The State College Boys Basketball team kicked off its conference schedule with a 63-41 victory over Altoona. This victory followed back-to-back wins over Bishop Shanahan and Dock Mennonite in the Skip Coleman Tip-Off Tournament.
The Little Lion offense, led by senior Charlie Yartz and junior Brady Wager, started strong, with a commanding lead by halftime, which they extended by the end of the game.
The defense, led by seniors Yousef Kamerow and Reed Melvin, also did fairly well. The team recorded six steals and three blocks.
Altoona started off by snagging the ball at the tip-off and promptly losing it out of bounds. State College then did the same on its first possession. With the ball back in its hands, Altoona went into the paint to score the first points of the game, going up 2-0. With some excellent defense and shooting from State High, the team bounced back and came out of the first quarter up 18-12.
State High started the second quarter strong, using a three-pointer from Wager and a layup from Melvin to extend its lead to 23-14 with 6:16p.m. left on the clock. They ended the half 31-22 with two beautiful layups from Yartz and sophomore Nick Carr.
The third quarter was no different. State High came out hot, extending its lead to 39-29 with 4:48 on the clock and ended the quarter ahead 55-33.
Finally, the fourth quarter sealed the deal. The State High defense locked it down in the final frame, only allowing Altoona to score eight points.
After the game, Head Coach Brian Scholly gave his insight into the future of the season and emphasized the need to focus on defense.
“We’re going to hang our hat on defense. We just got to be consistently focused on that end. I thought we were playing hard in the first half at times, but our focus on those little detail things that are going to make and break some possessions on the defensive end weren’t quite there,” Scholly said. “Second half I thought we were focused a little bit more, and in that we were able to get some stops and get out and run.”
Though the team’s future looks bright, it has a tough road ahead of it. The Mid-Penn Commonwealth, which includes three state championship contenders in Chambersburg, Central Dauphin and Cumberland Valley, is one of the best leagues in the state.
Scholly discussed his expectations for the rest of the team’s Mid-Penn slate.
“They [Mid-Penn Commonwealth teams] try to make the game chaotic—because that’s how they excel—and we’re going to have to show up with a level of mental toughness and a level of discipline and a level of focus on what we want to execute in the midst of that chaos; because they’ll provide it,” Scholly said.
The Little Lions are back in action on Dec. 27 and 28 when they host the annual Holiday Hardwood Tournament, beginning with a game against Meadville at 4:00p.m. on Dec. 27.
