Belle Vernon survives battle with Avonworth, 57-56
Leopards seek 2nd WPIAL title, Salvino after No. 7
McMURRAY – The emotion in Joe Salvino’s voice, and the tears beginning to form in his eyes, told the story.
With six WPIAL championships, a pair of PIAA crowns, and 743 career wins, Salvino will have one last chance at a seventh WPIAL crown after Class 4A top seed Belle Vernon’s thrilling 57-56 comeback win over fourth-seeded Avonworth Saturday afternoon.
“I can’t believe, sorry,” Salvino said, having to pause to try and control his emotions. “In my last year, I am going to a championship game and I gotta give all those kids all the credit in the world.”
Salvino was well aware his team was in a fight with Avonworth and the WPIAL’s leading scorer in Rowan Carmichael at Peters Township High School’s AHN Arena.
“These two teams are so evenly matched,” he said. “Avonworth has a nice team, and (Carmichael) is as advertised.”
Down 32-24 at the half when Carmichael, who averages 32 points per game, hit a 30-foot 3-pointer to give the Antelopes (18-6) an eight-point advantage at the break, the Leps (20-4) stormed back in the third quarter.
Trevor Kovatch, a fiery competitor known for his emotion, hit a pair of 3-pointers in the quarter and finished the frame with 10 of BV’s 20 points to help trim the Avonworth lead to 46-44 heading into the fourth quarter.
“He plays like that constantly,” Salvino said of the senior. “A dog after the ball on defense, he’s a kid that never quits.”
Down 49-46 with 5:52 to go, the Leopards went on a 9-0 run to take a 55-49 lead with 2:04 to go, but Carmichael went on a personal 7-1 run to tie the game with under a minute left.
BV’s Tommy Davis was fouled with five seconds remaining, and he hit the second of two free throws to give the Leps a one-point advantage.
Davis’ free throw make was the first in six attempts over the last 36 seconds for the Leps, as they had missed the previous five.
Avonworth, without any timeouts, inbounded the ball and pushed it up court.
Noah Goetz got to the rim, but the ball was knocked out by BV under its hoop with one second left, giving the Antelopes one last chance at the win.
Salvino called a timeout, and Avonworth set up an in-bounds play for Carmichael to attempt a game-winner. He started near the top of the key, jab-stepped to the right and cut left towards the hoop.
The senior caught the ball off-balanced, leaning towards his left, and missed a six-footer that hit off the backboard and then the rim, giving the Leopards the win and the Antelopes their fourth one-possession loss of the season.
Down by eight at the half, was Salvino worried?
“I have belief and confidence in my team, and I knew they wouldn’t give up and they never did,” he said. “They hung in there and did what they had to do.”
While Carmichael finished with a game-high 31 points, Salvino praised the defensive effort on him by Curty Wade and Deaubre Lightfoot.
“He was a big matchup, and Curty played on him, as did Deaubre,” Salvino said. “If there was a screen there (for Carmichael to get space), I tried to make sure whoever the screener was, his man hedged out and stopped him from shooting.
“He got a couple (3-pointers), but you don’t keep a good player like that down.”
When asked about his team’s depth, which came into play with the Leopards facing foul problems all game as four starters finished with four fouls, Salvino mentioned what Kovatch, Davis, and Dominic Ghilani did to help secure the win.
“I have to give credit to Dominic, Tommy, and Trevor,” he said. “They came out and played the way they are capable of playing.
“I thought in the second half, Dom, Tommy, Trevor, they kept things where they had to be. They never quit.”
Kovatch led Belle Vernon with 17 points and six assists while both Ghilani and Davis had 11 points, with Ghilani adding 11 rebounds.
BV’s Zion Moore, the WPIAL’s third leading scorer at 27 points per game, was limited to 14 points due to an injury he suffered Wednesday night against Elizabeth Forward, and Salvino wasn’t sure what Moore would be able to give the team.
“I didn’t know what to think, but I was hoping (Moore would play well) after rolling his ankle (against EF),” he said. “He has been getting treatment two times a day, our trainers worked with him, and he has been going to physical therapy sessions.
“We are off Sunday, and he probably won’t practice Monday.”
Of all of his WPIAL finals appearances, does this one carry the most weight for Salvino?
“It means a lot, being my last hurrah,” he said. “It has a lot to do with my players.
“It goes to show how much they care about themselves, and they care about me.”
Belle Vernon will try to earn its second WPIAL boys basketball championship, with the first coming in 1978, when it plays second-seeded North Catholic (19-5) at the Petersen Events Center Thursday night. The game is scheduled for 9 p.m.
It will be the second WPIAL championship game appearance for BV under Salvino.
Four of North Catholic’s five losses this season were to out-of-state teams.