Boys basketball: Poor start thwarts Wadsworth chance at upset of North Royalton

WADSWORTH — In the end, poor beginnings killed the Wadsworth boys basketball team Friday night. The Grizzlies were horrible offensively to start the game and absolutely defenseless to begin the second half, resulting in a 72-44 Suburban League National Conference loss to a very good North Royalton team. "It comes down to effort and execution," said Wadsworth junior point guard Kyle Schmeltzer, who had nine points and four assists. "We've just got to play more consistently and not have lulls where we can't do anything." The Grizzlies (4-7, 0-6) dug themselves a big hole immediately, missing their first 10 shots and falling behind 14-0 before Roy Hoertz hit a short bank shot with 10 seconds remaining in the opening quarter. North Royalton (9-2, 5-1) spent most of the period in an aggressive and extended 1-2-2 trap, with 6-foot-8 Buckeye transfer Nolan Klingbeil deterring most potential shots inside of 10 feet. "We came out flat," said Wadsworth sophomore power forward Landon Oaks, who had 10 points, 16 of his team's 24 rebounds and two blocked shots. "We've got to be more focused because we can't get down like that. We're getting punched in the mouth, and we've got to punch first." To the Grizzlies' credit, they were down just 20-15 when backup guard Payton Salzwimmer hit a 3-pointer — he had four on the night for a team-high 12 points — with 2:16 left in the opening half. Still within striking distance down 26-17 at intermission, the Grizzlies gave up 30 points in the third period, when North Royalton went 12-for-13 from the field and 3-for-4 from behind the arc to go up 56-36. "We were just getting beat off the dribble," Schmeltzer said. "Against a team like that, you get beat off the dribble and they get wide-open shots. They got hot." Bears coach Nick Lapsevich, a Brunswick graduate, abandoned dribble handoffs and trying to get the ball inside to Klingbeil, who had seven of his nine points in the first 3:16 of the game and attempted just two shots the rest of the way, in favor of a spread offense. It resulted in North Royalton scoring four more points in the third quarter than it did in the first half. Most of the time, it was power forward Omar Suleiman dribbling well above the arc, on the left side, and waiting patiently for Oaks to get close enough to start a five-second count. When Oaks did, Suleiman went by him and either scored on left-hand layups or dished short-corner to rugged small forward Antonio Escano for wide-open threes. Those players combined for 19 points in the quarter on on 8-for-9 shooting, with Escano finishing with 19 points, 12 rebounds and six assists and Suleiman posting 15, four and five. "He was quick off the dribble, but in that situation we had to pressure," the 6-6 Oaks said of Suleiman. "Me especially, we have to do a better job of guarding our man." Wadsworth, which also got eight points from center Jimmy Galvin, cut its deficit to 14 with 5:18 left in the game, but North Royalton, which went 18-for-22 from the field (.818) in the second half after going 10-for-26 (.385) in the first, scored the final 14 points. Wadsworth went a respectable 18-for-42 (.429) after its 0-for-10 start but got to the line just four times, making three. "We have guys who play hard," Schmeltzer said. "It's just a matter of playing consistently. We have a lot of ups and downs, so it's just a matter of putting a good game together." Contact Rick Noland at (330) 721-4046 or rnoland@medina-gazette.com. North Royalton 72, Wadsworth 44 NORTH ROYALTON 14 12 30 16 — 72 WADSWORTH 2 15 19 8 — 44 North Royalton — Antonio Escano 7-1-19, Omar Suleiman 6-2-15, Nolan Klingbeil 3-2-9, Lincoln Lee 4-0-11, Dillon McCostlin 3-0-6, Daaniel Piper 3-0-6, Lucas Robaugh 1-0-2, Michael Discenza 1-0-2, Dominick Gruttandaurira 0-0-0, Luke Grieder 0-2-2. TOTALS: 28-7-72. Wadsworth — Vinny Terranova 0-0-0, Landon Oaks 5-0-10, Jimmy Galvin 3-2-8, Lucas McDermitt 1-0-3, Kyle Schmeltzer 4-1-9, Payton Salzwimmer 4-0-12, Roy Hoertz 1-0-2, Isaac Byers 0-0-0, Cayden Taylor 0-0-0, Henry Hoover 0-0-0, Jack Allen 0-0-0. TOTALS: 18-3-44. 3-point goals — Escano 4, Lee 3, Klingbeil, Suleiman, Salzwimmer 4, McDermitt. Rebounds — North Royalton 29 (Escano 12), Wadsworth 24 (Oaks 16). Assists — North Royalton 16 (Escano 6), Wadsworth 8 (Schmeltzer 4). Records — North Royalton (9-2, 5-1), Wadsworth (4-7, 0-6). Junior varsity — North Royalton 51, Wadsworth 44 (W: Taylor 17, Hoover 13).