Basketball Recap: Catholic Central's Higher State Rank on Full Display on Friday

Catholic Central lost to Bellaire back in December of 2022, but they didn't allow them the same satisfaction on Friday. The Catholic Central Crusaders walked away with a 65-54 win over the Bellaire Big Reds. Given the Crusaders' advantage in MaxPreps' Ohio basketball rankings (they are ranked 184th, while the Big Reds are ranked 449th), the result wasn't entirely unexpected.

Despite the loss, Bellaire saw an underclassman step up: sophomore Raekwon Pettigrew went 9 of 19 on his way to 25 points and seven boards. The contest was Pettigrew's third in a row with at least ten points. The team also got some help courtesy of Caleb Jewell, who posted 15 points.

Crusaders

Previous 2 Games

12/27/24 vs Bellaire	65-54
12/17/24 vs Buckeye Local	72-45

The victory made it two in a row for Catholic Central and bumps their season record up to 7-1. As for Bellaire, they have been struggling recently as they've lost three of their last four matchups, which put a noticeable dent in their 4-5 record this season.

Catholic Central wasted no time getting back out on the court and has already played their next game, a 55-41 win against Oak Glen on the 28th. As for Bellaire, they will venture away from home to face off against Union Local at 7:30 p.m. on January 3, 2025. Bellaire is strutting in with some offensive muscle as they've averaged 58.7 points per game this season.