Wagner rallies Charleroi to stun Washington
Luke Campbell/Observer-Reporter
Charleroi’s Joe Caruso drives into the lane and loses the ball during the second half of a Class 3A Section 4 game against Washington.
Washington’s Marlon Norris drives through multiple Charleroi defenders on his way to a layup in the first half of Friday’s Class 3A Section 4 game.
Observer-Reporter
Charleroi’s Will Wagner looks for a teammate to pass the basketball to during a game last season. Wagner is one of two returning starters for the Cougars.
Luke Campbell/Observer-Reporter
Tayshawn Levy and Washington open the WPIAL Class 2A playoffs Friday.
Luke Campbell/For the Observer-Reporter
Ian Bredniak is one of three returning starters for Washington. The Little Prexies open their season Friday at Charleroi.
Bill Wiltz was in search of something, anything really, to get the Charleroi boys basketball team back in the game.
Facing a 10-point deficit three minutes into the third quarter – the first double-digit hole of the game – the Cougars’ coach tossed around the never-say-die attitude. It’s a phrase Charleroi has leaned on throughout much of this season.
The best was yet to come, especially for Cougars sophomore Will Wagner.
Putting Charleroi on his back in the final minutes of the third quarter, Wagner sparked a comeback victory with 13 second-half points as the Cougars upended Washington 55-51 in a Class 3A Section 4 game Friday night.
“He’s a gamer,” Wiltz said of Wagner, who has been on a tear during Charleroi’s seven-game winning streak.
“He doesn’t shoot like that in practice. When he shows up for a game, he throws it in. He is beaming with confidence right now and he knows it. He’s not afraid to do anything.”
Wagner could have pulled off Allen Iverson’s famous “practice” quote and classic step-over taunt with how he ended the third quarter. In the final 4:48 of the third, Wagner scored 11 of his game-high 15 points on four shots and two free throws to spark a 14-3 run that put the Cougars up 44-43 entering the fourth.
“We came out of the locker room ready to play,” Wagner said. “We knew we could fight back and get back into it. We fought through it.”
The strong second half for Charleroi (6-1, 11-4), which also erased a seven-point halftime deficit, ties the Cougars for first place in the section standings with Washington (6-1, 9-4). It was the first time Charleroi had beaten the Prexies since February 2002, ending a streak of 23 consecutive losses.
“You have to give (Charleroi) a lot of credit,” Washington coach Ron Faust said. “They outplayed us. They executed and we didn’t. To come into our place and do that? Wow. You have to give them a lot of credit.”
The Prexies led twice in a back-and-forth fourth quarter, but two layups from Dom Pellegrini and a Zach Usher three-pointer with 3:06 remaining gave Charleroi a 51-47 lead it wouldn’t surrender.
Wagner used a pair of hustle plays to ice the game. On two one-and-one free-throw attempts – one by Usher with 13 seconds and another of his own with six seconds – Wagner grabbed rebounds after both foul shots were missed. He was fouled again and made a pair of free throws to make it a two-possession game with four seconds left.
“(Charleroi) executed what it does better than how we executed what we do, at least consistently,” Faust said. “That’s how you win big basketball games. I thought at times we thought we were something that we aren’t. I know we are inconsistent. That’s the big thing.”
Legend Davis kept the Cougars in the game early, scoring nine of his 13 points in the first quarter.
Tayshawn Levy, with 15 points, shared game scoring honors with Wagner and three other Prexies, Zahmere Robinson, Ian Bredniak and Brandon Patterson, each finished with 10 points.
“Never say die,” Wiltz said with a big smile. “Any time we needed a big hoop we got it. It’s a fantastic win. I would have never believed you (that we would be tied for first place two-and-a-half weeks ago). We’ve been getting better every single game. We are on a roll at the right time, and hopefully it continues.”