USC, Lebo boys fall in WPIAL semifinals
Upper St. Clair players watch the final seconds tick away on their dream of competing in the WPIAL Class 6A finals as Central Catholic scored a decisive win, 65-41, against the Panthers in a semifinal clash on Feb. 28 at the AHN Arena in McMurray.
Matt Gaither (23) puts up a shot during Upper St. Clair's 65-41 loss to Central Catholic in a WPIAL Class 6A semifinal playoff game.
Julian Dahlem (2) attempts a shot against Debaba Tshiebwe (30) during WPIAL Class 6A semifinal playoff action. Dahlem scored nine points in Upper St. Clair's 65-41 loss to Central Catholic while Tshiebwe was one of four players in double figures, finishing with 11 markers.
Devin Hall rises to the basket during Upper St. Clair's 65-41 loss to Central Catholic in WPIAL Class 6A playoff action.
After winning quarterfinal games, Upper St. Clair (15-9) and Mt. Lebanon (16-8) dropped their semifinal contests and dropped into a consolation battle to determine the final District VII berth in the PIAA boys’ basketball tournament.
USC won the rubber match with Lebo and secured the berth with a thrilling victory, 55-4, on March 2 in the Panthers’ den. Julian Dahlem tossed in the game-winning free throws with six seconds to play.
Freshman Peja Strobl and junior Devin Hall led the offensive attack with 14 and 11 points respectively.
Previously, the Panthers succumbed to Central Catholic, 65-41, in a WPIAL Class 6A semifinal game played Feb. 28 at AHN Arena in McMurray.
USC fell behind 31-13 with 2:50 left in the first half and as much as 53-33 after three quarters against the Vikings (14-10) because the Panthers shot only 32 percent from the field. They were 7 of 20 from 3-point range, which is their speciality.
While Dante DePante (25), Randy Wilkerson (14), Payton Wehner (11) and Debaba Tshiebwe (11) all finished in double figures for Central, USC had no player in double digits. Christian Wieczenski, Julian Dahlem and Nick Sukernek all scored 9 points for the Panthers.
For USC, the loss came on the heels of a narrow win, 45-43, against Seneca Valley,
In that quarterfinal contest, the Panthers held a 31-14 advantage as well as a 41-23 third-quarter edge before squandering the lead with turnovers and missed shots, including three free throws down the stretch.
Dahlem, who led USC with 14 points, sealed the win with a pair of free throws with 39.4 seconds to play.
USC converted eight, 3-point field goals, six in the first half, however, the Panthers did not score any baskets in the fourth quarter. Their only points were on four free throws, two from Christian Ito.
Nick Sukernek and Matt Gaither had a pair of long-range shots each while Peja Strobl contributed another. Strobl scored half of his eight points in the first frame.
Meanwhile, Mt. Lebanon succumbed to New Castle (22-2) in its semifinal clash played Feb. 28 at North Allegheny.
In the 58-42 loss, Brody Barber fired in 16 points.
The contest turned in the second stanza.
After battling to a 7-7 deadlock, the Red Hurricanes went on a shooting spree to open up a 29-12 advantage. In the first three minutes of the frame, Isaiah Boice and Ralphie Blundo combined for five 3-pointers. The duo finished with 16 and 12 points respectively while Jonathan Anderson provided 16 markers.
Lebo earned its spot in the semifinals with a 55-50 win against Butler.
Riley Farabaugh was the hero with a double-double. He scored nine of his 17 points in the decisive fourth quarter and grabbed 11 rebounds.
Barber also finished in double digits, supplying 12 tallies for the Blue Devils.