A-K Valley basketball notebook: Big day approaches for Leechburg’s Smith

By: HSSN Staff
Thursday, February 7, 2019 | 7:06 PM

Leechburg is playing its biggest game of the season Friday night, but Blue Devils coach Corey Smith has an important item on his schedule earlier that day.

Smith and his fiancee, Ashley, will welcome their third child that morning with a scheduled C-section at West Penn Hospital. Then, Smith will coach Leechburg that night as the Blue Devils (12-8, 8-3) visit St. Joseph (16-5, 9-2) in their Section 3-A finale, a game that will determine at least a share of the section title.

Smith said he and Ashley discussed the potential of this occurrence when the basketball schedule came out and came to the decision together. Extended family will stay with Ashley when Corey leaves for the game.

“We had talked about (doing this) if the game was going to mean something, which it is,” Smith said. “It’s coming up for first place. I love my Leechburg boys, the community, and I owe that to them. My passion for basketball coaching, I wanted to be there.”

“… It’s just the circumstance of what the game really meant. The game really means something. She knows that. She’s well aware. She’s at every game supporting me right behind the bench. She knows how much I want to go for the section championship, and she’s supportive.”

With a win Friday, Leechburg would clinch a share of the section title. The Blue Devils beat the Spartans, 59-46, earlier this season.

A Leechburg win Friday, coupled with a Greensburg Central Catholic (13-6, 8-3) win over Clairton, would create a three-way tie atop the section.

“I can’t miss this,” Smith said. “This game is for first place.”

The newest Leechburg fan will join the couple’s 3-year-old daughter Skylar and son LeBryn, an eighth-grader at Kiski Area. Smith said he and Ashley don’t know the sex of the baby yet.

“Most surprises in your lifetime are bad surprises,” Smith said. “You don’t get too many good and positive surprises. This is going to be a very positive surprise for us in our life.”

End game

Springdale’s annual game with Riverview on Friday night carries some extra stakes, with an interested third party to boot.

Should the Dynamos (11-8, 7-6) beat their arch-rival Raiders (7-12, 4-8), they would clinch the fourth playoff spot in Section 1-2A. A loss and Springdale could fall out of the playoffs. Apollo-Ridge (11-10, 7-6) can make the postseason with a win and a Springdale loss.

A similar scenario played out each of the past two seasons. In 2017, Riverview beat Springdale in their section finale — the Raiders’ lone section win — sending Leechburg to the playoffs and keeping Springdale at home. Last season, Springdale atoned for that, clinching a playoff berth by virtue of its season-ending win over Riverview.

There’s also the matter of Riverview’s 59-39 win earlier this season over Springdale. Buckle up.

Runnin’ with the Devils

Leechburg extended its school-record postseason streak, as the Blue Devils (6-11, 3-6) clinched their fourth consecutive WPIAL playoff berth with a Section 3-A win Monday at St. Joseph.

Just a few seasons ago Leechburg found itself in a 10-season playoff drought, but the Blue Devils ended that in 2016, win WPIAL playoff games in ‘17 and ‘18, made the PIAA tournament for the first time in 2017 and won their first-round game.

The Blue Devils managed to get back to the playoffs this season despite losing five starters and one reserve from last season. Senior Kat Yurjevich ensured Leechburg would qualify, scoring 26 points in the win over St. Joseph.

Song of Solomon

Deer Lakes senior guard Anna Solomon made six 3-pointers, finishing with 28 points, in the Lancers’ 44-43 Section 3-3A win Monday night at Derry.

Solomon joined teammates Abby Buechel and Reese Hasley as Deer Lakes players who made at least six 3-pointers in a game this season. Buechel hit six in a 54-18 win over South Allegheny on Jan. 17, and Hasley had eight in a 63-36 victory over Valley on Jan. 21.

Cleveland rocks

Pittsburgh might not have an NBA franchise, but Plum and Woodland Hills get an opportunity to play in a professional arena next week.

The Mustangs and Wolverines will meet at 3 p.m. Monday at Quicken Loans Arena, home to the Cleveland Cavaliers. After their game, the teams get an opportunity to watch the game later that night between the Cavaliers and New York Knicks.

“How many times does a kid from this region have an opportunity to see an NBA game with there not being an NBA team in the city of Pittsburgh?” Woodland Hills athletic director Ron Coursey said. “This is giving the kids an opportunity to see an NBA game live and in person, and then the cherry on the sundae is that not only are you getting to watch an NBA game, but you’re getting to play on the very same floor three hours prior.”

The game is being played through the NBA’s “Court of Dreams” program. Coursey arranged similar experiences with the Cavaliers and with the Philadelphia 76ers when he was athletic director at Propel Andrew Street and York.

Coursey said he reached out to one of his old contacts with the Cavaliers to arrange the game, then asked Plum — a previously scheduled home opponent — if it would be interested in moving the game from Woodland Hills to Cleveland.

“We’re really excited about that opportunity, not only for the boys to get to play in that arena, on that type of stage, but also to get to watch the Cavaliers play afterwards,” Plum coach Hart Coleman said.

Same game, new location

A water-main break forced Fox Chapel to move the site of its Friday nonsection game against Upper St. Clair to Duquesne’s Palumbo Center. The game will begin at 7:30 p.m.

Doug Gulasy is a Tribune-Review staff writer. You can contact Doug at dgulasy@tribweb.com or via Twitter @dgulasy_Trib.

Tags: Deer Lakes, Fox Chapel, Leechburg, Plum