Bearcat cagers fall in thriller to Harding

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by Brent Hovey

Reporter

Warrensville Heights -- With three and half minutes to go, it look like Bedford would pull off an upset against the sixth-ranked team in the state.

The stage was set to make the Bearcats' season.

Bedford led 59-52 with 3:40 to play in the Division I District Semifinal over first-seeded Warren Harding after junior Alex Wood converted a Robert Johnson pass into an easy lay-up.

Wood's bucket forced a Raiders' timeout and the Bearcat faithful to their feet. It capped a 7-0 run to break a 52-52 tie.

Things were looking good for Bedford, seeded fourth in the tournament.

But after the timeout, the wheels began to fall off.

Warren Harding went on a 13-0 run in the final three minutes, 17 seconds to pull out the 65-59 come-from-behind win.

The way his team played at the end of the game didn't sit well with Bedford coach Everett Heard.

"We tried to get good shots and work it around, but we kept throwing the ball away," he said. "That kind of hurt us."

Following the Raiders' timeout, Warren Harding hit a three to cut the lead to 59-55. After a Bearcat turnover, the Raiders scored a transition bucket to make it a two-point game.

Bedford couldn't handle Harding's full court press and was called for a 10-second violation.

The Raiders made the most of it and scored again to tie the game at 59 with 1:48 to play.

Harding forced another turnover and frustration for Bedford set as they were called for an intentional foul as a Raider went in for a lay-up.

One-of-two from the line game the Raiders the lead and a bucket on the out-of-bounds play gave them a three-point lead with 50 seconds.

In the final 50 seconds, Bedford missed three threes and a lay-up and Harding capped the game with a meaningless dunk at the buzzer.

Despite giving up a late lead, Bedford had to make a comeback of their own to get in that situation.

The Bearcats were down 32-26 at halftime. They didn't take the lead until the four-minute mark of the quarter.

Reggie Lewis pushed the ball up the court after a Raider miss. The defense swarmed to him but a sweet behind the back dribble got him free. He then dished the ball off to Johnson who threw down a two-handed jam, giving Bedford the 40-39 lead.

Neither team was ever down by more two after that until Bedford's 7-0 run midway through the fourth quarter.

With the game tied at 52, Ladell Trotty hit a three, Lewis scored inside and Wood made a lay-up for the 59-52 lead that was soon whipped away.

Reggie Keely led the Bearcats with 22 points, five rebounds, three blocks and two steals.

Lewis added 14 points and three assists and Johnson add 10 to go along with eight boards and four steals.

Bedford was without starting point guard Randal Holt due to disciplinary reasons.

The loss was disappointing to Heard and the rest of the Bearcats. However, with a starting lineup of all juniors, they'll be ready to go deeper next year.

"We not looking at next year," said Heard. "We wanted to take care of business this year. This game hurts but we'll be back next year. But this game hurts this year."

The loss ended the Bearcats' season with a 16-7 record.

E-mail: bhovey@recordpub.com

Phone: 330-688-0088 ext. 3115