Mt. Lebanon advances, Upper St. Clair falls in semifinals
Andrew Casey and Landon Rauch walk off the court dejected after Upper St. Clair lost in overtime to Butler, 83-78, in the WPIAL Class 6A semifinal game.
Eleanor Bailey/The almanac
Upper St. Clair’s Andrew Casey, left, scored 15 points in the Panthers’ WPIAL playoff loss to Butler.
Andrew Casey puts a shot up against Ethan Morton. Morton scored 32 points and Drew Carney supplied 35 markers as Butler defeated Upper St. Clair, 83-78, in overtime. Casey finished with 15 points.
David Pantelis scores a bucket against Butler. The junior fired in 22 points before fouling out in regulation. Upper St. Clair went on to lose to Butler, 83-78, in overtime.
Eleanor Bailey/the almanac
Jake Hoffman drives to the basket against Central Catholic.
Joey King picks up the loose ball.
Mt. Lebanon (18-6) earned a return trip to the WPIAL Class 6A boys basketball championship game, but rival Upper St. Clair (19-4) failed in its attempt to join the Blue Devils.
While Lebo dispatched Central Catholic 48-32, the Panthers dropped an 83-78 overtime decision to Butler in the nightcap of a semifinal doubleheader played Feb. 26 at Robert Morris University’s UPMC Events Center.
“Heartbreaking,” said USC head coach Danny Holzer of the defeat.
“I was so proud of my kids. Their effort was unbelievable. We made our community proud. We played as good and as gritty as we could.”
So too, did Ethan Morton. The Purdue recruit rallied the Golden Tornado from three, four-point deficits in the fourth quarter as well as five point with under a minute to play.
His three-point play tied the contest, forcing the extra period. He also made two free throws in the time span.
Morton then scored the first bucket in overtime on a driving shot with 1:23 remaining.
After Butler teammate Devin Carney’s bucket, Morton sealed the victory with two free throws. Morton finished with 32 points while Carney led all scorers with 35, including 21 in the first half.
“They have more than Ethan Morton. He really stepped up for sure,” Holzer said. “With guys like Carney and Morton and company, that is why they are who they are.”
David Pantelis scored 22 points to lead the Panthers, while Landon Rauch added 14 before both fouled out in regulation.
Luke Gensler and Andrew Casey pitched in 16 and 15 points, respectively.
“We were making great defensive plays and great defensive stops and kept ourselves in a position to be able to win but it just didn’t go our way,” said Holzer, whose team held a 73-69 advantage with 2:25 to play in the fourth quarter.
Things could have gone USC’s way had the Panthers converted at the charity stripe down the stretch. They connected on only one of five bonus free throw opportunities in the fourth quarter. Also while USC buried 10 3-pointers in the game, they connected on just one of 10 of their attempts from beyond the arc in the final 12 minutes of action.
Meanwhile, Lebo made every possession count as it toppled Central Catholic (14-11).
“We make sure that every player knows what a good shot it and what a bad shot is,” said Lebo head coach Joe David. “It’s a lot of practice and a culture of how we play the game. We take turns with the basketball, but we also feed the hot hand.”
Jake Hoffman supplemented his 40-point performance in a quarterfinal win against Bethel Park with a 21-point effort against Central. The senior was 10 of 19 from the field.
Joey King followed with nine points while Blaine Gartley, Jake Reinke and Andy Sapp provided six points each.
“We don’t care who scores the points,” Gartley said. “Hoff is our main player, but he’s an unselfish player. He wants the ball to go in the bucket. It doesn’t matter who scores.”
Getting the jump early on the Vikings was key. Lebo stretched a 16-6 first-quarter edge to 22-12 by intermission.
“We knew they were going to puff their chest and guard us tight,” said Gartley. “We just had to be strong with the ball. Hats off to our second team. Those guys did a great job in practice in preparing us and really being physical on us.
CV girls advance
Chartiers Valley defeated Thomas Jefferson 65-43 to earn its second straight trip to the Petersen Events Center to defend its Class 5A girls basketball title.
Hallie Cowan led the way for the Colts with 29 points. She buried six, 3-pointers.
Megan McConnell scored 15 points and Aislin Malcolm added 10 for the Colts, who extended their winning streak to 54 games.