SHELBY — If Joe Balogh and Troy Schwemley went to dinner together, chances are one could order for the both of them.
That’s how well the veteran Ontario and Shelby basketball coaches know one another.
That knowledge played out in yet another white-knuckle Northern Ohio League basketball game on Friday night with Ontario escaping with a 63-60 overtime victory.
Often during during the game, each coach would listen to the other call an offensive set and would then call a defense for his own team.
“We don’t have a lot of secrets,” Balogh said with a laugh afterward. “When you play each other as much as we do, you’re not often going to get your first (offensive) option. It’s usually your third or fourth option.
“It comes down to execution and we are fortunate to have some guys who made plays tonight,” he said.
It was the final NOL battle between the two rivals as the historic league concludes its final season before disbanding. Ontario heads to the Mid-Ohio Athletic Conference next year while Shelby joins the Sandusky Bay Conference.
The Warriors are 11-5 overall and 6-3 in the league. The Whippets, who lost by six at Ontario earlier this season, fell to 9-8 overall and also 6-3 in the league.
BIGGEST PLAY: The game’s single biggest play came with just 17 seconds left in regulation. Trailing 57-54, Ontario senior guard Trey Jordan drove off a high pick set by freshman forward Chance Mott.
As the Shelby defense reacted, Jordan flipped the ball to the right corner and into the hands of senior guard Quan Jackson, who nailed a triple to tie the game.
Ontario then outscored Shelby 6-3 in the extra period as the Whippets missed all six of their shots during OT.
“We just needed one more defensive stop or one more offensive finish,” Schwemley said, admitting both teams know one another well. “Both of us try to throw in some new wrinkles, but it just comes down to making the right play.
“We were in a position to win,” Schwemley said. “We had a three-point lead and we were playing good defense. I don’t know how Jackson got that open in the corner. That’s been a problem all year. We have to find a way to finish games.”
“We over-helped on Trey and Quan just shot it over us. It was a gutsy shot. In that situation, you don’t want to give them the three. Make them earn the points at the line. Just don’t give up the three,” Schwemley said.
RIVALRY MATTERS: Jordan, who led Ontario with 23 points, said it’s tough to beat a rival like Shelby twice in one season.
“Their guards are phenomenal,” he said. “They run the entire game. They take the ball to the basket and they can also shoot it from the outside. You have to pick your poison.”
The 6-0 Jordan is among the area’s assists leaders, averaging around six per game. He and Jackson are also among the top 3-point scorers in the area.
“I had a height mismatch most of the night so I just wanted to get into the lane as much as I could,” Jordan said.
Schwemley said his team had worked on defending the very plays Jordan described.
“It just came down to Trey Jordan making some great plays,” he said. “Sometimes great offense beats great defense.”
Both coaches said they will miss the twice-yearly NOL battles.
“It’s sad to think this was the last time we play Shelby in the NOL,” Balogh said. “We will miss that rivalry, but we will still play them once a year.”
BY THE NUMBERS: Jackson finished with 11 points for Ontario and Mott added 10. Uriah Gieseler led Shelby with 17 points. Hill added 15 and Hunter Hoffman scored 11 points.
Ontario shot 46 percent from the field (26 of 56) and 50 percent from the foul line (five of 10). Shelby hit 37 percent from the field (20 of 55) but added 74 percent from the line (17 of 23).
Shelby had a 42-31 edge in rebounding. Gieseler and Hoffman each had 14. The Whippets had 10 turnovers compared to seven for the Warriors.
UP NEXT: Ontario is at Clear Fork tonight in a non-league game. Shelby travels to Clyde tonight in another NOL game.
