×

ICC crown slips away from Devils

CLAYSBURG – Entering Saturday’s Inter-County Conference championship game, the Bellwood-Antis boys basketball team was riding high on an 11-game winning streak.

Unfortunately for the Blue Devils, they ran into the only team in the conference that was hotter than themselves, with Southern Fulton boasting a 19-game streak since its only loss to Blairsville on Dec. 12.

After cruising to a 36-24 halftime lead, Bellwood went cold in the second half and fell to Southern Fulton, 65-57, at Claysburg-Kimmel High School.

“They amped up the intensity in the second half,” Bellwood-Antis coach Brent Gerwert said. “They were more physical offensively and made big shots when they needed to.”

Bellwood (17-5) received a big first half from junior forward Jake Burch, who scored eight of the Blue Devils’ 17 first-quarter points as they led by three after the first frame.

Leading 23-20 with a little more than five minutes left in the second quarter, Burch and Nathan Davis scored the final 13 points of the half as Bellwood went on a 13-4 run.

Burch hit one of his three 3-pointers to start the run, and Davis capped the half with a layup after grabbing an offensive rebound.

“Our defense makes our offense better,” Gerwert said. “In the first half, we got stops and had the offense running well.”

Davis and Burch combined to go 12-for-14 for 28 points in the first half. Davis led Bellwood with 27 points, and Burch added 19.

“The first half, (Bellwood) shot so well,” Southern Fulton coach Kent Hendershot said. “We weren’t playing defense, and they made some open shots.”

The second half proved to be a different story, the Blue Devils were outscored 20-7 in the third quarter in which they shot just 2-for-13 and did not make a field goal until Davis drove to his left and made a layup with 3:29 remaining in the quarter.

“We got more open shots in the second half,” Gerwert said. “They just weren’t going in.”

Bellwood’s poor second-half shooting was not the only problem it had, as Southern Fulton senior forward Connor Litton scored 18 second-half points and dominated underneath the basket.

Litton led all scorers with 28 points, while Dylan Gordon added 20 points and Trent Rider chipped in 11.

“They got a big dose of Connor in the second half,” Hendershot said. “He is a tough kid to guard.”

With Bellwood clinging to a one-point lead at 40-39 late in the third, Litton gave Southern Fulton its first lead of the game at 41-40 after he grabbed an offensive rebound and got fouled while making a layup.

“(Litton) played a fantastic second half,” Gerwert said. “He was a man amongst boys. When a shot went up, he was always there to get it. He is a great hustle player. They outplayed us in the second half and deserved to win.”

Despite the poor shooting, Bellwood had a 54-52 lead with 2:45 remaining in the game.

Southern Fulton’s Dylan Gordon missed the second half of a one-and-one, but Litton was there on the offensive glass and put it back in to give the Indians a lead it did not relinquish.

On Bellwood’s next possession, Davis missed his first foul shot and the Blue Devils were called for a lane violation on the second attempt, and Litton scored again to give Southern Fulton the Inter-County Conference championship.

“We just said we have to keep working hard and pounding (Bellwood),” Hendershot said. “We worked our tails off and outworked Bellwood in the second half.”

Bellwood will start the District 6 Class AA playoffs on Monday at the AAHS Fieldhouse against Penn Cambria, who the Blue Devils lost to back in December.

“The good thing is that we still get to play Monday,” Gerwert said. “We will get back in the gym and get ready for Penn Cambria.”

SOUTHERN FULTON (65): Gordon 6 4-8 20, Rider 4 0-0 11, Litton 11 6-11 28, Clark 1 1-2 3, Potter 1 0-0 3, Hawkins 0 0-0 0, Lynch 0 0-0 0. Totals – 23 11-21 65.

BELLWOOD-ANTIS (57): Burch 8 0-0 19, Davis 10 2-5 27, Taneyhill 1 0-0 2, McGee 2 0-0 5, Padula 1 0-0 3, D’Angelo 0 1-2 1, Walker 0 0-0 0. Totals – 23 3-7 57.

SCORE BY QUARTERS

Southern Fulton14 10 20 21 – 65

Bellwood-Antis17 19 7 14 – 57

3-point goals: Southern Fulton 8 (Gordon 4, Rider 3, Potter); Bellwood-Antis 8 (Burch 3, Davis 3, McGee, Padula).

Records: Southern Fulton (22-1); Bellwood-Antis (17-6).

NEWSLETTER

Today's breaking news and more in your inbox

I'm interested in (please check all that apply)
Are you a paying subscriber to the newspaper? *
   

Starting at $4.39/week.

Subscribe Today