PUNXSUTAWNEY — On a night when they had to shoot a lot of free throws, the Bradford boys made them count, as the Owls defeated Punxsutawney 55-52 on Friday night for their fifth-straight win.
The Owls — who improved to 3-0 in D-9 League play — made 23 of 29 free throw attempts on the night. Leading the way at the charity stripe was Tyler Gigliotti, who went 15-of-16 en route to a game-high 26 points.
“We shot a ton of free throws tonight,” BHS coach Brian Hobbs said. “Tyler went 9-for-10 in the fourth quarter alone. We kept getting the ball in his hands and he stepped up and knocked them down.
“We knew it would be a good test for us,” he added. “(Punxsy) plays really tough defense. We knew we were gonna have to play tough. Fortunately we grinded this one out, but it was not easy by any means.”
Deondre Terwilliger added 11 points for the Owls.
Brandon Matthews led the Chucks (4-6 overall, 0-3 D-9 League) with 21 points.
The Bradford JV team lost 44-36.
Bradford (7-5 overall, 3-0 D-9 League) will be off until Wednesday when the Owls host perennial power Elk Catholic.
“It’ll be a big game,” Hobbs said. “As far as handling pressure, it’ll be a similar game to tonight. They’re going to make you work on the defensive end.”
AML
Ridgway 46, Elk Catholic 36
ST. MARYS — In one of the marquee matchups of the season, the Elkers remained perfect by holding off the defending district champions on the road.
Johnny Mitchell (14 points) and Andy Breier (12 points) both finished in double figures for Ridgway, who improved to 11-0 on the year.
Ryan Newton scored a game-high 23 points for the Crusaders.
Ridgway travels to Curwensville on Tuesday. Elk Catholic (11-2) will visit Kane on Monday.
AT PUNXSUTAWNEY
Bradford (55)
Kuzmeskas 1 0-0 3, Boyer 1 2-2 4, Pattison 1 1-2 3, Knowlton 0 1-2 1, Tyler Gigliotti 5 15-16 26, Whelan 1 1-2 3, Deondre Terwilliger 3 3-4 11, D. Manion 2 0-1 4. Totals: 14 23-29 55
Punxsutawney (52)
Matthews 5 9-17 21, Richardson 2 1-2 6, Constant 1 1-2 3, Blose 2 0-0 5, Stouffer 4 1-1 9, Hoover 1 0-0 2, Getch 1 0-0 2, Kriebel 1 0-0 2, Byers 1 0-0 2. Totals: 18 12-22 52
Bradford 19 29 43 55
Punxsy 12 26 41 52
Three-point goals: Bradford 4 (Kuzmeskas 1, Gigliotti 1, Terwilliger 2), Punxsy 4 (Matthews 2, Richardson 1, Blose 1); Total fouls: Bradford 18, Punxsy 27; fouled out: Richardson, Constant, Hoover (Punxsy)
JV: Punxsy won 44-36
AT ST. MARYS
Ridgway (46)
Wickett 0 0-1 0, Thorwart 3 0-0 7, MacDonald 2 3-4 7, Allegretto 2 2-2 6, Andy Breier 5 1-2 12, Johnny Mitchell 5 4-7 14. Totals: 17 10-16 46
Elk Catholic (36)
Wehler 1 1-1 3, Hoffman 0 1-2 1, Gregory 1 3-4 5, Ryan Newton 7 5-7 23, Schneider 1 2-4 4. Totals: 11 12-18 36
Ridgway 8 17 26 46
ECC 4 11 23 36
Three-point goals: Ridgway 2 (Breier 1, Thorwart 1), ECC 2 (Newton 2); Total fouls: Ridgway 16, ECC 17; fouled out: none
JV: Ridgway 42-37
