Spartans knock off Lancers en route to District 4 AAA final
Hughesville felt overlooked and disrespected, but the Spartans did not whine or moan about it.
They went out and did something about it. And after Tuesday night’s performance, one better believe Hughesville is an excellent team. The Spartans are going to another district championship. And for an eighth time in 12 years they are state tournament-bound.
Respect that.
Every player coach Nick Tagliaferri used made a big impact, Hughesville played outstanding defense and overcame a nine-point second-quarter deficit at Williamsport, defeating Heartland Conference champion Loyalsock, 50-47 in the District 4 Class AAA semifinals. The Spartans (15-9) won a share of the HAC-III championship and now have a shot at winning the district’s biggest prize after beating a team many labeled the tournament favorite.
“We felt like there was not enough respect to our main guys throughout the season, but we keep proving people wrong,” Hughesville guard Conrad Sheatler said. “I felt like we had each other’s backs.”
Hughesville might have surprised many Tuesday, but the Spartans did not surprise themselves. Hughesville knew how good it was and it proved it against Loyalsock. Matt Myers scored 11 points, Landon Henry and Sheatler each had nine and Taylor Mason added eight. Patrick Rogers scored six fourth-quarter points, drained four straight crucial free throws late and the bench delivered a collective outstanding performance.
Put it all together and Hughesville earned a spot against league rival Southern Columbia in this weekend’s championship at a site and time to be determined. The Spartans clinched a second straight state tournament berth and beat Loyalsock in the playoffs for a fourth time in five tries since 2008. The Lancers (20-6) need to beat Wellsboro in the consolation to extend their season and reach states.
“We felt like we’ve been disrespected all year. It seemed like winning our conference wasn’t a big deal and we felt like second class citizens because people felt we were mediocre,” Tagliaferri said. “We saw as coaches the improvement was weekly and the last couple weeks the maturity has come a long way. This is a really good basketball team.”
“They completely outplayed us,” Loyalsock coach Ron Insinger said. “I said before the game the team that works the hardest will win this game and tonight Hughesville played better than Loyalsock. The team that wanted it the most was going to come out victorious and all the credit to Hughesville because they wanted it more.”
Loyalsock went on a 9-0 run and opened a 22-13 lead with three minutes remaining in the first half before Sheatler hit two straight 3-pointers and cut it to 22-19 at halftime. The Spartans struggled throughout the first half, but Sheatler’s 3-pointers settled the team and it dominated the third quarter, outscoring Loyalsock 16-7. A Mason putback gave Hughesville a 26-24 lead it never relinquished and the Spartans forced five third-quarter turnovers on Loyalsock’s first six possessions as the complexion completely changed.
By the end of the quarter Hughesville led 35-29 against a team that beat it by 24 in December. But that was a Spartan team playing without defensive ace Pat Rogers and dynamic reserve Devon Bushor who helped ignite the team’s swarming defense last night.
“That (defense) was definitely our ticket,” Sheatler said. “That was what we had to ride or die on today to figure out how to beat them tonight.”
Hughesville attacked the basket well throughout the second half as Henry scored all nine of his points and added two assists. The Spartans made 10 of 13 second-half shots and made 7 of 9 fourth-quarter foul shots, fighting off every Loyalsock rally.
“The first half was ugly. We were not talking, we weren’t focused. We were so worried about just hanging in there and we weren’t thinking win,” Tagliaferri said. “We addressed that at halftime with a pretty spirited conversation and the kids were spirited too. We wanted to come out in the third quarter and stop playing to hold on. Let’s assert ourselves defensively and be more aggressive.”
Gerald Ross (14 points) and Marcus Williams (12) sparked a fourth-quarter Loyalsock comeback and the Lancers pulled within 38-37 when Michael LaPoint (6 assists, 5 rebounds) made a steal and fed Ross for a layup. Nearly five minutes remained and the first time these two teams played, Loyalsock outscored Hughesville by 18 over the last six minutes.
But this Hughesville team has come a long way. This is such a better team than it was back then. This time the Spartans thundered back. Reserve Brandon Buck scored one of the game’s biggest baskets, catching a loose ball under the basket and converting it for a layup to end the Loyalsock run. Henry then beat his defender off the dribble and scored a possession later, making it a five-point game before Rogers hit two straight free throws and made it 44-37 with 2:47 remaining.
Loyalsock never pulled closer than three again and that did not come until Andrew Malone hit a 3-pointer with four seconds remaining. Coming out of a timeout, Rogers caught and inbound pass near midcourt and dribbled out the clock as a thunderous Hughesville crowd literally jumped for joy. Call it an exclamation point on a big statement win. More work remains but this was a big moment and a big win.
“After guys got going and we went through our plays we settled down,” Sheatler said. “We started believing in each other again.”
HUGHESVILLE (50)
Landon Henry 3 3-5 9, Taylor Mason 4 0-0 8, Conrad Sheatler 3 0-0 9, Matt Myers 5 1-1 11, Pat Rogers 1 4-4 6, Devon Bushor 0 0-1 0, Luke Ergott 1 2-2 4, Brandon Buck 1 1-2 3, Ryan McClain 0 0-0 0, Logan Woolcock 0 0-0 0. Totals 18 11-5 50.
LOYALSOCK (47)
Marcus Williams 4 2-2 12, Gerald Ross 6 0-0 14, Michael LaPoint 2 0-0 4, Andrew Malone 3 0-0 8, Hunter Webb 3 0-0 6, Joey Worth 0 0-0 0, Andrew Muggleton 0 0-0 0, Mitch Klingerman 0 0-0 0, Connor Watkins 0 0-0 0, Anthony Pastore 0 3-3 3. Totals 18 5-5 47.
Hughesville 11 8 16 15–50
Loyalsock 13 9 7 18–47
3-pointers: Hughesville 3 (Sheatler 3); Loyalsock 6 (Williams 2, Ross 2, Malone 2).
Records: Hughesville 15-9. Loyalsock 20-6.
COMMENTS