Clingman leads Eagles past St. Paul

NORWALK — Things were getting tense. Looking to close out the regular season with a win that had historic value, the Monroeville boys basketball team turned to its four-year leader in crunch time. After St. Paul had the chance to complete a three-point play and pulled within six points (56-50) with still 2:43 left, Eagles senior Jimmy Clingman closed the door. The 1,000-point scorer capped an 8-of-8 night at the free-throw line with four in the final 2:18, then found classmate Gabe Howell on an assist for a basket as Monroeville left Harvey Keller Gymnasium with a 64-51 win in Firelands Conference play Friday night. Clingman scored a game-high 22 points on 7-of-11 shooting and added five rebounds and five assists as the Eagles improved to 13-9 overall and 9-5 in the FC. The win assured Monroeville a third straight second-place finish in the conference standings. The Eagles had not put together three straight finishes that high in the FC since current head coach Paul Roeder played from 1974-76. "It's been great, Aidan (Goodwin), myself and this senior class have been able to help turn Monroeville around and put us back on the basketball map," Clingman said. "That's been our biggest goal really, and it's been fun doing it." The Eagles got out to a fast start with a 12-5 lead at the 3:16 mark in the first quarter on a mid-range jumper by Goodwin. The Flyers (9-13, 7-7) responded with seven of the last 11 points in the quarter to close within 16-12. The teams continued to go back and forth in the second quarter, and Brock Houck came off the bench to score six of eight straight points by the Flyers to briefly give his team a 25-23 lead at the 1:42 mark. But just 20 seconds later, Gabe Howell drilled a 3-pointer, and the Eagles never trailed again. Schaub then got his own rebound on a blocked shot and finished at the rim just before the halftime buzzer to give the Eagles a 30-25 lead at the break. St. Paul was able to stay within striking distance in the third quarter as well. Monroeville led 38-31 at the 3:13 mark, only to see Korey Frazee answer with a 3 and a 38-34 deficit. The sophomore hit another 3 at the 1:26 mark to keep it at 43-39. But Goodwin scored at the 1:12 mark and Clingman added two free throws for a 47-39 lead. St. Paul sophomore Nolan McCall scored on a runner with 13.8 seconds left to make it 47-41 entering the fourth quarter. Frazee then hit a baseline jumper to make it 48-45 with 6:11 left, but then the Eagles began to take control for good. Gabe Howell made two foul shots, then scored on a short jumper for a 52-45 lead. Clingman found Schaub for a basket with 3:52 left, then on a rebound basket Blake Chapman capped an 8-0 run with an easy bucket for a 56-45 lead with 3:36 left. Houck scored to bring the Flyers within 56-50 with 2:43 left, then Clingman and Howell sealed the win. "Jimmy attacked the rim and got layups, which is what you want from a senior," Roeder said. "We didn't need the outside shots … we started the game hitting them, and that's fools gold sometimes. "It was good for our kids to keep their presence of mind and attack the rim. When we did that, we started playing better basketball." Schaub scored 15 points for Monroeville, followed by Howell with 12 points and 11 rebounds. Goodwin added 11 points and eight rebounds. "Getting points out of Schaub and Howell was key," Roeder said. "Aidan was strong again and Jimmy was a controlling presence out there. It was competitive, and we had to come over here and be focused." For St. Paul, Frazee scored 18 points on 7-of-14 shooting. Evan Wangler added 10 points, followed by Houck with nine and McCall with eight. St. Paul head coach Steve Minor also agreed on Clingman's play being the difference. "No doubt. To have a kid who can pull up at any spot on the floor and have confidence it's going in, and to do that for four years … it's too bad for Monroeville, but I'm not sad to see him and Goodwin go," Minor said. "I told both of them that they have made an impact and left a mark that will be left there forever," he added. "They have led them to a lot of wins than they were accustomed to for quite a while over there, and I give them a lot of credit for their careers." The Flyers are the No. 7 seed in the Willard district and face No. 4 Mansfield Christian (16-6) in Division IV sectional semifinal at 6 p.m. Wednesday in Shelby. "We gave some different guys a chance, and some of those guys Monroeville had not seen extensively in the first meeting and that probably helped a little," Minor said. "I think we were more physical tonight certainly than when we played them before. We limited out turnovers and got some rebounds. "We're still improving, which is great," he added. "We're not limping into the tournament even though we're on a losing streak. I don't think it's a bad position to be in." The No. 5-seeded Eagles face Crestline (5-16) at 6 p.m. Wednesday in a sectional semifinal at Crestview. "When Ken (Leber) and I decided to coach here again, a goal was to get us back to where we were," Roeder said. "For the kids and the community, we wanted them to have the benefit of success like we had. "To think we've put together four or five years here that hasn't been done since we played is a good feeling. To get this win before the tournament is big for our confidence and gets us ready." MONROEVILLE (13-9, 9-5) Aidan Goodwin 5-0—11; Gabe Howell 4-3—12; Landon Stein 1-0—2; Blake Schaub 4-5—15; Jimmy Clingman 7-8—22; Blake Chapman 1-0—2. TOTALS 22-16—64. ST. PAUL (9-13, 7-7) Michael Kirk 1-0—3; Korey Frazee 8-2—18; Brock Tice 1-1—3; Nolan McCall 3-0—8; Evan Wangler 5-0—10; Brock Houck 3-3—9. TOTALS 20-6—51. Monroeville 16 12 19 17 — 64 St. Paul 12 13 16 10 — 51 3-point FGs: (M) Schaub 2, Goodwin, Howell; (SP) Frazee 2, McCall 2, Kirk. JV: St. Paul, 47-42.