Geschke leads, Schaefer follows, Bees win
Big second half propels Medina past Mustangs
Medina senior Luke Schaefer attacks for two of his game-high 29 points in the Bees’ win over Strongsville. Photo by BRUCE BILLOW
His team operating at about 70 percent of its normal proficiency Friday night, Medina boys basketball coach Chris Hassinger handed the keys to Benny Geshke. The senior guard in turn put classmate Luke Schaefer in the driver’s seat.
Hassinger’s gambit paid off big-time as, with Geschke directing traffic, Schaefer scored 25 of his game-high 29 points in the second half of Medina’s 77-65 Greater Cleveland Conference victory over Strongsville.
“At halftime, he said no one was listening to him and everything like that and everything was out of order,” Geschke said. “He left the locker room at halftime with seven minutes left on the clock still. Me and a couple other seniors stepped up and talked to everybody and got them all figured out.
“We got out there and I asked (Hassinger) what defense he wanted first and he said, ‘It’s on you.’ It was a big step for me, leadership-wise.”
Geschke chipped in 11 points and three assists for the Bees (13-3, 7-2), who also got 9 points apiece from seniors Jackson Sartain and Sam McKee.
Strongsville was led by junior Omari Peek, who scored 24 points, making 9-of-9 free throws. Shaun Csire, another junior, added 23 points.
Schaefer made 11-of-14 second-half shots, including his final 10 attempts as Medina scored 49 points over the final two quarters. He finished with a team-best seven rebounds and a pair of assists.
Schaefer kicked things into gear with a 12-point third quarter, constantly going baseline and beating Mustang defenders to the rim.
“We did a lot of spread-out offense,” he said. “The game plan coming out of halftime was just to attack the basket, get to the free-throw line and get easy buckets. I think the team came out slow (at the beginning). We just came out terrible.”
Medina scored 25 third-quarter points after putting up just 28 in the first two periods. Outside of the first four-plus minutes, when they took a 13-2 lead, the Bees played in the first half like they were in quicksand.
Medina made 5-of-6 shots to start the game, then went on a 1-of-10 drought. The Mustangs took advantage, coming all the way back to tie the score at halftime.
“We went through the motions and we just expected to win, and (Strongsville) came out with a lot of fire and a lot of energy and we didn’t have that,” said Hassinger, who hugged Geschke afterward and told the guard how proud he was of his performance. “I told Benny, ‘You’ve got ’em the second half.’ I’ve never done that before and Ben’s been waiting maybe all season to step up and he did tonight. He was making every call in the second half and I saw a different energy in our kids once he started stepping up and leading.”
Schaefer started the third quarter with a bucket, which the Mustangs’ Peter Mocho answered with a 3-pointer, giving Strongsville it’s only lead other than 2-0 to start the game. Medina took the lead back immediately and never gave it up.
The Bees made 10-of-16 shots in the third quarter. The Mustangs, on the other hand, had six turnovers, allowing Medina to get some space.
The Mustangs got within 55-50 with 6:30 left, but Schaefer scored six points in a 10-2 run that pushed the Bees’ lead to double digits.
The Bees’ win, coupled with Brunswick’s upset of first-place Elyria, tightened up the GCC race. Medina heads into the weekend tied with Mentor, a half-game ahead of Elyria, which needs to make up a game with Strongsville. Brunswick, which is just a game back, comes to Medina on Feb. 3.
Hassinger’s gambit paid off big-time as, with Geschke directing traffic, Schaefer scored 25 of his game-high 29 points in the second half of Medina’s 77-65 Greater Cleveland Conference victory over Strongsville.
“At halftime, he said no one was listening to him and everything like that and everything was out of order,” Geschke said. “He left the locker room at halftime with seven minutes left on the clock still. Me and a couple other seniors stepped up and talked to everybody and got them all figured out.
“We got out there and I asked (Hassinger) what defense he wanted first and he said, ‘It’s on you.’ It was a big step for me, leadership-wise.”
Geschke chipped in 11 points and three assists for the Bees (13-3, 7-2), who also got 9 points apiece from seniors Jackson Sartain and Sam McKee.
Strongsville was led by junior Omari Peek, who scored 24 points, making 9-of-9 free throws. Shaun Csire, another junior, added 23 points.
Schaefer made 11-of-14 second-half shots, including his final 10 attempts as Medina scored 49 points over the final two quarters. He finished with a team-best seven rebounds and a pair of assists.
Schaefer kicked things into gear with a 12-point third quarter, constantly going baseline and beating Mustang defenders to the rim.
“We did a lot of spread-out offense,” he said. “The game plan coming out of halftime was just to attack the basket, get to the free-throw line and get easy buckets. I think the team came out slow (at the beginning). We just came out terrible.”
Medina scored 25 third-quarter points after putting up just 28 in the first two periods. Outside of the first four-plus minutes, when they took a 13-2 lead, the Bees played in the first half like they were in quicksand.
Medina made 5-of-6 shots to start the game, then went on a 1-of-10 drought. The Mustangs took advantage, coming all the way back to tie the score at halftime.
“We went through the motions and we just expected to win, and (Strongsville) came out with a lot of fire and a lot of energy and we didn’t have that,” said Hassinger, who hugged Geschke afterward and told the guard how proud he was of his performance. “I told Benny, ‘You’ve got ’em the second half.’ I’ve never done that before and Ben’s been waiting maybe all season to step up and he did tonight. He was making every call in the second half and I saw a different energy in our kids once he started stepping up and leading.”
Schaefer started the third quarter with a bucket, which the Mustangs’ Peter Mocho answered with a 3-pointer, giving Strongsville it’s only lead other than 2-0 to start the game. Medina took the lead back immediately and never gave it up.
The Bees made 10-of-16 shots in the third quarter. The Mustangs, on the other hand, had six turnovers, allowing Medina to get some space.
The Mustangs got within 55-50 with 6:30 left, but Schaefer scored six points in a 10-2 run that pushed the Bees’ lead to double digits.
The Bees’ win, coupled with Brunswick’s upset of first-place Elyria, tightened up the GCC race. Medina heads into the weekend tied with Mentor, a half-game ahead of Elyria, which needs to make up a game with Strongsville. Brunswick, which is just a game back, comes to Medina on Feb. 3.