HOBAN FIGHTS THROUGH THE BULLDOGS BITE

AKRON OH- With the days of high school basketball’s regular season fading, many teams have various goals during the final games of the season. Some are looking to rest their starters prior to the tournaments, others are in the midst of a conference championship and then some are just looking to prepare themselves with tough competition. On Tuesday night, much like the entirety of the season, The Archbishop Hoban boys basketball teams chose the latter! Welcoming fellow 15 win team at the time, The Green Bulldogs, into The Castle for a premier bout!

Last season saw the two programs meet twice on the court, with Green taking the regular season home contest and Hoban knocking The Bulldogs out of the tournament in an overtime thriller! Thus leaving plenty of animosity between the two strong schools, adding plenty of intrigue and entertainment value to the matchup. The Knights wasted little time jumping ahead, as Jonas Nichols was finding his shot, propelling Hoban to a 10-1 lead on an impressive first quarter run. However, The Bulldogs stayed calm through the early deficit, as superstar scorer, Brady Rollyson started to will Green back into the game by trimming the deficit to just a possession after a quarter.

With Hoban leading 19-16 after a quarter, they looked to create some distance once again from The Bulldogs. Green trimmed their deficit to just a single point at the start of quarter number two; however, The Knights armor held up! Joey Hardman made use of his minutes, hitting a three, and separating Hoban from Green once again. Nick Bundalo started to find his shot in the second, creating an effective one-two offensive punch with his teammate Brady Rollyson. The combination of Rollyson (15 PTS) and Bundalo (9 PTS) made up all the first half scoring for The Bulldogs, but The Knight still led 30-24 at the half.

The battle continued in the second half, with Green continuing to try and get over the hump and Hoban fending off hungry Bulldogs in an effort to maintain their lead. Green once again battled to within a point, but once again were pushed back, this time by sharpshooter Logan Vowles finding a distance shot, putting his team right back up by two possessions. William Scott helped space the floor, while finding his own shots, especially in the second half to keep The Knights in front 43-37 after three.

In the final eight minutes of play, with a rocking crowd behind them, The Hoban Knights started to put the finishing touches on a game that, despite being a battle, they never trailed in. Salting the game away, out-scoring Green 12-6 in the fourth quarter claiming a 12 point win 55-43 over The Bulldogs in Hoban’s sweet 16th victory of the season. Green (15-5)(8-3) will keep their talents on the road, traveling to GlenOak (16-4)(8-3) as they will try to separate themselves in the three-way tie in The Federal League, also with Massillon Jackson, on Friday, February 10th. Also on Friday, The Archbishop Hoban Knights (16-3) will stay home and entertain The Cornerstone Christian Patriots (16-3) in another premier matchup on YSN! Interviews with winning Head Coach T.K. Griffith and Player of The Game Jonas Nichols can be found below!

Scoring (Hoban)

Jonas Nichols: 21 PTS (Player of The Game)

William Scott: 13 PTS.

Logan Vowles: 11 PTS.

Sam Greer: 7 PTS.

Joey Hardman: 3 PTS.

Scoring (Green)

Brady Rollyson: 21 PTS.

Nick Bundalo: 13 PTS.

Lucas Bitong: 4 PTS.

Mark Danner: 3 PTS.

Anthony Fortunato: 2 PTS.