High school basketball: Avon boys hold off Westlake at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse

CLEVELAND — The only thing better than playing on an NBA court is winning on an NBA court. Avon survived a frantic eight seconds where Westlake secured three offensive rebounds and four chances to force overtime, but some stingy defense forced a deep heave that rimmed out as the Eagles held on for a 72-69 Southwestern Conference win Wednesday night at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse. While Westlake was the host, both teams had the chance to make some memories at the home of the Cleveland Cavaliers. Avon junior Cullen O'Leary scored his first varsity points — a layup 3:48 into the game. "They were getting what they wanted there for a little bit, so we just had to step up and be more physical," said Avon senior Niko Pappas, who scored 14 points, including two free throws that pushed Avon's lead to 72-69. "This was amazing. I've never played here before. It's a little weird shooting on these hoops. The court feels a little bigger, but it was great. I love playing here and hope someday I get to come back." The teams played to a draw in the first half, but Westlake (10-9, 6-8 SWC) scored six unanswered points and eventually built a 48-41 lead at the 3:48 mark. Avon's Max Emerine checked in at that point and needed just 43 seconds to tie things up with a 3-pointer and two layups on three straight possessions. "Coach told me I had fresh legs so I knew I had to bring it," said Emerine, who led the team with 15 points. "We were down by a little bit also, so we had to bring some energy into the game. "I actually played here in fourth grade, and that was a while ago so I don't really remember it. It's a lot different than a high school gym. The depth perception is so much different when you're shooting the ball." Justin Garcia was unstoppable inside the 3-point line for Westlake, converting all 10 of his field goals and finishing with 23 points. He scored eight of the Demons' first 12 points of the fourth quarter — including two fade-away jumpers that helped the Demons take a 61-56 lead with 4:47 left. Avon (9-7, 8-5) scored five unanswered points and traded buckets to tie the game at 63. The Demons and Eagles alternated field goals, but Avon's came from long range — both by Jacob Siegert — to take a 69-67 lead. Those were the last field goals by either team as free throws decided it the rest of the way. Cal Reghi converted two, but Avon's Ben Rehner and Pappas combined to go 3-for-4 to give the Eagles a three-point lead with 25.5 seconds left. Westlake got Garcia and Reghi — two of their best 3-point shooters — good looks thanks to clutch rebounding. Both rimmed out, but Julian Coleman secured another offensive board to set the Demons up for one last look with eight seconds left. Garcia and Reghi both touched the ball, but Avon's defense forced them to play hot potato, leaving Garcia with a look from beyond the NBA 3-point line that rimmed out. "My (assistant) coaches said that's probably the longest eight seconds we ever had," Avon coach Mike Fitch said. "It was right in line, it looked perfect — and (Garcia) is awesome I thought he was going to knock it down — but, hey, sometimes it falls your way. This was an awesome experience, it was all (Westlake coach) Jeff Huber doing it. Just a whole atmosphere when the kids came in with their mouths wide open, it was really special." Contact Chris Sweeney at 329-7135 or ctsports@chroniclet.com. Follow him @CSweeneyCT on Twitter. Avon 72, Westlake 69 AVON (72): Jacob Siegert 4-2-12, Mike Matlak 1-0-3, Colin Ladegaard 0-1-1, Dominic Rini 5-2-12, Niko Pappas 5-4-14, Connor Allomong 1-1-3, Cullen O'Leary 1-0-2, Max Emerine 6-1-15, Ben Rehner 1-1-3, Cole Cianciolo 0-1-1, Aaron Smith 1-1-4, Danny Holt 1-0-2, Matt Fischer 0-0-0. Totals 26-14-72. WESTLAKE (69): Cal Reghi 6-4-17, Justin Garcia 11-0-23, Austin Norris 4-2-10, Greyson Elyaderani 0-0-0, Will Ostrowski 3-1-7, Julian Coleman 2-0-5, Blake Wolfe 1-0-2, Tim Rence 2-0-4, Deontae Redding 0-1-1. Totals 29-8-69. Avon&emsp;&emsp;22&emsp;&emsp;15&emsp;&emsp;12&emsp;&emsp;23&emsp;&emsp;—&emsp;&emsp;72Westlake&emsp;&emsp;19&emsp;&emsp;18&emsp;&emsp;12&emsp;&emsp;20&emsp;&emsp;—&emsp;&emsp;69 Three-point goals: Avon 6-15 (Emerine 2, Siegert 2, Matlak, Smith), Westlake 3-17 (Coleman, Garcia, Reghi). Field goals: Avon 26-49 (53 percent), Westlake 29-60 (48 percent). Free throws: Avon 14-21 (67 percent), Westlake 8-13 (62 percent). Rebounds: Avon 23 (Rehner 5, Siegert 5), Westlake 35 (Elyaderani 8). Total fouls: Avon 13, Westlake 15. Fouled out: Elyaderani. Turnovers: Avon 7, Westlake 16.