NORTH ALLEGHENY SPORTS NETWORK

Boys' Basketball

PIAA CLASS AAAA BOYS' BASKETBALL
2002-03 TOURNAMENT

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WPIAL CLASS AAAA BOYS' BASKETBALL
2002-03 TOURNAMENT

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McDOWELL TOO TOUGH FOR TIGERS IN 57-36 VICTORY

Box Score

The McDowell Trojans took the lead midway through the first quarter on their way to a convincing 57-36 victory over the Tigers at the Senior High gym on Monday night.  It was Senior Night at NA and senior Brian Levey led the Tigers with 13 points.  Junior Tyler Stoczynski had 16 to pace the Trojans.

Levey hit a trey to open the scoring for the Tigers giving them a 3-0 lead, their only lead of the game.  After senior Joe Marsili scored with a baseline jumper, senior point guard Sean Bach drained a trey to put McDowell on top, 5-3.  Senior Chaz Fields scored from under the basket to tie the game at 5-5, but sophomore Sean Smiley hit a triple from the corner to give the Trojans the lead for good at 8-5.  Senior Sean Hoffman dropped in a layup, but Levey answered with a pair of foul shots to make it 10-7.  Hoops by juniors Adam Morrison and Stoczynski closed out the first quarter scoring with McDowell holding a 14-7 advantage. 

Stoczynski scored the first five points of the second quarter giving the Trojans a 19-7 lead, forcing NA to play catchup the rest of the game.  Four straight foul shots, two by Levey and two by junior Luke Brungo, cut the lead to 19-11 at the 4:42 mark.  Junior Andy Miller hit a pair of short hoops and Fields scored again for the Tigers as the lead went to 23-13.  Levey tried to keep NA in the game with a nice move under the basket, but Stoczynski drained a long three to push the margin to 26-15 with 2:25 left in the half.  After Levey scored again, Stoczynski was fouled shooting a trey and made two of three from the line.  Smiley added a final foul shot with 17.3 on the clock as McDowell took a commanding 29-17 lead at the intermission.

The Tigers tried to come back early in the third quarter.  Junior E.J. Kusyner hit a trey just nine seconds into the second half, but Marsili answered with a layup to push to lead to 31-20.  Kusyner scored again to cut it to 31-22, but Bach answered with a three to put the lead back to twelve, 34-22.  After Levey dropped in a pair of free throws, Hoffman tallied a conventional three-point play to increase the lead to 37-24.  Bach’s second three of the quarter pushed the lead to 40-24, and the Tigers’ hopes began to fade.  Sophomore Tim Crouch made a nice move in the post and dropped in a short jumper, but Smiley answered to make it 42-26.  After Fields made two of four from the line, Miller was able to get loose for a layup just before the buzzer as McDowell went into the final period with a 44-28 advantage.

Crouch was able to hit two of four foul shots to open the fourth quarter scoring, but Stoczynski answered with a pair of baskets and the lead increased to 48-30 with 4:59 remaining in the game.  After Kusyner hit one of two from the stripe, Bach came back to score, giving the Trojans a 50-31 lead at the 3:47 mark.  Freshman Ryan Tiesi’s first hoop of the game and sophomore Ryan Honsacker’s two foul shots cut the lead to 50-35, but Morrison scored along the baseline to push it back to a seventeen-point margin.  After Tiesi dropped in one of two foul shots, junior Greg Hansen banked in a long three-point basket to close out the scoring and give McDowell a 57-36 victory over the Tigers.

The loss dropped the NA overall record to 12-12 on the season, with the section record finishing at 6-6.  The Tigers ended up in fourth place in Section 3, just one game out of a playoff spot.  For his efforts on Senior Night, senior Bryan Levey was selected as the Player of the Game.  The Tiger Sports Network would like to congratulate the Tigers for their late playoff run and for winning six of the final nine games of the season.  Good luck next year!

GAME SUMMARY
McDOWELL – 57            NORTH ALLEGHENY - 36

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TIGERS STOP NORTH HILLS, 54-51, AS REGULAR SEASON ENDS

Junior E.J. Kusyner dropped in 21 points to lead the Tigers to a 54-51 victory over the North Hills Indians on Friday night at North Hills.  Kusyner made five of six foul shots in the fourth quarter as the Tigers kept the Indians from sharing in the Section 3 title.  Senior Chaz Fields tallied 16 for the Tigers while Evan Sandherr had 19 to pace the Indians.

The Tigers took control from the beginning, building a 15-7 lead after one quarter and extending the margin to 26-17 at halftime.  After the Tigers led 40-30 after three quarters, North Hills mounted a final quarter comeback but fell short.

The win improved the Tigers record to 6-6 in section play.  NA split with each of the other teams in the section this season, but ended up in fourth place and out of the playoffs.  The overall mark stands at 12-11 with one game to go.  On Monday, 

GAME SUMMARY
NORTH ALLEGHENY - 54    NORTH HILLS - 51

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TIGERS BEAT SHALER, 53-37, BUT MISS PLAYOFFS

Box Score

The Tigers took the lead in the first quarter and never looked back as they dominated the Shaler Area Titans, 53-37, at the Senior High gym on Tuesday night.  Junior E.J. Kusyner led the scoring with 16 points with senior Brian Levey adding 12 to the Tiger total.  Sophomore Nick Sefscik tallied 12 to pace the Titans.  Unfortunately for NA, New Castle beat North Hills, 47-45, to knock the Tigers out of the WPIAL playoffs. 

After Levey’s foul shot gave NA a 1-0 lead, junior Michael Howley’s layup put Shaler in front, 2-1.  Kusyner drained a long trey at the 6:00 mark to give the Tigers a 4-2 advantage before Besselman’s jumper tied the game at 4-4.  Besselman hit a triple to put the Titans ahead, 7-4.  Senior Chaz Fields scored from in close to cut the lead to 7-6, and junior Luke Brungo’s hoop gave NA the lead at 8-7.  Sefcik’s first basket at the 1:48 mark gave Shaler its last lead of the game, 9-8.  The Tigers went on a 6-0 run at the end of the quarter to take the lead for good.  Hoops by Levey, Brungo, and freshman point guard Ryan Tiesi gave NA a 14-9 advantage at the end of the first period.

Full court pressure and a trapping half-court defense continued to force Shaler turnovers in the second quarter.  Kusyner drained his second trey just 1:01 into the quarter to push the lead to 17-9.  Sefscik answered with a three to cut it 17-12.  After Tiesi made one of two from the line, Sefscik hit a jumper to cut it to 18-14 with 4:37 left in the half.  Baskets by sophomore Andrew Krewatch and Kusyner increased the margin to 22-14 before sophomore Stu Anglum scored to cut the lead to 22-16 at the 2:57 mark.  Three free throws by Levey and a layup by junior Chris Huber sparked a 5-0 NA run to give the Tigers a 27-16 lead at the intermission.

The Tigers started quickly in the third quarter as they posted a 9-3 run.  Levey and senior forward Chaz Fields got the Tigers off and running with hoops in the first 1:42 to push the margin to 31-16.  After Sefscik hit a jumper, Levey scored again, and Tiesi dropped in a basket and a free throw to put the Tiger lead at 36-19.  Junior Jon Hoburg scored from under the hoop for the Titans, but the Tigers came back with Levey’s third field goal of the quarter and two foul shots by Kusyner to give the Tigers a 40-21 lead with just 1:15 left.  Adam Pike scored on a layup and Sefscik made one of two foul shots to close out the scoring in the quarter.  NA held a commanding 40-24 lead after three quarters of play.

Both teams substituted liberally in the final quarter.  Pike scored again for Shaler early in the quarter and Hoberg was given a three-point basket when one of the Tigers touched the rim.  With NA leading, 40-29, a hoop by Krewatch and two foul shots by Kusyner pushed the lead back to 44-29.  After Anglum’s basket made it 44-31 at the 5:38 mark, the Tigers went on a 9-0 run.  Kusyner hit a long jumper, Brungo dropped in a pair of free throws, Kusyner added two more foul shots, Brungo scored on a fast break layup, and Tiesi was one for two from the stripe giving NA its biggest lead, 53-31, with 2:30 remaining.  Two foul shots by junior Jeff Johnson, a jumper by Adam Warner, and a hoop at the buzzer by junior Brian Connelly completed the scoring as the Tigers won an easy 53-37 victory.  A highlight of the last couple minutes was the appearance of senior Scott Thomas in the game, much to the delight of the Tiger crowd!

The win improved the NA section record to 5-6 and the overall mark to 11-11.  The Tigers will travel to North Hills on Friday night to complete the section schedule.  North Hills needs a win to capture the section championship.  For his efforts on the scoreboard, the North Allegheny Sports Network selected junior E.J. Kusyner as the Player of the Game.  The Tigers return home next Monday night to close out the season on Senior Night.  The North Allegheny Sports Network will be there to broadcast the game with Erie McDowell LIVE on the internet beginning with the pre-game show at 7:15 pm.  Game time is set for 7:30 pm for the season finale.

GAME SUMMARY
NORTH ALLEGHENY – 53            SHALER AREA - 37

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TIGERS DOWN CENTRAL, 65-56, IN NON-SECTION CONTEST

Box Score

Five Tigers scored in double figures as NA defeated Central Catholic, 65-56, in a non-section game at the Senior High gym on Friday night.  Junior E.J. Kusyner led the way with 13 points, with sophomore Andrew Krewatch dropping in 11.  Seniors Chaz Fields and Brian Levey, along with freshman Ryan Tiesi, all scored 10 points for the winning Tigers.  Junior DeMarcus Simmons had 14 points to pace the Vikings.

Both teams set the pace early with full court presses and pressure defenses.  Junior center Kyle Goldcamp got the Vikings off and running from under the hoop, but junior Luke Brungo tied the game at 2-2.  Junior forward Ross Watson scored twice from the baseline to give Central a 6-2 lead at the 5:56 mark.  The Tigers came back as Fields and Levey scored from in close to tie the game at 6-6.  After Levey’s two free throws had given NA its first lead of the game, senior Matt Brown drained a trey from the corner to put Central back in front, 9-8.  A steal and layup by Simmons extended the lead before Levey scored again to cut the margin to 11-10.  Watson’s third hoop of the quarter made it 13-10 before Tiesi’s trey tied the game with 1:15 remaining.  Levey then stepped outside the arc to hit another three to give NA a 16-13 lead.  Simmons came back to score the final five points of the quarter as Central took an 18-16 advantage after one period of play.

Junior Ryan Kennedy opened the second quarter with a triple just 48 seconds into the stanza to give Central a 21-16 advantage.  After sophomore Tim Crouch came off the bench to hit a pair of free throws, senior Jimmy Hyland put back a rebound to keep it a five-point lead.  Krewatch made two from the stripe, but Brown countered with a jumper to make it 25-20 with 3:53 on the second quarter clock.  Fields got loose for a short jumper and Kusyner drained a long trey to bring NA even at 25-25 with 1:49 left in the half.  Hyland and Simmons answered for the Vikings with two quick hoops to give CC a 29-25 lead.  Krewatch completed the first half scoring with a three to bring the Tigers to within one, 29-28, at the intermission.

Watson scored early in the third quarter to push the lead to three, and Kennedy’s two foul shots made it a five-point lead, 33-28, just 1:18 into the period.  After Levey hit one of two from the stripe, Brown drained his second trey of the game to push the lead to 36-29.  Kusyner then caught fire, hitting a jumper and a trey, to cut the lead to 36-34 at the 5:02 mark.  After senior Joe Welsh hit a short jumper, Brungo threw in a trey from the corner to cut the lead to one with 2:11 on the third quarter clock.  After Simmons made one of two from the line, Brungo dropped in a pair of free throws to tie the game at 39-39.  After Watson gave Central the lead again, Levey tied the game at 41-41 with two foul shots.  Tiesi’s jumper gave NA a two-point advantage, and Krewatch hit another trey to push the Tiger lead to 46-41 with 16 seconds left.  After Goldcamp came back with a hoop from in close, Crouch dropped in one for two from the line with no time left to give NA a 47-43 lead after three quarters of play.

Simmons drove for two early in the fourth quarter, but Tiesi drained his second trey of the game to push the margin back to five at 50-45 at the 7:08 mark.  After Simmons scored again, Krewatch made it 52-47 with a jumper.  Welsh was two for two at the line and Simmons made it a one-point game, 52-51, with 5:14 remaining in the game.  Fields and Tiesi scored to give NA a 56-51 lead before Welsh again made two foul shots to cut it to 56-53 with 3:40 left.  The Tigers then took control, closing the contest with a 9-3 run to win going away.  Fields scored to make it 58-53.  After Goldcamp made one of two from the line, Kusyner hit a trey from the left side to increase the lead to 61-54 with just 1:50 left.  Brungo hit one of two foul shots, but Goldcamp answered with a pair of charity tosses to bring Central to within six at 62-56.  Krewatch added a pair of free throws, and Krewatch finished the scoring with a foul shot to give the Tigers an impressive 65-56 win.

Longl-range bombing helped the Tigers to the victory as they hit nine baskets from beyond the three-point arc.  The game was played hard by both teams as they got ready for the final week of the regular season.  For his efforts at point guard and in helping NA beat the Central full court press, the North Allegheny Sports Network named freshman Ryan Tiesi as the Player of the Game.  The Tigers will get back to section play on Tuesday night when they host the Shaler Area Titans.  The North Allegheny Sports Network will be there to broadcast the game LIVE beginning with the pre-game show at 7:15 pm.  Game time is set for 7:30 with the Tigers needing wins and a little help to secure a playoff spot.

GAME SUMMARY
NORTH ALLEGHENY – 65            CENTRAL CATHOLIC - 56

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WPIAL CLASS AAAA – SECTION 3 STANDINGS
FINAL STANDINGS

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NSN TOP TEN – BOYS’ BASKETBALL RANKINGS
 (as of 2/12/03)

POST-GAZETTE BOYS' BASKETBALL RANKINGS
CLASS AAAA (as of 2/12/03)

TRIBUNE-REVIEW BOYS’ BASKETBALL RANKINGS
CLASS AAAA (as of 2/9/03)

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WPIAL BOYS’ BASKETBALL – 2002-03

The Tigers will once again compete in Class AAAA, along with 35 other teams in the 2002-2003 season.  Three teams from each section will enter the WPIAL tournament.  The top three teasms and ties for third place will enter the team championships set to begin on February 14 through February 19, 2003.  If two teams tie for third place but one of the teams has won both head to head contests, that team will enter the tournament round.  Three way or multiple ties will be broken in the following manner:

1)      The cumulative section won-lost records of all tied teams will be totaled.

2)      The team that has the best numerical record among the tied teams will enter post-season play.

3)      If the tie cannot be clearly broken, all will enter post-season play.

The WPIAL will qualify 10 teams from AAAA in the PIAA state tournament.  PIAA bracket placement will be determined on a “Follow the Winner” basis.

CLASS AAAA – 36 TEAMS