'Fought like heck': Green holds off Jackson in intense Federal League boys basketball game

JACKSON TWP. — If Mark Kinsley had any doubts about what his Green High School boys basketball team is made out of, they are silenced after this week.

Green started quickly and held off host Jackson by a hair for a 73-72 win Friday night in an entertaining, well-played and somewhat testy Federal League game.

The Bulldogs' performance comes on the heels of a 61-53 win at GlenOak on Tuesday. Green had lost 58-55 at McKinley on Jan. 5, making this week a bit of a crossroads for the two-time defending league champion.

"We had to come back and go on the road against these two teams, and to play the way we did, I'm so proud of our guys," said Kinsley, who gained his 400th career coaching win in the victory against GlenOak. "They really fought like heck."

They've fought their way to the top of the standings. Green (8-2, 5-2) is tied for first with McKinley (6-4, 5-2), which was stunned at the horn by Hoover on Friday. GlenOak (7-2, 4-2) is alone in third, while Jackson (8-4, 4-3) and Hoover (8-3, 4-3) are tied for fourth, just a game back.

Jackson had two looks in the final seconds — a Cameron Weekley 3-pointer from the corner and a Kyle Monterrubio follow — for the win Friday. Neither dropped, capping a night that included Kinsley and Jackson head coach Tim Debevec exchanging pleasantries and needing to be separated by their assistants coming out of a timeout with 33.9 seconds left.

The coaches and referees were gathered near the scorers table discussing a substitution matter when things became heated. Both coaches brushed off the incident after the game, with Debevec saying, "That's just the emotions of the game. Nothing big. Mark is coaching hard and I'm coaching hard."

Green senior forward Brady Rollyson is a four-year varsity player, and he looked like it in the intensity of Friday night. The Ohio State baseball recruit totaled 25 points, six rebounds and five assists for the Bulldogs, who led 16-4 early and never trailed in the game.

Junior point guard Antonio Martin scored 11 points, all in the first half, while seniors Jarrett Taylor and Luke Jansen combined for 15 points, 10 rebounds and five assists.

The X-factor Friday was Green junior Anthony Fortunato, who stepped into the starting lineup with senior Lucas Bitong likely done for the season because of a wrist injury.

All Fortunato did was score a career-high 20 points and shoot 6-for-7 from the 3-point line, making Jackson pay for sagging defensively into the lane against Green's superior size.

"My teammates were setting me up for success all night," Fortunato said. "I was open and I shot it. It feels great. I've never done anything like that before."

Monterrubio was fantastic for Jackson, scoring 13 of his team-high 25 points in the fourth quarter to keep the Polar Bears on Green's heels. The junior added a team-high five rebounds.

Junior Mitch Finefrock made four 3-pointers and scored 20 points for the Polar Bears, who had their five-game winning streak snapped. Point guard Anthony Fuline, Jackson's lone senior, added 14 points.

"We could never just get over that hump to get the lead," Debevec said. "We were right there.

"That was a good high school game. Our league is tough. You've got to bring it every night."

The two teams combined to shoot 57.6% from the floor. They committed a combined four turnovers through three quarters before play became a little ragged in the fourth.

Kinsley's mind went back to the start of Friday when assessing his team's performance.

"We talked this week about how important first quarters are, and both games this week we've gotten off to really good starts," he said. "I think that's been a key. Not digging ourselves a hole. Jackson's guards are so good, man, you do not want to play from behind."

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This article originally appeared on The Repository: Ohio high school boys basketball: Green vs. Jackson in Federal League