Red Raiders edge Wildcats
Latrobe almost surely thought Eric Johnson was going to take the shot. Ask Johnson and he’ll tell you the thought definitely crossed his mind.
But what about Rodney Turner?
Well, he took the shot, and wound up preserving Uniontown’s chance for another section title.
Turner drilled a three-pointer with 2.9 seconds remaining to lift the playoff-bound Red Raiders past the visiting Wildcats, 71-68, in Section 1-AAAA action Tuesday at A.J. Everhart Memorial Gymnasium.
Uniontown improves to 15-5 overall and more importantly, 9-4 in section play, one game behind Albert Gallatin. The Colonials clinched at least a share of the Section 1-AAAA title with a 56-51 victory over Penn-Trafford Tuesday night.
Turner’s shot capped a frantic final three minutes that saw Latrobe rally from a seven-point deficit. The Wildcats’ Eric Strayer tied the game when he grabbed the rebound of Eric Mueseler’s missed three-point attempt and dropped in a shot from the foul line with 10.3 seconds remaining.
Johnson then took an inbounds pass and brought the ball past the timeline and to the left side of the court, drawing a double team. He spotted Turner alone on the right wing and fed him an overhead two-handed pass.
Turner didn’t hesitate after he caught the ball, letting the shot fly six inches from beyond the three-point arc. Out of timeouts, Latrobe never got a shot off after Turner’s game-winning basket.
“Boo Boo (Johnson) came down and I just tried to fan out and get open,” Turner said. “They (Latrobe) all went towards him and he made a nice pass to me.”
Uniontown found itself in a tight game for the second straight contest. The Red Raiders were coming off a 51-48 defeat at Hempfield in a game that was decided when the Spartans’ Patrick Stoner hit a buzzer-beating three-pointer.
“It was nice for our kids that we got to storm the court for a change,” said Uniontown coach Rob Kezmarsky. “I’m so happy for Rodney. He works so hard and doesn’t let anything upset him.
“We had two options after they (Latrobe) tied the game. We could call a timeout and set up a play or just inbounds the ball. We were having trouble getting the ball inbounds, so we just wanted to get back down the court and not let them get set on defense. We got the ball into Eric, he tried to penetrate and they doubled him. He trusted his teammate and got the ball to him and he hit the shot.”
Uniontown’s Zack Sawka scored a game-high 23 points, which included three treys and an 8 of 9 performance from the foul line. Starting in the third quarter, Sawka hit his first eight free throws before missing the second of a pair with 1:52 remaining.
Johnson finished with 20 points and a team-high nine rebounds, while Turner tallied 12, including three treys.
The loss drops playoff-bound Latrobe to 13-8 overall and 8-5 in section play, meaning the Wildcats can finish no better than a tie for second place or as low as a tie for fourth.
“We didn’t play real well tonight, and I can probably credit Uniontown for that,” said Latrobe coach Brad Wetzel. “And you have to give credit to a kid who steps up and hits a big shot like that.”
Eric Strayer led three Wildcats in double digits with 18 points, eight of which came in the final quarter. Jeff Garcia scored all but two of his 17 points in the second half and Joel Palko added 10 points.
Latrobe led 20-19 after one quarter and matched its biggest lead of the game, 29-24, with 6:04 left in the first half. Uniontown reeled off a 10-0 run before the Wildcats closed the second quarter with a 6-0 spurt to lead 35-34 at intermission.
Trailing 41-36, Uniontown took its biggest lead of the game with a 14-2 run before settling for a 54-50 lead after three quarters. The Red Raiders then broke open the game when they scored nine of 11 points and led 65-58 with just over three minutes remaining.
NOTES: Uniontown connected on 18 of 25 free throws, but just 3 of 6 over the final 1:52. … Albert Gallatin won the first meeting with Uniontown, 77-73, on Jan. 11. Friday’s game is in York Run. … Latrobe hit 9 of 10 free throws. … Uniontown’s scheduled boy-girl doubleheader with Yough on Monday, Feb. 7, has been cancelled.