Franklin Regional gives up huge lead before rallying to beat Kiski Area

By: Dave Mackall
Friday, January 5, 2024 | 10:10 PM

A boys basketball blowout at Kiski Area turned into a nail-biter before it was over Friday night, but Franklin Regional will take the road victory just the same.

Cooper Rankin scored 23 points, and Cam Rowell added 21, including the go-ahead basket in the final minute, as the Panthers held on for a 60-57 victory in a WPIAL Section 3-5A game that saw them squander a 23-point, second-quarter lead and fall behind late before rallying to win their fifth in a row.

“It makes you grow up, these types of games,” Franklin Regional coach Jesse Reed said. “If you’re not ready to battle in them … It’s what’s going to happen a lot of nights in our section. You’ve got to find a way sometimes to win ugly, find a way late to win ugly. That’s what the growing process is throughout the season.”

Franklin Regional (10-1, 2-0), whose only loss is a three-point decision Dec. 15 to Class 6A No. 2 Butler, led Kiski Area, 33-10, when Cavaliers coach Corey Smith called a timeout and loudly lectured his players in the huddle.

When the Cavs returned to the court, they ran off six unanswered points to start a gradual comeback that turned into a furious, late-game rally.

“He’s a great coach,” Reed said, “and they’re a great team. We knew they were coming back.”

Kiski Area (8-4, 0-2), which dropped its third consecutive decision, trailed by 38-23 at halftime but closed within single digits (45-36) for the first time since early in the game on a runner by Colin Keller.

The Cavaliers kept the heat on as Franklin Regional clung to a 49-43 advantage heading to the fourth quarter. Kiski Area started the period on another 6-0 run to get within 50-49 on two free throws by Isaiah Gonzalez, who led the Cavs with 22 points.

“We played great in the first half,” Reed said. “But it’s a tough road environment. You’ve just got to find a way to win games, sometimes. We’re not a finished product yet, but we’re working our way towards it. I was proud of the way we kind of held our composure and found a way at the end.”

Franklin Regional stayed in front until Gonzalez, who scored his 1,000th career point in Kiski Area’s 65-59 loss to Latrobe on Tuesday, added two free throws with a minute left to give the Cavaliers a 57-56 advantage.

But Rowell scored on a rebound shot to put Franklin Regional back in front 58-57, and he followed it up with a pair of free throws with 38 seconds to go to give the Panthers their three-point margin of victory.

Not without more drama, though. After a timeout with 3 seconds to go, Kiski Area’s pass was deflected out of bounds with 1 second remaining.

When the Cavs’ Carson Heinle bounced a long 3-point attempt off the front of the rim at the final buzzer, Reed and his bench celebrated at the other end before he and Smith came face to face, flashing smiles at what they’d just witnessed.

“They battled back. They’re a great team,” Reed said of Kiski Area. “They’re resilient. You know they’re not going to go away. But we got a lot of poise and resiliency from our guys down the stretch. When they took the lead on us, like many teams do in these games, sometimes it’s hard to recover. But our guys kept the course. They stayed poised, and we worked for what we needed.”

Both teams are back in action Tuesday, Reed and Franklin Regional facing Latrobe in the first game of a two-game homestand and Smith and Kiski Area visiting top-ranked Gateway.

Tags: Franklin Regional, Kiski Area