'A tremendous performance by our guys'

TOLEDO — Jim Rucki will probably get a cake after achieving his 500th career win.The icing, well that would be where and how he got it.In a stunningly efficient performance, Findlay made 29 of its 35 2-point attempts, 33-of-42 shots overall and used strangulating defense to post a 77-50 win over Toledo St. John's at the Titan Dome on Friday."I'd like to bottle whatever routine we did the last couple of days or on the ride up here because that was a tremendous performance by our guys," said Rucki, who joined an elite field of 51 coaches in Ohio prep basketball history who have won 500 games."The energy was incredible. The bench energy was incredible. I can't say enough about how our guys played."In a Three Rivers Athletic Conference matchup between the two Northwest Ohio schools with the longest streak of nonlosing seasons (22 years), Findlay and St. John's have had some classic battles. For many years under long-time coach Ed Heintschel and currently under Mike Schoen, the Titans are especially tough on their home floor.In nine previous TRAC games played at the Titan Dome, only once had the Trojans come away with a win.Findlay changed all that Friday, however,Following a back an forth first quarter, St. John's forged a 22-22 tie on Carter Binkowski 3-point play with 6:10 left in the first half. Findlay found another gear, though, and shifted into it.Sam Weihrauch, a 6-foot senior in the starting lineup with 6-6 junior Luke Montgomery sidelined with a high ankle sprain, scored inside, Justin Roth converted a turnover into a basket and Max Roth turned two steals into points, including a two-hand slam that put Findlay up 30-22. Terrion Ross made it 33-22 converting another 3-point play after an offensive rebound by 6-2 senior Caleb Mueller, whose inside presence was also needed with Montgomery on the sidelines in a walking boot.Jake Bishop's 3-pointer from the left corner pushed Findlay's lead to 40-28 at the half.As impressive as Findlay's play was in the second quarters, the third quarter was one for the record books.With St. John's overplaying the ball and being aggressive on defense, Findlay remained poised, beating traps and double teams with pin-point passes to cutters breaking to the basket.Findlay attempted 10 shots in the period, made all 10, and doubled that 12-point halftime lead to 52-38 entering the final quarter.Ironically, Montgomery's injury had a direct effect on how Findlay played the game, forcing Rucki to go with a smaller, quicker, guard-oriented lineup."(St. John's) does not have a true 5 man (center), so that was a game where we needed to have the lineup we had in there," Rucki said."Their guys can all go off the dribble. We have the speed and quickness to match up with most teams and because of that we were able to take advantage of their defense. We saw we could get to the rim, either all the way or dishing it off for a lay-up."Roth led Findlay (10-4, 5-4 TRAC) with 26 points. Bishop had 14 and Ross and Weihrauch 12 each. Kenny Vaughn had 17 points and Marquez Frazier 13 for St. John's (8-5, 5-4)."We knew this was a big game right from the jump," Roth said."St. John's is always good, always strong. (But) We came in, we executed and did everything we had to. It was hard fought, but we had a lot of guys step up."This is a tough place to play, but we knew it would be really special to get that big for coach here."Combined, Mueller and Weihrauch were a perfect 9-for-9 from the field."A lot depends on the effort, the energy," Weihrauch said of the Trojans, who have often been out-sized but rarely outplayed this season."We came out with a lot of energy and wanted to get this win for coach. He deserves it."FINDLAY (10-4, 5-4 TRAC)J. Roth 1-2 0-0 2, Ross 5-7 2-2 12, M. Roth 10-12 4-4 26, Bishop 6-10 1-1 14, S. Weihrauch 6-6 0-0 12, Makrancy 0-0 0-0 0, Hill 1-1 0-0 2, Mueller 3-3 0-2 6, Ernst 1-1 0-0 3, R. Montgomery 0-0 0-0 0, L. Weihrauch 0-0 0-0 0. TOTALS: 33-42 7-10—77TOLEDO ST. JOHN'S (8-5, 5-4 TRAC)Vaughn 8-14 1-1 17, Hornbeak 3-11 0-0 8, Toler 1-3 0-0 2, Frazier 4-9 4-4 31, Taylor 1-1 0-1 2, Lake 0-1 0-0 0, Binkowski 3-3 1-1 8, Lichtenberg 0-1 0-0 0, Murphy 0-1 0-0 0, Green 0-0 0-0 0. TOTALS: 20-45 6-7—50.Findlay 20 20 22 15—77Toledo St. John's 19 9 10 12—503-Point GOALS: Findlay 4-7 (Ernst 1-1, M. Roth 2-4, Bishop 1-2); Toledo St. John's 4-16 (Vaughn 0-2, Hornbeak 2-7, Binkowski 1-1, Frazier 1-Lichtenberg 0-1, Murphy 0-1).REBOUNDS: Findlay 22 (J. Roth 4, Ross 4, Bishop 4, Mueller 4); Toledo St. John's (Binkowski 3).TURNoVERS: Findlay 7, Toledo St. John's 11.JUNIOR VARSITY: Findlay, 49-45.FRESHMAN: Toledo St. John's 37-24.