ALTOONA – Upper St. Clair and Central Dauphin made their PIAA Class 6A boys basketball semifinal feel like a heavyweight fight Tuesday night.
Both teams traded big quarters with the Rams taking charge in the second and the Panthers answering back in the third.
Central Dauphin, though, landed the knockout blow thanks to one of 10 three-pointers, the dagger from Shyheim Starling late in the fourth as it eliminated the Panthers, 55-52, at the Altoona Fieldhouse.
“They’re athletic and fast and good,” Upper St. Clair coach Danny Holzer said. “One of the best teams in the state. Once we settled down and got our legs, we cut it down to eight. That hoop at the end of the first half was a killer.”
The first quarter was balanced for both teams as the Panthers answered the first Rams buckets with six of Robbins’ points in the first, in addition to a feed that helped them take a 6-5 lead.
“He reminds me of (Denver Nuggets Center Nikola) Jokic,” Central Dauphin coach Seth Leonard said. “He can pass the ball, and he knows how to slow up the game and see what you’re going to do.”
Starling, though, made the turnover bug a problem for the Panthers as his steal and layup helped the Rams tie the game 12-12 after the first.
The Panthers’ turnover issues spilled over into the second as Starling struck again to make it a five-point game early in the second.
Khalil Roberts, off a tipped pass, added a lay-in to stretch the Rams’ lead to 27-15. Roberts finished with 18 points while Starling had 11 and Jared Dolimpo added 12.
Robbins helped cut into that deficit as he ended a couple of minute drought for the Panthers with a bucket and Luke Marchinsky added a runner to make it a 27-19 Central Dauphin lead.
But at the buzzer, it was Starling from downtown to make it 30-19 at the break.
The Panthers started turning the tide in the third as Marchinsky hit a bucket with under three minutes to play to cut the deficit under 10.
Robbins then added on as he drew a bonus free throw and later added a block and a floater. Foster added a bonus free-throw opportunity of his own, which cut the Rams lead to 40-37.
“We went to a 1-3-1 trap, and it caused them a lot of problems,” Holzer said. “I’m so proud of our team. We only use it in emergency situations.
“Credit to our kids. They just fought and fought and fought, and they gave them some problems. I think it got us a little mojo, and you saw the game change.”
Foster and Robbins both finished with 17 points.
Leonard was proud of how his team stuck together despite the strong rally from the Panthers.
“Defensively, no one quit on each other,” he said. “It helps that (Sterling) made that big 3. Threes always end momentum. We’re just a belief team, no matter what the obstacle is.”
The Panthers had plenty of turnover entering the 2025-26 season, but even with the change, they still found a way to be on the doorstep of playing for a state title.
“We had 10 seniors. Five of them are top six that graduated,” Holzer said. “Marchinsky didn’t play last year. Tells a lot about our program and our kids.”
Central Dauphin will play Imhotep Charter at 8 p.m. Saturday in the state championship game at the Giant Center in Hershey.