Northgate uses experience, size advantage to top Jeannette in 2A quarters
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Friday, February 23, 2024 | 10:33 PM
Northgate’s Desmond Williams blocks a shot by Jeannette’s Jayce Powell during a WPIAL Class 2A boys quarterfinal Friday, Feb. 23, 2024, at Mt. Lebanon High School.
Jeannette’s Jayce Powell scores past Northgate’s Ty Daniels during a WPIAL Class 2A boys quarterfinal Friday, Feb. 23, 2024, at Mt. Lebanon High School.
Jeannette’s Markus McGowan celebrates after hitting a 3-pointer to give Jeannette its only lead of the game against Northgate in the third quarter during a WPIAL Class 2A boys quarterfinal Friday, Feb. 23, 2024, at Mt. Lebanon High School.
Jeannette’s Kymon’e Brown defends Northgate’s Kademme Kemp during a WPIAL Class 2A boys quarterfinal Friday, Feb. 23, 2024, at Mt. Lebanon High School.
Jeannette’s Kymon’e Brown fouls Northgate’s Josh Willams during a WPIAL Class 2A boys quarterfinal Friday, Feb. 23, 2024, at Mt. Lebanon High School.
Jeannette’s Xavier Odorisio-Farrow scores over Northgate’s Ty Daniels during a WPIAL Class 2A boys quarterfinal Friday at Mt. Lebanon.
Jeannette’s Xavier Odorisio-Farrow scores past Northgate’s Ty Daniels during a WPIAL Class 2A boys quarterfinal Friday, Feb. 23, 2024, at Mt. Lebanon High School.
Northgate’s Austin Mitchell defends Jeannette’s Markus McGowan during a WPIAL Class 2A boys quarterfinal Friday, Feb. 23, 2024, at Mt. Lebanon High School.
Jeannette’s Markus McGowan hits a 3-pointer over Northgate’s Landon Lockett during a WPIAL Class 2A boys quarterfinal Friday, Feb. 23, 2024, at Mt. Lebanon High School.
Northgate’s Josh Williams fights for a loose ball with Jeannette’s Noah Sanders during a WPIAL Class 2A boys quarterfinal Friday, Feb. 23, 2024, at Mt. Lebanon High School.
Northgate’s Ty Daniels grabs a rebound over Jeannette’s Xavier Odorisio-Farrow during quarter round WPIAL boys 2A action Friday, Feb.23, 2024 at Mt. Lebanon High School.
Northgate’s Robert MicKinley fouls Jeannette’s Jayce Powell during a WPIAL Class 2A boys quarterfinal Friday, Feb. 23, 2024, at Mt. Lebanon High School.
North Gate’s Kadenne Kemp (left) and Ty Daniels block a shot by Jeannette’s Markus McGowan during a WPIAL Class 2A boys quarterfinal Friday, Feb. 23, 2024, at Mt. Lebanon High School.
Northgate’s Josh Williams fights for a loose ball with Jeannette’s Eli Sanders and Jayce Powell during a WPIAL Class 2A boys quarterfinal Friday, Feb. 23, 2024, at Mt. Lebanon High School.
Beware of the cushion. Cam Williams certainly was.
When his Northgate boys basketball team took a huge early lead Friday night against Jeannette in the Flames’ eventual 55-44 victory in a WPIAL Class 2A quarterfinal at Mt. Lebanon, it put Williams in an uncomfortable place.
“Jeannette has tough kids. They always do,” he said. “It was scary because you knew there was going to be a time when they were going to make a run. If not, it was going to be a 20-25 point lead.”
It wound up an 11-point final as Josh Williams scored 12 of his game-high 14 points in the second half, Kadenne Kemp scored 11 points to go with six blocks and No. 3 Northgate (18-5) advanced to the semifinals against No. 2 Greensburg Central Catholic.
No. 6 Jeannette (14-8) faces Eden Christian in the consolation bracket.
Both games are scheduled for Tuesday night at sites and times to be determined.
With Northgate jumping on Jeannette early by scoring the game’s first 10 points and taking a 12-point cushion into the second quarter, Williams figured the Jayhawks would make a comeback.
And they did.
Trailing 21-16 at halftime, the Jayhawks chipped away and took a 32-31 lead in the third quarter on Markus McGowen’s 3-point shot with 3 minutes, 1 second left, capping a 10-4 run.
“We needed that a little bit,” Williams said. “I didn’t want the timeout at that point, but my player called it. I didn’t want to give them that momentum, but it worked out. We made the adjustments and we stuck with it, and that was the good thing about it.”
Northgate regrouped and scored the final seven points of the quarter, ignited by Josh Williams’ go-ahead jumper and capped by London Locketts’ 3-pointer, to take a 38-32 cushion heading to the fourth quarter.
“That was the biggest shot of the game,” Cam Williams said. “We called a timeout and called a play. (Locketts) made a big-time shot. He’s been struggling the last five games after he was our second-leading scorer at beginning of the year.”
Northgate’s size and experience took over late — the senior-laden lineup included the 6-foot-5 duo of Kemp and Ty Daniels — and the Flames pulled away and advanced.
“We took the lead there but then came down and turned the ball over,” Jeannette coach Adrian Batts said. “When you turn the ball over, you give a good team another opportunity, another possession. In the fourth quarter, we had three bad possessions in a row, including two turnovers, and they scored on them and that was the difference.”
Kymon’e Brown scored 11 points and McGowen added 10 to lead Jeannette, whose starting lineup includes three sophomores and a freshman.
“It’s a learning process for these guys,” Batts said. “They’re still learning. They’re learning how to take defeat in the playoff game. For a lot of them, this is a first. I’m just really proud of my guys. Northgate is a good team. They’ve got some size, but we were right there. We had a chance.”
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