Red Raiders fall to visiting Hampton, 58-47
Hampton pulled away in the fourth quarter for a 58-47 road victory at Uniontown on Wednesday night in the WPIAL Class AAAA 5th-place consolation game.
Hampton (23-3) enters the PIAA playoffs as the fifth team out of the WPIAL and will play the District 10 champion on Friday, March 10, in the first round of the state tournament.
Uniontown (20-5) will be the sixth team out of the district and will be on the road to face the District 3 champion on March 10.
“We had an off shooting night but the kids played really hard on defense,” Red Raiders coach Rob Kezmarsky said. “We were in the game because of their effort but credit to Hampton, they made their free throws at the end and pulled away a little bit.”
The Talbots, coached by Frazier graduate Joe Lafko, led 39-38 heading into the fourth quarter and secured the playoff victory with a 19-9 advantage in the final eight minutes.
Hampton made 13-of-17 foul shot attempts in the fourth quarter. Brennan Murray converted 8-of-10 attempts to finish with a game-high 17 points.
The Talbots made 22-of-31 foul shots in the game.
Hampton led 29-27 at halftime.
Bakari Wallace led Uniontown with 14 points. Tanner Uphold finished with 10 points and Calvin Winfrey III added eight.
Uniontown’s Jamire Braxton played sparingly as he continues to nurse a hip injury.
“Jamire didn’t start but he did get in for a limited amount of minutes, so that was a positive for us,” Kezmarsky said.” We think he should be at 100 percent for the state playoffs next week.
“We need a couple days off to rest, physically and mentally. We have a pretty young team and it’s been a long season. We’ve been very successful but we’ve played some very emotional, high-stress games.”
Erick Weeks finished with 14 points and Liam Mignogna added 13 for Hampton.
“Our goal now is to win some games in the states,” Kezmarsky said. “If you’re still playing on March 10 then you’ve had a pretty good season. I know one thing, there are a seven high-quality teams coming out of the WPIAL in Quad-A.”
The Red Raiders will be making their first trip into the PIAA tournament since 2013 when they reached the WPIAL final four.
South Allegheny 68, Belle Vernon 65 — The Gladiators held on for a victory against the visiting Leopards in the WPIAL Class AAAA consolation bracket to secure the seventh and final berth into the PIAA playoffs.
South Allegheny (20-6) will play the WPIAL champion, either North Catholic or Lincoln Park, in the opening round of the state tournament on Friday, March 10.
Belle Vernon finishes the season with an 11-14 record.
The game was close throughout with the Gladiators holding quarter leads of 21-15, 35-31 and 57-52. Belle Vernon held a 13-11 advantage in the fourth quarter.
Quinton Martin led Belle Vernon with a game-high 30 points and 10 rebounds. Zion Moore scored 17 points and grabbed eight rebounds. Alonzo Wade added 10 points.
Bryce Epps paced South Allegheny with 28 points. Michael Michalski finished with 22 points and Jeston Beatty Jr. added 10.
Yough 70, Mohawk 67 — The Cougars rallied in the fourth quarter to extend their season with a road victory in the WPIAL 7th-place consolation playoff game victory.
Yough (17-9) travels to the District 6 champion on Friday, March 10, in the opening round of the PIAA playoffs.
The Cougars outscored Mohawk in the fourth quarter, 26-17, for the come-from-behind victory.
Mohawk (20-6) led 20-14 after the first quarter and 36-27 at halftime. The home team held a 50-44 lead heading into the fourth quarter.
Yough’s Terek Crosby led all scorers with 29 points. Austin Matthews scored 18 points and Brendon Converso added 15.
Bobby Fadden paced Mohawk with 23 points. Jay Wrona and Mason Hopper both scored 13 points, and Keigan Hopper added 11.