TYRONE - In the early portion of the first quarter of Wednesday night's Mountain League interdivisional matchup between Tyrone and Central Mountain, it appeared the game was on its way to being a defensive affair.
Following a 3-pointer by Brandon Gripp around the 3:30 mark of the opening stanza, the Eagles started to run away with the momentum.
Tyrone had four players that managed to score in double figures as the Golden Eagles routed Central Mountain, 81-55.
Tyrone coach George Gripp couldn't have been happier to see how his team bounced back from the slow start.
"We just told the guys to come out and get more focused and get some help out on [Central Mountain's Cole] Renninger," he said. "I thought the guys just dug in a little bit tougher on defense and we rebounded the ball pretty well."
The Eagles finished the first quarter on an 11-2 run, and then managed to outscore Central Mountain, 18-6, in the second quarter on their way to a 36-15 lead at the break.
"I thought we executed our offense to perfection, and I thought it was a great win for the guys," Gripp said.
The star of the run ultimately came in the form of Charles Wilson-Adams. The junior managed to score six points off three Wildcat turnovers.
"He's so hard to guard off the dribble," Gripp said. "He did a decent job for us on the offensive and defensive side of the ball."
Wilson-Adams finished with 18 points and grabbed seven rebounds.
"I was just running the floor like coach tells us to," he said.
The Eagles didn't stop there. Richard Crabtree and Brandon Gripp were half of the quartet of players who managed to put up double figures for Tyrone.
Gripp mustered a double-double scoring 17 points and adding 10 rebounds. Crabtree amassed a team-high 19 points with seven assists.
"Richard and Brandon have been shooting the ball fairly good all year long,'' Gripp said. "They have put the extra time in. It's good to see those guys when it comes into play because they really dialed it in tonight."
Crabtree attributed his success to his teammates.
"My teammates got me good looks, and I took advantage," he said.
Central Mountain coach Scott Baker was frustrated with how his team played even though Cole Renninger led all scorers with 30 points.
"Very disappointed," he said. "I thought we had a few shots that guys tightened up a didn't make.
"Cole shot the ball better from the perimeter better than he has all year. The fact we didn't have anything to add to that was very disappointing."
Steve Franco was the final piece to the force that mustered double figures. Franco had a double-double, scoring 10 points and adding 11 rebounds.
Tyrone will now face the challenge of having to play two games in two days. The Eagles face Central at home on Friday and host Tussey Mountain on Saturday.
Coach Gripp has been no stranger to quick turnarounds as the Eagles have already had several games rescheduled this season.
"We've had two or three weeks where we have had four games a week because of our extended football season," he said. "I couldn't ask for a better group of guys to work with."
Wilson-Adams said that he and his teammates are looking foward to embracing the road ahead.
"It's a challenge for us, and we love challenges," he said.
CENTRAL MOUNTAIN (55): Blazina 0 2-2 2, V. Walker 0 0-0 0, Allen 0 0-0 0, Renninger 13 0-0 30, Fisher 0 0-0 0, Wise 0 1-2 1, Everhart 3 0-0 6, Dicello 3 0-0 9, Turchetta 2 0-0 5, B. Walker 1 0-0 2. Totals - 22 3-4 55.
TYRONE (81): Gripp 5 3-5 17, Franco 4 2-5 10, Crabtree 7 4-5 19, Wilson-Adams 8 2-2 18, Dickson 1 0-0 2, Fowler 1 2-2 4, Soellner 0 2-2 2, Belinda 0 0-0 0, Wagner 1 2-2 4, Hample 2 1-1 5. Totals - 29 18-24 81.
SCORE BY QUARTERS
Central Mountain9 6 17 23 - 55
Tyrone18 18 22 23 - 81
3-point goals: Central Mountain 8 (Renninger 4, Dicello 3, Turchetta); Tyrone 5 (Gripp 4, Crabtree).
Records: Central Mountain (13-7); Tyrone (16-2).
Officials: Skip Dry, Ted Beam, Dick Wagner.
JV: Central Mountain, 56-38. High scorers-Tyler Everhart, CM, 19; Erik Wagner, Wyatt Fowler, 11.
