When the final buzzer rang at Tippin Gymnasium last Saturday the Bisons came away with one of the biggest wins in the school\’s recent history capturing their first District 9 crown in a decade. Friday night they return to Clarion University’s Tippin Gynasium on a quest to do something a Bison team has done only once in school history – win a state playoff game.
It won’t be easy for Clearfield to reach that historic milestone as they face one of the toughest teams in the WPIAL this season, the Greensburg-Salem Golden Lions. The Lions are coming off of a loss to Hampton High School in the WPIAL AAA semifinals which led to their matchup with the Bisons.
Greensburg-Salem is led by star point guard Chris Klimchock who has committed to play his college ball at Edinboro University, one of the top Division II teams in the state. Klimchock isn’t the only player who can cause matchup problems as the Golden Lions 6’7 senior center Rob Davis may cause also problems for Clearfield.
The Bisons will look to their “Big 3” to have a big game. If Matt Shiner, Jarrin Campman, and Parker Herrington can get hot from behind the three point line early, the Bisons can use their matchup zone defense to minimize the problems Klimchock and Davis can cause. Cruise Kerr coming off of a 13 rebound performance against St. Marys will need to have another big game on the glass to get the Clearfield fast break going.
The Bison bench will also play an important role, much like they have all season with Chad Zurat, Jeremy Priester, Tyler Wilson, and Nick Redden giving crucial points and minutes.
Clearfields quest for history resumes Friday night at 5:00 at Clarion University’s Waldo S. Tippin Gymnasium.
