Until it wasn’t anymore.

Takach tore his ACL last April and immediately thought his senior season was over before it started. He had surgery May 9 before basically living in both the gym and weight room. He was disappointed but determined; made it back in less than eight months and now is playing his best basketball yet.

One better believe he is appreciating it, too.

Takach played an excellent game Saturday night at the Magic Dome, scoring 19 points, grabbing four rebounds and adding a steal as Williamsport gave 6A top 10-ranked Cumberland Valley a battle before losing, 67-50. The Millionaires (3-8) trailed by just five at halftime, 10 with less than two minutes remaining and continued showing the progress they have made since Takach returned late last month.

RALPH WILSON/Sun-Gazette Correspondent Williamsport's Cassin Diggs (4) reaches for a rebound during a high school boy's basketball game against Cumberland Valley on Saturday, Jan. 12, 2024 at Williamsport. CV won 67-50.

“I don’t take it for granted as much. I always thought I’ve played basketball all my life and then I didn’t for 7-8 months. It’s different now,” Takach said. “I was here every morning at 6 a.m., lifting and doing everything I could. I just want to play.”

Takach is playing mighty well.

The versatile forward has reached double figures in all four games since returning, helping a team ravaged by preseason injuries starting progressing. Following the surgery, Takach was limited with motion but that gave him extra time to hit the weights. Doing so helped him turn a negative into a positive.

One of the area’s top reserves last season, Takach was able to overpower CV defenders at times in the post, scoring 12 first half points, mostly in the paint, without missing a shot. He also possesses a quality outside shot and drained a fourth quarter 3-pointer, finishing his best game this season by going 8 of 9 from the field.

“I think my paint presence definitely improved from last year. I gained weight and gained a lot of muscle just lifting all the time,” Takach said. “I feel like I’m stronger than I was and better in the paint than I was last year.”

RALPH WILSON/Sun-Gazette Correspondent Williamsport head coach Allen Taylor questions a refs call during a high school boy's basketball game against Cumberland Valley on Saturday, Jan. 12, 2024 at Williamsport. CV won 67-50.

“With Tommy back in the offense, it gives us some stability and some leadership. He’s moving guys,” Williamsport coach Allen Taylor said. “He’s a definite presence inside. Not too many guys can guard him 1-on-1 because he just backs them down and gets to where he wants to get and goes up.”

Williamsport is 2-2 since Takach returned and its two losses are against state-ranked CV and a close six-point decision against Bishop McDevitt in Takach’s return. CV (12-1) has blown out most of its opponents this season but was unable to shake the Millionaires until the final 90 seconds with the game’s last basket giving it its biggest lead.

The result was not what Williamsport wanted, but it still showed why it is a rapidly improving team. The Millionaires know they must improve defensively and in transition, but they also moved the ball well, played unselfish and turned the ball over just nine times against a swarming defense. Every player Taylor used made positive contributions and the Millionaires look like a much different team than a month ago.

“We’re not as bad as our record says. At the beginning of the year, we didn’t have a lot of fight and we showed a lot of fight today, not giving up easy,” Takach said. “That third quarter has been killing us all year. We just have to fix that coming out of halftime.”

“They’re making improvement and that’s all I can ask for as a coach,” Taylor said. “We want them to continue to come in and give us their best effort and go out there and try and execute things that we’re teaching them and for the most part they’re doing it.”

RALPH WILSON/Sun-Gazette Correspondent Williamsport's Mahki Johnson (3) reaches for a shot around Cumberland Valley's Creston Austin (33) during a high school boy's basketball game on Saturday, Jan. 12, 2024 at Williamsport. CV won 67-50.

Mahki Johnson played an outstanding game and made a run at a double-double while directing the offense. The senior point guard scored nine points, dealt eight assists and added two steals. He had six assists by halftime as the Millionaires clawed within 32-27.

Williamsport had four chances starting the third quarter to cut into that lead but was unable to capitalize. CV went ahead by 13 entering the fourth quarter but Williamsport never went away. Johnson hit two free throws, made a steal and found Cassin Diggs for a layup, cutting the deficit to 57-47 with two minutes remaining.

Salaij Moses-Clark made a steal seconds later, but Williamsport was unable to convert in the paint and Creston Austin (17 points, 5 rebounds) scored the next four points to help seal the CV win.

JJ Lebo scored a game-high 25 points, draining six 3-pointers for a team which seemingly ran the Princeton Offense better than Princeton much of the night. The Eagles consistently produced open 3-point attempts and went 10 of 18 from the mark. Nolan Buzalka produced a double-double with 11 points, 12 rebounds and four assists as CV established a good inside-outside game.

Each season is a marathon and not a sprint. Teams want to win every game but there can be lessons learned in defeat and Williamsport knows it can continue progressing if it learns from mistakes made against CV. It’s matter of continuing the good and fixing correctable issues.

RALPH WILSON/Sun-Gazette Correspondent Williamsport's Alonzo Rice tries to grab a rebound away from Cumberland Valley's JJ Lebo (3) during a high school boy's basketball game on Saturday, Jan. 12, 2024 at Williamsport. CV won 67-50.

Diggs scored eight points and played one of his best games, throwing down a second quarter dunk off a Johnson alley-oop which made it a one-point game. Caden Holt also scored eight points and Naamir Lowe totaled five rebounds and four assists.

“I’m proud of the effort but there are some things we can to do get better. We’ll continue as a coaching staff to try and stress those things and hold them to that standard because I think they’re capable of getting there,” Taylor said. “There’s still opportunity for success. We just have to get more buy in. The kids are starting to see it and starting to understand, so we just have to keep at it.”

CV (67)

Nolan Buzalka 4 3-5 11, Creston Austin 6 3-5 17, Jake Snyder 2 1-2 5, Aiden Diehl 1 1-2 4, Jared Dolimpio 1 2-2 5, JJ Lebo 9 1-4 25. Totals 23 11-20 67.

WILLIAMSPORT (50)

RALPH WILSON/Sun-Gazette Correspondent Williamsport's Mahki Johnson (3) drives towards the basket during a high school boy's basketball game against Cumberland Valley on Saturday, Jan. 12, 2024 at Williamsport. CV won 67-50.

Caden Holt 3 1-1 8, Thomas Takach 8 2-3 19, Mahki Johnson 3 2-2 9, Naamir Lowe 2 0-0 4, Cassin Diggs 4 0-3 8, Micah Washington 1 0-0 2, Alonzo Rice 0 0-0 0, Salaij Moses-Clark 0 0-0 0. Totals 21 5-9 50.

CV 18 14 13 22–67

Williamsport 15 12 5 18–50

3-pointers: CV 10 (Lebo 6, Austin 2, Diehl, Dolimpio); Williamsport 3 (Holt, Takach, Johnson)

Records: CV 12-1. Williamsport 3-8.

RALPH WILSON/Sun-Gazette Correspondent Williamsport's Thomas Takach (11) shoots around a pair of Cumberland Valley defenders during a high school boy's basketball game on Saturday, Jan. 12, 2024 at Williamsport. CV won 67-50.

RALPH WILSON/Sun-Gazette Correspondent Williamsport's Thomas Takach (11) moves into the paint around Cumberland Valley's Aiden Diehl (21) during a high school boy's basketball game on Saturday, Jan. 12, 2024 at Williamsport. CV won 67-50.

RALPH WILSON/Sun-Gazette Correspondent Williamsport's Naamir Lowe (1) passes between a pair of Cumberland Valley players during a high school basketball game on Saturday, Jan. 12, 2024 at Williamsport. CV won 67-50.