DAVE KENNEDY/Sun-Gazette Carter Feigles (4) and Nixon Lamper (44) of Muncy and Kyree Moy (10) and Andrew Walter of South Williamsport at Muncy.

A football injury has prevented three-year starter Nate Rogers from taking the court yet this season. And yet, Muncy seems as deep as it has been the last few years.

So, while Rogers, as well as reserves Jermain Morgan and Caleb Beaver have missed time, the Indians keep building on their winning ways. A valuable bench and a multitude of scoring threats have helped Muncy (10-4) remain atop the Mid-Penn’s West Division and move to second in the District 4 Class AA standings.

The Indians dropped a hard-fought contest at Sullivan County, 60-53, Saturday but still are trending in the right direction with plenty of time to iron out the wrinkles before playoffs since it already has played 14 games.

“That’s really story of this team,” Muncy coach Jason Gresh said following a 68-33 win against Montgomery. “We go 9-10 deep, and for me, it’s finding the right combination of guys to do what we need to do.”

That depth and versatility shined through against Montgomery. The Red Raiders led by two midway through the second quarter but reserves Carter Feigles and Dylan Mausteller had a hand in seven straight points late in the first half as Muncy built a nine-point halftime advantage before blowing things open with a 30-7 third quarter run.

Montgomery geared its defense to slow leading scorer Jaxton Frantz and it limited him to six points. But that opened opportunities for his teammates and Frantz dealt four assists while nearly every player Gresh used scored. Dominic Guardini had 15 points, Nixon Lamper a double-double of 14 points with 12 boards and Morgan nine points off the bench.

“We’re not a one-man team. We never have been,” Gresh said. “You can’t key on just one or two guys.”

That’s the way Gresh and his coaches have built this team over the last 15 years. Between that and doing an excellent job developing players from a young age, Muncy has captured three district championships since 2018 while appearing in four straight and reaching at least 20 wins each time.

The early-season injuries presented a challenge but also an opportunity for younger players. Muncy has turned a negative into a positive and the Montgomery game drove home that point. A little bit past their halfway point, the Indians hope they soon will be full strength, but also are confident that the next man up can continue stepping up.

“That’s the key. When they come in, to seize the moment and take their opportunity,” Gresh said. “That’s what they’ve been doing all year, and some of them are just starting to come into our own. We’re just starting to find our form.”

BALANCED EFFORT

So is Sullivan, which leads the Mid-Penn’s East Division. The Griffins (10-2) outscored Muncy, 19-10 in the fourth quarter to win Saturday and displayed super balance. Five players scored at least nine points, including Tucker Blasi who had a season-high 19. Lucas King, Jaiden Moore and Cayden Smithkors all added nine and Colin King eight with four steals.

Sullivan has won four straight games and is atop the District 4 Class A standings.

GOING OFF

Montgomery rebounded in a big way Saturday against Northwest as Parker Bennett erupted for a career-high 41 points in a 79-41 win. Bennett joins South Williamsport’s Levi Butler as 40-point scorers in a game this season and was on fire in the third quarter when he produced 18 points as Montgomery broke the game wide open.

Bennett became Montgomery’s fourth 1,000-point scorer of the 21st century earlier this season and went over 1,200 points with his monster game Saturday. Montgomery built momentum for tonight’s game against rival St. John Neumann as James Godley and Damaj Stewart Williams each scored 10 points and Jace Hanford nine.

The last three Neumann-Montgomery games have been decided by 12 combined points and the Knights avenged two losses from a year ago with a 56-49 victory last month.

PUTBACKS

Speaking of Neumann, the Knights are heating up after bulldozing Northwest and Benton last week. They scored 159 points in those games and moved to fourth in the District 4 Class AA standings. Jahki Brister scored 33 points in the victories, and sophomore Legend Dillard had 18 against Benton … South Williamsport (7-4) won two games in two nights last weekend, defeating Midd-West and CMVT. Levi Butler scored 19 points against Midd-West and Andrew Walter had 13 points with eight rebounds. All three reached double figures at CMVT as well and Samir Moy dealt four assists against Midd-West … Gavin Pick had a big day Saturday, scoring 25 points, grabbing 14 rebounds and going 13 of 115 at the foul line to help Bucktail boost its playoff hopes with a 56-47 win against Millville … North Penn-Mansfield (6-5) is back in the 3A playoff picture after winning three straight games last week. The Mounties won a two-point thriller at Athens, rallied past Wyalusing, 52-48 and closed with a 52-37 win over rival North Penn-Liberty. Andy Hermansen had a double-double of 12 points, 10 rebounds and four steals in that win … North Penn-Liberty (5-5) had won four straight entering that game and is atop the NTL-II standings after earning wins against Williamson and Canton. Evan McTish scored a career-high 26 points against Williamson and Conner Lewis has 45 rebounds in his last four games.

Chris Masse may be reached at cmasse@sungazette.com. Follow him on Twitter at @docmasse.

DR. MASSE’S TOP 5 RANKINGS

1. Warrior Run (11-1): Whether short-handed or full strength, Warrior Run made stifling defense a constant last week, earning two impressive road wins at Loyalsock and Mifflinburg. Down all-state center and three-year starter Landon Polcyn at Loyalsock, the Defenders rallied in the second half and won, 39-34 at Loyalsock before having the band back together at Mifflinburg and allowing no first quarter points in a 55-27 win. That was a showdown between last year’s co-HAC-III champions and Warrior Run hosts Southern Columbia Saturday with both those teams currently 3-0 in league play. Warrior Run has held three consecutive opponents to fewer than 40 points and Polcyn and James Keifer both scored 15 points at Mifflinburg, while McKee grabbed 10 rebounds and blocked seven shots.

2. Lewisburg (8-4): Lewisburg has surged to first in the HAC-II following big wins at Mount Carmel and Montoursville, last year’s league co-champion and current top 4A seed, respectively. Four players scored at least nine points in a 63-36 win at Milton before Lewisburg played one of its best defensive games in a 50-42 victory at Montoursville. A rigorous non-conference, early-season schedule is paying dividends and Lewisburg is getting strong contributions throughout its rotation, including from reserves Jaylen Walker and Jack Siegel who played big roles in a game-changing 11-0 run to close the third quarter Saturday.

“We’ve been through the tough situations; been through the drills,” guard LJ Tucker said after scoring 20 points at Montoursville. “We’re executing and finding ways to win.”

3. Montoursville (10-3): Montoursville started the week strong, producing blowout wins against two-time defending District 4 Class AAAA champion Danville and Central Columbia, teams which won four games against it last season. The Warriors remain in the hunt to try and win their first league title of the 2000s and face a HAC-II challenge Friday when they head to Mount Carmel for a rematch of last year’s district quarterfinal won by the Tornadoes. Strong balance has been a Montoursville calling card this season and four players reached double figures against Danville with five scoring at least nine at Central.

4. Loyalsock (9-3): Loyalsock bounced back from the Warrior Run defeat in strong fashion, going on the road and defeating Hughesville, 69-37. Like Montoursville, Loyalsock has four players averaging more than nine points per game and five scored seven or more against the Spartans. The Lancers also drained nine 3-pointers. This is a big week ahead with games against Montoursville, Southern and Bloomsburg, teams who are a combined 25-9.

5. Sullivan County (10-2): If the Griffins maintain their Mid-Penn East lead, they have wins against the two teams which most likely would represent the West in the overall championship game. Before beating Muncy, Sullivan put together a terrific second half and defeated South Williamsport, 61-49. The Griffins trailed that game, 24-23 at halftime before going on a 19-6 third quarter run. Lucas King had 19 points and seven steals and Blasi 17 points with seven boards. Those two, as well as Cayden Smithkors, average more than eight points per game.

Players of the Week

Jason Harer, North Penn-Mansfield and Daiton Thompson, Neumann: Harer is having a fantastic senior season and was a force in three Tiger wins last week, collecting a double-double each time. Harer scored at least 21 points in all three games and averaged 22 points and 10.3 rebounds. The senior center has seven double-doubles this year. Thompson does a bit of everything for Neumann and scored 60 points in wins against Northwest and Benton. After going for a career-high 32 against Northwest, Thompson scored 28 through three quarters Saturday, fueling a squad which produced 53 first half points.

Game of the Week

Loyalsock at Montoursville: These long-time rivals played a thriller at the Pedie McDonald Christmas Tournament 16 days ago with Montoursville rallying late and winning, 57-50 before taking the championship two nights later. Expect another fierce battle tonight between teams which look like mirror images at times. Montoursville has won the last two in this series with those games decided by 13 combined points and the outcome in doubt in the final minute each time.