|
|
Two area players are on the verge of becoming the newest members of that group.
Barring unforeseen circumstances, Madison senior Nic DiLillo and Mentor senior Joe Meyer could get there as soon as this weekend.
DiLillo - a four-year starter for the Blue Streaks - needs 16 points to reach the 1,000-point plateau. With 984 career points, the 6-foot-5 forward and Ohio State football recruit has PAC games against Chardon and Riverside before a regular-season finale against Harvey. Madison coach Pat Moran said the achievement signifies a level of solid play over a number of years.
"The big thing with Nic is that he has been a consistent performer for this program for his entire career," Moran said. "He gets a lot of attention for his football skills, but he has the talent to be a pretty good basketball player as well. It is a great honor for him, and it just further solidifies his contributions to Madison athletics."
Meyer, a sharp-shooting guard who is coming off a career-high 48 points at Cleveland Heights last Friday, has registered 983 career points. Meyer is set to join only three other Cardinals in the school's 1,000-point club - all-time leading scorer Adam May, Eddie Zienkowski and Jason Woleben.
Considering Meyer's size (5-10, 150 pounds), Mentor's grueling schedule and the fact that he only scored 19 points as a freshman, Coach Bob Krizancic said it is quite an mark for the all-district performer to reach.
"Coming into the year, because of how young we are and the schedule we play and the fact that Joey was going to see a lot of double teams, I wasn't sure he would get there," Krizancic said. "It is really a great achievement for Joey. He has to work so hard for everything he gets. But he is in super condition, he works hard on his game and he has done it while being a leader on and off the court. I am very happy for him."
Meyer has games against Euclid and Villa Angela-St. Joseph this weekend before closing the regular season against Warren Harding next week. He leads the area in 3-pointers 60 and is a 90 percent career free-throw shooter.
Viking reunion
Viking Village should be filled with some old familiar faces tonight as VASJ is welcoming back all former players, coaches and managers to be recognized at halftime of the game against NCL rival Lake Catholic.
All former members of the Viking basketball family will be admitted to the game for free, and will be called out to the floor at halftime.
District nominations
The Northeast Lakes all-district meeting will be held on Wednesday, Feb. 13.
All coaches are asked to send nominations in to The News-Herald by Tuesday, Feb. 12. Nominations can be e-mailed to BTilton@News-Herald.com or faxed to (440) 951-6731.
Buzzer beaters
n Madison junior guard Bryan Hill had 19 points, five rebounds and four steals in a win over Lakeside.
n Brush improved to 4-1 in games decided by five points or fewer with a 59-57 win over Hudson on Tuesday night. The dynamic duo of Jamaal Watkins and Nate Tait combined for 31 points in the victory. Watkins and Tait are the only area tandem from the same team both averaging over 20 points per game.
