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‘We needed that’

Youthful Raiders earn 1st win

Tribune Chronicle / Joe Simon Warren G. Harding coach Andy Vlajkovich talks with members of his team Tuesday night during the Raiders’ 74-47 victory over Lakeside. It was Harding’s first home game and first victory of the season. It also was the Raiders’ first game in the All-American Conference Red Tier.

WARREN — As he held his 3-year-old son, Milan, during an interview with the media, Warren G. Harding basketball coach Andy Vlajkovich asked the sprouting toddler who he thought played well during the Raiders’ home opener against Lakeside.

“Dom,” whispered Milan, referring to Harding’s Dom McGhee, who scored a game-high 21 points.

The little man was only half right. McGhee was just one of several players who did well for the Raiders.

Harding dominated the Dragons from start to finish, earning its first victory, 74-47, in an All-American Conference, Red Tier matchup.

It was a much-needed rout for the Raiders (1-2, 1-0), who are breaking in five new starters as they look to capture a third-straight league championship.

“We needed that,” the bigger Vlajkovich said. “You can start doubting yourself. I don’t care who you are or what school you’re at, or how much success you’ve had 40, 50 years past. Every team is different. They know they wear that Warren across their shirt, and they do it with pride. This is a great group of kids.”

After opening the season with losses to East Cleveland Shaw and Poland, Harding broke through against Lakeside (2-2), which struggled handling the Raiders’ press defense. The Dragons turned the ball over 24 times and looked a bit shellshocked in the early going.

Harding turned Lakeside’s miscues into points by constantly moving the ball and finding open looks. McGhee, the point guard, played a role in both creating and making shots.

“Coach does a great job of game-planning and getting us great shots,” McGhee said. “And we like passing the ball to our teammates — whoever’s open.

“It’s a new group of guys, and we’re young. We do a good job playing hard, playing together and moving the ball. That’s our goal: Move the ball, get everybody involved and we’ll play well.”

The Raiders seemed intent on taking control early.

They began the game on a 20-6 run and held Lakeside without a bucket from midway through the first quarter until late in the second quarter, with Harding up 29-6 at one point. All five starters and two bench players scored in the first half, and Vlajkovich appreciated the Raiders sticking to the gameplan.

“This group is pretty fun to coach,” he said. “They’re trying to do a lot of the right things. We’re nowhere near a finished product yet, but you can tell that they want to play the right way. As a coach, the one thing you ask is that they try to play the right way.”

Forward Terrian Jackson also had a big game for Harding, scoring 14 points and grabbing seven rebounds. Tyre Marlowe, another inside force, added 10 points and eight boards, and Chris Hughes helped bring it all together with seven assists.

While it’s just one victory over a Lakeside team that has some deficiencies, the win could be a springboard for an inexperienced team that needed a confidence-booster.

“I hope they’re seeing why they’re having success,” Vlajkovich said. “They’re having success because they’re buying into something. It’s not just luck. … They know that the game’s only fun when everyone feels involved. That’s always been a trademark of our program.”

The Raiders travel to Youngstown East on Friday.

jsimon@tribtoday.com

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