Matt Hettler

Jon James

Saturday, March 6, 2004
by Steve Blackledge
THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH

Fierce Central Catholic League rivals DeSales and Watterson face off twice almost every football season, counting the playoffs. Why not play three times in basketball?

The third-seeded Eagles (17-5) and fourth-seeded Stallions (17-5) set up a March 12 district championship showdown in Division II with workmanlike wins predicated on defense last night in the Fairgrounds Coliseum.

DeSales held Granville without a basket in the final 7:05 en route to a 50-43 win. Later, Watterson handcuffed Canal Winchester with a matchup zone that yielded a 57-48 victory.

A three-point shot by Tim Dison and three-point plays by Joe Schmall and Jonathan Stone in the final 2:37 helped the Stallions to a 17-3 finish.

"The real change for us occurred when we went to a run-and-jump (defense) to try to speed the tempo up," DeSales coach Dan Garrick said. "That gave us some more open-court opportunities that the kids were able to take advantage of. They never got down when their backs were against the wall."

Senior Ronnie Smith gave a fiery speech during a timeout after Granville (15-7) opened a 40-33 lead early in the fourth quarter.

"I told them to get their heads up," he said. "Granville was hitting tough shots, but we knew they couldn’t keep that up the rest of the game. We really picked up our defensive intensity in the fourth quarter."

Schmall came up with a big block of Matt Hettler in the final 45 seconds that led to Stone’s three-point play that made it 48-43.

"That block was huge," Garrick said. "That’s why Joe is the school’s all-time leader in blocks."

Blue Aces coach Jerry Tackett agreed that DeSales took command with defense.

"We didn’t get the looks we wanted down the stretch," he said. "It was a game of ebbs and flows and they played great defense when it mattered most."

Schmall had 12 points and Smith 10 for the Stallions, who lost to Watterson by scores of 65-49 and 48-45 this season.

Hettler, 6 feet 6, hit three straight three-point shots in the third quarter and scored a team-high 16 points.

Watterson set the tone with a match-up zone that effectively limited Canal Winchester’s ability to penetrate and dish to open shooters.

"We spent all week working on it," Eagles center Seth Hill said. "We knew they shot well from the outside and we had to keep them from getting hot."

As a result, the Indians (14-8) appeared stagnant and motionless. Top scorer Mark Troutman finished with a season-low seven points on only six shots from the field.

"The way we were extending our zone, I thought it might leave gaps inside, but they were unable to exploit that," Watterson coach Vince Lombardo said. "The tempo for most of the game definitely was our way."

Tom Horstman scored 24 points and Hill added 19 points and nine rebounds for the Eagles, who shot 61 percent from the field.

Still, Watterson didn’t seal the outcome until the final three minutes when it continually beat Indians pressure for transition baskets.

Shane Dunlevy had 15 points and Kyle Harden 12 for Canal.

"I didn’t mind playing a game with less possessions," Canal Winchester coach Kent Riggs said.

"The key was we couldn’t get as many stops in the second half. I don’t think Horstman or Hill missed a shot."

Horstman, who went 8 of 10 from the field, and Hill, who was 9 of 15, actually missed twice after halftime.