by Michael Leonard
Sports Editor
Bedford -- After an up-and-down first month of the season, the Bedford boys basketball team was in need of some big wins.
Did the Bearcats ever find them in the first two games of 2008.
Bedford put together its two most dominant wins of the season. First, the Bearcats destroyed backyard rival Maple Heights 100-63 Jan. 4 at home. Then, Bedford won a solid, gritty game with Lakewood 57-45 Jan. 8 at home.
Bedford's record now stands at 7-4, 4-0 in the Lake Erie League Erie Division.
Bearcats coach Everett Heard said he was a bit nervous coming into the contest with the Rangers.
"Lakewood plays good, hard-nosed defense and they make you work for everything," Heard said. "They've beaten some good teams this year. If you don't come out ready to play against them, you're going to be in trouble. We thought we were better, but we definitely respected them."
Indeed, the Rangers took down the Bearcats last season in Lakewood. And the Rangers were full of confidence as they were coming off an upset win over Strongsville Jan. 4.
However, Bedford looked like they were going to run out like they did against Maple early on. Bedford opened the contest on an 8-0 run and guard Randal Holt hit three trifectas in the first quarter. Lakewood was able to trim the lead somewhat, but the Bearcats still had a 19-9 lead after one quarter.
The top matchup in the contest was at center as Bedford's Reggie Keely and Lakewood's Kevin Knab battled down low. Keely owned the paint early, blocking numerous shots, but foul trouble hit in the second quarter, which allowed Knab to take over.
"I still think, because he's so big, Keely doesn't get all the calls he should," Heard said. "They were pulling his and Holt's shirt out all night."
Knab won the battle as he finished with a game-high 21 points to nine for Keely. However, no other Rangers scored more than six.
Despite mounting foul issues, Bedford had a 31-22 lead after halftime.
Early in the third quarter, Lakewood appeared to make its run. Back-to-back three-pointers by Dan Shannon and Joe Mastrodonto cut the Bearcats' lead to 36-32, forcing Heard to call timeout.
From there, however, Bedford's defense picked up, as Heard even called for a 2-3 zone to deny the Rangers' outside shooting. Meanwhile, Holt would make a layup at the buzzer and get fouled to push the lead back to 10.
Holt missed the free throw, but Bedford still led 46-36 after three.
Bedford's foul problems reached a crisis stage early in the fourth quarter as both Keely and forward Robert Johnson were forced to the bench with four fouls. Heard chose to move to a four-guard lineup and use a motion offense to kill the clock.
The strategy worked.
"The key in that fourth quarter was our bench guys were able to hit their free throws," Heard said. "That allowed us to keep that 8-point lead and not let them back in. In the games we lost, we missed our free throws."
Heard gave credit to backup guards Alex Wood and Dominique Hopkins, who finished 6-of-6 from the line in the fourth quarter. Bedford went 13-of-17 from the stripe to ice the game in the second half.
Holt led the Bearcats with 19 points.
Offense dominates vs. Maple Heights
Against the Mustangs, Bedford took control of the contest early and never looked back. Bedford exploded for 33 points in the second quarter to take a 54-26 halftime lead.
Heard said Keely and Johnson each had seven assists in the game, while forward Ladell Trotty and guard Reggie Lewis each had perfect shooting nights from the field.
Up 78-38 after three quarters, Heard called off the dogs, sitting his starters for the entire fourth quarter.
Bedford's best performances have been marked by balanced scoring, and that was the case against Maple, as all five starters once again reached double figures. Holt and Lewis led the way with 19 points each, while Keely had 13 and Trotty and Johnson finished with 11 each.
Maple Heights point guard Marcus Pearl finished with 17 points, but was held well below his scoring average, thanks to some great defensive work by Lewis.
"Reggie did an outstanding job of shutting down Marcus," Heard said. "He got a lot of his points in the fourth quarter when our subs were in."
Bedford begins a four-game game road trip Jan. 11 when it travels to Admiral King. The Bearcats then face one of their toughest road games of the season Jan. 15 at Canton McKinley. Junior varsity tip-off time for both games is at 6 p.m.
E-mail: mleonard@recordpub.com
Phone: 330-688-0088 ext. 3113