POTTSVILLE BOYS BASKETBALL

2024 - 2025 Pottsville Crimson Tide

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Pottsville 55, Tamaqua 52

POTTSVILLE - Christian Alvarez scored 16 points as Pottsville defeated Tamaqua.

The Tide led 28-21 at the half, to gain control.

Letrel Montone scored 13 and Ryder Bowers chipped in 12 for the Tide in the win.

Noah Mateyak netted a game-high 25 points for the Blue Raiders. Cooper Ansbach chipped in 12 points in the loss.

Pottsville (55) - Bainbridge 0-0-0-0, McGinley 0-0-0-0, Watkins 2-1-2-5, Alvarez 5-3-4-16, Montrone 5-3-6-13, Bowers 4-0-0-12, Clews 1-0-0-3, Ivy 2-2-2-6.

Tamaqua (52) - Reyes 1-0-0-3, Ansbach 4-3-4-12, McCabe 1-0-0-2, Mateyak 7-7-7-25, Vecolitis 0-0-0-0, Davis 0-0-0-0, Schickram 0-0-0-0-0, Kane 4-2-6-10, Frohnheiser 0-0-0-0, Tamagini 0-0-0-0.

Tam (5-11, 2-7) - 11 10 14 17 - 52

Potts (10-5, 7-2) - 12 16 11 16 - 55

 

Pottsville executes down the stretch for rivalry win at Blue Mountain

Pottsville's Christian Alvarez, left, and Blue Mountain's Chase Baldwin, right, tip-off at Blue Mountain High School on Tuesday, January 14. QUINN BURKITT/SPORTS REPORTER Pottsville's Christian Alvarez, left, and Blue Mountain's Chase Baldwin, right, tip-off at Blue Mountain High School on Tuesday, January 14. QUINN BURKITT/SPORTS REPORTER By Quinn Burkitt | qburkitt@republicanherald.com | Republican HeraldPUBLISHED: January 14, 2025 at 10:06 PM EST

ORWIGSBURG - Execution was the name of the game when Pottsville went on the road Tuesday and played a better brand of basketball than Blue Mountain for a 44-36 Division I victory.

After both teams traded baskets throughout the opening half, Pottsville (9-5) went on a 4-0 run just before halftime and never looked back. The Crimson Tide later extended the lead to 10 points, 30-20, near the end of the third quarter before executing better offensively down the stretch for the road league win.

"It's our rival and it's always a dog fight. We knew it was going to be a playoff atmosphere," said Pottsville head coach Jake Wartella. "Our kids responded and I'm so proud of the way our kids played."

Pottsville's defensive effort in the second half and true team-effort was the ultimate key to the win.

"I thought we played awesome defense in the second half, they really struggled against clean looks and I think that was the difference in the game," said Wartella.

Letrel Montone led the Crimson Tide offense with 11 points, Christian Alvarez bucketed 10 points and Ryder Bowers added nine more points.

In a sloppy back and forth affair, the Crimson Tide simply executed at a higher level than Blue Mountain (4-6) down the stretch when Montone scored five points in the fourth quarter to help grab the road win.

"It's always a battle with Blue Mountain, we've got a good group of guys and we got the job done," said Montone. "We got the job done and this will help us get our execution better down the road."

Pottsville took a 30-20 lead near the end of the third before Blue Mountain went on a 6-0 run to make it a 30-26 difference at the end of the third quarter. The closest the Eagles brought the deficit the rest of the way was a 36-33 difference with three minutes left in the game.

That's when Montone stepped up, got to the basket and knocked down a trio of free throws for the eight-point win.

"Its great, it's a big game for playoff seedings and we needed this win," said Montone. "It's great for the culture to beat Blue Mountain and we're undefeated against them this year."

The game started with with both teams trading baskets. Aidan Grace hit a three and scored five points in the first quarter for Blue Mountain's 9-8 lead heading to the second quarter.

Ryder Bowers woke up Pottsville's offense in the second quarter with a couple of three-point baskets and eight points in the quarter.

Montone added six points by halftime for Pottsville's slim 22-18 halftime advantage.

The Crimson Tide never gave up the lead again as Christian Alvarez scored four points in the third quarter to hold on to a 30-26 lead heading to the fourth.

In a true team effort for the Crimson Tide, it was Derek Watkins and Montone who helped close out the game when they combined for eight points in the fourth quarter.

"We always have confidence but being ahead always gives us more confidence so it was great going into the second half ahead," said Montone.

Blue Mountain brought the score within a 36-33 difference with three minutes left in the game, led by Grace's three points, but it wasn't enough.

Montone and Bowers made plays under the basket and each hit free throws in the final minutes for the 44-36 victory.

"It's never easy to win here and we stress taking care of the basketball, making them work on defense and I thought our kids bought into that," said Wartella. "We moved the ball well and got good shots in the second half."

Grace led the Eagles with 12 points and Tyeirre Meade scored 11 points to lead Blue Mountain's offensive effort.

Pottsville hosts Tamaqua Friday at 7:30 p.m. and Blue Mountain welcomes Minersville to their home floor Friday at 7 p.m.

Pottsville 44 - Alvarez 4 2-4 10, Bowers 3 1-2 9, Montone 4 3-4 11, Watkins 4 0-0 8, Ivy 2 0-0 4, Bainbridge 1 0-0 2, McGinley 0 0-0 0, Flucker-White 0 0-0 0, Allen 0 0-0 0, Herndon 0 0-0 0, Clews 0 0-0 0, Hobbs 0 0-0 0, Kimber 0 0-0 0, D. Kunstek 0 0-0 0, Allen 0 0-0 0, B. Kunstek 0 0-0 0

Blue Mountain 36 - Meade 4 2-2 11, Reid 0 0-0 0, Miller 0 0-0 0, Setlock 0 0-0 0, Guers 1 0-0 2, Werner 0 0-0 0, Grace 5 1-1 12, Henninger 0 0-0 0, Kirby 0 2-2 2, Gaddy 0 0-0 0, Brayford 1 1-4 3, Tomeo 0 0-0 0

P (9-5):8;14;8;14;-44

BM (4-6);9;9;8;10;-36

Crimson Tide Pounds Panthers

 

There's no place like home for Pottsville, who bounced back after a loss on the road last Tuesday. They walked away with a 63-51 win over the Panther Valley Panthers on Wednesday. Given the Crimson Tide's advantage in MaxPreps' Pennsylvania basketball rankings (they are ranked 143rd, while the Panthers are ranked 332nd), the result wasn't entirely unexpected.

 

Christian Alvarez

Points

01/08/25 vs Panther Valley

19

01/07/25 @ Mahanoy Area

25

01/03/25 vs Eastern Lebanon County

17

Pottsville's victory was a true team effort, with many players turning in solid performances. Perhaps the best among them was Christian Alvarez, who made all 7 shots he took for 19 points. The match was Alvarez's third in a row with at least ten points. The team also got some help courtesy of Ryder Bowers, who made all 6 shots he took to post 15 points.

Logan FIsher and Connor Penberth certainly did their best on Wednesday to avoid the loss. FIsher went 5 of 7 on his way to 16 points and eight rebounds, while Penberth posted 14 points and seven assists. FIsher has been hot recently, having posted eight or more rebounds the last four times he's played. Another player making a difference was Brody Breiner, who had six points.

Pottsville pushed their record up to 8-5 with the win, which was their third straight at home. The wins came thanks to their offensive performance across that stretch, as they averaged 59.3 points per game. As for Panther Valley, this is the second loss in a row for them and also nudges their season record down to 8-5.

Pottsville will head out to square off against Blue Mountain at 7:00 p.m. on Tuesday. One thing working in Blue Mountain's favor is that they have posted at least 55 points in their last three contests. As for Panther Valley, they will host Mahanoy Area at 7:00 p.m. on January 17th.

 

 

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Mahanoy Area improves to 12-0 with win over Pottsville

 

By Toron James | tjames@republicanherald.com | Republican Herald

UPDATED: January 8, 2025 at 12:56 PM EST

MAHANOY CITY - The undefeated Golden Bears know they are the team to beat in Schuylkill County.

That didn't phase Mahanoy Area Tuesday night as they took down Pottsville, 62-47.

The Golden Bears were led by Jace Yedsena who scored a game-high 28 points and Tanner Zawada who added 17 points.

"We know they are coming hard," said Tanner Zawada. "We just try to play our best game and it's good from there."

The Golden Bears started out strong, getting out to a 10-0 lead, to force a Pottsville timeout.

Pottsville didn't get their first points until the two-minute mark in the first frame.

Jace Yedsena added: "We played decent defense and got the job done."

After two straight Pottsville buckets, the Golden Bears closed out the first quarter leading 15-4.

William Mayberry connected on two triples for the Golden Bears in the quarter.

The Crimson Tide gave their fans renewed hope in the second frame as they went on a 9-0 run, thanks to Christian Alvarez who nailed three straight triples to cut the Mahanoy Area lead to 18-17, to force a Mahanoy Area timeout.

Mahanoy Area head coach Teddy Styka added: "I calmed them down during the time out. We kept losing players on screens and weren't getting through. I told them if we keep doing that we were going to lose."

The Golden Bears responded as they went on an 8-3 run to close out the quarter to lead 26-20 at the break.

Zawada led the Golden Bears in the frame scoring nine points.

Mahanoy Area came out in the second half on a 10-4 run, extending the lead to 36-24.

"In the third quarter we moved the ball well," said Styka. "Everyone touched it and it went around the perimeter. We hit our open shots and that's what I try to stress to our kids about ball movement and moving without it."

The Crimson Tide did not back down as they closed the quarter on a 12-8 run, trailing by eight heading into the final frame.

"We knew they were going to punch us in the mouth but we were going to give it right back to them," said Yedsena.

The fourth quarter belonged to Yedsena and the Golden Bears.

Yedsena scored 16 of his 28 points in the final frame to close out the Crimson Tide.

"I knew early when I started dishing it to my teammates the defense would have to spread and guard them," said Yedesna. "That's when I started to take over."

Teddy Styka wouldn't have expected anything less from his senior star.

"He's a four year starter for us," said Styka. "He's playing well and is one of the top five players in the league."

Mahanoy Area closed the game out on a 12-5 run to improve to 12-0 on the year.

"We knew it was a big game," said Zawada. "It was going to decide a lot, we are trying to get our foot in the door and secure our spot."

"It feels great and it's going to keep us going," said Yedsena.

Alvarez continued his hot play for the Crimson Tide as he finished with 25 points including four triples in the loss.

Pottsville will look to bounce back as they host Panther Valley Wednesday night. Mahanoy Area will look to stay hot as they travel to Blue Mountain Thursday night.

"It's going to be another dog fight Thursday night," said Styka. "I will give my players a day's rest and hopefully we can focus on that matchup."

 

Mahanoy Area (62) - Sendatch 2 0-0 4, Mayberry 3 0-0 9, Yedesna 8 9-14 28, Zawada 4 4-4 17, Oblas 0 0-0 0, Zilker 2 0-0 4.

Pottsville (47) - Bainbridge 2 0-0 5, McGinley 0 0-0 0, Watkins 3 0-0 7, Alvarez 9 3-9 25, Montone 3 1-2 7, Bowers 1 1-2 3, Flucker-White 0 0-0 0.

MAH (12-0) - 15 11 18 18 - 62

P (7-5) - 4 16 16 11 - 47

 

Originally Published: January 7, 2025 at 11:22 PM EST

 

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Pottsville Takes Down ELCO

The Crimson Tide earned a non-league win over ELCO, as Christian Alvarez scored a game high 17 points. Pottsville had it going fron beyond the arch as they nailed 14 triples.

Pottsville got out to a 35-23 lead at the break and outscored ELCO 32-29 in the second half. Ryder Bowers scored 11 points and Letrel Montone score 10 for the Win. 

Winning Basket

Crimson Tide clips Shamokin

POTTSVILLE - Christian Alvarez got an edge on his defender, saw a lane to the basket and took it.
With the score tied and the clock ticking under 15 seconds left to play, the Pottsville junior forward sliced through the lane for a layup to give the Crimson Tide a thrilling 48-46 victory over Shamokin in a non-league boys' basketball clash Monday afternoon at Martz Hall.
Alvarez's shot, which came with 10.2 seconds left on the clock, was the deciding blow in a heavyweight slugfest between the two former Schuylkill League Division I rivals and helped the Crimson Tide (6-4) snap a two-game losing streak.
"Big-time players make big-time plays in big games," Pottsville coach Jake Wartella said of Alvarez. "When the play broke down, we put the ball in his hands, he made a play and we needed it."

Shamokin (8-2), the top-ranked Class 4A team in District 4 entering the day, tied the game at 46-46 on a pair of free throws by Rylan Price with 1:23 remaining.
The Indians committed two fouls before Pottsville set up its final play.
Alvarez, who finished with 12 points and nine rebounds, posted up his defender at the top of the lane on the right side, then slashed toward the foul line. Letrel Montone, who was controlling the ball at the top right of the formation, hit Alvarez in motion with a bounce pass.
With a step on his defender, Alvarez nearly lost the ball, corralled it, then went strong to the hoop for the layup to put Pottsville ahead.
Shamokin called timeout with 6.7 seconds left and again with 3.6 seconds left, but a final chance to tie or take the lead ended when an entry pass to center Jenssyn Shuey was overthrown with 1 second left.

"We actually had a play drawn up, but it didn't work," Alvarez said of the final play. "They overplayed it and overplayed me so I got the ball and made a play.
"I felt he was on my back and thought I had a wide-open lane. I started dribbling when I saw it and made the layup."
Alvarez was one of several heroes on the day for Pottsville.
Ryder Bowers led the Tide offense with 19 points, nailing five 3-pointers. He drained three triples in the first quarter to give Pottsville an early 12-3 lead, then hit two more in the third quarter. His layup with 6:37 remaining in the game capped a 12-2 run that put the Tide up 41-37.
"Ryder is having a great season for us," Wartella said of the junior shooting guard. "He's a great shooter but just an overall great player. Never complains, does his job, plays hard. He hit a ton of big shots for us."
Pottsville also got big efforts from senior forward/center Tahlil Flucker-White and junior guard JuJu Bainbridge.
Flucker-White started in place of sidelined 6-foot-5 center London Ivy and gave up several inches inside to the 6-5 Shuey. Flucker-White battled tough, pulling down six rebounds and converting a key layup to start the fourth quarter.
"Taco" was a big reason Pottsville had a 19-12 rebounding edge in the first half.
Bainbridge starred on both sides of the floor. Defensively he took a pair of charges, including one with the Tide ahead 44-41 with 4 minutes left. That charge followed his only bucket, a 3-pointer from the right wing that broke a 41-41 tie.
"We were undersized but the kids bought in," Wartella said. "JuJu was taking charges and guarding kids that were bigger than him. Taco was outmanned all night but he gave us everything he had.
"That was the difference in the game. Their energy was great."

Pottsville's JuJu Bainbridge guards Shamokin's Logan Steele during Monday's non-league game at Martz Hall (Photo by Eli Doyle).
Wartella and his squad hope Monday's victory can serve as a springboard to the second half of the season.
The Tide are 4-1 in Schuylkill League Division I play, with wins over Blue Mountain, Tamaqua, North Schuylkill and Pine Grove and a loss to Minersville. Pottsville resumes league play Monday, Jan. 6, at unbeaten Mahanoy Area.
In non-league play, Pottsville has challenged itself against some talented big-school squads and taken some lumps. After beating Hazleton (4-6) to open the season, the Tide dropped three straight non-league games to Wilson West Lawn (7-2), Conrad Weiser (6-4) and Northwestern Lehigh (6-1), who are a combined 20-7.
Monday's thrilling win over Shamokin reversed that trend.
"We knew this team was really good coming in and it would be a big win after we'd been struggling lately," Alvarez said. "We're going to use this win to keep us moving forward in the right direction."
Added Wartella: "People see some of the teams we played ... all the teams we've lost to are really, really good basketball teams. We felt like we could have maybe won some of them, but they're going to help us down the stretch.
"Today was a great win over a really, really good Shamokin team."

 


Game Summary
SHAMOKIN (46) - Price 0 2-2 2, Hile 3 1-1 9, Schroyer 1 0-0 2, Lichty 4 2-3 11, Shuey 6 0-0 15, Steele 3 0-0 7, Steinhart 0 0-0 0, Paul 0 0-0 0, X. Allen 0 0-0 0. Totals 17 5-6 46.


POTTSVILLE (48) - Watkins 1 1-2 3, Alvarez 5 0-0 12, Montone 4 0-3 9, Bowers 7 0-0 19, Flucker-White 1 0-0 2, Bainbridge 1 0-0 3, McGinley 0 0-0 0, Kunstek 0 0-0 0. Totals 19 1-5 48.


Sham (8-2) 11 ... 12 ... 12 ... 11 - 46
Potts (6-4) 14 ... 7 ... 14 ... 13 - 48
3-point FGs: Hile 2, Lichty, Shuey 3, Steele, Alvarez 2, Montone, Bowers 5, Bainbridge
JV Score: Pottsville 64-23
Officials: Melusky, Hurd, Himler

Christian Alvarez Interview

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Pottsville lets Northwestern Lehigh settle into Martz Hall for road win

 

By Quinn Burkitt | qburkitt@republicanherald.com | Republican Herald
PUBLISHED: December 24, 2024 at 10:27 AM EST

POTTSVILLE - Pottsville had trouble slowing down Northwestern Lehigh's offense when they outscored the home team by 13 points across the second and third quarters of Monday's 65-56 win for the Tigers at Martz Hall.

The Crimson Tide (5-4) started fast and took an 18-15 lead by the end of the first quarter behind Christian Alvarez and Ryder Bowers pair of three's apiece. Northwestern Lehigh (5-0) then outscored Pottsville by 13 points through the second and third quarters for the 44-34 lead heading to the fourth.

"Our goals are still alive, right now we're in a bit of a funk but we feel our goals are still ahead of us," said Pottsville head coach Jake Wartella. "We were hoping to win today but if we can get better one day at a time we can be a really good basketball team."

The Tigers took their lead in the second quarter, led by Shane Marth's eight points in the second including a three-point basket.

Once Northwestern Lehigh got the ball rolling in the second quarter it was tough for Pottsville to slow down the Tigers offense.

Marth led the Tigers with 11 points between the second and third quarters and Northwestern Lehigh outscored Pottsville 29-16 in those two quarters

 

"Down the stretch we were able to take care of the basketball," said Northwestern Lehigh head coach Patrick Wanamaker. "If you were to tell me we'd be 5-0 going into Christmas Eve there's nothing to complain about there."

Gavin Nelson led Northwestern Lehigh's offense with 21 points and Marth added 18 points to the scoring effort.

 

Bowers and Alvarez came out and each hit a pair of three-pointers in the opening quarter. Derek Watkins also knocked down a three for the 18-15 lead at the end of the first quarter.

That's when the Tigers went on a 14-5 run from the end of the first quarter to halftime.

The scoring run featured Marth's eight points, including a three-point basket, as well as a three from Brady Krimmel for the 29-23 halftime lead.

Pottsville never led again after the second quarter as Cannon Fitch and Krimmel each hit three's for Northwestern Lehigh in the third quarter to outscore the Crimson Tide by four points in the third.

"We were a little bit upset with our defense, we didn't get key stops today," said Wartella. "We thought we could've gotten more steals and deflections and unfortunately we didn't."

Northwestern Lehigh led Pottsville 44-34 at the end of the third quarter.

The Crimson Tide made a strong push in the fourth quarter when Alvarez scored eight points and Letrel Montone added six more points.

"They (Pottsville) hit a couple shots and they don't roll over," said Wanamaker. "Today's a game we're going to watch again, learn from it, clean some stuff up and we'll be that much better for it."

Nelson countered for Northwestern Lehigh with 15 points in the fourth quarter, including a three, to secure the double-digit victory.

Northwestern Lehigh cleaned up the boards where Marth led the way with seven rebounds and Krimmel went for another six rebounds. Pottsville was led by Montone's five rebounds.

Alvarez led Pottsville's offense with 19 points, including a pair of three's in the first quarter, while Bowers chipped in with 15 points on five three-point baskets.

Pottsville hosts Shamokin Area Monday at 5 p.m. and Northwestern Lehigh travels to Whitehall Friday at 7:30 p.m.

Pottsville 56 - Bainbridge 0 0-0 0, McGinley 1 0-0 3, Allen 0 0-0 0, Herndon 0 0-0 0, Watkins 3 0-0 7, Leskin 0 0-0 0, Alvarez 5 7-10 19, Montone 4 3-4 12, Bowers 5 0-0 15, Ivy 0 0-2 0

Northwestern Lehigh 65 - Krimmel 4 0-0 10, Bolinger 2 0-0 4, B. Zimmerman 0 0-0 0, E. Zimmerman 3 0-0 7, Wambold 0 0-0 0, Fitch 1 1-2 4, Wertman 0 0-0 0, Nelson 4 12-13 21, Marth 6 5-9 18

P (5-4);18;5;11;20;-56

NWL (4-0);15;14;15;20;-65

 

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Crimson Tide Falls To Conrad Weiser
 
Pottsville scored the most points they've had this season on Saturday, but it wasn't enough. They took an 85-77 hit to the loss column at the hands of the Conrad Weiser Scouts. Despite running the score up even higher than they did in their prior game last Thursday (56), the Crimson Tide still had to take the loss.


Pottsville's loss shouldn't obscure the performances of Christian Alvarez, who made all 9 shots he took for 23 points, and Ryder Bowers, who made all 5 shots he took racking up 21 points. Alvarez's afternoon made it three games in a row in which he has scored at least ten points. Another player making a difference was Derek Watkins, who posted ten points.

Pottsville's defeat dropped their record down to 5-3. As for Conrad Weiser, their victory bumped their record up to an identical 5-3.

Both squads are looking forward to the support of their home crowds in their upcoming games. Pottsville will welcome Northwestern Lehigh at 3:00 p.m. on Monday. As for Conrad Weiser, they will look to defend their home court on Monday against Exeter Township at 2:30 p.m.

Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps

Pottsville: 4   13   21 39  Totals 77

Conrad Weiser: 21 20  13 31 : 85

Pottsville: Alvarez 9 0-0 23, Bowers 5 06-8 21,Montone 2 4-6 10, Watkins 4 1-1 10, Ivy 4 1-2 10, Bainbridge 0 2-2 2, Flucker-White 0 1-2 1, McGinley 0 0-0 0 Totals24 15-21 : 77

Conrad Weiser:Donovan 11 0-0 27, McKee 4 0-0 11, Malone 2 2-4 6, Rapp 8 1-5 17, Arnold 3 3-5 9, Miller 3 0-0 6, Plummer 2 2-2 7, Totals: 32 8 - 16 85 

 

Crimson Tide Clips Cardinals Wings 

Pottsville 56, Pine Grove 44

POTTSVILLE - When the energy in Martz Hall ramped up in the second half, the Crimson Tide outscored Pine Grove 36-30 in the second half for 12-point win on their home floor.

Christian Alvarez led Pottsville's offense with 17 points and Ryder Bowers added 11 more points. Gianni Hughes-Crane scored nine points and Letrel Montone posted eight more points.

Pottsville was led in their third quarter onslaught by Alvarez's nine points and three-pointer in the quarter while Colin McGinley hit a three.

Pine Grove was led offensively by Hayden Felty and Alex Dubbs 10 points apiece.

Pottsville 56 - Alvarez 7 1-2 17, Bowers 3 2-2 11, Montone 2 4-6 8, Watkins 2 0-2 4, Ivy 2 2-4 6, Bainbridge 0 1-2 1, Hughes-Crane 0 0-0 0, McGinley 3 0-0 9, Flucker-White 0 0-0 0, Allen 0 0-0 0, Herndon 0 0-0 0, Clews 0 0-0 0, Hobbs 0 0-0 0, Leskin 0 0-0 0, Kumber 0 0-0 0, Kunstek 0 0-0 0, Viars 0 0-0 0, Allen 0 0-0 0

Pine Grove 44 - Sarge 1 2-2 4, Smeltz 0 0-0 0, Allen 0 0-0 0, Herber 0 0-0 0, Felty 4 1-2 10, Brommer 2 1-1 5, Lyons 3 2-2 8, Dubbs 5 0-0 10, Barra 0 0-0 0, Snyder 2 3-6 7, Shanahan 0 0-0 0

P (5-2);6;14;19;17;-56


PG (4-2);6;8;14;16;-44

 

Crimson Tide Rolls Over North Schuylkill
 
Pottsville 72, North Schuylkill 47

ASHLAND - The Crimson Tide delivered with a 30-13 output after halftime in the third quarter for a 25-point road win at North Schuylkill.
Latrel Montone led Pottsville with 25 points, including eight points in the third quarter, and Christian Alvarez added 18 points. Derek Watkins bucketed nine points.
Rydan Bowers knocked down a pair of three-pointers in the third quarter, part of an eight-point third quarter for the 62-34 lead at the end of the third quarter.
Pottsville's defense began the game strong, stopping North Schuylkill for just five points in the opening quarter.

Pottsville (72) - Alvarez 7 3-4 18, Bowers 2 2-2 8, Monotone 9 7-9 25, Watkins 3 3-6 9, London 2 2-2 6, Bainbridge 0 0-0 0, Hobbs 0 0-0 0, McGinley 1 0-0 2, Flucker-White 0 0-0 0, Allen 0 0-0 0, Herndon 0 0-0 0, Clews 0 0-0 0, Leskin 0 0-0 0, Kimber 0 0-0 0, Kunstek 0 1-2 1, Allen 1 0-0 3, Vials 0 0-0 0. Totals: 25 18-23 72

North Schuylkill (47) - Cairo 0 0-0 0, Damiter 0 0-0 0, Maziekas 3 0-0 7, Wall 2 4-6 8, Grow 2 0-0 5, Kacilowicz 1 1-2 3, Kreitzer 0 0-0 0, Marcinowski 0 0-0 0, Meskunas 1 0-0 3, Dziczek 0 0-0 0, Nelson 2 2-3 6, McNally 4 0-2 8, Cabral 0 0-0 0, White 3 1-1 7, Gallagher 0 0-0 0, Osenbach 0 0-0 0

P (4-1, 3-1)19 13 30 10 - 72
NS (0-5, 0-4)5 16 13 13 - 47

 

Crimson Tide Gets Smacked By Wilson
 
Pottsville: Alverez 4 2-2 10, Bowers 1 0-0 3,  Montone 2 0-0 4, Watkins 1 0-0 2, Ivy 1 0-0 2, Bainbridge 0 0-0 0, McGinley 0 2-2 2, A. Allen 3 0-0 8, Herndon 0 0-0 0, Clews 0 0-0 0, Kimber 0 0-0 0, Kunstek 0 0-0 0 Totals 12 4-4 31
 
Wilson: Gloverz 3 0-0 8, Kelfalla 4 0-0 8, Gruber 7 1-2 16, Zwillinger 1 0-0 3, Etim 1 0-0 2, McFadden 1 0-0 2, Hunsicker 0 1-2 1, Houck 1 0-0 2, Akings 2 0-0 5, Levan 3 0-0 6, Michael 3 0-0 6  Totals 29 2-4 65
 
Pottsville (3-2):     9 6 6    10 = 31
Wilson:               20   13   18   14 = 65 
 
 

Crimson Tide Falls To Minersville
 
 
POTTSVILLE - The Battlin' Miners improved to 4-0 as they took down Pottsville 44-34 at Martz Hall Thursday night.

Shazier Bethea led Minersville with 15 points followed by Bradley Kostishak who scored 10 points. Dante Carr chipped in seven points in the win.

"It was crazy playing out there," said Minersville's Shazier Bethea. "They were playing great defense, we just had to stick with it and keep going."

It was a defensive battle early on as both teams struggled to find the basket. Pottsville led 2-0 for four plus minutes in the first quarter.

Minersville's head coach Dave Mullaney added: "Pottsville was so good defensively putting pressure on the passing lanes."

The Battlin' Miners closed the quarter strong to take a 7-6 lead and didn't trail since.

Minersville started the second quarter on a quick 7-0 run to extend the lead to 14-6.

"We were just trying to get the ball reversed," said Mullaney. "We wanted to sustain offense and not turn the ball over."


Bethea scored five of his 15 points in the second quarter as Minersville took a 16-10 lead at the break.

Coming out of the break, the mindset was simple for Minersville.

"We wanted to keep going and show fight," said Bethea.

The Crimson Tide battled back in the second half, they cut Minersville's lead to six midway through the third quarter.

Minersville stayed poised as they closed the quarter out on a 7-2 run, capped off by a Jordan Bowers triple as time expired.

"We were looking sloppy a little bit," said Bethea. "Then we started to get it together."

The Crimson Tide gave their fans renewed hope in the fourth quarter as they went on a 9-4 run to cut the lead to 35-30 with two minutes left.

Pottsville's Derek Watkins scored seven points in the half, adding a bucket to cut the lead to 35-32.

Pottsville forced a turnover on Minersville's next possession but couldn't convert as they missed a fast break layup.

Up 37-32, Minersville's Jordan Bowers pulled up and hit a jumper to extend the lead to 39-32.

Pottsville came up short on their next possession. Bethea closed the game out nailing four straight free throws to secure the 44-34 win.

"I thought some of our guys stepped up and made key plays," said Mullaney. "Our guys had to make individual plays and were able to do that."

Kostishak added: "It feels great and it was a big win." "It's one step closer to the Schuylkill leagues."

The Battlin' Miners knew how big this win was.

"Pottsville is a really talented team and very well coached," said Mullaney. "So we feel really fortunate to come away with a win."

Letrel Montone led Pottsville with 13 points. Ryder Bowers scored 11 in the loss.

Minersville will look to stay hot as they travel to Danville Saturday at 2 p.m. Pottsville will look to bounce back as they travel to North Schuylkill Monday at 7:30 p.m.

Minersville (44) - Bethea 5 5-6 15, Manning 1 0-0 2, Kostishak 5 0-0 10, Carr 3 1-2 7, Bowers 3 1-2 8, Zimerofsky 0 0-0 0, Halford 0 0-0 0, Hutsko 1 0-0 2,

Pottsville 34 - Alvarez 1 0-0 2, Bowers 4 0-0 11, Montone 5 3-7 13, Watkins 3 1-1 8, Ivy 0 0-0 0, Bainbridge 0 0-0 0, McGinley 0 0-0 0, Clews 0 0-0 0.

Potts (3-1, 2-1) - 6 4 10 14 - 34

Min (4-0, 3-0) - 7 9 15 13 - 44

Originally Published: December 12, 2024 at 11:09 PM EST

 

 

Crimson Tide Goes to 3 - 0

Pottsville 64, Tamaqua 59

TAMAQUA - The Crimson Tide improved to 4-0 after a Division I league win over Tamaqua.

Christian Alvarez led Pottsville with 17 points. Derek Watkins scored 11 and Letrel Montone added 15 points.

Pottsville outscored Tamaqua 15-8 in the fourth quarter after the Blue Raiders led 51-49 after three quarters.

Mateyak scored a game-high 20 points for the Blue Raiders. Ansbach scored 15 in the tough loss.

Pottsville (64) - Bainbridge 1 0-0 3, McGinley 0 0-0 0, Watkins 4 3-6 11, Alvarez 6 0-1 17, Montrone 6 2-4 15, Bowers 3 0-0 9, Flucker-White 0 0-0 0, Ivy 4 1-1 9.

Tamaqua (59) - Ansbach 6 3-3 15, McCabe 5 0-1 10, Mateyak 6 2-3 20, Vecolitis 0 0-0 0, Davis 0 0-0 0, Schickram 1 0-0 0, Kane 5 1-5 12, Tamagini 0 0-0 0.

Potts (3-0, 2-0) - 18 20 11 15 - 64

Tam (0-4, 0-2) - 15 19 17 8 - 59

Crimson Tide Clips The Eagles Wings 

Pottsville 53, Blue Mountain 46

POTTSVILLE - The Crimson Tide improved to 2-0 after defeating Blue Mountain, 53-46.

Letrel Montone led Pottsville with 14 points. Derek Watkins chipped in 13 points in the win.

Aidan Grace led the Eagles with 15 points as they came up short.

Blue Mountain (46) - Meade 2 0-0 5, Guers 1 2-4 4, Werner 2 0-0 4, Grace 5 2-2 15, Kirby 1 0-0 2, Baldwin 2 0-0 4, Gaddy 1 0-0 3, Brayford 4 0-1 9.

Pottsville (53) - Alvarez 4 2-4 11, Bowers 3 0-0 9, Montone 3 7-11 14, Watkins 5 0-4 13, Bainbridge 0 0-2 0, Hughes-Crane 0 0-0 0, McGinley 0 0-0 0. Flucker-White 0 0-0 0. Ivy 2 - 0 2-3 6

BM (0-2, 0-1) 13 15 6 12 - 46

POTTS (2-0, 1-0) 9 15 17 12 - 53

 



Pottsville pulls away from Hazleton Area in Season opener 
 
HAZLE TWP. - Jake Wartella wasn't in full-blown panic mode, but he admittedly was starting to fidget.

His Pottsville boys' basketball team went from leading Hazleton Area by four points to falling behind, 46-37, during a four-minute span in the third quarter of its season opener, Tuesday night, at Hughie McGeehan Gymnasium.

However, Christian Alvarez scored five points to ignite an 8-0 Crimson Tide run over the final 2:11 of the quarter and the Tide outscored the Cougars, 23-13, in the final quarter to pull away for a 68-59 non-league victory.

"I honestly thought the game was getting away from us a little bit," said Wartella, who guided his team to a 19 wins last season. "I was a little worried, but then we hit a couple shots and some guys off the bench gave us a big lift. We're a true team. When one guy's not playing well, we can call on some other guys. They stepped up tonight."

Derek Watkins' steal and layup put Pottsville ahead for keeps at the start of the fourth quarter. He later cashed two more thefts into easy deuces and sank four free throws down the stretch, Letrel Montone added seven points and deftly directed the Tide's motion offense and Ryder Bowers swished his fifth three-pointer to help Pottsville record its first win over Hazleton Area since 2020.

Pottsville's Letrel Montone seeks an opening as Hazleton Area's Dylan Stish applies pressure during the Crimson Tide's 68-59 win over the Cougars in a non-league boys' basketball game, Tuesday, in Hazle Twp.
David McKeown / Staff Photographer
Pottsville's Letrel Montone seeks an opening as Hazleton Area's Dylan Stish applies pressure during the Crimson Tide's 68-59 win over the Cougars in a non-league boys' basketball game, Tuesday, in Hazle Twp.
"We're an older group," Montone, the Tide's senior point guard, said. "We have three senior starters and Christian Alvarez, a junior, has just as much experience as the rest of us. We didn't play our best basketball and I didn't play great in the first half... but we all have confidence in our group as a team."

While Tide ballhandlers played keepaway, their aggressive defensive limited the Cougars (1-1) to only four field goals in the final quarter, none by their super sophomore Dylan Stish.

"We think we can score points this year. ... The ball might not always go in, but we do have scorers as we showed tonight," Wartella said. "I actually was more happy with the way we played defense. They made some tough shots; we made them work for everything. I'm just happy with the overall effort."


Hazleton Area, meanwhile, showed flashes of the play that enabled the Cougars to defeat Allentown Dieruff in ints opener on Friday, but not enough consistency to make it two straight wins to start the new season.

"Give credit to Pottsville because they did a very good job defensively," second-year Hazleton Area head coach Pat Brogan said. "They got all the 50-50 balls. They executed much better offensively than we did and they deserved to win the game."

There were three ties in and four lead changes in the fast-paced first quarter. Luis Guzman had the hot hand for the Cougars with 12 points, including two triples. Bowers was getting warmed up for the Tide with his first two threes. Alvarez contributed five as Pottsville a 20-17 lead into the second period.

Pottsville twice led by six points after two more Bowers three-pointers early in the second quarter, but they were the Tide's only baskets in the quarter. The Cougars whittled away at their deficit on a Stish three-ball and two Guzman hoops until Stish's spinning jumper in the lane tied the game at 26 at the two-minute mark. Stish's rebound bucket following an Estarling Melenciano steal gave the Cougars 28-27 halftime lead that might have been greater had they not turned the ball over eight times in the quarter.

"I don't think we shared the ball like we did in the Dieruff game," Brogan said. "We got careless with the basketball and we made some bad decisions."

The Cougars still gained the upper hand midway through the third quarter after a Franklin Ritz triple, Stish's gliding layup and three-pointer, Gavin Perkosky's steal-and-hoop and two more Stish baskets gave Hazleton Area a nine-point lead, its largest of the night.

Pottsville, though, refused to budge and began its decisive comeback soon thereafter.

"Coach Wartelal kept yelling at us and telling us to pick it up," Montone said. "We were down and started lollygagging, but he reminded us that we were still in the game and that we have playmakers to get back in the game."

The Tide also put the clamps on Hazleton Area's own playmakers when it mattered most.

"We have to understand we have two great players in (Guzman and Stish), but they can't do it alone," Brogan said. "I think sometimes we got caught watching them tonight and expected them to do everything. You can't do that. You've got to move and share the basketball."

Guzman finished with a game-high 24 points and Stish added 20, but no other Cougars scored more than Melenciano's seven.

"We have nine new guys out there," Brogan said. "It's going to take some time for those guys to trust and believe in each other. ... If we learn from this, it's not a complete failure."

Pottsville was a 51-48 winner in overtime in the junior varsity game. Josh Kimber and Andrew Allen paced the Tide with 17 and 14 points respectively. Oscady Vasquez led the Cougars with 21 and Kendrick Ortiz had 12.

Both teams will return to action later this week, the Crimson Tide in their Schuylkill League opener against Division I rival Pottsville on Thursday and the Cougars playing host to Harrisburg in another non-league contest on Friday.

"This is a big-time confidence boost," Wartella said. "We were a little nervous going into the game, (facing) a (Class) 6A school and a very talented team, (and) I wasn't sure how we would show up because it was our first game.

"It doesn't get any easier from here."

POTTSVILLE (68)

Hughes-Crane 0 0-0 0, Bainbridge 1 0-0 2, McGinley 1 0-0 3, Watkins 7 4-4 19, Alvarez 3 6-9 13, Montone 6 4-6 16, Bowers 5 0-0 15, Flucker-White 0 0-0 0, Ivy 0 0-0 0. Totals 23 14-19 68.

HAZLETON AREA (59)

Moran 0 0-0 0, Ritz 1 0-0 3, Stish 9 0-0 20, Saladin 0 1-2 1, Melenciano 1 5-7 7, Staffin 0 2-2 2, Guzman 11 0-2 24, Perkosky 1 0-0 2. Totals 23 8-14 59.

Pott (1-0) 20 7 18 23 - 68

HA (1-1) 17 11 18 13 - 59

3-FG: Bowers 5, McGinley, Watkins, Alvarez, Stish 2, Guzman 2, Ritz.

Originally Published: December 4, 2024 at 12:22 AM EST

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