The Ravenna Ravens boys’ basketball team was not afraid to attack the basket in their season opener against Newton Falls last Saturday evening in Trumbull County, but could not find the net often enough, losing 50-43 against the Tigers.
“We were pretty close,” said Coach Marlon Jones. “At one point we were up by three, down by three, lost by seven so it was an up-and-down game for us. Ultimately it was our game to win and our game to lose as well.”
It marked the fourth loss in six season openers against Newton Falls since the Ravens (0-1, 0-0) started competing against them annually in their season opener, beginning in the 2018-19 season. The schools did not face each other in the 2020-21 season due to COVID restrictions.
Trailing 39-34 entering the fourth period, it became a game of free throws as the teams combined to attempt 17 foul shots. Although Newton Falls shot only five-of-12 from the line, the Ravens did not fare much better, only knocking down one of five free throw attempts in the final period.
The fifth-year coach noted that the Ravens stayed in striking distance thanks to some stout defense in the final minutes, cutting the lead to two points but needing to rely on Newton Falls continuing to miss free throws. Ravenna’s comeback was thwarted by continuing to struggle to shoot the ball and its fate was sealed when it committed a flagrant foul on one of the Tigers’ final free throws, giving them two more free throws and an additional possession.
According to Jones, while Ravenna committed some untimely miscues, it was doomed by not converting free throw opportunities, shooting only eight-of-23 from the line.
“Even though we went to the line 21 times, we have to do a better job because those are easy points,” he said.
Jones also added that the despite allowing 15 or fewer points in each of the quarters, Ravenna could have done a better job of preventing the Tigers from drawing fouls, especially in the final period.
“We did not do a very good job. We started off with a technical foul and they made both free throws and then we had two more technical throughout the game and had the intentional foul so those were turning points,” he said.
While the ending was not the result Ravenna wanted, Jones noted that it did not diminish what was a very competitive game. The teams remained deadlocked for most of the first half until Newton Falls took a three-point advantage into the half after the Ravens suffered a defensive breakdown in the final seconds and surrendered an open shot to fall behind 28-25.
“We were able to cause a lot of turnovers,” Jones said. “We were not able to shoot the ball particularly well, we gave Newton Falls a lot of opportunities and gave them a lot of open shots. They are a well-coached team and their players were able to knock down open shots.”
Newton Falls only buried three 3-point baskets in the game but the Ravens did not convert any shots from behind the arc shots, which was another glaring issue in the loss.
Jones acknowledged that Ravenna had some open looks from beyond the arc but added that he wanted his team to attack the basket early and often and force the Tigers to commit some early fouls so his team could capitalize on the new foul rules adopted by the Ohio High School Athletic Association this season. The new rule provides that any team that commits five fouls in a quarter puts the other team in a penalty situation and every foul after that results in two free throw opportunities for the opposing team.
Jones said he was impressed with the confidence that his squad showed, something that was missing last year as most of Ravenna’s players were receiving varsity minutes for the first time in their careers.
Although the Ravens have an entirely new starting five this year, each member received key minutes off the bench last season and returned six of their minute leaders, including four seniors in Curtis Ross, Jaxon Kelly, Bryant Thompson and Tykwon Ward.
“It has given them the opportunity to play at a high level and get them to understand that the speed of the game is different at the varsity level than it is a junior varsity level,” Jones said. “It is a learning curve for them still but they keep working hard.”
Following their home opener against the Metro Athletic Conference rival Norton on Tuesday evening and a road game against MAC foe Woodridge on Thursday night, the Ravens will return to the court on Dec. 12 to host MAC rival Akron Springfield at the James L. Coll Gymnasium at 7:30 p.m.
