Thoughts from Friday’s Crestview victory

SCOTT TRUXELL/independent sports editor

COLUMBUS — Here are some observations and key moments from Friday’s 59-49 Crestview win over Richmond Heights in the Division IV state semifinals at the Jerome Schottenstein Center.

Foul trouble

Both teams had to deal with foul trouble.

Javin Etzler sat down with his second personal foul 30 seconds into the second quarter. He stayed out until the 2:55 mark of the period.

Wade Sheets picked up his third and fourth fouls in the third quarter, at the 5:52 and 3:43 mark respectively. He came out of the game and remained out until the 5:43 mark of the fourth quarter. Colton Lautznheiser provided outstanding minutes of relief and added a spark defensively.

Richmond Heights lost Anthony Maxie Jr. to his fifth personal foul with 5:39 left in the game, which was big. Several other Spartans were in foul trouble as well, and Gbolahan Aido fouled out with 34 seconds left.

Dealey and Etzler

Derick Dealey came up big with 15 points in the first half, which forced the Spartans to pay more attention to the 5-9 senior guard in the second half. That’s when Javin Etzler went off for 25 points.

Defense comes up big again

Richmond Heights entered the game averaging 73 points per game, but the Knights held the Spartans to 49 points, including just 10 in a pivotal third quarter.

Two big runs

Crestview closed the third quarter on a 14-1 run and finished the game on a 13–2 run. Those were obvious keys to the victory.

Big response

A dunk by Anthony Maxie Jr. put the Spartans up 19-14 with 4:20 left in the second quarter, and it appeared Richmond Heights was gaining steam. Things could have gone south in a hurry, but a triple from the right corner by Dealey helped quell any momentum the Spartans had.

Tough shooting day

Neither team shot the ball particularly well Friday afternoon.

The Knights were 17 of 44 (38.6 percent) while Richmond Heights was 17 of 49 (34.7 percent), including 7 of 27 from beyond the arc.

However, credit should be given to each team’s defense, for challenging nearly every shot.

Free throws

Both teams converted 17 field goals, so the game came down to foul shots. The Knights converted 20 of 27 free throws, while the Spartans hit 8 of 12.

During the postgame press conference, Richmond Heights head coach Quentin Rogers seemed a bit agitated about the disparity in free throws.

Composure

Even when Crestview was down, I didn’t notice or sense any panic by the Knights.

This team has the uncanny ability to remain composed even in extremely difficult situations.

Coaching experience

No disrespect to Richmond Heights head coach Quentin Rogers, but I truly believe Jeremy Best’s previous experience in the State Tournament (2003, 2014) was a big help on Friday.

At times, the game seemed like a chess match and Best appeared to be a move or two ahead.

Most minutes

Who played the most minutes during Friday’s game? That would be Curtis Johnson II, who played the entire game.

Kalen Etzler played all but 32 seconds for Crestview, followed by Dealey, who played for 31:26 of a possible 32 minutes.

After the game

During the postgame press conference, Javin Etzler and Dealey talked about the dream of getting to Columbus.

“These are the kinds of things we used to talk about when we were little and it’s finally happening and it’s the greatest feeling in the world,” Javin Etzler said. “My brother (Kalen) and I are super close and we really don’t get into many arguments. We’re always going to the gym together, so I think that helps.”

“When we were playing in third, fourth and fifth grade, we were running the table in tournaments and this was definitely our goal,” Dealey said. “I’ve been coming to State Tournaments for about five years now and it’s been my dream ever since then to just be playing on this court and we finally did it. Now we have a shot to win the championship.”

Crestview fans

Well done Crestview fans. Well done. You’ve been out in full force, loud and proud all season long and you’ve made a difference.