Bellefonte boys’ basketball wins second straight against Philipsburg-Osceola

No one on the Red Raiders was lights out from the floor, or stole the show.

They didn’t have anyone drop 30 points or even 20.

In all, they had only two scorers in double digits.

There was no hero. There was no savior.

But there was a team — and a cohesive, collective effort.

On Tuesday night, the Bellefonte boys’ basketball team handled Philipsburg-Osceola in a 64-45 win on the backs of 10 different scorers.

The Red Raiders (4-11) earned their second victory in as many nights coming off a seven-game losing streak, and coach Darin Hazel pointed to one particular aspect of the game as the reason for their triumph.

“We passed well tonight,” Hazel said. “That’s been the difference for us. We’ve been harping on these guys to work on their passing in practice, and they’re starting to do it.”

That much was clear, whether it was whipping the ball around the key and in the paint during a set offense, or out on the break. The former worked well in the first half, and the latter in the second.

At halftime, it was basically a three-man show for Bellefonte. The Red Raiders held a 24-17 advantage, and a trio of players — Hunter Knisely, Tyler Kreger and Bryce Steiner — had scored all but two points. Knisely and Kreger ended up leading Bellefonte in scoring with 11 points apiece.

However, that group of players scored only nine of the Red Raiders’ 40 second-half points.

In the third quarter alone, Bellefonte had six different scorers, led by three made field goals by Cade Fortney, one of which all but sealed the Mounties’ fate.

Bellefonte took its first double-digit lead of the game with a Steiner layup, and P-O tried to push the ball up the floor, but a pass at the top of the key was stolen by Fortney. He took it to the rim for a fastbreak layup, forcing a Mounties timeout and giving Bellefonte a 32-20 lead with 4:22 left in the third.

It was one of many takeaways the Red Raiders had on the perimeter. P-O attempted several times to pass over swarming defenders, causing tipped-ball turnovers.

“We just tried to force things that weren’t there,” Mounties coach Matt Curtis said. “Turnovers have killed us all season, and it did once again.”

Bellefonte continued applying pressure and eventually snagged a lead as large as 22 points, thanks in large part to Dylan Deitrich’s nine fourth-quarter points.

Hazel then had the luxury of pulling starters and getting substitutes time with 1:32 in the final period.

And they took advantage of their opportunity. Three players — Adam Armstrong, Nick Paloskey and Noah Nadolsky — who came on in that swap tallied points, contributing to the Red Raiders’ 19-point triumph. It was their largest margin of victory since last January’s 74-35 drubbing of Juniata Valley.

While Curtis was disappointed in the Mounties’ missed opportunities, Hazel was more than pleased with his team’s showing.

“Our kids are getting better,” the Bellefonte coach said. “It’s the end of January, and we’re starting to peak. ... I like where we are right now.”

This story was originally published January 26, 2016 at 10:56 PM with the headline "Bellefonte boys’ basketball wins second straight against Philipsburg-Osceola."