Brothers Jackson and Brody Bauman combined for 29 points to propel Moon Area to a 57-43 victory over Gateway Friday night in the quarterfinals of the WPIAL Class 5A boys basketball tournament at North Allegheny High School.
Jackson Bauman finished with 17 points and hit all eight of his free throws for Moon, which improved to 20-3, while Brody Bauman contributed 12 points.
The victory vaults the Tigers into Tuesday’s semifinal matchup with top seed Chartiers Valley, which needed a late 19-4 run to squeeze past ninth-seeded Shaler, 69-66, Friday night.
Moon used a stingy defensive effort to craft a 22-16 halftime lead but Gateway’s Mykel Bruce-McCrommon went off in the third period, scoring 12 points to help the Gators shave a point off their deficit and trail 40-35 heading into the final eight minutes.
From that point on, though, the Tigers outscored Gateway 17-8 to close out the win.
Moon coach Gino Palmosina said his team made things difficult for Bruce-McCrommon early but the standout senior took a different tack in the third quarter.
“He started to trust himself and started taking some contested shots – and they went in,” Palmosina said of the 6-foot-7 Bruce-McCrommon, who finished with 20 points. “But we were determined to fully deny him the basketball after that.
“We took the ball out of his hands.”
Palmosina said his team had an off-night offensively but still managed to advance.
“We have to clean some things up on that end,” he said. But at this time of the year, it’s all about winning.”
The Tigers already have locked up a berth in the PIAA tournament, as the top eight finishers in the Class 5A WPIAL playoffs will move on.
Palmosina and his Tigers are all too familiar with their next foe, having faced Chartiers Valley twice in section play; Moon handed the Colts their lone section loss and just one of two overall losses on the season.
“It’s going to be a war,” he said of Tuesday night’s game, the time and location of which will be announced later. “We have two very good teams – (Chartiers Valley) is super talented and well-coached.
“It’s going to be a dogfight.”
GIRLS BASKETBALL
Our Lady of the Sacred Heart 68, Waynesburg Central 51
The Chargers got double-figure scoring from four players and set the tone early on the way to a win over the visiting Raiders in a Class 3A consolation matchup at the Angela Activities Center.
Rowan Winter scored 18 points to lead sixth-seeded OLSH, which rebounded from Tuesday’s 57-42 quarterfinal loss to Greensburg Central Catholic and improved to 19-6 with Friday’s victory.
The win moves the Chargers into a 7 p.m. Monday date at fourth-seeded Quaker Valley with fifth place in the tournament on the line. The Quakers beat Avonworth, 54-35, in another consolation game Friday night.
OLSH already has secured a berth in the PIAA tournament and is now playing to improve its seeding position in the state playoffs.
The Chargers came out hot in the first quarter, hitting their first five shots, and built a 19-11 lead. Leah Parker, who finished with 14 points, scored eight in the first quarter and Winter added six.
“We had a nice start,” OLSH coach Don Eckerle said afterward. “Nineteen points in the first quarter is good for us and that set the tone for the game.
“We had three great offensive quarters –19, 18, 17. For a playoff game, that was really good.”
Following their hot first quarter, OLSH’s margin grew even bigger in the second quarter as the Chargers held Waynesburg Central to four points while scoring 18 to build a 37-15 halftime lead. That put the game out of reach.
Eckerle said he doesn’t think his team will feel much pressure facing Quaker Valley Monday in part because the Chargers already have seen the Quakers twice and partly because they’ve already secured a PIAA playoff berth.
“No matter who wins or who loses, each of us will be going on the road to another team’s court for a first-round (PIAA) game,” he said. “But it should be a good game.”
Eckerle said his team has continued to improve since it’s most recent outing against Quaker Valley, which resulted in a 37-36 loss on Jan. 22.
“We’re looking forward to the challenge of going there,” he said of Monday night’s game against Quaker Valley and its 6-4 senior standout Mimi Thiero.
“I think we’re playing about as well as we can be expected to play. We feel like we’ve figured out the right combinations for this point in the season.”
Lola Garner added 11 points for OLSH and Shae Trombetta contributed 10. Emma Blair led Waynesburg with 15 points and Addison Cowell added 13.
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