Sports

h.s. boys basketball

By Dave Konopki dkonopki@timesleader.com
Assistant Sports Editor

WILKES-BARRE – In the court of public opinion, Holy Redeemer players have been trying to prove they’re more than just a one-man basketball team.

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Holy Redeemer’s Pete Alexis (52) passes the ball to a teammate while being defended by Pittston Area’s Kendric Wiggins (15) and Aaron Joyce (33) during the annual McGrane Tournament on Monday.

PETE WILCOX/THE TIMES LEADER

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They certainly stated their case Monday night.

Austin Carr scored 17 points, eight of them coming in the second quarter with 6-foot-11 center Pete Alexis on the bench, and Mike Zurek added 10 to lead the Royals to a 62-42 win against Pittston Area in the opening game of the 44th annual McGrane Tournament at the Wyoming Valley Catholic

In the second game, Nate Jendrzeiewski scored a game-high 19 points to lead Hanover Area to a 45-34 win against Lake-Lehman. Holy Redeemer will play Hanover Area in the championship game at 8 p.m. Wednesday at the CYC, while Pittston Area and Lake-Lehman will meet in the consolation game at 6:30 p.m.

Alexis, who got into early foul trouble, didn’t play in the second quarter. The Penn State recruit also went to the bench in the third quarter after picking up his fourth personal foul.

Redeemer didn’t miss a beat.

“I think these guys have a little motivation to prove they’re more than just Pete Alexis,” said assistant coach Paul Guido, who was filling in for head coach Mark Belenski. The Royals coach was in Texas attending the funeral of a family member. “I thought we played a great team game. We had guys really step it up with Pete on the bench.”

One of those players was Carr, who scored eight of his team’s 14 points in the second quarter. The Redeemer defense also picked up the intensity, holding the Patriots to just 19 points in the first half.

“Carr ripped us apart,” said Pittston Area head coach Al Keisinger. “I was hoping we’d take advantage of (Alexis) being on the bench. It didn’t work out. (Redeemer) seemed to step up its effort. We didn’t.”

Alexis did play well during his time on the court, finishing with 11 points and more than 10 rebounds. Zurek also played well, hitting a couple of big shots in the third quarter as the Royals began to extend their lead.

Dwight Houseman played a solid game for the Patriots, scoring a team-high 17 points. The senior guard helped his team pull within 10 points, 48-38, on a layup with 4:13 remaining in the game. Teammate Mike McGarry added 13 points for Pittston Area.

But once the Patriots pulled within 10, Alexis came off the bench to score five quick points to help seal the win.

“I’m really proud of our defense,” said Guido. “I thought they played great. Pittston Area is a good team, especially on offense. For us to hold them to 19 points says something.”

In the second game, both teams struggled shooting from the floor but got solid play from their big guys. Jendrzeiewski scored 19 points to lead his team, while Lake-Lehman center Drew Groblewski led the Black Knights with 14 points.

The Hawkeyes took a 12-11 lead after one quarter, before holding Lake-Lehman to just four points in the second quarter and eight in the third. The Black Knight guards combined to shoot a dismal 3-of-24 from the field.

Hanover couldn’t take advantage of the opportunity until the fourth quarter, when Jendrzeiewski scored 10 points to help seal the win.

“We couldn’t put the ball in the basket” said Hanover head coach Bill Callahan, who also got 10 points from Mike Balas. “It’s been a problem for us this season. Fortunately, the shots started to fall in the fourth quarter.

Carson Baker added 12 points for Lake-Lehman.

“We had the same shooting troubles they had,” said first-year head coach Brian Cutter. “We got a lot of good open looks. The shots just weren’t falling.”

Holy Redeemer 62, Pittston Area 42

PITTSTON AREA (42): D. Houseman 7 0-1 17, McGarry 3 5-5 13, Blasi 1 0-0 2, Callahan 1 0-0 2, Wiggins 2 1-2 5, Joyce 1 1-2 3. Totals 16 7-9 42

HOLY REDEEMER (62): Ell 3 0-0 7, Carr 8 1-1 17, Alexis 4 3-3 11, Zurek 3 4-7 10, McCarthy 1 0-0 2, Frank 2 2-2 7, Ruch 2 0-1 4, Choman 0 2-2 2, Desciak 1 0-0 2. Totals 24 12-16 62.

3-Point Field Goals— PA 5 (D. Houseman 3, McGarry 2); HR 2 (Ell, Frank)

Hanover Area 45, Lake-Lehman 34

LAKE-LEHMAN (34): Evan 0 0-0 0, Baker 3-6 12, Groblewski 7 0-0 14, Weaver 1 0-0 2, Carey 3 0-0 6, Bohan 0 0-0 0, O’Conner 0 0-0 0. Totals 15 3-6 34

HANOVER AREA (45): Balas 4 2-6 10, Springer 1 0-0 2, Colorusso 0 0-0 0, Jendrzejewski 7 5-9 19, O’Donnell 4 1-2 9, Ellis 0 1-2 1, Fine 1 0-0 2, Dickson 1 0-0 2. Totals 18 9-19 45.

3-Point Field Goals— LL 1 (Baker); HA 0