WICKLIFFE — Cuyahoga Heights couldn’t miss Tuesday night, rolling to a 74-31 victory over host Wickliffe behind a blistering shooting performance that put the game away early.
The Red Wolves poured in 74 points on 29-of-47 shooting from the field and 12-of-25 from three-point range, turning a strong start into a runaway win.
“The irony is that at practice yesterday we shot terribly, and the assistant coaches would attest to that. I told them that if we shot like that today, it would be a tough challenge for us,” said Cuyahoga Heights head coach Michael Tartara. “The fact that they didn’t shoot well yesterday and come back with those types of percentages is a testament to them moving, sharing the ball, and making the right passes. The guys got contagious shooting the ball off of each other.”
Cuyahoga Heights wasted little time setting the tone.
Gus Tartara scored nine points in the opening quarter, and Tyler Wheaton knocked down a pair of three-pointers as the Red Wolves built a 24-8 lead. Wickliffe got a late spark when Drew Rossman drilled a long triple at the buzzer, but the Blue Devils still trailed 24-11 after one.
The surge continued in the second quarter as Tartara added 10 more points and Nate Wilson found the range twice from deep, pushing the lead to 46-19 by halftime.
Cuyahoga Heights never let up after the break, cruising to the CVC crossover win and improving to 9-5 on the season.
“It was really great to see them have confidence. Good shooting cures bad basketball, and I truly believe when you’re shooting well, it gives you more pep in your step,” Tartara said. “It gives you more energy and efficiency on both ends of the ball, and I think we saw that tonight.”
The Red Wolves finished the night shooting 62 percent from the field and 48 percent from beyond the arc — numbers that may be hard to duplicate consistently but valuable as the postseason approaches.
“We have to keep the momentum going, and we don’t want to fall off,” Wheaton said. “We don’t want to peak and hit a cliff and drop. We want to keep it going and finish the rest of the season strong.”
Gus Tartara led all scorers with 26 points on 11-of-13 shooting, including four three-pointers. Wheaton added 13 points with three triples, and Xavier Maddox chipped in 12. Wilson finished with nine points, while Anthony Grissman scored six, all from long range.
Jaiden Johnson paced Wickliffe with nine points, and Rossman added eight as the Blue Devils slipped to 2-13.
Cuyahoga Heights hosts Brooklyn on Jan. 27, while Wickliffe travels to Berkshire on Jan. 23.
