D-11 Boys’ Basketball: Southern Lehigh clamps down, tops Pottsville in 5A semifinal
Pottsville's Davey Kunstek (20) guards Southern Lehigh's Morgan Capuano (4) during a District 11 Class 5A boys' semifinal game at Blue Mountain (Photo by Eli Doyle).
ORWIGSBURG — Stops turned into separation.
Southern Lehigh tightened defensively after halftime and limited Pottsville’s second-half looks on the way to a 55-43 victory in the District 11 Class 5A semifinal Tuesday night at Blue Mountain High School.
The Spartans (16-9) gradually built separation in the second half, turning a three-point halftime lead into a double-digit advantage behind a balanced offensive attack and timely 3-point shooting.
“We could talk about shooting all we want, but at the end of the day we just held (Pottsville) to 43 points,” Southern Lehigh coach John Arcidiacono said. “Our defense was completely locked down, complete credit to our guys. They really bought into the game plan and scout. They just outtoughed and outworked for 32 minutes to lock it down. And (Pottsville) has some really good scorers on its team.”
The Crimson Tide (19-8) trailed just 23-20 at the break after a physical first half highlighted by strong post play from Davey Kunstek and transition baskets from Josh Kimber.
Kunstek finished with a team-high 20 points, scoring repeatedly through contact in the paint.
But Southern Lehigh found its rhythm in the third quarter. John Fistner knocked down a pair of 3-pointers and scored seven points in the period as the Spartans stretched the lead to 38-29 entering the fourth.
As Pottsville turned up the pressure defensively early in the fourth, Alvarez drilled a deep 3-pointer to cut the deficit to eight at 43-35.
That was as close as the Tide would get.
Southern Lehigh answered with transition buckets and steady free-throw shooting down the stretch. Joseph Plessl, Morgan Capuano and Fistner combined to keep the margin in double figures, while the Spartans converted 8-of-9 free throws on the night.
“Alvarez is an all-world scorer, (Ryder) Bowers can shoot from anywhere,” Arcidiacono said. “(Kunstek) had 20, he was a handful in the post. But we kept battling and battling, and we got the stops. That resulted in what we saw with the final score. Pressure is a privilege. We get to play this game, we get to play a really good Pottsville team, and we get to go out and compete. If we continue to buy in to that mentality, we’ll continue to get that kind of effort on the court.”
Fistner led Southern Lehigh with 15 points, while Capuano and Plessl each added 11. Parker Spigelmeyer contributed nine points on three 3-pointers.
Alvarez added 12 points for Pottsville, and Kimber chipped in eight.
Southern Lehigh advances to the District 11 Class 5A championship game against Selinsgrove, while Pottsville’s first season under Tyler Heffner concludes at 19-8.
Game Summary
District 11 Class 5A Semifinal
At Blue Mountain High School
SOUTHERN LEHIGH (55) — Capuano 4 2-2 11, Plessl 4 1-2 11, Adams 1 2-2 4, Fistner 6 0-0 15, Helms 0 0-0 0, Spigelmeyer 3 0-0 9, Fry 1 3-3 5. Totals 19 8-9 55.
POTTSVILLE (43) — Hobbs 0 0-0 0, McGinley 0 0-0 0, Allen 0 0-0 0, Bainbridge 0 0-0 0, Alvarez 5 1-3 12, Bowers 1 0-0 3, Kunstek 8 4-4 20, Clews 0 0-0 0, Kimber 4 0-0 8. Totals 18 5-7 43.
| Team | 1Q | 2Q | 3Q | 4Q | Final |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| SL (16-9) | 10 | 13 | 15 | 17 | 55 |
| Po (19-8) | 8 | 12 | 9 | 14 | 43 |
