CANTON–No.9 Kirtland upset No.1 Smithville, 81-72, in double-overtime of a Division VI regional semifinal win on Tuesday at Canton Memorial Fieldhouse.
The Hornets went into the second overtime tied at 64-64 but opened the frame with a quick 5-0 run to set the tone and win the game.
“When you’re playing in a game like this, every possession matters,” said Kirtland head coach Shawn McGregor. “When Vince (Carriero) got the three-point play to start the second overtime set the tone. That was just a senior wanting to make a play, and he made it. The resilience that they had to keep fighting back is just who they are. I’m proud of what they’ve done and who they are.”
Ben DiFranco scored off the backboard to get Kirtland out in front early, and with a 5-5 tie, Lucas Renfro scored on a cut, and Aiden Hurd knocked in a 3-pointer for a five-point edge.
Smithville closed the quarter on an 8-2 run for a 13-12 lead.
Hurd scored on a drive to the bucket, Renfro knocked down a pair of jumpers, including a 3-pointer, and Danny Alfieri connected on a corner triple, but the Smithies led 30-24 at the break.
Renfro and Hurd set the pace to open the second half with a pair of layups, and Carriero added eight points in the frame.
Renfro capped off a 19-17 run with an and-one, but Smithville led 46-43 after three.
DiFranco found Will Burt for a layup to open the fourth quarter, and Carriero scored in transition with an around-the-world finish for a 51-48 lead.
Hurd scored off a DiFranco feed, and Renfro knocked in another bucket, but the Smithies led 58-55. With less than a minute left, Renfro banged a 3-pointer for a tie, forcing overtime.
Renfro scored for a 62-60 edge, and Hurd delivered back-to-back scores for a 64-64 tie, forcing double overtime.
Carriero opened the frame with an and-one, and Renfro scored on consecutive breakaway layups, forcing Smithville into fouling for the remainder of the night. The Hornets went 11-of-15 from the charity stripe down the stretch to seal the win.
Kirtland delivered an all-time gutsy, upset performance in the Mecca of high school basketball in the area and consistently rose to the occasion against a 22-win team.
“All year long, we’ve had a lot of resolve to us,” McGregor said. “We played a lot of games where we got down and had to get ourselves back into (the game). Our strength of schedule and the teams that we play really prepared us for games like this, where we have to come from behind and get into situational basketball. The kids are buying in and playing extremely hard. The little things that they’re doing to get Ws is stuff you can’t even teach; it’s all heart.”
Hurd and DiFranco played key roles in the comeback win.
“We don’t win without any of the plays they made,” Carriero said of Hurd and DiFranco. “Every little bucket, steal made the difference. It’s a full team effort, and everybody played hard.”
Renfro paced all scorers with a career-high 31 points on 12-of-15 shooting, while Carriero followed up with 23 points, 19 of which came in the second half and the overtime periods.
Hurd pitched in with a colossal 16 points and three steals, Burt finished with six, Alfieri had three, and DiFranco added two points with 10 rebounds and three blocked shots.
Kirtland advanced to play Dalton in the Division VI, Region 21 championship on Friday at Canton Memorial Fieldhouse.
If a matchup of that magnitude between the Hornets and Bulldogs sounds eerily familiar it’s because Kirtland defeated Dalton, 41-6, in a regional championship game in football back on Nov. 11, 2024.
The two sides have clashed on the gridiron five times since 2016.
“Both teams are very good in football,” McGregor said. “Watching (Dalton) the game before you can see their physical, strong, disciplined. They’re football guys, just like us. It’s going to be quite a competitive game, and we’re looking forward to it.”
