B-C defeats Mikes to keep playoff hopes alive
FREDERICKTOWN — The Beth-Center boys basketball squad kept their playoff aspirations alive for one more week, as the Bulldogs gutted out a 38-27 win over Carmichaels Friday night in Section 4-AA action.
The Bulldogs (7-8, 4-6) are currently tied with Frazier for the fourth and final playoff spot after the Commodores lost to Waynesburg Central.
Both teams have the identical section records with two more games to go and have split games with each other this year.
“Our last loss against Frazier (53-52 on Wednesday) was a tough one,” B-C coach Greg Golembiewski said. “We had a team meeting on Thursday and we talked about it. I told them that I trust the players on the court, so in turn they have to trust me as a coach. We cleared the air on some things. Now we control our destiny for the playoffs.”
B-C travels to section leader Brownsville on Tuesday and hosts Bentworth next Friday. Frazier ventures to Carmichaels on Tuesday and welcomes in Brownsville in their section finale next Friday.
The playoff hopes for the Mikes (9-10, 2-8) took a considerable setback, as Carmichaels now needs to win out and have both B-C and Frazier lose out to make it a three-way tie for the final playoff berth.
B-C broke away from a 23-23 deadlock at the end of three quarters with a 15-4 scoring advantage in the final eight minutes. The catalyst for the Bulldogs in the quarter was a relentless press that caused turnovers.
“It was a gut decision to go to the press in the fourth quarter,” Golembiewski said. “Our game plan was to use it if the score was close. I thought our kids were aggressive and took advantage of their miscues. We rotated some guys in and that turned the tide for us.”
Brady McDonnell had 10 of his game-high 15 points in the fourth frame, while Nick Pryor was in double figures with 10. Luke Hess chipped in with nine.
Nick Mundell and Liam Shea collected eight points each for the Mikes.
“We had no answer for their press at the end of the game,” Carmichaels coach Don Williams said. “We had to foul them and they made their foul shots. We have struggled all year on offense and handling the ball. Once again, we were inconsistent tonight.”
After a free throw by McDonnell started the scoring in the fourth quarter, the visitors countered with a shot from beyond the arc by Mundell that gave them a 26-24 lead.
Hess and JJ Green added inside baskets for B-C before a foul shot by Shea made the score 30-27 with 4:29 left in regulation.
The rest of the game was all Bulldogs, as B-C closed out the contest with eight unanswered points. McDonnell shot 6-of-12 from the foul line in the fourth period.
“Brady was able to penetrate their zone defense late in the game,” Golembiewski said. “He was able to get some drives in the lane. He either got fouled or dished it off to one of his teammates. He showed great senior leadership in crunch time. He is a pistol and can sometimes be out of control, but he showed great maturity late in the game.”
B-C led 6-3 to start the game before Carmichaels compiled five straight points to take an 8-6 lead at the end of one. Cody Brown had six of Carmichaels’ eight points in the quarter.
The Bulldogs captured the momentum back in the second quarter with a 9-4 scoring edge and carried a 15-10 lead into halftime.
“We lack in some areas on offense,” Williams said. “I like the defensive effort tonight, but you got to score to win games. We wanted to do what we do best, play sound defense and run our offense. We did play hard, but we still have our shortcomings on offense.”
In the third quarter, the Mikes scored 11 of the period’s first 15 points. Trailing 23-19, Pryor netted an old-fashioned three-point play and McDonnell made a free throw to tie the game up going into the fourth quarter.
Section 4-AA
Carmichaels 8-4-11-4 — 27
Beth-Center 6-9-8-15 — 38
Carmichaels: Nick Mundell 8, Liam Shea 8. Beth-Center: Brady McDonnell 15, Nick Pryor 10, Luke Hess 9. Records: Carmichaels (9-10, 2-8), Beth-Center (7-8, 4-6).