Mentor bounces back, dominates Mayfield

Coming off an emotional loss to neighborhood rival Lake Catholic on Feb. 22, the Mentor Cardinals were eager to get back on the court and atone for what they felt was a sub-par performance.

In a Division I sectional final against visiting Mayfield on Feb. 29, the Cardinals got back to doing what they do best — establish a quick tempo, force turnovers with the press and knock down shots.

The Cardinals took a 10-point first quarter lead, extended it to 23 by halftime and went on to steamroll the Wildcats, 88-58. Mentor will square off with University in a district demifinal on March 4 at Euclid.

Chad Rogers led all scorers with 25 points, Luke Chicone added 17, and

THE SCORE MENTOR 88, MAYFIELD 58

Kyle Culler had 12 points on four 3s. Luke Floriea had four points, three assists and one block, and his passing facilitated the offense. Mentor shot 58 percent from the field (32 of 55) and converted 13 of 28 3-point attempts.

“We just wanted to come out and redeem ourselves,” said Floriea, who along with eight other seniors played his final home game at Mentor. “We didn’t play our best game (last week) so we just wanted to get back in the swing of things and get ready for the playoffs.”

Senior Caleb Piks played for the first time since Jan. 28, coming off the bench and playing with two fingers on his right hand wrapped in a splint. Fifteen players saw the floor for the Cardinals.

“We controlled tempo,” Mentor coach Bob Krizancic said. “We had 49 at the half, 25 at the quarter, and we thought that was the key. If we could get it going up and down, get the game into the 70s, or preferably 80s, we’d feel confident.”

Blake Martinich led Mayfield with 16 points and Michael Favazzo added 13. Both are seniors, and will graduate from the program along with Jack Kerver and Gannon Rose. The Wildcats finished second in the Western Reserve Conference and beat South to advance to the sectional final.

“They’re just a solid team, down to the 15th player on the bench,” Mayfield coach Bob Pacsi said of Mentor. “They always have shooters, and you know exactly what they’re going to do when you play them. We did what we could, but they took advantage of every mistake we made.”

MICHAEL P. PAYNE — FOR THE NEWS-HERALD Luke Chicone drives past a Mayfield defender during Mentor’s 88-58victory in a D-I Euclid District semifinal Feb. 29.