Salvino notches win N0. 600 as Greyhounds top West Greene
ROGERSVILLE — Guided by head coach Joe Salvino, Monessen’s boys basketball program has blazed a trail of success throughout the WPIAL over the past 32 years.
Salvino reached another milestone Friday night and joined an elite group of WPIAL coaches after notching career win No. 600 as Monessen defeated West Greene, 85-43, in Section 3-A action.
Justice Rice scored a game-high 25 points, and Lavalle Rush added 23 as Salvino became the 10th boys basketball coach in WPIAL history to win at least 600 games.
“Winning 600 games means there was a lot of people involved, it wasn’t just me,” Salvino said. “A lot of players, a lot of assistant coaches … all those people were involved in the 600 wins.”
Salvino’s ties with the Greyhounds’ basketball team run deep. He was a player first, then an assistant coach, before taking over the program in 1984.
Since then, Monessen has won two state titles, five WPIAL championships and made 31 straight postseason appearances under Salvino, whose career record is 600-237.
“What’s probably most special about the 600 wins is the people I’m associated with now,” Salvino said. “A person like (Farrell’s) Ed McCluskey … he was a legend, (Blackhawk’s) John Miller … that to me is probably more gratifying than the 600 wins.”
Monessen trailed 17-14 after one quarter and led by just six points, 33-27, at halftime.
West Greene’s Zach McHenry scored early in the third quarter to cut Monessen’s lead to four points, but the Greyhounds went on a 35-5 run to turn a close game into a rout.
Monessen pressed for most of Friday’s game and forced West Greene into many turnovers, especially in the decisive third quarter.
“It’s hard for teams simply because of the pressure we put on,” Salvino said. “We get up and down the floor constantly.”
Jaden Altomore scored 15 points and a pulled down a game-high 13 rebounds, and Dwight Moore chipped in 14 points for Monessen, which won its 10th straight game.
Nathan Brudnock paced West Greene with 13 points, and Kolton Rush added 10.
Monessen (16-3, 10-0) has Section 3-A games remaining at home against Mapletown and at second-place California.
If the Greyhounds win out, they will likely receive Class A’s No. 1 seed as they seek to win back-to-back WPIAL titles.
West Greene (10-8, 6-4) has already clinched its first playoff berth since the 1992-93 season. The Pioneers can lock up third place in Section 3-A with wins at Jefferson-Morgan and at home against Avella.
“Coming into the game, I told the team we’re probably going to face a team similar to Monessen in the playoffs, so we’re treating this game as a playoff game,” West Greene coach Jim Romanus said. “I wanted to see how we would react and how we would do.
“We had a good practice (Thursday) and we were able to break their press when we were fresh. When we got tired, things just broke down. They wore us out.
“But we’re proud of the kids. We were only down 33-27 at halftime. These kids have come a long way. The thing about Monessen is when you make a mistake, they will pounce on it and score.”