KITTANNING – Dominant from start to finish.
Redbank Valley allowed its second fewest points in a game this season, beating District 6 third-place finisher West Shamokin, 54-21 in the PIAA Class 2A second round.
“We decided to pressure them and obviously they turned the ball over a lot,” Mason Clouse said. “That’s how we got out in transition.”
See Mason and Owen Clouse’s full interview:
The Bulldogs (24-3) built a 19-5 lead after the first quarter and held West Shamokin to just seven made field goals for the game.
Breckin Minch scored six of his 12 points in the first quarter and Braylon Wagner and Kieran Fricko both knocked down 3-pointers to stake the Bulldogs to the early advantage.
After going up 23-6 on a Jaxon Huffman layup, the Bulldogs were held scoreless for the final 5:25 of the first half.
The Wolves responded with a 7-0 run to get back within 10, 23-13 at halftime, thanks to Alex Talmadge, who scored five points during the surge.
“When it was 13 at halftime, we were trying to keep it under 20,” Marshall said. “But you know, they’re going to score eventually. It was a great defensive effort. We had good help defense and I’m proud of these boys. They played hard. They played a different pace in the second and fourth quarter, but it’s good to switch it up every now and then.”
The third quarter played out much like the first, however, and that allowed Redbank Valley to pull away.
The Bulldogs opened the quarter on a 15-4 run to extend the lead to 38-17 and it was game over.
“Whenever we were in halftime, we were going to come out in the second half like the score was 0-0,” Owen Clouse said. “That’s what our mindset was and that’s what we did.”
Coach Emmanuel Marshall was pleased with his team’s defensive effort.
“In the first quarter we wanted to come out and play pressure defense and try to get some turnovers,” Redbank Valley coach Emmanuel Marshall said. “We tried to get some turnovers, tried to get our blood going and we were able to get some steals and get some transition buckets. That’s what we were looking for.”
Redbank Valley opened the third quarter on a 15-4 run, and it was essentially game over.
Owen Clouse had five points during the run and Mason Clouse had a stretch of seven consecutive points.
Owen Clouse scored 10 of his 15 points in the fourth quarter and all 15 of his points in the second half.
“Shots weren’t falling for me in the first half, but other guys were shooting well,” Owen Clouse said. “That’s how we win games. The second half, they were falling. Whenever we hit 3-pointers, that gives us momentum, and that’s what we wanted to do. Keep our foot on the pedal.”
The Bulldogs eventually got the running clock going late in the fourth quarter after the lead extended to 30.
“It shows that we’re a good team,” Marshall said. “We play good defense. We play team defense. We play team offense, and winning by 30, that shows everyone else in the state that we can play at that level.”
With the win, the Bulldogs advance to play WPIAL champion Aliquippa, 79-47 over Eisenhower, in the quarterfinals on Saturday, March 15 at a site and time to be determined.
“We had a great opportunity playing against Northgate (in the first round),” Marshall said. “Northgate is that same type of WPIAL structure. Playing against them got us mentally focused. They understand now the speed of the game and how quick Aliquippa is going to be. We’re going to be prepared. We’ve got gas in the tank. We’ll be able to run with them and we’ll try our best and do what we have to do.”
