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BRETT R. CROSSLEY/FOR THE LOYALSOCK LANCERS
Loyalsock’s Bam Brima guards a Central Columbia player during the Lancers’ road game against the Blue Jays. Brima finished with six points as Loyalsock defeated Central Columbia, 75-49.
BRETT R. CROSSLEY/FOR THE LOYALSOCK LANCERS
Loyalsock’s Brandyn Bauman gets into position to guard a Central Columbia player bring the ball up the court.
BRETT R. CROSSLEY/FOR THE LOYALSOCK LANCERS
Loyalsock’s Connor Watkins passes a ball out from deep underneath the basket. Watkins scored eight points, blocked two shots, a steal, and pulled down five rebounds as the Lancers defeated the Bluejays, 75-49.
BRETT R. CROSSLEY/FOR THE LOYALSOCK LANCERS
Loyalsock’s Gerald Ross goes in for a layup as defender close in around him during a game at Central Columbia. Ross led the Lancers with 20 points.
BRETT R. CROSSLEY/FOR THE LOYALSOCK LANCERS
Loyalsock’s Hunter Webb goes in for a layup after making a steal near midcourt during a game against Central Columbia.
By BRETT R. CROSSLEY
For the Loyalsock Lancers
CENTRAL COLUMBIA—Loyalsock’s return to the PHAC was marked by multiple clutch shots as the Lancers headed to Central Columbia to renew their rivalry with the Blue Jays.
Mitchell Klingerman nailed a jumped as the buzzer sounded on the first quarter and Hunter Webb collected a rebound to put back a shot as time expired on the third quarter. The offense was there for Loyalsock and so was the defense as the Lancers returned to form with a 75-49 win over Central Columbia.
“It’s exciting, because it helps the momentum carry over from the last quarter,” Ron “CI” Insinger said of the clutch shots. “We work on a lot of that last second stuff in practice so we have those opportunities. They aren’t accidents.”
As for the key makes from the floor, they helped the Lancers offense overcome an 11-point first quarter that gave them just a one-point lead over the Bluejays. Klingerman’s bucket to beat the buzzer seemed to give the Lancers confidence through the opening minutes of the second quarter.
“It was good that we came out and did what we had to do to make it not much of a game in the fourth quarter,” Klingerman said. “We tend to have big quarters each game whether it’s the first, second, third, or fourth. We’d rather have it early than late.”
Insinger and company have appeared to find the perfect balance for rotating Hunter Webb and Bam Brima. The two defensive and rebounding machines didn’t mesh well together on the court, but now that the coaches have both subbing throughout the game it works perfectly. Anytime one needs a break the other is there to spell him.
In Wednesday’s game, both players looked fresh throughout all four quarters. Webb, along with hitting the shot to beat the third quarter buzzer, was outstanding underneath the basket. He led the Lancers in rebounds with ten and scored six points. Brima also finished with six points, a block, and four rebounds.
Prior to Webb converting his rebound into points at the conclusion of the third, Brima added some offensive juice. With a little more than 30 seconds left in the third, Brima grabbed a rebound and made a tough put back to give the Lancers a 46-36 lead.
“I just went in there and did the job they wanted me to do and there’s no better feeling than that,” Webb said. “It’s easy to rebound when everybody is boxing out and playing good defense and that’s what we did tonight. We were just having fun out there in the second half.”
Ross once again paced the offense, scoring 20 points to lead the team throughout the night. Ross was held scoreless over the opening eight minutes, but flew through the second. He started to attack the basket more, which yielded three trips to the line where he converted all but one attempt. He also nailed a three-point play when he was fouled after making a basket. He quickly made the free throw to complete a nine points quarter. He also added a block and two rebounds over the stretch.
Ross closed out the final two quarters with 11 points as the Lancers outscored Central Columbia 45-23 to end the game.
Loyalsock 75, Central Columbia 49
SOCK 11 20 18 25—75
CCOL 10 16 10 13—49
Loyalsock (75)
Brandyn Bauman 0 0-0 0; Gerald Ross 6 6-8 20; Collin Graver 2 0-0 5; Anthony Pastore 5 3-4 14; Connor Watkins 2 4-6 8; Mitchell Klingerman 3 1-2 7; Bam Brima 3 0-0 6; Hunter Webb 3 0-0 6; Aiden Gair 3 0-1 9. Totals 27 15-21 75.
Central Columbia (49)
Zach Boyd 0 1-6 1; RJ Metzger 1 0-0 2; Nick Brunozzi 2 0-0 4; Jason Sokol 3 0-0 6; Matt Grozier 1 0-0 2; Shawn Deitrick 4 0-3 8; Cade Devlin 7 9-13 26. Totals 18 10-22 49.
3—Point Goals: Loyalsock 7 (Ross 2, Graver, Pastore, Gair 3). Central Columbia 3 (Coombe 3).
Records: Loyalsock 7-2. Central Columbia 3-5.
Next: Loyalsock at Lewisburg, Friday, 7:30 p.m. Lebanon Catholic at Central Columbia, Friday, 7:30 p.m.
JV Score: 61-51 Loyalsock.
High Scorers: Loyalsock: Tyler Herwig, 19. Central Columbia: Dylan Harris, 27.