For three quarters Tuesday, it looked as if Montour was trying to take a circuitous route to winning its season opener.
Taking on three-time defending City League champion Allderdice, nothing came easy for the Spartans, especially during a third quarter that their coach called “awful.”
But when the fourth quarter came around, the Spartans decided to put an end to the roundabout routes and indirect ways and instead used the Straight path to grab an impressive win.
Colton Straight scored 13 points, including the first nine of the fourth quarter, to help host Montour defeat Allderdice, 57-51, in a non-section game.
Montour (1-0), one of the top teams in WPIAL Class 5A, got 23 points and 12 rebounds from Ama Sow, while Asher Schwartz led Allderdice (0-1) with 20 points.
Sow, a 6-foot-10 senior center and Tennessee-Martin recruit, picked up his fourth foul with 36 seconds left in the third quarter. That sent Sow to the bench and allowed Allderdice to take a 38-36 lead to the fourth quarter.
“His presence when he’s on the court, it affects the game a lot, so when he’s off it’s a little tough to deal with,” Straight said. “But we can do it. We did it.”
That set the stage for Straight, a guard who started just one game his junior season. Straight, who had two points at the time, misfired on a pair of free-throw attempts a little over a minute into the fourth quarter, but regained his composure and scored the game’s next nine points. That included a 3-pointer with 6:18 left that put Montour ahead for good at 41-38. The final points of his personal run came on a coast-to-coast layup that increased the lead to 45-38.
“When I had that first layup, I just really needed to see one fall,” Straight said. “I have confidence in myself and my team has confidence in me. It’s just huge to make a 3 at home, feel the crowd and keep the intensity going.”
Straight is no stranger to big performances, as he was co-MVP of the Pittsburgh Basketball Club Summer League after averaging 30 points a game.
“He’s capable of that,” Montour coach Bill Minear said.
Sow then returned a few minutes into the fourth quarter and helped Montour seal the win by scoring 10 points, which included two thunderous dunks. Sow and Straight combined to score all 21 of their team’s fourth-quarter points.
Montour led by one point at the half before Allderdice used a 13-2 run to surge ahead in the third quarter. The aptly named Trey Schachter fueled the surge by knocking down three 3-pointers and scoring all 11 of his points, the final two coming on a floater that gave the Dragons a 36-28 lead with 2:13 remaining in the third quarter. Schachter is a senior guard with offers from Green Bay and UC Santa Barbara. Montour’s Robert Schmitt followed with two 3-pointers to make it 36-34.
“I told the guys that this is going to show us what we need to do to get better so we can be playing in February and March,” Minear said, “and I thought they responded pretty well.”
Other boys games
• Jayden Davis drilled eight 3-pointers and scored 41 points to vault host Chartiers Valley (2-0) to an 83-54 win against Laurel Highlands (0-1). Chartiers Valley led, 49-22, at the half. Julius Best added 14 points for the Colts, while Aiden Black scored 22 for Laurel Highlands.
• Nico Santapau scored 19 points and Andrew Omasits scored nine of his 16 points after regulation to lead Seneca Valley (1-1) to a 72-61 double-overtime win against Avonworth (1-1) in the Mike Rettger tournament at Franklin Regional. The Raiders outscored Avonworth, 13-2, in the second overtime. Rowan Carmichael pumped in 34 points for Avonworth.
• Upper St. Clair (1-0) raced to a 35-point halftime lead and rolled to a 78-22 win against visiting Bishop Canevin (0-2). Tyler Robbins and Ryan Robbins led Upper St. Clair with 16 points apiece.
• Drew Cook scored 24 points to lead South Allegheny (3-0) to a 69-52 win at McKeesport (0-3). Josh Jackowski added 19 points and Cam Epps 18 for South Allegheny, while Lamont Perkins led the Tigers with 19 points.
• Caden Kaiser scored a career-high 17 points and Asher White added 14 to help host Fox Chapel (1-0) rally for a 58-50 win against Shaler (0-1). Fox Chapel trailed, 39-32, after three quarters before outscoring Shaler, 26-11, in the fourth. Jordan Epps led Shaler with 19 points.
• Max Butler scored 21 points and host Latrobe (3-0) used a big fourth quarter to down Hempfield (0-1), 72-60. Latrobe outscored Hempfield, 23-13, in the final quarter. Hempfield was led by Drew Gordon’s 14 points.
• Beaver (3-0) jumped to a 16-point halftime lead and went on to gain a 66-51 win against visiting Blackhawk (1-2). Brady Mayo scored 23 points and Junior Marino 19 for Beaver. Justin Shanor led Blackhawk with 13 points.
• Owen Dumbroski’s 16 points helped Serra Catholic (3-0) capture a 55-47 win at Seton LaSalle (0-1). Keenu Brooks led Seton LaSalle with 15 points.
Girls games
• Arabelle Nichols scored 16 points and Lauren Marton chipped in 11 to help Penn-Trafford (3-0) claim a 51-50 win against visiting Norwin (0-1). Kendall Berger led Norwin with 17 points.
• Rylee Kalocay poured in 25 points to lead host Upper St. Clair (1-0) to a 74-41 win against Seneca Valley (1-2). Meredith Huzjak chipped in 10 points for the Panthers. Gracie Cato paced Seneca Valley with 18 points.
• Miami recruit Natalie Wetzel scored 25 points to help host Peters Township (1-0) capture a 60-42 win against Canon-McMillan (1-1). Freshman Jordyn Welsh chipped in 10 points for the Indians. Lauren Borella led the Big Macs with 16 points.
• Kylie Fruehstorfer knocked down five 3-pointers among her 22 points to lift Union (2-0) to a 56-38 win at Riverside (1-2). Mia Preuhs added 10 points and seven rebounds for the Scotties, while DeLana Fox paced Riverside with 13 points.
Three stars
*** — Kai Cox, New Castle. Only a freshman, Cox scored 19 of his game-high 28 points in the first half to propel host New Castle (2-0) to an 84-52 win against Warren JFK, Ohio.
** — Donovan O’Connor, West Allegheny. O’Connor, also a freshman, collected a double-double of 12 points and 12 rebounds to help West Allegheny (1-2) to its first win, 63-23 at Brashear (0-3).
* — Dailan McManus, Frazier. McManus was the man on Tuesday, scoring a game-high 32 points to lead Frazier (1-2) to a 57-32 win against visiting Carmichaels (0-1).
Hot from deep
Players with 3 or more 3-pointers: Jayden Davis, Chartiers Valley, 8; Erond Jakupi, Keystone Oaks, 5; Nate Bills, Rochester, 5; Kylie Fruehstorfer, Union, 5; Ayden Andrews, Butler, 4; Payton Collins, Mt. Lebanon, 4; Nico Santapau, Seneca Valley, 4; AC Corfield, South Side, 4; Rowan Carmichael, Avonworth, 3; Eli Gardner, Avonworth, 3; Brady Mayo, Beaver, 3; Vinnie Manzella, California, 3; Griffin Jarrell, Hampton, 3; Kai Cox, New Castle, 3.
Boys scores
Beaver 66, Blackhawk 51
Butler 72, Kiski Area 67
Carlynton 57, Steel Valley 50
Chartiers Valley 83, Laurel Highlands 54
Connellsville 57, Yough 19
Cornell 58, Environmental Charter 41
East Allegheny 52, Burrell 32
Elizabeth Forward 77, Bethel Park 67
Fox Chapel 58, Shaler 50
Franklin Regional 49, Quaker Valley 48 (OT)
Frazier 57, Carmichaels 32
Geibel 63, Apollo-Ridge 51
Hampton 61, Deer Lakes 54
Jefferson-Morgan 47, Avella 43
Keystone Oaks 74, Southmoreland 54
Latrobe 72, Hempfield 60
Laurel 83, Jamestown, N.Y. 16
McGuffey 52, Propel Braddock 29
Montour 57, Allderdice 51
New Castle 84, Warren JFK, Ohio 52
North Allegheny 67, Mars 53
Peters Township 66, Canon-McMillan 54
Pine-Richland 68, Obama Academy 49
Rochester 52, New Brighton 49
Seneca Valley 72, Avonworth 61 (2 OT)
Serra Catholic 55, Seton LaSalle 47
South Allegheny 69, McKeesport 52
South Park 70, California 33
South Side 68, Beth-Center 62
Sto-Rox 45, Westinghouse 35
Trinity 56, West Mifflin 53
West Allegheny 63, Brashear 23
West Greene 57, Waynesburg 43
Girls scores
Burrell 67, South Allegheny 7
Hempfield 64, McKeesport 39
McGuffey 58, Mount Pleasant 32
Neshannock 50, Portersville Christian 10
Penn-Trafford 51, Norwin 50
Peters Township 60, Canon-McMillan 42
Seton LaSalle 58, Fort Cherry 54
Shaler 59, Knoch 27
Thomas Jefferson 65, Uniontown 14
Trinity 47, Belle Vernon 21
Union 56, Riverside 38
Upper St. Clair 74, Seneca Valley 31
West Greene 50, Waynesburg 35
Brad is a sports writer at the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, but he's currently on strike. Email him at beverett@unionprogress.com.