Boys basketball: Jose Gomez leads Lake Ridge over Medina Christian

CLEVELAND — The Lake Effect Conference blew into Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse for a Sunday boys basketball matinee. Jose Gomez brought the thunder for Lake Ridge Academy. The senior guard scored nine of his game-high 19 points in the fourth quarter and collected six rebounds, five assists and four steals in leading the Royals to a 51-41 victory over Medina Christian Academy. Junior point guard Isaac Radke stuffed the stat sheet with six points, seven rebounds and seven assists as the Knights (6-6, 3-1) made their debut on the home court of the NBA's Cavaliers. "Jose is a great player and we needed to do the little things at the end to get the win, but we didn't," Radke said. "The best part of the experience was we were all living in the moment, enjoying ourselves and appreciating everything we had to be thankful for." Junior forward Seth Vanderlaan scored nine points on three 3-pointers for Medina Christian. Senior forward R.J. Wolf had eight points and six rebounds, junior forward Joey Green had eight points and sophomore center Levi Workman grabbed seven boards. The Knights led by four in the first quarter, were up five in the second and went ahead for the final time at 30-29 in the third. Radke made a nifty pass to senior Jaivian Davis for a layup, but the Royals (8-7, 4-1) immediately answered with eight straight points. "The opportunity to play and coach where the best of the best do it was nothing short of amazing," Medina Christian coach Cameron Ingram said. "This experience was fantastic for our program and something we've been looking forward to all season long. "I hope that Medina Christian will turn this game into a tradition each year because it's fun for the team and all of the families involved." Ingram made sure that all 14 players saw action. The athletes held up their end, as well, by only turning the ball over nine times in the 32-minute game. Even though both schools play on much smaller courts in tiny gyms, the pace was brisk throughout and conditioning was never a concern. It was far and away the best-played game of the three that took place at the arena on the day. "I even saw a couple of Cavaliers watching the game, scouting players from the tunnel," Royals coach Alan George quipped, referring to Isaiah Mobley and Mamadi Diakite. "(Our players) really wanted this one, and you could tell by the way they played." Freshman guard Nick Malicoat became part of Medina Christian history by scoring its first points in the building with a 3-pointer. Wolf provided the top individual moment by sinking a 27-footer at the buzzer in the second, tying the score at 22. If not for Gomez's heroics and Jake Kolbay's two 3-pointers in the fourth, the Knights might have written a storybook finish and remained perfect in the league. Medina Christian, Lake Ridge, Elyria Open Door Christian and St. Martin de Porres are all within 1½ games of each other in the battle for the top seed in next month's LEC Tournament. "(Ingram) is the best coach I've ever had and the reason why we're in the league race," Radke said. "It's a true blessing to have him here while keeping Christ at the center of everything we do." Wolf, Malicoat, Green, Radke and Vanderlaan combined to make all 11 of the Knights' 3-pointers. Freshman forward Jason King chipped in two points and five rebounds, helping them gain a 39-34 edge on the glass. Medina Christian attempted 44 treys but was just 2-of-18 inside the arc. Lake Ridge shot 20-of-49 from the field, including 8-of-25 on 3-pointers. "We thought we could win, but didn't want to get too confident coming in," Gomez said. "Coach told us the most important thing was to go have fun. We definitely did." Contact Brian Dulik at brisports@hotmail.com. Follow him @BrianDulik on Twitter. Lake Ridge Academy 51, Medina Christian Academy 41 At Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse MEDINA CHRISTIAN 9 13 8 11 — 41 LAKE RIDGE 8 14 9 20 — 51 Lake Ridge Academy — Jake Kolbay 6-0-17, Sam Calcut 1-0-2, Aaron Manning 2-0-4, Ryan Pawloski 1-0-3, Jose Gomez 8-3-19, Jackson Beach 1-0-3, James Shin 0-0-0, Riley Kolbay 1-0-3, Paxon Elyaderani 0-0-0, Gabriel Norton 0-0-0, Lukas Tumas 0-0-0, Harry Ngo 0-0-0. TOTALS: 20-3-51. Medina Christian — Joey Green 3-0-8, R.J. Wolf 2-2-8, Levi Workman 0-0-0, Nick Malicoat 2-0-6, Isaac Radke 2-0-6, Seth Vanderlaan 3-0-9, Jono Timco 0-0-0, Jason King 0-2-2, Jaivian Davis 1-0-2, Caleb Hoffman 0-0-0, Damion Floyd 0-0-0, Cooper Bolon 0-0-0, Josh Boctor 0-0-0, Caleb Callahan 0-0-0. TOTALS: 13-4-41. 3-point goals — J. Kolbay 5, Pawloski, Beach, R. Kolday, Vanderlaan 3, Wolf 2, Green 2, Malicoat 2, Radke 2. Rebounds — Medina Christian 39 (Workman, Radke 7), Lake Ridge 34 (S.Calcut, Pawloski 8). Assists — Medina Christian 13 (Radke 7), Lake Ridge 14 (Gomez 5). Records — Lake Ridge (8-7, 4-1), Medina Christian (6-6, 3-1).