Bulldogs ransack Raiders in rout
By Keno Sultan
Stark County Prep Press writer
www.starkcountypreppress.blogspot.com
CANTON--Deliverance and the Chavers name goes hand-in-hand.
And McKinley senior guard Anthony Chavers provided the salvation for the Bulldogs.
Paced by his points triggered by a personal 11-0 run, McKinley turned their battle against fellow district champion Warren Harding into a stunning mismatch in a - finality in the last game of the OHSBCA Shot Clock Shootout at the Canton Memorial Field House.
Both teams were district champions last year and returned a lot with players poised to take the next step. McKinley sent an emphatic message with a resounding performance that left head coach Sean Weatherspoon pleased with his team's 5-1 record.
"We are going to try and pressure teams and speed them up and turn them over and lead to steals and balls going out of bounds whatever the case may be," he said. "We played hard on defense, we played Canton McKinley basketball."
A Jay'veion Carter steal and lay-up triggered a 6-0 run and led to a prompt Raiders timeout late in the first quarter as the Bulldogs assumed a 13-6 lead as they eventually ended the quarter with a 15-9 lead.
A personal 8-0 run by junior guard Anthony Chavers prompted another Warren timeout. Harding's cause wasn't helped out by an abysmal 3/12 from behind the arc as the Bulldogs ran out to a 39-22 halftime advantage.
Warren Harding never recovered as they were undone by an anemic inefficiency from three-point range, not to mention two intentional fouls, a technical foul and a warning that left Keelyn Franklin, a 2007 graduate of Harding obviously disappointed as his legion of Raiders descended to 4-2 on the year.
"It was devastating because we wanted them to force them into jump shots and Chavers got going and hit about four or five three pointers," he said. "This was kind of a punch in the face we needed and we will respond. But once they started making shots, it took us out of our game plan and forced us to adjust."
Between the second and third quarters, McKinley outpaced Harding 49-19, a run in part to their carnivorous defensive pressure. Shooting 60% from the field in the decisive first half also parlayed into the Bulldogs now owning a 5-1 record and have won four in a row since a second game setback to Akron Hoban.
For the Raiders, they hope that tonight doesn't become a portent of things to arrive as they will travel to Farrell (PA) to battle the Steelers in what will be the second of six straight road contests. This will be a stretch that will likely determine the trajectory of their season and according to Franklin, they will have to put tho behind them quickly.
"This is something we needed because we will need four or five high level intense practices and Farrell is a very competitive environment and it will be a dogfight so we are looking forward to responding and we have the guys to do that," he said.
Chavers had 24 points to lead the Bulldogs along with Ed Webster's 14 and Jamar Keyes' nine.
McKinley cannot bask in the win for long as Canton Central Catholic will come to the Field House Tuesday for a battle against the Bulldogs. Weatherspoon was a freshman 23 years ago when he contributed to the Bulldogs upset of top-seeded Massillon, who was then head coached by current Crusaders general Matt Creamer.
Creamer has known Weatherspoon since that 2002 season and Weatherspoon knows what the Crusaders are capable of under Creamer's tutelage and expects his battalion of Bulldogs to be ready.
"We have to come in tomorrow, practice, watch film and prepare and do the right things to get better," Weatherspoon said.
Deliverance and the Chavers name go hand-in-hand. Anthony Chavers provided the salvation and Canton McKinley departed a very happy congregation of Bulldogs.
"I thought the reason it was choppy was because we outscored them and I'm not real happy with how we played defensively. But hat's off to Tallmadge, they kept scrapping, they kept attacking. We have got to get better on the defensive end of things. Ursuline is about defense and we did not play any defense and I'm not happy about that," he said.
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