MILL HALL – Facing a small deficit in the closing moments of the first half, Central Mountain’s Brett Gerlach wanted to find a way to bring his team back in it. The senior intercepted a Mifflinburg pass and had a wide-open breakaway layup. Instead of falling through the cylinder, the ball squeaked out of Gerlach’s grip and slipped out of bounds.

Gerlach didn’t panic. The Wildcat guard then stole the ensuing inbound and laid the ball in for two points.

The display of resiliency by Gerlach was just a small portion of what Central Mountain managed to do Tuesday night during its 62-57 victory over Mifflinburg.

The Wildcats of Central Mountain battled through injury en route to overcoming a nine-point lead to earn just their third victory of the season.

“Much needed,” Central Mountain coach Tyler Bardo said following the end of his team’s two-game skid. “That’s all I can really say about the win itself; it was much needed.”

Right from the beginning fans in attendance witnessed team basketball from Central Mountain. Each of Central Mountain’s five starters scored in the game’s opening quarter. A display of unselfishness and sharing helped Central Mountain pull the upset at home.

“It was a team effort. We know we have to win basketball games that way, that’s how our team operates. We don’t operate around a guy; we operate around good fundamental team basketball. That’s what tonight was,” Bardo said. “I think it showed when you get down and it feels likes the wheels are coming off, the mental toughness to stay the course was phenomenal.”

Central Mountain doesn’t operate around one guy as Bardo noted but the ability to have Jack Hanna back in the CM rotation is monumental for the team. Hanna, who missed the last few games with an injury, came off the bench in the win and provided efficiency until the end.

The junior guard finished with 12 points and recorded seven alone in the game’s final quarter when it mattered most.

“One of the things that Jack has the ability to do is get in the paint and kind of make decisions on where to place the ball in the offense,” Bardo said.

Hanna’s ability to dissect Mifflinburg’s defense time after time proved to be the difference. The crafty Hanna set up his teammates and scored when his team needed him to the most.

“It felt good,” Hanna said in regard to returning to the hardwood. “We’ve been thinking about these guys (Mifflinburg) for a while. It was great to get it done. “My elbow felt good, we made a good fourth quarter run and put it all together.”

It took less than four minutes of action to for four of Central Mountain’s players to register points. Central Mountain held an early 10-6 lead over Mifflinburg just minutes as a result of a number of assists. Some disruptive defense paired with solid shot selection had Central Mountain leading, 19-14, after one quarter.

That would be the last time, until the game’s final buzzer, Central Mountain led after a quarter of play. The second quarter was owned by Mifflinburg as it outscored Central Mountain, 22-14, behind the play of James Zack and Ethan Bombgardner who combined for 13 points.

Mifflinburg clung to a narrow one-point lead at the break.

The success for Mifflinburg continued into the third as Cannon Griffith drilled a 3-pointer to stretch the lead to nine with just under four to play. That’s when the game changed and the momentum swung to Central Mountain.

Hayden Pardoe, who led the Wildcats in scoring with 16 in the win, knocked down his first and only three of the night to close the gap to six.

Pardoe finished with 10 in total during the second half as the junior helped the Wildcats complete the comeback win. The combination of Pardoe, Hanna and McCloskey late for Central Mountain was too much for Mifflinburg to handle.

The trio of scorers for Central Mountain was just a small part of the fourth. The most impressive part was Central Mountain’s defense as it held Mifflinburg to just seven points in the fourth quarter.

The win for Central Mountain ends a two-game losing streak. The Wildcats (3-5) host Shamokin Friday.

MIFFLINBURG (57)

Tyler Reigel 7 0-0 17; Ethan Bombgardner 5 3-3 13; Cannon Griffith 5 0-0 11; Jarrett Foster 3 0-0 7; James Zack 3 1-4 7; Lane Yoder 1 0-0 2. Totals 24 4-7 57.

CENTRAL MOUNTAIN (62)

Hayden Pardoe 5 6-7 16; Cayde McCloskey 5 0-0 13; Jack Hanna 4 4-6 12; Ashton Probst 4 0-0 9; Brett Gerlach 2 0-1 4; Brady Myers 1 2-2 4; Essex Taylor 1 0-0 2. Totals 23 14-23 62

Mifflinburg 14 22 14 7 -57

Central Mountain 19 16 9 18–62

3-point goals: Mifflinburg 5 (Reigel 3, Griffith 1, Foster 1), CM 5 (McCloskey 3, Probst 1, Gerlach 1).

Records: Mifflinburg (4-2), Central Mountain (3-5).