Fox Chapel boys see big lead slip away before holding off Penn-Trafford

By: Bill Beckner Jr.
Friday, February 4, 2022 | 10:09 PM

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Getting defensive stops against Fox Chapel is a task much easier said than done.

The Foxes move the ball with crisp passes and keep the offense flowing with cuts and screens.

They can play fast or slow and don’t make a ton of mistakes. That’s why they’re a WPIAL title contender in Class 6A.

Host Penn-Trafford got stops, turning the No. 2 Foxes over 10 times in the fourth quarter to punch back after falling behind by 23. But Fox Chapel weathered the late flurry and came out on top, 67-55, on Friday night in Section 3-6A boys basketball.

“We started stalling a little too early maybe,” said Foxes senior guard Eli Yofan, who had a game-high 24 points to go with seven rebounds. “Come playoff time, we know we can’t do that. We executed well in the halfcourt, but we can run, too.”

Fox Chapel (18-1, 8-0), which suffered its only loss against state and WPIAL No. 1 North Hills, 87-57, has won 17 straight section games.

The section title is within earshot now.

The Foxes’ last section loss came last season at Penn-Trafford, 63-61.

Penn-Trafford (8-10, 4-4), which began the night in third place in the section, had won three of its last five. The Warriors, still looking to clinch a playoff spot, trailed 61-38 with 4 minutes, 50 seconds to go when they started to clog passing lanes and get steals.

Senior Noah Wright hit a 3, made a layup and converted three free throws after he was hacked on a 3-point attempt, and junior Tommy Kalkstein scored off a steal to make it 63-50.

Senior Nick Crum made a free throw to trim it to 65-53, but the Foxes did enough to stay ahead by double figures.

“Maybe we did (drain the clock) too early,” Foxes coach Zach Skrinjar said. “When we had that cushion, we tried to run some things. We knew (Penn-Trafford) wasn’t going to stop playing. We just didn’t take care of the ball.”

Fox Chapel’s guards played soundly for most of the night on both ends of the floor, forcing the Warriors to take tough, often hurried shots.

“(Senior) JP (Dockey) and (senior) Jake (DeMotte) really control the tempo offensively and defensively for us,” Yofan said.

Dockey added 14 points, seven rebounds, six assists and five steals. DeMotte triggered several possessions with his passing.

“It’s a product of them working hard,” said Skrinjar, who recently won his 200th game. “Everyone on the court can handle the ball for us. In any situation our guys can make a pass. We want a great shot opposed to a good shot.”

Wright led Penn-Trafford with 18 points, and Crum added 16, including three 3-pointers.

The first time the teams played, Fox Chapel dismantled the Warriors, 75-37. So this was quite an upgrade for the home team.

“I was disappointed last time,” Warriors coach Doug Kelly said. “Tonight was better. We were down 21 … We used timeouts better. …We kept fighting. But nothing matters other than winning. I thought we could win that game.”

Yofan made a pair of 3s to open the third as Fox Chapel stretched its advantage to 52-34.

Yofan has college interest from a number of Division I schools, including Wright State, Campbell, Lehigh, Cornell and others. He has offers from Army and Navy.

“I’d rather him shoot it 30 times,” Kelly said. “He is such a team guy.”

The Foxes took a 32-24 lead into halftime, their final basket of the half an alley-oop from DeMotte to Yofan for an easy lay-in.

Yofan scored 14 in the first half, including a dunk.

Sophomore Tyler Freas and Crum hit back-to-back 3s to cut the margin to 25-20 with 2:48 left in the second quarter. The Warriors did not have a two-point field goal in the quarter.

But DeMotte made a 3, and senior forward Russell Fenton, who is related to the Latrobe basketball family by that name, scored inside to push it back to 10.

“Fox Chapel does points off turnovers as good as anybody,” Kelly said.

Penn-Trafford never led.

Junior Conlan Greene had a three-point play in the first quarter as the Warriors trailed, 15-13.

Bill Beckner Jr. is a TribLive reporter covering local sports in Westmoreland County. He can be reached at bbeckner@triblive.com.

Tags: Fox Chapel, Penn-Trafford