Albert Grindle
The Gazette
COPLEY TWP. — Medina small forward Luke Schaefer was so mesmerized by the biggest dunk of Jon Teske’s career he wanted to give the big fella a kiss — but not in front of 2,500 fans, of course.
All Teske could do was flash a smile as wide as his 7-foot-1 frame is tall because his teammates dedicated the Bees’ latest win to him.
The stars aligned Thursday in the Copley Division I District semifinals, as second-seeded, defending district champion Medina pulled off a double-digit rally behind its studs and made huge plays in crunch time to knock off fifth-seeded Stow 52-47 in another heart-pounder.
Arguably the most hyped showdown in Medina County history is set: Medina (19-6) vs. top-seeded Brunswick (20-4) for the district crown at 7 p.m. Saturday.
“I’m just glad we won,” a beaming Teske said.
The Bees trailed 32-21 at half, went on a 12-0 run over the first 4:53 of the third quarter and took a 40-36 lead on their only 3-pointer, a corner look by sophomore Colin Szumski with 7:07 to play. They fell behind 46-44 on a three-point play by Bulldogs center Logan Huffman (14 points, 4 rebounds, 2 assists, 2 steals) minutes later.
Medina scored eight of the final nine points, as Teske tied the game and a Schaefer strip-and-score gave the Bees a 48-46 advantage with 2:36 to go.
The score remained that way heading into the final minute, as Teske’s hulking presence led to a glass-balled post attempt by Huffman and an air-balled, foul-line jumper by 17.7-point scorer Nathan Bower-Malone (10 points, 4-for-15 shooting).
That set up a trap-everywhere, last-ditch stand by Stow (19-6), and the Bees eventually inbounded at midcourt. Teske got the ball near the sideline, fought through a borderline foul, saw a wide-open path to the basket and threw down a thunderous two-handed dunk with 35 seconds left.
The normally even-keeled Teske smiled when he reached the bench after an immediate Stow timeout — Ben Geschke iced the game with two free throws with 10.9 seconds to go — but Schaefer took the emotions one step further afterward.
“I wanted to kiss him,” Schaefer said with zero hesitation. “If it wasn’t in front of 1,000 people, I probably would have kissed the kid.”
Schaefer then was asked how many people would be required.
“If it’s something like that, it’s (still) a lot,” he quipped. “Maybe five- or six-hundred.”
Schaefer (17 points, 4 rebounds, 6 assists, 2 steals) and Teske (18, 13, 3, 4 blocks) put on a brilliant two-man show while combining for 35 points, 17 rebounds, nine assists and four rejections. They accounted for 88.5 percent of their team’s points via scoring or assisting, including 40 of the first 42.
Medina trailed by 11 at half after struggling mightily defensively. Huffman keyed Stow with countless high-post screens that led to bad defensive switches, allowing sophomore Coryon Rice (18 points) to hit 4-of-4 3-pointers and give the Bulldogs their largest lead, 30-15, on a steal-and-score.
The Bees played inspired defense in the game-changing third quarter, limiting Stow, which committed just two turnovers, to four points on 1-for-10 shooting and simultaneously getting pace increased. Schaefer and Teske scored all of Medina’s 14 points in the period, and Schaefer wowed the crowd with his patented driving spins and acrobatic finishes.
Medina was down 36-35 entering the fourth, but momentum had clearly flipped. The Bees shot a sparkling 13-for-19 in the second half — Stow was 5-for-21 — and made 4-of-4 free throws after missing 3-of-4.
“It started at the defensive end,” Teske said. “(Coach Chris Hassinger) really got on us at halftime to play defense, and that’s what turned into our offense.”
Taking a cue from Brunswick’s 47-42 win over Hoban the previous night, the Bees didn’t play well but survived. They watched almost helplessly as Stow made 6-of-10 3-pointers in the first half, and Medina laid bricks all over the gym in a 1-for-12 effort from downtown.
Everything changed, however, when Medina realized the season was on the line.
The Bees have Teske and Schaefer to thank for that.
“At the end of the second quarter with a couple minutes left, we went on a little (6-0) run,” Teske said. “We got down (15 points), I think, and we just kind of told the team, ‘Keep going and keep fighting.’ That’s what we did all year, and that really showed tonight.”
Notes
Sophomore Dylan Fultz, who missed half the season due to injury, made two free throws that gave Medina a 44-41 lead in the fourth.
l Rice entered play averaging 9.7 points and had only 29 over the previous four games. Thursday marked the first time in 16 games he led Stow in scoring.
l Hassinger’s 34 wins are tied with Brunswick’s Larry Myers (1964-66) for fourth most in county history over a coach’s first two seasons. Wadsworth’s John Martin (1993-95), Medina’s Jody Peters (1998-2000) and Liverpool’s Craig Dowler (1944-46) are tied with 38.
Contact Albert Grindle at (330) 721-4043 or agrindle@medina-gazette.com.
Medina 52, Stow 47
Copley Division I District Semifinal
STOW 13 19 4 11 — 47
MEDINA 8 13 14 17 — 52
Stow — Nick Kollar 1-3 0-0 3, Logan Lindsay 1-5 0-0 2, Logan Huffman 5-11 4-7 14, Nathan Bower-Malone 4-15 1-2 10, Jared Wright 0-2 0-0 0, Kyle Vantrease 0-0 0-0 0, Coryon Rice 6-9 2-2 18, Jordan Jolly 0-1 0-0 0, Justin Harvey 0-0 0-0 0. TOTALS: 17-46 7-11 47.
Medina — Luke Schaefer 8-13 1-2 17, Jimmy Clark 2-2 0-0 4, Jon Teske 9-14 0-2 18, Jackson Sartain 1-5 0-0 2, Ben Geschke 1-4 2-2 4, Jimmy Daw 1-2 0-0 2, Colin Szumski 1-3 0-0 3, Dylan Fultz 0-0 2-2 2. TOTALS: 23-43 5-8 52.
3-point goals — Stow 6-16 (Rice 4-7, Kollar 1-1, Bower-Malone 1-6, Jolly 0-1, Lindsay 0-1), Medina 1-12 (Szumski 1-1, Schaefer 0-2, Teske 0-2, Geschke 0-3, Sartain 0-4). Fouled out — None. Rebounds — Stow 14 (Huffman 4), Medina 27 (Teske 13). Assists — Stow 7 (Bower-Malone 3), Medina 11 (Schaefer 6). Turnovers — Stow 2 (Huffman, Rice), Medina 7 (Clark 2). Fouls — Stow 12, Medina 11. Records — Stow (19-6), Medina (19-6).
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Bees subdue Bulldogs
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