Upper St. Clair defended its home court and fended off Central Catholic in a 48-47 victory in Section 2-6A boys basketball Friday night.
USC’s victory, which puts the Panthers in a tie atop the section standings, featured seven lead changes and three ties.
Jake Foster led the Panthers with 20 points, six rebounds and five assists.
“Earlier this year, we lost a brutal game to them,” Foster said. “We played our worst basketball, came back, went to overtime and lost on a buzzer-beater. This week, you could feel the energy was different. We knew it was going to be physical. Two great defensive teams. When it got close, we trusted our preparation and our talent, and we knew we could take this game.”
Foster made the shots when he needed to, and on the way to the hole, when a defender stepped up, Foster found his teammates. He credited them for his all-around game.
“We’ve got a lot of first-year guys, but I trust them completely,” he said. “When I get going, I know they’ll find me, and when teams try to stop me, I trust them to knock down shots. It makes my job a lot easier when I get downhill and kick it out. And when it’s one on one, I like my chances.”
“He’s so good,” USC’s Ryan Robbins added. “Honestly, that’s all I’m trying to do — get him open shots, set good screens and help him get to his spots. I thought he did a great job today. He was really getting to the rim and shooting the ball well.”
Robbins added seven points, five rebounds and four blocks. Luke Marchinsky delivered nine points.
“Jake opened things up for our teammates to get open shots,” Marchinsky said. “He got downhill when we needed him to, he found our bigs and overall just played a really solid game.”
Foster was proud of the Panthers for the team’s complete performance.
“Luke got hurt last year, so it was tough not having him all season,” Foster said. “I’m so proud of the way he’s come back from that injury. Luke and I have been playing together since we were kids. I love that kid. Ryan’s a beast, for sure. He’s been playing with me every year we’ve been here.”
Robbins helped slow down the Vikings as he tallied four blocks, which helped the Panthers keep the lead.
“I thought I had a really good all-around game, especially on defense,” he said. “I kept my balance defensively and didn’t let them get downhill. I gave up a few 3s, and they hit them — that’s what they do. My main goal was just to make sure they didn’t get downhill and didn’t get anything easy on me.”
Central Catholic’s Enzo Khalil, who delivered 15 points and seven rebounds, kept it coming. Owen Campfield mustered 11 points, knocking down three 3s. The Vikings were right there.
USC led 33-32 heading into a timeout with less than two minutes left in the third, a quarter with five lead changes. Robbins mustered back-to-back layups to make it a 37-32 lead.
Central Catholic’s Christian Williams drove for a contested reverse layup to cut it to 37-34 heading into the fourth.
Enzo Khalil gave Central Catholic the lead at 39-38, but Foster took it right back to 40-39, the last lead change.
After a TV timeout, Foster kicked it to Marchinsky, who knocked down a 3-pointer to go up 43-39. The cushion was enough for USC to stay in front.
“Hitting that 3 to make it 43-39 meant a lot,” Marchinsky said. “It means a lot to have the team trust me in moments like that and put me in those situations.”
Khalil mustered an offensive rebound and put it back up to trim the deficit to 43-41.
On Central Catholic’s next possession, Khalil drew a foul but missed both free throws.
Alex Betancourt-Jones, who helped try to contain Foster, fouled out, sending Foster to the line in the double bonus. Foster made just one.
Khalil followed with a perfectly executed up and under on Robbins to cut it to 44-43.
Khalil then forced a USC turnover. Khalil took a shot with a chance to take the lead, but it was long, and with less than 50 seconds left, Foster grabbed the rebound.
After a USC timeout, Foster was fouled on the inbounds and made both.
Campfield made it 46-45 on a layup in the post.
Foster, fouled again, made both free throws to make it 48-45 with 19 seconds left.
June Ausi made a layup with two seconds to play to make it 48-47.
USC then had a successful inbound pass and threw the ball up, but it hit the ceiling. It was determined there were three-tenths of a second left.
Nonetheless, Robbins stepped up and defended a heaved pass toward the hoop to seal the game.
“Nobody can win in our place,” Robbins said. “We’re going to stay locked in on our goals and keep getting better every week. We’re a tough competitors, and we responded from last time.”
Foster and the Panthers are making strides.
“People say we’re young, but I don’t care,” Foster said. “By February, with our coaches and this team, I really believe we can win it all.”