BOYS BASKETBALL

Bay senior forward Derek Riedel (Photo by Larry Bennet)

When the Rockets tried to get more aggressive, all they heard were referees' whistles. Senior forward Derek Riedel was forced to sit out the game for two extended periods -- first for getting into foul trouble early and second for an injury to his lip.

Both teams appeared shaky during the first half and made frequent turnovers. But Padua senior center Matt Huml helped the Bruins pull to a 20-11 lead by scoring three consecutive field goals to end the first quarter.

Padua's Matt Jankowski, who led the Bruins with 24 points, hit a long three-pointer midway through the second quarter. But Bay junior guard Trevor Wenzell responded with a three-pointer of his own to make the score Bay 23, Padua 25, one of several points in the second quarter where the Rockets pulled to within two. Senior guard Joe Calabretta hit a jump shot with three seconds left in the first half to cut the Padua lead to single digits, 33-25.

Bay's full-court press was ineffective against the Bruins, and Padua used its size advantage effectively throughout the first half. When Bay got more physical in the third quarter, they only got into foul trouble.

Riedel was called for his third foul early in the third quarter. Still Bay stayed close. Another three-pointer by Wenzell pulled the Rockets to within one with just over two minutes left in the third.

But seconds later, Riedel got injured while going to the basket, but the refs called the foul on the Bay forward. During the nearly three-minute delay while small puddles of Riedel's blood were being wiped from the court, Bay's normally reserved coach Scott Sharp ripped the officials for missing the call.

"The kid's head came back and hit me right in the lip," Riedel said after the game, "and my teeth went through my lip so I got to get stitches."

With their biggest player being treated in the locker room, Bay stayed close, tying the game on a three-pointer by senior guard Joe Stark with just over a minute left in the third.

With 6:34 left in the fourth, Wenzell gave Bay its first lead since early on with two foul shots to make it 46-45. And with just over five minutes left, two free throws by senior guard Dan Howarth gave Bay a two-point lead.

But shortly afterwards, Howarth and junior forward B.J. Baran each incurred a fourth foul. Two key Padua steals, along with Bay's foul troubles, helped the Bruins pull away from there.

"Once we got to the point where we had to foul, that was pretty much it as long as they got the foul shots," Sharp said.

Baran fouled out with 2:44 left. And Riedel, who had returned with 3:45 left in the fourth, fouled out with 2:09 left.

The Bruins outscored the Rockets 23-15 in the final quarter.

Sharp praised the way his younger players, especially Wenzell, who led the Rockets with 19 points, took charge while Riedel was on the bench.

"Derek sat for an extended period of time tonight," Sharp said, "and the young guys really stepped up and put us in a position to win. We just couldn't get over that hump though."

Padua head coach Mitch Gerycz acknowledged his team let Wenzell get open for shots too often.

"Against them you have to try and pressure their guards and not let them spot up," said Gerycz, who credited his junior forward Nate Ritter with stepping up his play late in the game. Ritter finished with seven points.

Padua, which started the season 4-9 and was unseeded in the district tournament, increased its record to 13-11. Bay finishes at 11-12.