Doubly good
Ellsworth scores 1,000th point as Red Raiders earn key win over Tigers
Isaac Ellsworth did what he does best as the final seconds of the first half ticked off the clock.
The Uniontown senior nailed a 3-pointer – the 217th of his career – with one second left to give himself 1,001 career points and his team a 23-18 halftime lead.
Ellsworth is much more than a long-range shooter, though, and he proved that late in the game with a key pass and two clutch free throws to help the Red Raiders earn an important Section 1-5A win over McKeesport, 55-50, at A.J. Everhart Memorial Gymnasium on Wednesday night.
The victory was the fifth in the last six games for Uniontown (6-5, 10-8) and pulled them into a fourth-place tie with the Tigers (6-5, 9-8) in the standings, two games ahead of Latrobe.
“It was a great night for Isaac and our team,” Red Raiders coach Rob Kezmarsky said. “We’ve fought back hard to put ourselves in this position but we’ve still got work to do.”
Ellsworth seemed more concerned with his team’s win than hitting the 1,000-point milestone.
“This gives a little bit of a cushion and hopefully leads to a playoff spot for us,” said Ellsworth, who hit five 3-pointers in scoring a game-high 23 points.
McKeesport rallied to take a 33-32 in the third quarter but Cam Dugan’s basket early in the fourth put the Red Raiders ahead 34-33 and they would never trail again.
“We had a really good first half, played really well, but give McKeesport credit, they came back in the third quarter,” Kezmarsky said. “But our kids kept battling and battling and were able to pull it out.”
Uniontown built its lead up to seven when Nolan Baker sank a 3-pointer to make it 43-36 with 4:36 left.
“Nolan hit a very big three in a key spot that gave us some breathing room,” Kezmarsky said.
The Red Raiders held a 49-43 advantage when the Tigers got a basket followed by Brian Jones’ fourth 3-pointer of the night to whittle the gap to 49-48 with 1:28 remaining.
Ellsworth brought the ball up court and, with the defense wary of him, he fired a pass to Chase White open inside for a layup that put Uniontown up 51-48 with the clock at 1:16.
“Teams start keying on me late in a game so that leaves some of my teammates open and if I see that I’m always going to give them the ball,” Ellsworth said.
Cam Dugan made two crucial foul shots with 41 seconds left to put the Red Raiders up 53-48.
Malachi Ogrosky’s 3-pointer with 28 seconds on the clock made it a one-possession game again for McKeesport at 53-30 but Ellsworth calmly swished a pair of free throws with 26 seconds remaining to put the game away.
“Isaac and Cam were really big down the stretch and hit some pressure free throws,” Kezmarsky said. “Cam really gave us a boost tonight. He played a great overall game, especially on defense. It was a team win, though, a lot of kids contributed.”
Dugan followed Ellsworth with nine points, including four straight free throws in the fourth quarter, and White added eight points.
Lamont Perkins led the Tigers with 15 points and Jones had 12.
“Anthony Sheffey did a great job on Perkins,” Kezmarsky said. “Sheffey had a great defensive game. Last time against us he had 34.
“And Chase White played such a good game off the bench for us. He scored eight points and handled the ball well and he was all over the floor on defense. That’s probably the most he’s played all year.”
Uniontown led 12-7 after the first quarter. Ellsworth’s fourth 3-pointer of the first half made it 23-18 and the game was stopped to note his 1,000-point milestone.
“It feels great, especially to do it in front of the home crowd and in a big game like that,” Ellsworth said. “It was pretty deep but I practice those shots so I know I can make them. I tried not to get too excited, made a little fist pump. Then the celebration with my teammates, my parents and everyone … it was a special moment that I’ll remember for a long time.”
“Our players were very excited for him when he got it,” Kezmarsky said. “He knew he needed 11 points but he didn’t come out taking all kinds of shots. He was getting his teammates involved and let the game come to him.
“It’s a credit to him. I’ve coached a lot of years and I’ve never seen a better 3-point shooter. But some people don’t realize he’s a great player overall, a great ball handler, passer, foul shooter, plays good defense. He made some really nice shots in the open court tonight, too.
“He’s worked for every point he’s scored this year. He must be doing something right because our record with Isaac is 55-18.”
Uniontown faces another tough challenge Friday when it travels to first-place Gateway (10-1, 12-6).
“We’ve been a good road team (7-3) this year,” Kezmarsky said. “We’re playing well right now.”