HS Boys’ Hoops Roundup: Nativity clinches final D-II spot; Tri-Valley, Pottsville, Blue Mountain roll in final league games
Nativity's Trey Keating (30) watches his shot head toward the basket (Photo by Eli Doyle)
COAL TWP. — Trey Keating delivered a massive performance when Nativity needed it most.
Keating led all scorers with 34 points, 11 rebounds and five steals as the Hilltoppers punched their ticket to the Schuylkill League playoffs Tuesday night, edging Lourdes 71-68 in overtime on the road to secure the third and final Division II playoff berth.
Keating was relentless attacking the basket and steady at the line, going 9-for-10 on free throws, and hitting a buzzer-beating half-court shot to send the game to overtime at the end of regulation (see below). Jake Bowman chipped in 10 points for Nativity, Nick Clarke added nine.
Brighton Scicchitano netted a team-high 25 points for the Red Raiders, while Johnny Rishel poured in 13, and Gaven Renn and Trebor Moore each added 11.
The win locked the Hilltoppers into the Division II third seed, setting up a quarterfinal matchup against the Division I second seeded Pottsville (16-6) in the Schuylkill League quarterfinals Saturday at 5 p.m. at Martz Hall.
NATIVITY (71) — Clarke 3 1-1 9, Bowman 4 2-3 12, Pasker 2 3-4 7, Lutzkanin 3 0-0 7, Swartz 0 0-0 0, Holley 0 2-2 2, Keating 9 9-10 34. Totals 19 17-20 71.
LOURDES (68) — Scicchitano 9 4-8 25, G. Renn 5 1-2 11, Moore 4 0-0 11, J. Rishel 0 2-4 2, B. Rishel 6 1-2 13, Williams 3 0-1 6, B. Renn 0 0-0 0. Totals 27 8-17 68.
| Team | 1Q | 2Q | 3Q | 4Q | OT | FINAL |
| Nat (11-11, 8-6) | 15 | 11 | 19 | 19 | 7 | 71 |
| Lou (9-12, 3-11) | 15 | 22 | 13 | 14 | 4 | 68 |
3-point FGs: Clarke 2, Bowman 2, Lutzkanin, Keating 7,
Officials: James Misstishin, K. Dean
JV Score: Lourdes 45-43
Tri-Valley 81, Schuylkill Haven 69
HEGINS — Trey Porter led Tri-Valley with 25 points as the Dawgs defeated Schuylkill Haven in a Division II game to finish the schedule unbeaten in league play.
Braeden Doyle added 25 points and Kingsley Johnson chipped in 16 as Tri-Valley pulled away with a strong second and third quarter.
Schuylkill Haven was led by Alan Evans with 24 points, while Justin Watcher added 15.
The Dawgs travel to Minersville on Thursday to finish the regular season schedule with a non-league game in what could be an appetizer for the Schuylkill League playoffs. Game time is set for 7:30 p.m. and the game will be air live on T102.
SCHUYLKILL HAVEN (69) — Evans 9 2-4 24, Diehl 4 0-0 10, Kelly 4 0-0 11, Watcher 6 3-3 15, Heim 1 3-5 5, Lucas 1 0-0 2, Tracey 0 0-0 0, Hinnersnitz 0 0-0 0, Shappell 1 0-0 2. Totals 26 8-12 69.
TRI-VALLEY (81) — Carl 3 2-7 8, Miller 1 1-4 3, Porter 11 1-1 25, Johnson 5 3-4 16, Doyle 9 3-3 23, Klock 3 0-0 6, Clemmer 0 0-0 0, C. Troutman 0 0-0 0, T. Troutman 0 0-0 0, Olmos 0 0-0 0, Kaslavage 0 0-0 0. Totals 32 10-19 81.
| Team | 1Q | 2Q | 3Q | 4Q | Final |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| SH (15-7, 9-5) | 18 | 9 | 21 | 21 | 69 |
| TV (20-1, 14-0) | 21 | 23 | 24 | 16 | 81 |
3-point FGs: Evans 4, Diehl 2, Kelly 3, Porter 2, Johnson 3, Doyle 2
Officials: Towle, Melusky, J. Dean
Pottsville 76, Panther Valley 40
POTTSVILLE — Christian Alvarez scored a game-high 20 points to lead Pottsville past Panther Valley in a Division I game.
Davey Kunstek added 18 points and Ryder Bowers chipped in 15 as the Crimson Tide built a 40-26 halftime lead and cruised the rest of the way.
Panther Valley was led by Jake Moyer with 13 points.
PANTHER VALLEY (40) — Moyer 5 2-2 13, Crampsie 0 0-0 0, McArdle 2 2-2 7, Breiner 2 2-4 6, Mitchell 0 0-0 0, Gjoca 0 0-0 0, Wehr 4 0-0 9, Baneravage 0 0-0 0, Munoz 0 0-0 0, Thomas 1 1-3 3, Maynard 0 0-0 0, Williams 1 0-0 2. Totals 15 7-11 40.
POTTSVILLE (76) — Killian 0 0-0 0, Frantz 1 0-1 2, Hobbs 0 0-0 0, McGinley 3 0-0 7, Allen 1 0-0 2, Herndon 1 1-2 4, Bainbridge 0 0-0 0, Leskin 1 0-0 2, Alvarez 9 1-1 20, Bowers 5 0-0 15, Eroh 0 0-0 0, Kunstek 7 1-2 18, Clews 2 0-0 4, Kimber 0 0-0 0, Viars 1 0-0 2, Oswald 0 0-0 0, Baker 0 0-0 0. Totals 31 3-6 76.
| Team | 1Q | 2Q | 3Q | 4Q | Final |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PV (8-14, 3-11) | 13 | 13 | 11 | 3 | 40 |
| Po (16-6, 12-2) | 20 | 20 | 25 | 11 | 76 |
3-point FGs: Moyer, McArdle, Wehr, McGinley, Herndon, Alvarez, Bowers 5, Kunstek 3,
Officials: Bulka, Marquardt, Gerald Misstishin
JV Score: Pottsville 47-40
Blue Mountain 76, Mahanoy Area 35
ORWIGSBURG — Tyierre Meade poured in 25 points as Blue Mountain rolled past Mahanoy Area in Division I action.
Cohen Werner added 18 points, while Cohen Kirby collected 12 and Beck Henninger chipped in 11.
The Golden Bears were paced by Connor Bowman with 19 points.
MAHANOY AREA (35) — Bowman 7 0-0 19, Perez 1 0-0 2, Wagner 0 0-0 0, DiCasimirro 0 1-2 1, Lebby 0 0-0 0, Smith 0 0-0 0, Contreras 0 0-0 0, Corona 0 0-0 0, Ramos 0 0-0 0, Byrne 1 0-0 2, Kowalchick 3 0-0 7, Zilker 2 0-0 4. Totals 14 1-2 35.
BLUE MOUNTAIN (76) — Meade 10 4-4 25, Setlock 1 0-0 2, Kirby 4 4-4 12, Pritiskutch 1 0-0 2, DiSante 0 0-0 0, Singh 0 0-0 0, Werner 8 1-3 18, Henninger 4 0-0 11, McDonough 0 0-0 0, Wargo 1 2-2 4, Schuster 0 0-0 0, Gaddy 1 0-0 2. Totals 30 11-13 76.
| Team | 1Q | 2Q | 3Q | 4Q | Final |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mah (7-13, 4-9) | 13 | 6 | 2 | 14 | 35 |
| BM (14-7, 10-4) | 23 | 21 | 16 | 16 | 76 |
3-point FGs: Bowman 5, Kowalchick, Meade, Werner, Henniger 3
Officials: Rodweiler, Donetelli, Gildner
JV Score: Blue Mountain 41-36
North Schuylkill 48, Tamaqua 43
TAMAQUA — Cam Kacilowicz collected a game-high 16 points as North Schuylkill used a strong third quarter to defeat Tamaqua in Division I action.
Xavier McNally added 15 points for the Spartans.
Tamaqua was led by Terrence McDowell with 13 points, while Chance Makovec added 10.
NORTH SCHUYLKILL (48) — Cairo 1 0-0 2, Damiter 0 0-0 0, Maziekas 2 0-2 4, Mengel 0 4-4 4, Kacilowicz 5 4-5 16, Nelson 3 1-4 7, McNally 4 7-7 15, Gallagher 0 0-0 0, Cabral 0 0-0 0. Totals 15 16-22 48.
TAMAQUA (43) — Chalk 0 0-0 0, McDowell 5 0-0 13, McCabe 3 1-1 7, Edmonds 2 1-2 5, Schickram 1 0-2 2, Zimmerman 0 0-0 0, Shannon 0 0-0 0, Frohnheiser 0 0-2 0, Wargo 0 0-0 0, Sadusky 0 0-0 0, Makovec 2 5-10 10, Tamagini 2 0-0 4, Broadway 1 0-0 2. Totals 16 7-17 43.
| Team | 1Q | 2Q | 3Q | 4Q | Final |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| NS (12-9, 7-7) | 7 | 9 | 13 | 19 | 48 |
| Tam (3-18, 3-10) | 8 | 9 | 7 | 19 | 43 |
3-point FGs: Kacilowicz 2, McDowell 3, Makovec
Officials: Onushco, Shober, Hargrove
JV Score: Tamaqua 55-45
Shenandoah Valley 63, Marian 54
SHENANDOAH VALLEY — Ethan Bench paced Shenandoah Valley with a game-high 20 points in a Division II win over Marian.
Alex Rivera finished with 11 points and Brandon Hernandez added 11 as the Blue Devils pulled away in the second half.
Gregory Tirpak netted 13 points for the Colts.
MARIAN (54) — Tom 4 1-4 9, Nunez 4 0-0 8, Ju. De La Cruz 3 0-0 9, Ja. De La Cruz 2 0-0 5, Tirpak 5 0-0 13, Knock 2 4-5 8, Cannon 1 0-0 2. Totals 21 5-9 54.
SHENANDOAH VALLEY (63) — Reyes 2 0-0 6, Rivera 5 0-3 11, Gonzalez 1 0-0 3, Burrous 2 2-4 7, Hernandez 4 1-4 11, Christopher 2 1-2 5, Bench 10 3-6 20. Totals 24 7-19 63.
| Team | 1Q | 2Q | 3Q | 4Q | Final |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mar (9-12, 6-8) | 10 | 13 | 16 | 15 | 54 |
| SV (4-17, 2-12) | 12 | 17 | 16 | 18 | 63 |
