Jeannette is trying have a short memory after losing the WPIAL championship.
The boys basketball team was scheduled to take a day off to regroup before preparing for their next venture, the PIAA tournament.
The Jayhawks (22-2) dropped a 52-38 decision to Sewickley Academy (25-1) on Friday night at Petersen Events Center, dashing their hopes of winning a repeat title in Class 2A.
The game was intense, from the tip to the postgame. A confrontation after the handshake line ensued, words were exchanged and players had to be separated.
That led to Jeannette players showing their frustration in a postgame press conference.
“Emotions were high,” Jeannette coach Adrian Batts said. “That’s to be expected. We won 20 straight games. It was 1 vs. 2. We beat them last year (in the semifinals). It was a marquee game.
“Some things were said. Any melee is not good for the WPIAL. It’s basketball. The kids competed hard.”
Batts appreciated his team’s passion and persistence, but the Jayhawks never led in a rematch of their 45-25 win in last year’s semis.
There was a lot of debate this season about which was the No. 1 team in Class 2A. Sewickley Academy settled the matter on the court by winning its first WPIAL title eight years.
Jeannette wasn’t humbled; it was motivated to keep going.
“We really wanted that repeat,” Batts said. “For our kids, our school, our community. But we lost, and we have to put it behind us. Is the season over? No.”
Jeannette will host its opening state playoff game at 1 p.m. March 7 against Northern Cambria (17-8), the third-place team from District 6.
The Jayhawks beat Northern Cambria in the second round last year, 70-54.
“Our guys will recover,” Batts said. “We just picked a bad game to not shoot well. We got down early, but after that, I thought we played them even. Give Sewickley credit. I don’t want to take anything away from them. Their kids played hard and I respect that.”
Jeannette shot just 16 of 42 (38.1%) and had trouble driving the lane against the taller Panthers.
“We really didn’t let them have a big (scoring) quarter,” Jeannette junior guard Jayce Powell said.
Jeannette was only outrebounded 25-21 but missed eight foul shots and was 1 for 9 from 3-point range.
Batts said the WPIAL final, and the extracurriculars that followed, “lit a fire” under his team.
“They want to get back at (Sewickley Academy) so bad,” he said. “Hey, maybe our guys needed that (loss).”
Jeannette and Sewickley Academy could meet again, in the state semifinals, also known as the Western final.
“We’re winning that game,” Jeannette senior guard Kymon’e Brown said. “We’ll see them again. No ifs … We’re going to win the game.”
Iuzzolino said the Panthers would be “blessed” to still be playing in the PIAA final four.
“I have a lot of respect for (Jeannette) and their coaching staff,” Sewickley Academy coach Mike Iuzzolino said. “They play hard and compete, and I respect that.”
Batts said he and his five assistant coaches will make sure the Jayhawks don’t look ahead in the state bracket.
“As a team, as a staff,” he said, “it’s always about the next team ahead of us. That’s Northern Cambria.”
Jeannette won one PIAA title, in 2008.
A member of that team, famed Jayhawk Terrelle Pryor, purchased new shoes for the team to wear in the playoffs.