Recordpub.com - From cold to hot, Ravens get boys basketball win

Ben Wolford

Record-Courier correspondent

After shooting 26 percent from the floor in the first half, the Ravenna Ravens shot 59 percent in the second half and defeated Windham 63-55 in the season opener for both teams on Friday.

“When our shots started falling, that put us in good position to pressure the ball,” Ravenna head coach Phil Starks said. “When they weren’t falling, we were out of position.”

And they were out of the game, too.

Windham controlled the boards, the key and especially the free-throw line in the first 16 minutes while building a 29-20 lead. Struggling to get back on defense after missing a shot, Ravenna often resorted to fouls — 14 of them in the first half.

The Bombers made 19 of their 33 foul shots, and junior forward Toren Roubic made all six of his free throws.

Then in the second half, Ravenna’s Jermaine Justice burst onto the scene.

In his first varsity basketball game, the freshman forward scored a team-high 17 points, dropping 15 of them after halftime.

“Our freshman had a great break-out game,” Starks said. “He’s been playing well at the seventh-grade level, the eighth-grade level. The varsity level is a different speed, and I was actually kind of surprised that he produced the way he did, being so young.”

Justice had quite a supporting cast, as eight other Ravens scored points.

Ravenna junior guard Josh Miller was the biggest help, dropping three 3-point buckets on his way to scoring 14 points.

It was a Justice-Miller tag team that put Ravenna over the hump in the third quarter, going up 43-40 as time expired. Justice drove to the basket for two, which tied the game, but a quick Windham turnover and an outlet pass found Miller open at the arc for a buzzer-beating 3-pointer.

That would prove to be a nail in the coffin. Windham couldn’t regain composure after that third quarter, which they lost 23-11.

“It wasn’t any one guy’s fault,” said Windham head coach Marty Hill. “We played so hard defensively that we rested a little bit offensively, and in a game like this, sometimes that happens.”

The biggest factor was Ravenna’s defense shutting down senior point guard Rico Hall, who was held to nine points.

“Their offense runs through Rico,” Starks said. “Our kids took it as a challenge and did a nice job containing him.”

Hall was frequently leaving the game in foul trouble (he finished with 4 fouls) or breathless from holding down the point position in Windham’s zone defense.

“Rico’s an outstanding player. He played like a senior trying to help a young team,” Hill said.

Junior forward Kyle McManus helped keep the Bombers in contention by scoring a game-high 21 points and pulling down six rebounds.

“It’s a great win against a great program that’s got a lot of tradition in winning basketball games,” Starks said. “We could really use this going into next week against the (Kent Roosevelt) Rough Riders.”