Staff photo / Neel Madhavan. Ursuline senior Jaden Payne (12) surveys the floor while being defended by Canfield junior Ben Weaver (1) during the second game of the United Way Holiday Classic at Poland on Saturday.

POLAND — Ursuline has high expectations for senior forward Jaden Payne.

After showing flashes of dominance last season, Payne has stepped into a leading role for the Fighting Irish this year. On Saturday, with Ursuline clinging to a narrow lead late against Canfield, the Irish made a concerted effort to get the ball to Payne in the post.

He delivered for the Irish when they needed it most. Payne carried Ursuline’s offense in the fourth quarter, finishing with 23 points, as the Irish held off the Cardinals 70-60 in the second game of the United Way Holiday Classic at Poland Seminary High School.

“I thought we played well, but the difference in the game is Jaden Payne,” Ursuline head coach Keith Gunther said. “You got a big guy that’s 6-foot-7 that can do what he can do around the block, it just changes the game. He’s just so strong, so tough around the basket. He basically dominated when he was on the floor and made it really tough for (Canfield) to match up.”

Despite trailing by nine at halftime and by double digits early in the second half, Canfield was able to rally in the third quarter to cut the deficit to three by the end of the frame.

Junior Drew Shapiro started heating up from beyond the arc, and six different Cardinals players were able to record baskets during the quarter.

“Our guys didn’t quit, and they fought their butts off,” Canfield head coach John Cullen said. “We took advantage of some of their weaknesses and they took advantage of our weaknesses. That’s what basketball is all about.”

Now holding onto just a 53-50 lead to start the fourth quarter, Ursuline went to Payne, who scored 11 of his 23 points in that final period to help put the game away for the Irish.

As Payne used his size, hands, footwork and athleticism to get to the basket, the Cardinals had no answer for him. Payne went 9-for-11 at the free-throw line during the fourth quarter.

“We told (Payne) that the ball was coming down to him,” Gunther said. “I said, ‘Guys, don’t worry about shooting the ball from the perimeter, just pound it into him — let’s play off of him.’ We did a great job of getting it in, and he was finishing and then he was making his free throws. If you’ve got a big like that, and all you can do is foul him, and then he can make free throws — it makes it tough to stop.”

Both teams shot the ball at an efficient clip all game, especially in the first half. Ursuline shot 55.8% from the field, while Canfield hit 53.3% of its shots.

After a tight first quarter, freshman Jaylen Gunther was key for Ursuline in the second quarter in helping the Irish create some separation heading into halftime. He scored 11 of his game-total 16 points during the period.

“We know we’re a really good shooting team,” Gunther said. “When (Payne) is getting doubled and tripled, it opens it up for a lot of our other guys. … We just grinded out a game there. Canfield is really good. We all knew that and everybody in our area knew they were really good with a lot of players returning, so that’s a big win for us. … Just a great team effort for us. I love how we play as a team. We don’t play selfish, and we play together.”

For Canfield, senior Dom Cruz had the hot hand early. He hit four three-pointers in the first half and finished the game with 17 points to lead the Cardinals. But after Cruz scored 14 points before halftime, Ursuline changed things up defensively.

In the second half, the Irish put guard Dashaun Will on Cruz to limit his effectiveness. Cruz scored just three points the rest of the game.

“D-Will kind of took Dom out of it,” Cullen said. “(Will) stayed with him and he’s one of the better defenders we’ll play against.”

But with Will taking Cruz out of the game, Shapiro picked up where Cruz left off and carried Canfield’s offense in the second half. Shapiro knocked down four three-pointers after the break and finished the game with 15 points for the Cardinals.

“That’s a game that might end up being a tournament game later on,” Cullen said. “I hope so because I think we will get better and so will they. So it will be even better next time.”

nmadhavan@tribtoday.com