SL Boys’ Basketball Playoffs: Balanced attack lifts Minersville past Nativity
Minersville's Dante Carr drives toward the basket during Wednesday's Schuylkill League boys' basketball semifinals at Martz Hall. Carr had 14 points and nine assists in the MIners' 65-51 win (Photo by Danie Mae Photography).
POTTSVILLE — Dante Carr has received tons of accolades and national attention from college recruiters for his athleticism and vision as a high school football quarterback.
His vision on the basketball court may be better.
The Minersville junior forward compiled 14 points and nine assists Wednesday to lead the Miners to a 65-51 victory over Nativity in a Schuylkill League boys’ basketball semifinal at Martz Hall.
The victory moves the Miners (21-3) into the league final for the first time since 2002. Minersville will look to capture its first-ever boys’ league crown when they face Pottsville, a 54-44 winner over Mahanoy Area, in Friday’s championship game at 7:30 p.m. at Martz Hall.
“A lot of people see him as a really unique athlete,” Minersville coach Dave Mullaney said of Carr. “He’s great in open space, he can drive and he can score for himself but he also passes the ball when he needs to.
“He’s a willing passer and unselfish kid.”
Carr opened the game with a three-point play, dished out a pair of assists, then had another layup in a game-opening, 11-2 run in which the Miners hit all five of their shots from the field, several on fast-break opportunities in transition.
It was a glimpse of what was to come the rest of the game for Minersville, which excelled at making the extra pass to find the open man for a high-percentage shot. For the game, the Miners shot 28 for 48 (58%) and committed just 11 turnovers.
“We work a lot on back cuts,” Carr said. “It’s pretty easy when my guys are going 100 percent. I just have to find the guy. Nine times out of 10 they’re going to put the ball in the rim.
“We’ve been so hot at practice lately. Our main goal is to come out and start hot and just keep doing that all game. That was a huge success for our win.”
Carr had another layup moments later that expanded the lead to 16-4. Fanelli, Evans & Patel T102 Sports Now Athlete of the Week Shazier Bethea had six of his 12 points in the spurt as Minersville quickly took control.
The Miners led 21-12 after one frame and 35-21 at halftime and were never really threatened the rest of the way. Division II champion Nativity (14-9) used a personal 7-0 run by Trey Keating to open the fourth quarter to slice its deficit to 50-41 with 6:15 remaining, but Minersville scored the next seven points to regain its comfortable margin.
The Miners used a balanced attack to stay ahead. Senior Logan Hutsko scored nine of his 11 points in the first half before getting into foul trouble and sophomore Jordan Bowers came off the bench to contribute 12 points and six rebounds.
Brad Kostishak tallied nine points while Dawsyn Manning played valuable minutes off the bench and collected seven points and four rebounds.
“Logan has been great for us all year,” Mullaney said of Hutsko. “Jordan Bowers is just a really, really good basketball player. That’s kind of what we expect all the time. I think he should have 12 points and six rebounds every game. That’s the type of kid he is.”
Minersville defeated Nativity 73-43 in a non-league game Jan. 11 in Minersville. The Hilltoppers countered with a box-and-1 defense on Bethea in Wednesday’s second clash and the junk defense, combined with a patient approach by Minersville and first-half foul trouble, kept Nativity within striking distance.
Keating put on a shooting show for Nativity, hitting four 3-pointers and scoring a game-high 26 points. Sammy Walborn also hit four 3-pointers and had 15 points, while Noah Dolbin scored 10 points and had eight rebounds.
For Nativity, the District 11 Class A playoffs are next. The Hilltoppers will be the No. 3 seed and take on Lincoln Leadership in the semifinals, with Bethlehem Christian looming at the top seed.
“We were down two guys,” said Nativity coach Mike Walborn, citing illness to Layne Pasker and Jake Bowman. “We had too many fast-break points that we gave up. To lose by 14 and give up that many, I can live with that.
“I look at these games at leagues like (our non-league games). I want the biggest, the best, more than we can handle. We know we may not win these games, but it gets us ready for districts and states. That’s always our goal.”
For the Miners, a chance at history awaits. None of the current Minersville players were even a thought in 2002, when the Miners lost in the league final to Shamokin 55-40.
The Minersville girls won Schuylkill League titles in 2014, 2016 and 2017, but the boys have never tasted league gold.
“It’s great to get these guys here. It’s great for the school district,” Mullaney said. “These guys, since we’ve been here for three years, they’ve never been afraid of the big lights. I’m really proud of them and the way they’ve progressed through the year.”
Added Carr: “It means everything (to get to the finals). To be the first time to ever win a championship, that says something. You’re in the history books. We’re just going to prepare like every other game and keep playing like we’ve been playing.”
