Penn Hills uses late-game 3-point binge to rally past Kiski Area

By: George Guido
Friday, January 15, 2021 | 10:29 PM

The Kiski Area Cavaliers were on the verge of a significant early season victory, leading Penn Hills by eight points early in the fourth quarter Friday night.

But the Indians, with leading scorer Deondre Mitchell fouled out, staged a late surge and spoiled Kiski Area’s home opener, 62-58.

A trio of 3-pointers by junior George Mitchell — the final one coming with 58.4 seconds to go in the game — propelled the late Penn Hills rally.

The Indians outscored Kiski Area 16-6 to end the game.

Penn Hills is now 2-0 in Section 3-5A play, 2-1 overall. Kiski Area fell to 1-1, 1-2.

Deondre Mitchell led the Indians with 14 points before fouling out late in the third period.

George Mitchell, no relation, had 12 points, Wes Kropp 11 and Daemar Kelly 10. Kropp and Kelly had six rebounds each.

James Pearson had 19 to lead the Cavaliers, and Logan Johnson came off the bench to score 14 points. Brayden Dunmire collected six rebounds.

“Our guys were able to capture a little bit of momentum and hit a different gear,” said first-year Penn Hills coach Chris Giles. “We started to match the physicality of Kiski Area and we started getting some steals.”

“We came unraveled there,” said Cavaliers coach Will Saunders. “For us, we talked to the guys about losing three or four possessions. We were playing so well, but mistakes can cost you the game.”

Penn Hills dominated early, taking a 16-5 lead with 1:37 to go in the first period. But the Cavaliers got some strong scoring from their bench to tie the game at 20-all with 3:32 left in the half.

“That’s usually the way we are in practice,” Giles said. “We start well, then drop off. I keep repeating that we have to play hard for 32 minutes each night.”

Said Saunders: “In the past, we’d get down 12 or 14 early, and we’d end up getting blown out. Our guys competed tonight, but we have to learn how to finish it.”

The Indians didn’t commit a turnover in the first period but had seven miscues in the second quarter, allowing the Cavaliers to take a 26-25 lead on a basket by Dunmire after the junior worked hard for a pair of rebounds.

Following a 28-28 stalemate at the half, Penn Hills scored the first six points of the third quarter, only to see the Cavaliers go in front, 45-40, with Johnson scoring seven points as Kiski Area took control.

Kiski Area built up a 49-41 lead on a steal by Pearson with 7:42 to go, but five careless turnovers by the Cavaliers over the next 3½ minutes allowed the Indians to get back into the contest.

Penn Hills canned seven consecutive free throws in one stretch to trail 54-53 with 2:59 to go. A 3-pointer by George Mitchell gave the Indians a 56-54 advantage. He hit another trey with 58.4 to go to put Penn Hills in front, 59-58.

A shot by Dylan Hutcherson went in and out of the hoop and Kelly gathered the rebound for Penn Hills. Kiski Area was forced to foul and Kropp hit a pair of free throws. LeBryn Smith’s try for a 3-pointer to tie the game missed, and Kelly snared another rebound with 1.8 left, drawing praise for his gritty play from Saunders.

Kiski Area got 25 points from its bench.

“I told them we were going to play a lot of guys and to be ready to play,” Saunders said. “We were only 5 of 25 from 3-point range, but we got 25 good looks.”

Both teams have had to overcome offseason issues, along with the December schedule interruption. Giles, former head coach at Propel Andrew Street, took over for Dan DeRose, who went to North Allegheny over the summer.

Saunders had three all-section players transfer to other schools and another potential starter, Kenny Blake, didn’t come out for the team due to football injuries.

Tags: Kiski Area, Penn Hills