Belle Vernon zones out Wash High
Alonzo Wade
Holly Tonini/For the Observer-Reporter
Belle Vernon’s Alonzo Wade flips the ball up for a chance at two points as Washington’s Brandon Patterson defends.
Tayshawn Levy
Holly Tonini/For the Observer-Reporter
Washington’s Tayshawn Levy shoots against Belle Vernon’s Quinton Martin Monday night.
Devin Whitlock
Holly Tonini/For the Observer-Reporter
Belle Vernon’s Devin Whitlock goes for a layup against Washington’s Ruben Gordon.
Belle Vernon’s Quinton Martin drives the basketball around the defense of Washington’s Brandon Patterson.
BELLE VERNON – If Monday night’s nonsection boys basketball game between Belle Vernon and Washington was a barometer of where the teams could be going, then Leopards coach Joe Salvino and Washington coach Ron Faust saw glimpses of what could be while also seeing what their respective teams need to work on.
Following Belle Vernon’s 57-49 win, the two long-time coaches shared their views.
“We started out playing sloppy and slow,” said Salvino of his team which has won three games in the opening four days of the season. “I don’t think we were ready to play mentally to be honest, and Wash High was. They were ready to play, and we can’t be like that against a team like them.”
The loss was the Prexies’ first game of the season, and Faust is excited yet cognizant.
“Turnovers really hurt us, but I am trying to convince our players that athletically, we can compete against anyone, and compete is the key word,” he said. “The effort was good and now we need to translate that into better performances, and if we do that we will start to get some checkmarks in the win column.”
Washington (0-1) had 23 turnovers while Belle Vernon (3-0) had 17.
Each team had three players in double figures as Devin Whitlock (16), Quinton Martin (14) and Daniel Gordon (12) hit the mark for the Leopards while Brandon Patterson (12), Ruben Gordon (11) and DeSean Anderson (10) did the same for the Prexies.
Playing a key role for Belle Vernon was freshman Alonzo Wade, who finished with nine points, several key rebounds and a big three-pointer in the fourth quarter.
With Belle Vernon up 48-47 with the ball and 2:34 to go, Wade drilled a three from the left wing to give the Leopards a 51-47 lead and Washington got no closer.
Wade joined Whitlock, Gordon, Martin, and Tyler Kovatch on the court for most of the fourth quarter for Belle Vernon.
“I don’t think too many freshmen would have taken that shot,” said Salvino of his southpaw. “As a freshman, you are normally going to pass but he has the confidence in himself and he played well, especially in the fourth.”
The Prexies held a 14-11 lead after the first quarter despite turning the ball over 10 times.
“We created turnovers in the first quarter but didn’t get any points off of them and a lot of that is mental,” Salvino said.
Gordon and Anderson led them with six points apiece in the frame while Gordon led Belle Vernon with eight points and four of his career-high steals in the frame.
Washington took a six-point lead twice in the second quarter, but Wade sparked Belle Vernon in the quarter. He scored six points in the frame and brought athleticism into the lineup as a wing.
Whitlock picked up his third foul with 4:02 to play in the half, and Belle Vernon switched from its full-court man-to-man pressure defense to a zone as he played most of the rest of the half despite the foul trouble.
Washington took a 32-31 lead into halftime, but Belle Vernon’s zone caused Washington problems in the second half and the Prexies scored only 17 points. Wash High made eight shots during the half. The Prexies missed open layups on the first two possessions of the third quarter and it was a sign of things to come.
“We just can’t have lulls and we only scored 17 points in the second half,” Faust said. “We can’t let that happen, and we will learn from this.”
While Belle Vernon is adjusting to a new offense which puts Martin more on the outside, it is still struggling from the foul line and Salvino spoke about both issues heading into the Section 3-AAAA opener at Mount Pleasant Friday.
“We have to work on our offense and our free throws,” said Salvino of his team which has only made 33 of 66 free throw attempts so far this year. “It is all mental.”
Belle Vernon was 19 of 32 from the free-throw line while Washington made four of 14 attempts.
Faust, in a light-hearted moment, spoke about playing Trinity tonight after the tough lossn.
“It is a tough turnaround, but listen, if you would poll the team if they would rather play or practice, they are playing every time,” he said. “I think we did the right things scheduling that game.”