Colonials welcome Turner’s return in win over Penn-Trafford
HARRISON CITY – Jawaan Alston scored a game-high 20 points to lead Albert Gallatin over Penn-Trafford 56-55 in a Section 1-AAAA boys basketball game Friday night, but it was Aaron Cromwell and Nate Turner who sparked the Colonials to their first section win of the season. After missing last season with a shoulder injury and the early part of this basketball season with a knee injury, Turner played in his first game in nearly two years, said AG coach Dan Andria.
Turner came off the bench in the first quarter and immediately made the Warriors aware of his 6-foot-4-inch, 225-pound presence. He scored a lay-up off a pass from Alston with 3:48 remaining in the opening quarter and snared an offensive rebound and made the follow-up lay-up with 1:38 left in the period.
“We obviously miss Nate in the lineup,” Andria said. “At times it looked like he never missed any time at all and we never expected him to play as many minutes as he did, but he came through for us, offensively and defensively. He gave us an excellent effort tonight.” Turner scored a team runner-up 15 points and grabbed 10 rebounds, also runner-up to Alston’s game-high 13, and blocked a pair of Penn-Trafford shots. Turner’s straightaway three-pointer with 38 seconds in the game proved to be the difference.
“Nate was big for us underneath,” Andria added, “and he also came up big with the three to win the game. He may have surprised us with that one, but it was the difference. You have someone come back from an injury and have a game like he did; maybe a win like this can jump-start our whole team. Getting Nate back and seeing him play as he did is important for us.”
Cromwell, on the other hand, “struggled early and even told me he was uncomfortable shooting,” Andria said, but the junior forward, who did not score until he poured in a three-pointer from the right corner with 3:12 remaining in the game to knot the score at 49.
His confidence level rising, Cromwell, following a P-T basket, drove through the lane on the Colonials’ next trip down the court and scored on a driving lay-up to even the score once again, at 51.
“He gave us the lift when we needed it,” Andria said, whose Colonials upped their record to 5-3, 1-2.
“I’d say this was a must win,” Andria continued. “We’ve been struggling and game-by-game in the section, when you only play so many games, they are all must wins. We’ve had some injuries and are paper-thin and have basically been playing with five guys. When other teams are rotating nine or ten players and you have a short bench, it becomes a fatigue factor.
After running to a 14-12 lead after one quarter, Andria’s concern about team fatigue may have been realized as his Colonials failed to score for the first 5:10 of the second period, until Alston, who also recorded seven blocks, scored on a reverse lay-up to cut Penn Trafford’s lead to 20-16. Ironically, Alston’s basket proved to be the catalyst as Albert Gallatin scored eight of the second quarter’s final nine points for a 24-23 lead at the half.
“We made some bad decisions early in the second quarter and it took us a while to get going, but the spurt at the end of the quarter gave us a lift at halftime,” Andria said.
In the third quarter, Penn Trafford outscored Albert Gallatin, 17-12, for 40-36 lead after three quarters.
Alston’s slam off an alley-oop pass from sophomore Anthony Stevenson at 3:13 of the third quarter proved to be the Colonials’ final points of the period. For the remainder of the quarter, it was three missed shots and five turnovers in six trips down the floor in what Andria referred to as “several mental breakdowns and perhaps some fatigue setting in. I don’t think we got to one loose ball all night.”
But trailing by four to open the final period may have rejuvenated the Colonials, as they scored the first seven points of the quarter to take a 43-40 lead with 5:21 remaining. Steals at mid-court on successive plays by Turner and Alston, with the latter slamming another shot home at the 5:58 mark, a pair of free throws by Marc Marshall, whose eight points in the game included a three-pointer in each of the second and third quarters, and another fee throw by Alston accounted for the seven-point run.
But Penn-Trafford countered with successive three-pointers by Dan DiNinno (15 points, including three three-pointers) and Justin Edwards (14 points) for a 46-43 lead with 4:55 left, before the teams traded free throws and field goals to set the stage for Cromwell’s late-game power surge and Turner’s game-winning three-pointer.
“This was definitely a big win for us,” said Andria, whose Colonials play an exhibition game against Youngstown Ursurline in Cleveland, Ohio, today. “Maybe this can get us headed in the right direction.”
For Penn-Trafford, who fell to 2-6, 0-3, it was another “close but no cigar” game, said Bernie Matthews, former St. Vincent College men’s coach. “We were patient at times and didn’t rush our shots, but at other times we made some bad decisions. We’re young, with one senior, three juniors, and five sophomores, but we still have to play better basketball. Tonight, Albert Gallatin’s height was the difference. We seem to be getting closer and closer and every game, especially in the section, is a must win. We can’t afford to continue at this pace.”