Loyalsock’s Anthony Pastore drives to the basket during a game against Shamokin. Pastore was key in the Lancers victory, hitting a fourth quarter three to help the them win 58-52.
Loyalsock’s Gerald Ross goes in for an easy layup after the Lancers turned Shamokin over during the third quarter. Ross finished with six points in the 58-52 win over the Indians.
Loyalsock’s Hunter Webb looks up to grab a rebound during a game against Shamokin. Webb led a strong rebounding effort by the Lancers, finishing with 13.
Loyalsock’s Aiden Gair goes in for a layup during the second quarter of a game against Shamokin. Gair connected with three treys in the game to lead Loyalsock with 17 points.
Loyalsock’s Bam Brima puts a shot up during the second quarter of a game at Shamokin. Brima has continued to grow offensively for the Lancers. He finished with six points, a steal, and four rebounds.
By BRETT R. CROSSLEY
For the Loyalsock Lancers
SHAMOKIN—It was the middle of the third quarter and Loyalsock needed something big to happen offensively. Enter Aiden Gair.
At the 2:04 mark of the quarter, Gair pulled up and let a three pointer fly as a defender came down on top of him. A quick foul was called as the ball swished through the net, barely touching the rim in the process. Gair quickly jumped up and converted the four-point play for Loyalsock. He later canned another trey and scored on a layup to close out the quarter with a five-point spurt.
The shots seemed to give Loyalsock energy as it put together one of its best defensive quarters of the night to close out a 58-52 win over Shamokin. Gair, who finished with 17 points to lead the Lancers, sparked the offense with a hot hand he seemed to have during warmups all the way through to the final quarter.
“I felt like I shot well in warmups,” Gair said. “I’m glad I could continue it into the game.”
Loyalsock built a 15-7 lead at the close of the first quarter. Gair accounted for six of those points as he converted both 3-point attempts in the opening quarter. The offense struggled a bit in the early goings. Gerald Ross missed his first two shots, Anthony Pastore missed his first shot, and Hunter Webb missed his first two shots, as well.
Where the Lancers (10-3) did excel was rebounding. Webb finished the opening eight minutes with seven rebounds. Mitchell Klingerman and Connor Watkins each had two apiece.
“Frustration sets in when we don’t control the glass, because we are so used to it,” Loyalsock coach Ron “CI” Insinger said. “It’s a good position to be in when you have that type of depth on the glass.”
Loyalsock out-rebounded Shamokin (6-9) throughout the game, which made each and every possession that much more important for the Indians. After scoring just seven points in the opening quarter and getting dominated on the glass, Shamokin opened the second strong, outscoring Loyalsock 22-17 over the stretch.
“We had a lot of opportunities in the first quarter,” Shamokin coach Chris Zimmerman said. “Loyalsock’s length is deceiving. They have some pretty good athletes and length and a few of our guys were hesitant to go to the basket.”
That length became an issue in the second half as Loyalsock deployed a full court press in the third quarter. Shamokin turned the ball over six times over the stretch and the offense was quick to take advantage of the turnovers.
Gair scored nine points, including a four-point swing after getting fouled on a 3. Gair buried the foul shot and helped Loyalsock gain some separation from the Indians.
“As much as he’s building confidence the coaching staff is building confidence in him,” Insinger said. “He’s athletic enough and good enough of a basketball player to make contributions for us all over the court. Tonight he fit in beautifully and did a tremendous job. He kept us close the whole game.”
If there’s one knock on Loyalsock as it defeated Shamokin after nearly a week off, it was foul shooting. The Lancers struggled to put the game away in the fourth quarter as they missed ten attempts from the line. Despite the misses, rebounding was still there for the Lancers. Webb finished the final quarter with four rebounds and a steal and Watkins added three rebounds to go with two points.
“Connor (Watkins) is leading our team in rebounding and shooting percentage,” Insinger said. “He just has a nose for the basketball and gets the job done.”
The Lancers will head back for a day of practice before taking on Milton in the final of two league meetings with the Black Panthers.
Loyalsock 58, Shamokin 52
SOCK 15 17 16 7–58
SHA 7 22 13 10–52
Loyalsock (58)
Brandon Bauman 0 0-0 0; Gerald Ross 2 2-4 6; Collin Graver 0 0-0 0; Anthony Pastore 3 4-4 11; Connor Watkins 5 2-7 12; Mitchell Klingerman 5 0-4 4; Bam Brima 3 0-4 6; Hunter Webb 0 1-2 1; Aiden Gair 6 1-1 17. Totals 24 10-26 58.
Shamokin (52)
Collin Bowers 2 3-4 8; Tariq Braggs 1 0-0 2; Jahleke West 7 2-4 16; Chris Stewart 2 0-1 4; Lenny Kreski 0 0-0 0; Mason Filarski 5 0-1 13; Matt Schiccatano 1 0-0 2; Joe Masse 2 3-4 7. Totals 20 8-14 52
3–Point Goals: Loyalsock 5 (Gair 4, Pastore). Shamokin 4 (Bowers, Filarski, 3).
Records: Loyalsock 10-3. Shamokin 6-9.
Next: Milton at Loyalsock, Wednesday, 7:30 p.m. Shamokin at Shikellamy, Wednesday, 7:30 p.m.
JV Score: 80-60 Shamokin.
High Scorers: Loyalsock: Watkins, 12; Hertwig, 12. Shamokin: Bowers, 21; West, 21.