ROCKY RIVER, Ohio (Jan. 30, 2023) -- Rocky River has had many a sharp performance in this 2022-23 season. Monday's game -- a quarterfinal in the Great Lakes Conference Tournament -- was not one of them. The Pirates, though victorious over a four-win Holy Name, struggled with their shooting for long stretches in a game they would eventually claim 48-38.
Only a strong third period -- after Rocky River had gone into halftime leading 20-16 -- saved the Pirates from shooting under 25% for the game (they shot 30.9%). The home five struggled to get any separation against a Green Wave team that had lost four of its last five heading in, with three of those losses being by 24 points or more.
The Maroon & White led 11-10 midway through the second quarter. They led 20-19 after the first shot of the third quarter, which was a 3-ball drained by Holy Name senior Schmock. River inexplicably had no answer for Schmock, who would hit five treys in the game, often with plenty of shooting space with which to work.
Only a 14-1 run the rest of the way in the third saved the Pirates. In the other 24 minutes-and-10 seconds of game action, the Green Wave (4-14) outscored River.
Junior forward Ava Patti paced the Pirates in that third frame and at both ends of the floor. But even then, River's strengths were poorly leveraged by numerous misses from close proximity. For example, the Buccaneers bashed their way to 20 offensive rebounds, only to turn them into nine second-chance points.
Rocky River (15-4) did eventually push its lead to 21 points (44-23) by the mid-fourth, but a game Holy Name squad finished strong and continued to get good production from Schmock, who finished with 17 points, and fellow senior Izzy Rodriguez, who tallied eight.
The eventual victory marked the seventh in a row for the the Pirates. It was earned with River shooting 30.9% from the floor and the Green Wave shooting 35%, with the Pirates out-rebounding their visitors 39-28, and with the Maroon & White being a plus-6 (16-to-22) in the turnover exchange.
The Pirates' top individual performances were logged by senior Annika Mocho (12 points, six rebounds, six steals), Patti (9P, 10R), and junior Maeve Kelly (6P, 7R). The Double-R -- the West Division No. 2 seed in the tournament -- now moves on to face West No. 1 Elyria Catholic in a Wednesday semifinal at ECHS. The Panthers will be looking for their third win of the season over the Pirates.
CANNON FIRE ...
STEAL-Y EYED SENIOR: Guard Annika Mocho has now ledgered six-or-more steals in six of her last seven games. Mocho has 59 steals for the season; only Ava Patti (65) has recorded more. Through 19 games, the Double-R is averaging 13.5 steals per game, up from 13.1 a year ago.
MORE BRACKETS: Brackets for the 2023 DI OHSAA Girls Basketball Tournament were released Sunday. Rocky River was tabbed as the No. 8 seed in DI Region 2. The Pirates have a bye in the
Northeast 6 District bracket; they will play the winner of No. 12 Avon-No. 31 Garfield Heights at home on Feb. 16. A win in that game would net River a round-3 home game on Feb. 21.
RENEWING ACQUAINTANCES: Monday's match-up at Rocky River Gymnasium marked the first meeting between Rocky River and Holy Name since Feb. 6, 2021. The River victory marked the Pirates' seventh in a row over the Green Wave. The margin of victory was the tightest in a series game since Dec. 14, 2019, when RRHS defeated HNHS 36-29.