Garfield Heights Stops Mentor Boys Basketball's Winning Streak

How many shots do the Mentor and Garfield Heights boys basketball teams need to trade before we designate this pairing a rivalry?

Both the Cardinals and Bulldogs have thrown their heaviest hits at the one another for the last year; and, on Friday, Garfield Heights landed a heavy blow with a 74-68 win.

This is Mentor's (17-2) first time losing in the state of Ohio this year. Their only other this season loss came against powerhouse Christ School in the finals of the Arby's Classic.

But their previous loss before that also came against Garfield Heights and ended their season. However, Mentor got revenge during a rematch earlier this season -- partly thanks to a 44-point, virtuoso performance from Justin Fritts.

Mentor was unable to get its scoring barrage started Friday. Before then, they had averaged more than 100 points in their last three games. It did not help that they were 8 for 28 from behind the 3-point line.

The Cardinals could have secured the NOC Valley Division title outright by winning against Garfield and again at Brunswick next week. However, they can still ensure a part of that title by beating Brunswick.

For more game coverage, check out both cleveland.com and The News-Herald.