Seniors shine on CM boys hoops Senior Day

BALD EAGLE  TOWNSHIP, PA – It was only fitting that the four seniors on the Central Mountain boys’ basketball team played prominent roles in the Wildcats’ Senior Night Saturday win over visiting Huntingdon.

The four seniors, Jack Hanna, Hayden Pardoe, Levi Schlesinger and Essex Taylor, have been starters all year for the Wildcats and all contributed in CM’s 71-37 mercy rule win over the Bearcats.

Hanna finished with 14 points and played another strong floor game; Pardoe drained five three-pointers on the way to 22 points. Taylor hustled all over the court and scored 10 points, a few of his buckets coming inside in heavy traffic. And Schlesinger pulled down a ton of rebounds, scored 7 points and hit a buzzer-beating 3-pointer at the end of the first half, drawing a roar from the crowd and giving his team a 25-16 lead.

The Wildcats were out of rhythm at the start and while they led 13-10 after one, they were, in the words of coach Tyler Bardo, lacking energy early. Meanwhile the ‘Cat pressure defense kept Huntingdon from converting opportunities and the home team had the 9-point lead at halftime, 25-16.

As is often the case, the third period belong to Central Mountain, outscoring the Bearcats 20 to 10; and the fourth quarter was even better, a 26-11 clip to put the final at 71-37.

Central Mountain also got 8 points from sophomore Hunter Hoy, all in the second half, 4 each from juniors Brady Myers and Dom Longworth and 2 from sophomore Max Verelli. The Bearcats were led by Jack Henney with 18 points.

Coach Bardo lauded his four seniors, calling them “very selfless” and that anyone coming into the Wildcat program should aspire to match the effort from them. He said, “They receive  information from each-other very well and are very connected.”

The Wildcats are now 20-1, have won ten games in a row for the second time this season, and close the regular season at home next Tuesday with a stern test expected from Williamsport (15-4). The Wildcats are also to be involved in a Heartland Conference postseason four-term tourney later in the week, details to be announced.  Huntingdon fell to 7-14 with the loss.

 

CM 13 12 20 26 = 71

H     10  6  10 11 = 37