WILLIAMSBURG - Fans looking for a defensive affair were in for a treat at Williamsburg Community High School on Friday night when Central and Philipsburg-Osceola took the floor.
It was the Scarlet Dragons' defense that managed to win the battle.
Led by tournament MVP Zach Slagenweit's game-high 19 points, Central managed to defeat the Mounties, 45-39, in the championship game of the Blue Pirate Boosters Holiday Tournament.
Central coach Reggie Nevins was pleased with the Dragons' early 8-0 run but wasn't happy about how his team handled the ball as the game continued.
"We took the ball to the hole and got to the foul line," Nevins said. "We got hesitant, sloppy with the ball [later on]."
The Mounties, after a timeout, managed to find their offense as guard Eric Nartatetz made a layup with just a little more than 5 minutes to play in the opening quarter. Nartatetz registered five steals.
"We came out a little cold, and I thought we were a little tight," Philipsburg-Osceola coach Dave McKnight said. "We fought our way back into the game. Give credit to our kids."
The Mounties ended up trailing the Dragons, 26-18, at the halftime break.
At the start of the third quarter, P-O managed to stymie the Dragon offense for nearly 5 minutes. Slagenweit hit a free throw at the 3:21 mark, and Lucas Patterson sank the Dragons' first layup of the stanza at 2:47 to break the momentum.
Patterson grabbed 10 rebounds for the champions.
"We expected a battle and a good defensive struggle," McKnight said. "We turned the ball over way too much, and they took it to us."
Those turnovers ended up coming back to haunt the Mounties as both teams' offenses struggled in the third as P-O only outscored the Dragons, 7-6.
"Despite all of our turnovers, they stuck with me and stuck as a team and won a good hard battle," Slagenweit said.
As the calendar turns toward January, Nevins is now trying to show how important not letting up off the gas pedal is for his young team.
"We're 6-3. Those three teams have only one loss," he said. "If we want to reach that level, we have to get better."
In the consolation game, host Williamsburg pounded Conemaugh Valley, 74-47. Mike Biddle scored 17 points for the Blue Pirates, and Jed Dishong added 13.
Notes: Slagenweit received a technical foul at the 4:22 mark of the fourth quarter for pounding the ball. Nartatetz made both free throws. ... Dishong won the sportsmanship award, and P-O's Taylor Golemboski won the best defensive player award. ... The all-tournament team included Austin Cunningham, Slagenweit and Patterson from Central. Matt Carpin and Nartatetz from P-O and Josh Morrissey from Williamsburg also made the team.
CONSOLATION
CONEMAUGH VALLEY (46): Horten 2 1-1 6, Roberts 8 0-0 16, Cruse 3 1-2 7, B. Furman 4 3-8 11, Vibostok 1 0-2 2, Butts 0 0-0 0, Rodgers 0 0-0 0, Verno 0 0-0 0, Kovalchik 0 0-0 0, Schellhammer 2 0-0 4, D. Furman 0 0-0 0, Glass 0 0-0 0, Grecek 0 0-0 0, Gunby 0 0-0 0, Durham 0 0-0 0. Totals 20 5-13 46.
WILLIAMSBURG (74): Dishong 6 1-2 13, Morrissey 4 1-3 9, Fay 4 0-0 8, Palmer 4 0-0 8, Biddle 7 2-2 17, Young 2 2-3 6, Ross 2 0-0 4, Appleman 0 0-0 0, Butler 4 0-0 8, Shaw 0 0-0 0, Michelone 0 0-0 0, Tate 0 0-0 0, Eade 0 0-0 0, King 0 0-0 0. Totals 33 7-10 74
SCORE BY QUARTERS
Conemaugh Valley9 8 17 5 47
Williamsburg29 12 10 23 74
3-point field goals: Conemaugh Valley 1 (Horten), Williamsburg 1 (Biddle).
Records: Conemaugh Valley (2-3); Williamsburg (4-3)
CHAMPIONSHIP
PHILIPSBURG-OSCEOLA (39): Nartatetz 4 7-9 16, Carpin 3 5-7 13, Golemboski 1 2-2 4, Al. Gray 2 1-2 5, Reifer 0 0-0 0, An. Gray 0 1-2 1, Starner 0 0-0 0, Herrington 0 0-0 0. Totals: 10 16-22 39.
CENTRAL (45): Brumbaugh 1 0-0 2, Cunningham 3 2-5 8, Forshey 3 0-0 8, Patterson 3 2-2 8, Slagenweit 7 5-9 19, Mills 0 0-0 0. Totals 17 9-16 45.
SCORE BY QUARTERS
Philipsburg-Osceola11 7 7 14 - 39
Central12 14 6 13- 45
3-point field goals: Philipsburg-Osceola 3 (Nartatez, Carpin 2); Central 2 (Forshey 2).
Referees: Don Donaldson, Rodney Brumbaugh, Sarah Fye
Records: Philipsburg-Osceola (1-6); Central (6-3).
