Richmond Heights came out firing on all cylinders against Orange at the NEO Youth Elite Classic on Dec. 28. The Spartans held the Lions scoreless through the first three minutes. Orange had several runs to try to break back into the game, but time and again the Spartans turned them away for a 74-56 victory. Richmond Heights improves to 4-5, while Orange falls to 4-6. Richmond Heights started with a run from Dereon Barber, who hit a mid-range jumper and followed with a steal and a score. Jamir Jolly and Lucas Perillo added steals and run-outs for scores for the Spartans. They went on a 14-0 run before Orange found the bottom of the bucket. Coach Mel Burke was pleased with the efficiency on both ends of the floor in the opening frame. “What we preach is our effort,” Burke said. “Engine, attitude, those things that we come in every day and work on. That’s been our foundation and baseline. We make sure whether shots are going in or not that we are going to keep our energy up ad our effort. Our attitude at all times has to be up.” Orange then responded with a 10-0 run of their own, all coming from freshman Aaron Lewis off the bench. He hit a pair of tough layups to start before knocking down a pair of 3-pointers as Orange trailed, 18-11, at the end of the first. But the Spartans raced back to a double-figure lead with the leadership of Barber. He had a kick to Khyell Moreland for a layup, and on the following offensive possession, Barber had an offensive rebound on a missed 3-pointer and hit a mid-range jumper through contact. “It’s been good, there’s some newness for us, but a lot of us played JV together last year,” Barber said. “We’re experienced together. It’s more about just playing as a unit and continuing to develop together.” Barber had the opening bucket in the third, but then Orange took over. The Lions went on a 12-2 run, fueled by eight points from Dillon Mathur and a 4-5 showing from beyond the arc. But again, the Spartans weathered the storm. Barber had an and-one look off of an inbounds, while another layup from him and Lucas Perillo pushed the lead back to double figures going to the fourth. Barber led the way with 21 points, six rebounds and three assists, followed by Moreland with 20, Jolly with nine and Perillo with eight. Barber is the Spartans’ main ball handler, but Moreland and Perillo are also comfortable running the offense. Perillo added 10 boards and three assists from the paint. “It all goes back to what we’ve been focusing on in our development,” Burke said. “We want to be in these moments. I think it just shows what kind of we’ve been preaching. We can get a lot of shots that we want, whether it’s inside or outside. But we can pass up okay ones for good ones or good fo great. We just need to make sure that we’re focused.” Orange had another quick 8-0 run to open the fourth with a pair of Jaylhil Sheppard layups and one from Alex McCulloch and Chaz Rosiles each. Again, the Spartans had an answer as Sam Stain had an and-one opportunity and Jolly had a back-door dish to Barber. A final run for Richmond Heights on a Barber dish to Moreland for 3, a Perillo dish in the post to Jolly and a Jolly steal and score in transition closed the game. “Our coach at practice always has us stepping and making sure that we are always prepared,” Barber said. “It’s been more about the focus and less on making sure everything is going our ways.” Orange was led by Lewis with 18, Mathur with 14 and nine from Sheppard and McCulloch. Richmond Heights prepares for a trip to Holy Name on Dec. 30. The score Richmond Heights 74, Orange 56 ...read more read less