High School Boys' Basketball Report

CENTRAL

The Central Dragon basketball team split a pair of non-league games last week, giving them a solid 6-3 record on the season. The Dragons pounded Juniata Valley (0-9) on the road but fell to Chestnut Ridge (4-3) at home.

Juniata Valley was no match for the Dragons Dec. 30, as they trailed 25-6 after one quarter and 43-18 at the half. Although the Dragons used their bench often in the second half they outscored their hosts 20-12 in the third frame and 13-5 in the fourth.

Braden Kitt had another strong offensive showing as he scored 32 points, hitting 14 baskets that included three from long range. Eli Lingenfelter and Jason Ferry added seven points, Jacob Eberlin six and both Lleyton Kling and Devon Boyles five.

In the Jan. 3 game with Chestnut Ridge, the visitors took a 22-15 first quarter lead and led by a point (32-31) at halftime. In a high-scoring third quarter, Central outscored Ridge 24-22 to take a one-point advantage into the last quarter. Chestnut Ridge was able to win the final frame 17-8 to secure the victory. 71-63.

The Dragons had a solid showing offensively as they connected on 24 of 50 shots (48 percent) and 11 of 11 from the foul line. Chestnut Ridge outdid the Dragons by connecting on 25 of 44 shots, including 8 of 17 from 3-point territory. All five Dragon starters scored at least six points and dished out two assists in the game.

Braden Kitt finished with 23 points while Devon Boyles added 13. Jacob Eberlin and Colby Liebal had eight points each while Lleyton Kling chipped in with six.

"We did some really great things offensively both nights," Central coach Paul Frederick said. "We need to find a way to get stops on the defensive end. If we can improve defensively we will start winning some of these close games. Credit Chestnut Ridge though, they played a great game and shot the ball very well."

WILLIAMSBURG

The Williamsburg High School boys' basketball team rolled to a 79-33 home victory against Moshannon Valley on Dec. 12.

WHS stormed out to a 26-3 lead after one quarter. Leading, 37-16, at halftime, the Blue Pirates put the game away with a 31-8 surge in the third quarter.

Peanut Wansley paced Williamsburg with 18 points, including four 3-pointers. Josiah Dowey hit three 3-pointers and finished with 17 points.

Team leaders included Lambert Palmer in rebounds, nine; Wesley McCall in assists, with four; and Dowey, McCall, Adam Uplinger and Dylan James in steals, with three each.

At Portage on Dec. 13, the host Mustangs outscored WHS by 12, 29-17, in the final quarter en route to a 76-67 victory.

WHS led, 15-10, after one quarter but fell behind, 36-31, at halftime. The Blue Pirates' 19-11 third-quarter run gave them a 50-47 lead through three quarters. Portage then dominated the final eight minutes to pick up the victory.

Shane Brantner 16 points, including three 3-pointers, led four WHS scorers in double figures. Josiah Dowey tossed in 14 points, while Drew Hileman (four 3-pointers) and Lambert Palmer (three treys) added 13 points each.

At Saint Joseph's Catholic Academy on Dec. 17, WHS raced to an 18-2 lead after one quarter and cruised to an 80-42 victory.

The Blue Pirates had a 42-19 advantage at halftime. After each team scored 17 points in the third quarter, the Blue Pirates closed the game on a 21-6 run.

Four players scored in double figures for WHS, led by Peanut Wansley's 15 points. Jared McCall (three 3-pointers), Adam Uplinger (three treys) and Lambert Palmer each tossed in 11 points.

McCall added 11 rebounds and four steals, while Uplinger dished out three assists.

At McConnellsburg on Dec. 19, Williamsburg won its fourth game of the season - one more than its season total in 2018-19 - with a 73-57 victory.

Lambert Palmer's game-high 21 points paced the Blue Pirates. Josiah Dowey hit three 3-pointers and finished with 13 points, while Adam Uplinger contributed 11 points.

At WHS Jan. 2, the Blue Pirates raced to a 55-23 lead at halftime against Glendale and cruised to an 83-29 victory. WHS outscored Glendale, 48-6, in the second half.

Lambert Palmer's 19 points led four WHS scorers in double figures. Shane Brantner tossed in 15 points, Josiah Dowey 11 and Dylan James 10. Brantner added 11 rebounds, while Palmer had five steals and four assists. Dowey added five assists, while Adam Uplinger collected five steals. Wesley McCall had four assists.

C-K

The Claysburg-Kimmel High School boys' basketball team placed third at the Claysburg C&S Family Markets Holiday Tournament held Dec. 27-28.

The Bulldogs lost the opener to Chestnut Ridge, 66-44, before defeating Forbes Road, 56-37, in the consolation game.

Chestnut Ridge used a 23-9 second-quarter run to break open a tight game against C-K.

Kyle Glass hit two 3-pointers and led C-K with 18 points. Parker Dibert drained four 3-pointers and finished with 14 points. Corey Chamberlain had seven rebounds and three steals. Glass added five assists and three steals.

Against Forbes Road, C-K turned a 25-24 halftime lead into a 41-29 lead through three quarters. The Bulldogs outscored Forbes Road in the final quarter, 15-8.

Corey Chamberlain tossed in 13 points to lead C-K. Parker Dibert added 11 points, including three 3-pointers, while Wyatt Buell (two 3-pointers) and Kyl Glass scored 10 points each. Chamberlain added nine rebounds and three steals, while Glass dished out six assists.

At C-K on Jan. 2, the Bulldogs outscored Moshannon Valley in the second half, 33-13, en route to a 49-36 come-from behind victory.

Kyle Glass led C-K with a game-high 26 points, including two 3-pointers. Corey Chamberlain finished with nine points.

NBC

Northern Bedford's initial experience at the Portage Holiday Tournament was not a good one.

The Portage Mustangs welcomed NB to its get-together by scorching them for 53 first-half points en route to an 84-52 drubbing in the Tournament Semifinals Dec. 27.

"Our effort was very poor," NB coach Randy Meck said.

The Mustangs rolled to a 53-30 halftime lead before the Panthers woke up and played competitively in the second half.

Caleb Diehl's 15 points paced NB.

Northern Bedford led 17-15 over Turkeyfoot Valley in the Portage Holiday Tournament consolation game Dec. 28 before the roof caved in.

A 25-10 second-quarter advantage by the Rams led to the Panther demise and they could never recover.

"There two scorers got hot in the second and we had no answer," NB Coach Randy Meck said.

The Panthers played the Rams pretty evenly in the second half but could never recover in an 80-64 consolation game defeat.

Hayden Foor paced NB with 21 points, while Caleb Diehl and Dalton Smith chipped in with 14 and 13, respectively.

Tussey Mountain never trailed en route to a 76-63 win over visiting Northern Bedford Jan. 3.

The Panthers and Titans were tied twice very early in the game before a Tussey surge gave the Titans a 14-9 lead after one quarter. The Titan surge continued as they built as big as a 13-point lead in the second period before NB cut it to nine in the final seconds of the first half.

After Tussey built a double-digit lead again early in the second half, Northern could never get closer to 10 points the rest of the way.

""just could never sustain any kind of momentum to get the point spread back to within winnable range," NB first-year coach Randy Meck said.

Tussey Mountain led by as many as 18 in the second half.

Hayden Foor paced the Panthers with a 21 point effort. Caleb Diehl (18), Dakota Claar (12), and Dalton Smith (10) also hit double digits for NB.