first two periods.
Several possessions for both squads ended in turnovers in the third quarter. The root cause of many of these turnovers was an abnormal number of offensive fouls. The Leps defense held the Wildcats to just a single field goal in the third, while scoring 8 points from the field on offense.
The Wildcats seized brief momentum earlier in the half when Bryson Smith rejected a drive to the hoop by Alex Schooley. But Schooley returned the favor at the end of the third with a mammoth block on Smith as he attempted a layup. Consequently Louisville took a 27-26 advantage into the final quarter.
Kyle Deckerd hit a three-ball in the corner to give Canton South the lead at 29-27. Later, with Louisville down by four, Cody Cheezan hit a free throw and then missed his second attempt. This turned out to be a blessing in disguise because a player in blue came down with the rebound. A quick pass and a layup by Lairson cut the deficit to one with 3:24 remaining in the game.
Armond Fontes hit 4 of 6 free throws down the stretch and a fast break bucket by Deckerd with 0:42 left helped clinched the victory for the Wildcats. Fontes led all South scorers with 12, while Smith poured in 11 and Deckerd added 10.
After both score keepers conferred, a point was removed from the home side of the scoreboard making the final 39-34 in favor of the red and grey. This game marks Louisville’s first loss to Canton South in the last five meetings as they fall to 0-3 in the NBC.
STATISTICS
LEOPARDS: Lairson 4 0-0 9, Kelly 2 0-0 6, Schooley 2 1-2 5, Cheezan 1 2-4 4, Crank 1 2-2 4, Meredith 2 0-0 4, McQuilkin 1 0-0 2. TOTALS 14 5-8 34.
TEAM FG: 14-46 30%
TEAM 3PT: 1-14 7%
TEAM FT: 5-8 63%
WILDCATS: Fontes 4 4-6 12, Smith 4 2-2 11, Deckerd 4 0-0 10, Taylor 1 2-3 4, Lyon 1 0-0 2. TOTALS 14 8-11 39.
TEAM FG: 14-32 44%
TEAM 3PT: 3-12 25%
TEAM FT: 8-11 73%
Team 1-2-3-4-Total
Louisville 10-9-8-7–34
Canton South 9-11-6-13–39
Rebounds: Canton South 22-14
Fouls: Canton South 14-13
Records: Canton South 3-2, 2-1; Louisville 1-5, 0-3
NEXT UP: The Leopards will next travel to New Philadelphia to take on the Quakers on Tuesday, December 27. JV will tip-off at 6:00, while Varsity will follow at approximately 7:30.
PICTURES
JV REPORT
Louisville 34, Canton South 32
Bryce Mathie hit from the foul line with 1:16 remaining to give Louisville a 33-32 lead. Joey Duckworth added an insurance free throw a little later and the Leps defense shut down the Wildcats in the final seconds to clinch the 34-32 win.
Bast led Louisville with 9 points, while Duckworth and Andy Minster each added 7. With this being their fourth straight notch in the win column, the reserve squad improves to 4-2 overall on the year.
JV PICTURES
JV STATISTICS
LEOPARDS: Bast 3 3-6 9, Andy Minster 3 0-0 7, Duckworth 3 1-2 7, Hollifield 1 2-4 4, Hoover 1 1-4 3, Mathie 0 2-2 2, AJ Minster 1 0-0 2, Greybeal 0 0-2 0. TOTALS 12 9-21 34.
3PT (1): Andy Minster (1)
TEAM FT: 9-21 43%
WILDCATS: Dubina 5 0-3 11, Nicoletti 4 2-4 10, Ickes 1 2-2 4, Jolliff 2 0-1 4, Reid 1 1-4 3. TOTALS 13 5-14 32.
3PT (1): Dubina (1)
TEAM FT: 5-14 36%
Team 1-2-3-4–Total
Louisville 8-10-4-12–34
Canton South 11-6-4-11–32
Fouls: Canton South 18-10
