Galvanized Garfield basketball tops Waterloo
GARRETTSVILLE — There was a time not that long ago when Garfield had lost five of seven games.
The G-Men are playing much better basketball now.
That included Saturday evening when Garfield topped visiting Waterloo in a game that sometimes doubled as a 3-point shooting contest, 62-49.
"We're trending upward right now at the right time," G-Men coach Andy Olesky said. "We lost [Friday] night, but I was pleased with them. They battled their tails off, especially defensively. The continued improvement of this team is very fun to be around right now."
Both teams had their moments Saturday, with Waterloo's Navarre Alhassan and Luke Simons and Garfield's Anthony Demma and Kaidan Spade draining three treys apiece.
Both duos were electric, with the G-Men seniors combining to score 41 points and the Vikings' pair close behind with 37. Ultimately, Garfield was a little more efficient and had an answer every time Waterloo made a run. As a result, the G-Men (9-6) bounced back from their close Friday loss to LaBrae for their fourth win in five games.
"We're coming together as a team now," Spade said. "Like we're ready to work, we're ready to see each other every day, come compete."
Garfield stays ahead with precision, rapid responses
The G-Men were a little more precise from the field (45 percent to 34 percent) and the line (90 percent to 57 percent) Saturday evening.
They also seemed to turn up their game every time the Vikings threatened.
Down 6-4, Spade, who led all players with 22 points Saturday, drained a baseline jumper with Alhassan in his face playing perfect defense.
Demma (19 points, 8-of-13 from the field) added three straight buckets, tying the game with a transition floater, taking the lead with a runner and expanding Garfield's edge with a strong take from the left wing as he knifed into the paint for a floater.
"Big guys are too slow for him," Olesky said. "The little guys are too weak for him. He takes advantage of that either way."
The G-Men led the rest of the way, typically answering every big play from Alhassan or Simons with one of their own.
When Simons found Drew Flarida on a baseline inbound for a layup and Alhassan drained a transition 3 to draw within 19-17, Spade answered with a 3-pointer from a foot or two beyond the top of the arc.
When Simons hit a runner to draw within 24-20 midway through the second stanza, Colin Lysiak scored on a putback and Spade rose above the defense for a mid-range jumper as Garfield finished the first half on an 8-2 run for a 32-22 halftime edge.
When Waterloo rallied from a 14-point deficit thanks to back-to-back 3-pointers by Anthony Podojil, who scored all 10 of his points after halftime, and Simons, Garfield sophomore Eric Geddes came right back with a 3-pointer of his own.
"That's what you do," Olesky said. "When they're sneaking back into it, they hit a couple threes, and the way you stop that is get a stop and get a bucket and we did that."
Waterloo battles until the end
The Vikings trailed 16-8 in the last minute of the first quarter.
19-11 in the opening minute of the second.
38-24 midway through the third.
49-30 early in the fourth.
The Vikings (2-9) could have faded away Saturday.
To their credit, they did anything but.
Alhassan was sensational, scoring 20 points on just 13 shots. The junior also went a perfect 5-for-5 at the charity stripe.
"He got to see some shots go in early, which helped," Waterloo coach Jason Wise said. "He's a solid, solid player. He's going to be a good one."
Simons (17 points) showed an ability to score at all three levels.
Meanwhile, Ryan Wise, with a number of crisp passes early, and Anthony Podojil, with a solid outside stroke, showed promise.
"Anthony's a really good shooter," Jason Wise said. "When he gets his feet set and gets his head up on the rim, he can shoot it as well as anybody."
The Vikings scrapped until the bitter end, with Alhassan battling for a steal and dishing to Podojil for a layup, and then Podojil finishing against contact for a 3-point play in the final minute of the game.
In light of that effort, Wise couldn't be too upset. Even if he'd like to see that effort translate into wins sooner rather than later.
"We're for sure getting better," Wise said "We're improving. It's just not at the pace we would like. We want to start getting back to winning games and everybody's frustrated. The kids are frustrated, we're frustrated, but we're getting better and we are starting to figure some things out."
This article originally appeared on Record-Courier: Galvanized Garfield basketball tops Waterloo
