East Ridge 89 Cretin-Derham Hall 70: Five Things to Know

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>East Ridge not only handed the Raiders their first loss of the year, they did it convincingly. Here are five things to know.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>One. Played Harder</strong>. There was a second half play where CDH missed a shot and East Ridge flew the other way for a transition score. This play stood out because three Raider starters were on the floor and all three of them didn't run back on defense choosing to throw up hands or tilt their head back instead. I think this was about the time the Raider reserves came on. Meanwhile East Ridge was celebrating in grand fashion. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='1428992' first='James' last='Martin'] completely outplayed the Raider guards somewhat attempting to defend him, [player_tooltip player_id='2104513' first='Kyle' last='Frendt'] was far more physical in the paint than the Raider counterparts, and the East Ridge role players played harder and played their role with more effort. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Two. [player_tooltip player_id='1560882' first='Cedric' last='Tomes'] is the Top Junior Scorer in Minnesota</strong>. It's not just the 28 points a game, it's the daily example of crafty and skilled scoring. Right now Cedric is easily the best scorer in Minnesota's junior class and he had the week to back that up. He scored 42 points against Osseo earlier in the week setting a new school record and then tonight, Tomes had 32 in leading the Raptors past top ranked Cretin-Derham Hall!</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>To give you an idea about that accomplishment, CDH hadn't lost a game all year and they were the consensus number one.  But the Raptors came into that contest having won eight of nine, and they controlled the Raiders 89-70. It was Tomes that led the way.&nbsp; He's known for his three point stroke and few can shoot it like Cedric, but tonight it was relentless basket attacks against one of the quicker backcourts in the state that led to the 32 points.&nbsp; Tomes is one of the smartest players you will see.&nbsp; His body control going to the rim ranks with the best, and his vision reading the defense, and reading the ball screen, it's maybe the best I have seen.&nbsp; His patience is outstanding and Cedric is outstanding at finding his way to the rim to contort, extend, and/or angle a shot to the cup.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Tonight Tomes scored on 10 of 21 field goals with 11 of 12 free throws made for his 32.  He made a three but he only took three or four tonight, the focus was the attack.  He also had six boards and five assists. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Three. Kyle Wins Inside</strong>. Last night [player_tooltip player_id='2104513' first='Kyle' last='Frendt'] had 11 field goals made in 14 attempts scoring 22 points with 14 rebounds.  Frendt was the biggest reason that [player_tooltip player_id='2126094' first='Ty' last='Schlagel'] had trouble finishing around the rim and Frendt dominated the paint with 14 rebounds.  He also had two steals that went for transition scores!  His ball screening cleared paths and his defense in the halfcourt was solid. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Four. Emerging Option</strong>. With [player_tooltip player_id='1950404' first='Bennett' last='Skinner'] out, the worry was... who takes pressure off of [player_tooltip player_id='1560882' first='Cedric' last='Tomes']? Frendt can score in the paint but his scoring is within the offense and with effort off ball, not with creative one on one scoring. East Ridge needed another option and [player_tooltip player_id='1428992' first='James' last='Martin'] has emerged. The senior guard is scoring 15 points a game and last night had 22 points with four threes on 9 of 16 shooting. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Meanwhile, [player_tooltip player_id='1560868' first='Joseph' last='Mitchell III'] was solid for CDH at 18 points with four threes, and 6 of 11 shooting, but they likely needed a bit more with [player_tooltip player_id='1310206' first='Tommy' last='Ahneman'] out, [player_tooltip player_id='2126094' first='Ty' last='Schlagel'] scoring just nine points on 4 of 11 shooting, and [player_tooltip player_id='2126154' first='Julian' last='Smith'] making only 3 of 13 attempts for eight points. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Five. Going Forward</strong>... This is big for East Ridge who has now won 10 of their last 11 games improving to 14-5. They will likely go from just outside the top 25 all class power rankings, to potentially top ten in Class AAAA for next week! Don't be surprised if East Ridge wins six of their last seven. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>As for CDH, it's loss with some ugly parts, but I don't think it's more than just one loss. Ahneman will be back soon and this might just be the perfect chance for the Raider staff to grab the attention of players and get them ready for the stretch run. They should also have a good chance to win six of their last seven and maybe all seven if they can beat rival DeLaSalle. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->