The Lakewood Rangers boy's basketball team had the honor of hosting the top ranked team in Plain Dealer top-25 poll last Tuesday night. The Garfield Heights Bulldogs came into town riding high with a 14-0 record but had to battle to the end to defeat the Rangers 79-68 in a Northeast Ohio Conference showdown. It was the second time this season the Rangers had to battle the number one team; St. Edward also came into Lakewood’s east gymnasium on December 15 on top of the PD poll.

Forward Joshua Reagan came off the bench to lead the Rangers with 16 points. Reagan, a 6-4 senior, also grabbed nine rebounds. Joseph Mastrodonato contributed 15 points for Lakewood, including nine in the fourth quarter to lead a comeback that saw the Rangers cut a 19-point Bulldog lead to just 7 points with 56 seconds remaining in the game.

After trading baskets for most of the first period, Garfield Heights pulled out to a 10-point lead with five minutes remaining in the half. Carl Jones scored 12 of his 18 points for the Bulldogs in the first half. Center Robert Wilson led Garfield Heights with 20 points. Wilson is headed to the University of Wisconsin next fall to play for coach Bo Ryan.

Although the Rangers fell to 8-7 after Tuesday’s loss, they have nearly doubled last year's win total and were rewarded with the fourth seed in the Brecksville sectional-district tournament. Lakewood will open up tournament play February 19 at 6 pm against John Marshall. A win against the Lawyers and another against Grafton Midview in the sectional final could set up a rematch with cross town rival St. Edward. The top-seeded Eagles open tournament play February 22 against the winner of the Berea-Parma game.