HERSHEY — Pressure creates diamonds, and as South Allegheny learned the hard way Saturday at Giant Center, it also produces PIAA gold.
West Catholic used its defensive pressure to turn South Allegheny over and reverse the tables on the Gladiators, as the Burrs bounced back from an early double-digit deficit to capture a 60-51 win in the PIAA Class 3A boys basketball championship.
The loss ended what was the best season in South Allegheny history. The Gladiators (27-4) won their first WPIAL championship and played for a PIAA title for the first time. The loss Saturday came in front of a large contingent of South Allegheny fans who made the trip from the Mon Valley.
“As long as you do this, you never find the right words in these moments to make anybody feel better about what just happened,” South Allegheny coach Tony DiCenzo said. “They don’t realize it now. They’re teenagers. But 10, 20, 30 years from now, they have a bond that will never be broken. What they’ve accomplished, what they’ve done for this community, it’s really special.”
It was the second title in three seasons for West Catholic (14-14), a Philadelphia Catholic League team that defeated Deer Lakes, 83-55, in the 2023 championship.
South Allegheny couldn’t have asked for a much better start. Fueled by a 13-0 run, the Gladiators led West Catholic, 17-3, in the closing minute of the first quarter. The standout guard tandem of junior Drew Cook and senior Cameron Epps powered the early run, with Cook accounting for 10 points and Epps 5. The Gladiators were 7-of-12 shooting in the first quarter, while West Catholic was just 1 of 7.
“We came out on fire again,” said Cook, whose team scored 29 first-quarter points in a quarterfinal win against Camp Hill Trinity. “We were all dialed in before the game. Once one of our first shots goes in, it gets passed around.”
Unfortunately, that hot shooting didn’t carry over to the remaining three quarters, with the Gladiators shooting just 10 of 29 the rest of the game. West Catholic went on some big runs, including spurts of 8-0 and 7-0 in the second quarter. The Gladiators committed 14 turnovers in the game, 7 of them coming in the second quarter when West Catholic outscored the Gladiators, 18-10, to trim the deficit to 27-23 at the half.
“We had way too many turnovers,” Cook said. “We were up I think, 19-5, at one point, and then I think we had five turnovers and they got on a flurry. And they brought themselves back.”
West Catholic outscored South Allegheny, 36-17, over the middle two quarters. Just like the second quarter, the Gladiators were plagued by turnovers in the third. They committed five of them while going 3-of-9 shooting. The Burrs took their first lead, 33-31, on a 3-pointer by Rahmir Speaks with 4:47 left in the frame. That bucket was part of a 13-0 run that saw a 3-point South Allegheny lead turn into a 41-31 deficit.
“We went into a lull,” DiCenzo said. “One of our keys to the game was live ball turnovers. Turning the ball over feeds into their transition and early offense for them, and that was a huge key for us to preserve the ball, make sure we possess the ball and at least get a shot every possession. We were able to do that early. In the second quarter we kind of got loose with the ball and they created some stills and turnovers and got back into the game.”
South Allegheny didn’t go away, though. Despite Epps fouling out with 2:11 left, the Gladiators pulled it to 53-49 on Cook’s 3-pointer with 1:35 remaining. But that turned out to be their final field goal of the game. Meanwhile, the Burrs went 7 of 8 from the free-throw line down the stretch to put the game on ice.
“Coach told us it’s a game of runs, and unfortunately they made more runs than us,” Epps said.
Cook finished with 22 points and Epps 15 for South Allegheny, which was 17 of 41 from the field (41%), including 8 of 18 from behind the arc. Despite being at a size disadvantage, the Gladiators were outrebounded, 23-19.
Jayvon Byrd led West Catholic with 20 points. Byrd hit the winning 3-pointer in the closing seconds of the team’s semifinal win against Holy Cross. Eric Scott chipped in with 14 points off the bench. West Catholic’s superior depth played a part in the win, with the Burrs outscoring South Allegheny, 21-0, in bench points. Epps and fellow starter Jake Uher each fouled out for the Gladiators.
Cook’s face was filled with tears after the loss, but his heart was filled with pride after what was the greatest season in program history.
“I’m just proud of all of my teammates,” he said. “My seniors. I grew up with them, played with them all my life. It’s just a brotherhood and it’s sad it’s coming to an end, but I love them. They have a special part in my heart for the rest of my life.”
Brad is a sports writer at the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, but he's currently on strike. Email him at beverett@unionprogress.com.