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HERSHEY—When it comes to playing basketball late in March, a team can taste the feeling of victory in one moment and the agony of defeat in the next.
For Sewickley Academy, it experienced a flurry of emotional swings as its state title bid came up one point short falling 55-54 to Linville Hill Christian Academy Friday afternoon at the Giant Center.
“When you care about something a lot it is going to hurt when it doesn’t go your way,” Sewickley Academy head coach Mike Iuzzolino said following the game. “But in life, you are going to have more of these days and even though we lost today, winners pick themselves up off the ground. Today, they had to do that and will have to do it even more in life.”
After Linville Hill's Stephen Smucker converted a layup with 23 seconds to play in the fourth quarter to give Linville Hill a slim one-point advantage, Sewickley Academy found itself on the ropes after Mamadou Kane committed a turnover which forced Lucas Grimsley to foul.
Required Reading: Despite three head coaches, this Sewickley Academy forward has taken the changes in stride
But after Linville's Derian Petersheim missed a pair of free throws with 10 seconds remaining, the door was back open for Sewickley Academy to win the game.
Following Linville Hill’s two personal fouls, Sewickley Academy inbounded the ball to Kane with two seconds left who put up a last-second heave which careened off the rim but could not get the shot to fall.
“I loved the look that we got,” Iuzzolino said. “We couldn’t have gotten a better look than what we did getting Mamadou at the front of the rim. He didn’t finish great all night, but I will take that shot 1,000 times over again. When we didn’t have a timeout to use and the guys executed that play the way that they did, it was incredible.”
While Sewickley Academy’s game-winning shot fell short, just five minutes earlier it held an eight-point lead after scoring eight unanswered points to begin the fourth quarter.
But following that run, Linville Hill answered with a run of its own to cut the Sewickley Academy lead down to a one-possession game with around 3:30 to play.
“I thought that we rushed some shots in that situation. We got anxious but we also got some good looks but that's what happens in these types of games,” Iuzzolino said. “We tried to take the game one minute at a time but we had a rough stretch.”
Sewickley Academy was led by freshman guard Drew Steals who recorded a team-high 17 points going 3-for-6 from three-point range and 6-for-10 from the field.
With a majority of its starting rotation returning next season after losing only losing Nolan Donnelly to graduation, Sewickley Academy will have its eyes set on another deep PIAA state playoff run next year.
This article originally appeared on Beaver County Times: Sewickley Academy drops PIAA boys 2A title game to Linville Hill
Continue reading...
For Sewickley Academy, it experienced a flurry of emotional swings as its state title bid came up one point short falling 55-54 to Linville Hill Christian Academy Friday afternoon at the Giant Center.
“When you care about something a lot it is going to hurt when it doesn’t go your way,” Sewickley Academy head coach Mike Iuzzolino said following the game. “But in life, you are going to have more of these days and even though we lost today, winners pick themselves up off the ground. Today, they had to do that and will have to do it even more in life.”
After Linville Hill's Stephen Smucker converted a layup with 23 seconds to play in the fourth quarter to give Linville Hill a slim one-point advantage, Sewickley Academy found itself on the ropes after Mamadou Kane committed a turnover which forced Lucas Grimsley to foul.
Required Reading: Despite three head coaches, this Sewickley Academy forward has taken the changes in stride
But after Linville's Derian Petersheim missed a pair of free throws with 10 seconds remaining, the door was back open for Sewickley Academy to win the game.
Following Linville Hill’s two personal fouls, Sewickley Academy inbounded the ball to Kane with two seconds left who put up a last-second heave which careened off the rim but could not get the shot to fall.
“I loved the look that we got,” Iuzzolino said. “We couldn’t have gotten a better look than what we did getting Mamadou at the front of the rim. He didn’t finish great all night, but I will take that shot 1,000 times over again. When we didn’t have a timeout to use and the guys executed that play the way that they did, it was incredible.”
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While Sewickley Academy’s game-winning shot fell short, just five minutes earlier it held an eight-point lead after scoring eight unanswered points to begin the fourth quarter.
But following that run, Linville Hill answered with a run of its own to cut the Sewickley Academy lead down to a one-possession game with around 3:30 to play.
“I thought that we rushed some shots in that situation. We got anxious but we also got some good looks but that's what happens in these types of games,” Iuzzolino said. “We tried to take the game one minute at a time but we had a rough stretch.”
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Sewickley Academy was led by freshman guard Drew Steals who recorded a team-high 17 points going 3-for-6 from three-point range and 6-for-10 from the field.
With a majority of its starting rotation returning next season after losing only losing Nolan Donnelly to graduation, Sewickley Academy will have its eyes set on another deep PIAA state playoff run next year.
This article originally appeared on Beaver County Times: Sewickley Academy drops PIAA boys 2A title game to Linville Hill
Continue reading...
