D-I District Boys Basketball: Focused Elyria locks down Medina, pulls away for 76-44 win.

ELYRIA — Locked in. Coaches talk about the mindset all the time. On Tuesday, Elyria was locked in and ready to play. The No. 6-seeded Pioneers held Medina (14-9) to 13 points in the second and third quarters and ran off to a 76-44 victory. "That is a good team," coach Brett Larrick said of Medina. "They just beat Mentor about a week and a half ago. They present challenges how they run their stuff, but Coach (Dan) Gundert did a great job getting our guys ready for Medina's actions. "I thought that second and third quarter defensively — five points, eight points — we really locked in." Elyria advances to play No. 4 Canton McKinley (19-4), an 80-69 winner over No. 10 Massillon Jackson, at Barberton High School at 7 p.m. Saturday for the district championship. Medina (14-9) turned the ball over 16 times in the second and third quarters as the Pioneers (17-6) took complete control by outscoring the Bees 37-13 during that span. The Bees coughed up the ball 24 times to just 14 for the Pioneers and that only tells part of the story. Elyria's turnovers were committed more by being aggressive while Medina's turned into Elyria points. The game was tied at 19 early in the second quarter, but Jermiah Daniels hit on a pullup jumper in the lane followed by a 3-pointer from Kendyll Compton, a layup from Micah Jackson and two more baskets by Compton to put the Pioneers up 30-19. Medina closed out the half with a 3-pointer, but Elyria put together a 10-0 run midway through the third quarter sparked by back-to-back 3-pointers from Daniels and two more Compton baskets to jump Elyria's lead to 48-28. Both teams shot the ball well, but Elyria made 11 3-pointers to just two for the Bees. Compton was on fire. He scored 26, pulled in 11 rebounds and dished out three assists. Compton hit on 11 of his 16 field goal attempts, including 4-for-4 from the 3-point arc. Hard to believe the Pioneers hadn't played since Feb. 20. "We've been in the gym every day practicing after school," Compton said of the time off. "Me being a senior and my other brothers being seniors here, we wanted our last home game here to go out with a bang, something we could always remember." Compton had plenty of help. Daniels was 5-for-5, including the pair of 3-pointers, for a dozen points. Cam Bell added 10 points on 4-for-5 from the field, including two 3-pointers. Seth Wilkerson and Tink Shelton did their usual steady jobs on both ends of the floor. "The mindset was to stay locked in and staying in what we practiced," said Daniels. "Going as fast as we can, going really intense, making sure we're pressuring the ball." Medina had won four of its last five but was less than 100 percent healthy with the flu bug hitting hard. "First of all, give a lot of credit to Brett and his kids," said Medina coach Chris Hassinger. "They played fantastic. We knew we'd have to bring our A-game to play with those guys. "We've got some guys under the weather and some things didn't go our way. It's just tough, especially when you're sick and keep your mindset." Hassinger tried to keep his team fresh by substituting frequently, but Elyria just seemed to be a little deeper and one step ahead all night. Ryan Harubin led the Bees with 12 points. Beckett Miller, Luke Webb and Korde Carey each scored six. "We had no gas in the tank," said Hassinger. "Our main guys that handle the ball did not have the stamina. Credit to them how much they pressure. Coach Larrick had them locked in and had a great game plan." Contact Tim Gebhardt at (440) 329-7135 or timothygeb@msn.com. Elyria 76, Medina 44 MEDINA (44): Bishop Burch 0-0-0, Ryan Harubin 5-2-12, Brody Kopkas 1-0-2, Beckett Miller 2-0-6, Garrett Myers 1-1-3, Luke Webb 3-0-6, Donte Cargill 2-0-4, Korde Carey 3-0-6, Brody Robinson 1-0-2, Christian Kalal 0-0-0, Tyler Minarcin 0-0-0, Sean Kungli 0-0-0, Andrew Kupec 0-0-0, Owen Strum 1-0-2, Jaxon Sesock 0-1-1. Totals 19-4-44. ELYRIA (76): Cam Bell 4-0-10, Rondell Grimmett 2-0-4, Jermiah Daniels 5-0-12, Tink Shelton 1-0-3, Kendyll Compton 11-0-26, Micah Jackson 1-0-2, Seth Wilkerson 2-2-6, Christian Rogers 0-0-0, Ethan Rogers 2-0-5, Isaiah Hill 0-0-0, Mike Lawrence 2-1-5, Kahlil Washington 0-0-0, Arris Malone 1-0-3, Adavieon Oliver 0-0-0. Totals 31-3-76. Medina&emsp;17&emsp;5&emsp;8&emsp;14&emsp;—&emsp;44 Elyria&emsp;17&emsp;13&emsp;24&emsp;22&emsp;—&emsp;76 Three-point goals: Medina 2-12 (Miller 2), Elyria 11-18 (Compton 4, Daniels 2, Bell 2, Shelton, E. Rogers, Malone). Field goals: Medina 19-35 (52 percent), Elyria 31-50 (62 percent). Free throws: Medina 4-6 (66 percent), Elyria 3-5 (60 percent). Rebounds: Medina 15 (Miller 4), Elyria 20 (Compton 11). Turnovers: Medina 24, Elyria 14. Fouls: Medina 8, Elyria 12.