Gateway avenges Section 1-5A loss to Greensburg Salem, stays in hunt for playoff berth
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Friday, February 1, 2019 | 10:24 PM
Mark Zahorchak used the word discouraging after Friday night’s game.
Actually, the Greensburg Salem boys basketball coach had a discouraging feeling before, during and after visiting Gateway took down his undermanned Golden Lions, 61-42, in a Section 1-5A game.
Greensburg Salem (8-11, 3-8) couldn’t punctuate senior night with a victory as their WPIAL playoff chances took a hit. The Gators (5-12, 3-7), meantime, stayed in the race for the fourth playoff spot in the section with a hot-shooting performance.
The teams split their two-game series.
Greensburg Salem played without sophomore starting guard Christian McGowan, who is out with an injury. Late in the game, junior forward Shamar McCoy stormed off the court and was whistled for a technical for taking off his jersey and flinging it onto the court.
He slammed a door as he headed to the locker room downstairs, but emerged shortly after and walked out of the gym.
Zahorchak did not wish to comment on McCoy, but he knows the Golden Lions did not get enough scoring help for junior guard Dante Parsons, who had a game-high 26 points.
“It was tough with Christian out,” Zahorchak said. “The whole week felt off. It was a rough week. I don’t want to make excuses, but we were off school. … Gateway outplayed us is what it came down to.”
Gateway didn’t look like a four-win team in the first half as the Gators came out firing and shot 68 percent from the field over the first two quarters (15 for 22).
Despite a slow start to the third — the Gators missed their first seven shots — Gateway maintained command for the long haul.
“We have to be able to stick with it for four quarters,” Gateway coach Alvis Rogers said. “Each game is a playoff game now. We haven’t played well in the third quarter this year. We need more enthusiasm, more looseness. We were able to stick it out, but we need to be able to finish games.”
Gateway scored just six points in the third while Parsons had all eight of Greensburg Salem’s.
Five Golden Lions scorers not named Parsons combined for 16 points.
Parsons’ 3 made it 35-31 and junior Ryan Thomas had three blocks in the third quarter as the Golden Lions looked to make a move.
But a run never materialized.
“The third quarter was the key,” Zahorchak said. “We emphasized defense and getting stops. We had some chances but could not take advantage. We didn’t do what we needed to do in that quarter.”
Junior RJ Stevenson led Gateway with 20 points, while sophomore Bonzi Parks had 13 and junior Joseph Katona added 12 on four 3-pointers.
Parsons, who was coming off a 42-point game against Penn Hills, hit a 3 with a minute left in the third to file Gateway’s lead down to six (40-34), but the Gators reeled off seven straight points to build their lead to 13.
Freshman William Kromka scored all eight of his points in the fourth for Gateway.
Greensburg Salem managed just three field goals in the fourth. Gateway ended the game on an 8-0 run to make the final score its largest lead.
There was a single-digit margin for much of the night.
The Gators took an 18-15 lead after one when Parsons had 10 of the Golden Lions’ points.
Parks beat the first-quarter buzzer with a floater near the low block.
The Gators hit six 3-pointers in the first half and had the lead to double figures, at 29-18.
Pressure defense parred nicely with an extended 2-3 zone for the Gators, who remained hot from the field in the second quarter and took a 36-26 lead into the half.
Stevenson had 10 in the second quarter.
“We watched film and saw what teams were doing against them,” Rogers said. “It’s a copy cat thing. We wanted to extend the defense and keep it on them.”
Greensburg Salem won the first meeting against Gateway, 53-42, as Parsons scored 20.
“We haven’t practiced,” Rogers said. “Maybe that’s what we need to do — not practice. We’ve had guys logging a lot of minutes. Maybe they needed a rest.”
Bill Beckner is a Tribune-Review staff writer. You can contact Bill at bbeckner@tribweb.com or via Twitter @BillBeckner.
Tags: Gateway, Greensburg Salem
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