HYDE — No game is exactly like the last in sports, especially basketball. Whatever happened the previous quarter on the previous night is nothing like what the game before that was, nor the next game will be. The Clearfield Bison may have only one loss on their record, but the victories have been close battles, along with some decisive wins.
Friday night inside the Bison Gymnasium, the fans came out for “Black Out Night” when their home squad was ready to host the visiting Dragons of Central.
Initially, it was a rather unsettling start for the home team, as the Dragons would get out to a 4-0 run, while holding the Bison scoreless for nearly half the first quarter. Some momentum came the way of Clearfield once Tommy Hazel drained the first basket of the night for Clearfield, but that basket would set forth a major night for the junior.
It also set forth what the Bison would do for the rest of the night. Whether it was outside shooting, tough work in the paint, or crashing the boards, Clearfield was on top of every aspect. When the buzzer sounded, it was the Bison on the positive end of a 67-50 final.
Head coach Nate Glunt was surprised at the slow start for his squad, but when Hazel got rolling, the team fed off the energy.
“I thought Tommy’s energy was awesome. He had all of our offensive rebounds, steals; he’s starting to play with energy, and he’s starting to realize that. He’s really picking it up,” Glunt said afterwards. “Ever since that one game where he had 14 assists, he played hard but didn’t make many shots. The next day in practice he got into a rhythm and has just kept it going.”
“He never comes full speed, but it’s good because he’s always under control. He’ll burst on a lose ball, and he probably leaps higher than anyone on the team. But he’s got another gear that the Good Lord blessed him with, and he’s doing excellent for us.
Hazel couldn’t do any wrong in shooting on this night, finishing 9-for-16 and a game-high 24 points, including five shots from behind the arc. The Bison would drain 10 3-point shots compared to just three for Central, but despite the success, Glunt saw a repeat of the previous night in the amount of three-point shots. Clearfield would attempt 26 shots from that range.
“I thought we were settling for too many three’s again, we’ve got to stop that. But eventually we worked the ball inside with offensive rebounds, and that was the key,” Glunt said.
Hazel would help with those offensive rebounds as he would total nine on the night. Cody Spaid would enjoy another big night on the boards as he would pull down nine to go with his 16 points.
Will Myers also got in on the double-digit action as he ended the night with 11 points.
After one quarter of play it was only a 12-6 contest, but the second quarter is when Hazel would up the pace on his game. He would bucket nine of his 24 points in the frame, while also pressuring the Dragons into turnovers. His play helped the Bison stretch the gap to 37-17 at the break.
Clearfield would have a lead as big as 30 points in the second half, and kept it on cruise control entering into the fourth quarter, when many of the underclassmen would take to the court to get some playing time.
The fourth quarter is the lone quarter where Central would outscore Clearfield, 17-11, with nine of those points coming from Kyle Dodson, who ended the night with 23 points. No other Dragon player would hit double digits in scoring.
The jayvee squad for Clearfield would also pick up the victory in an exciting 55-52 contest.
With a 13-1 record, Clearfield is entering the home stretch of their schedule, and it doesn’t get any easier for them in the coming week. The Bison are back home on Monday night for what could be their toughest challenge outside of the Mountain League when the DuBois Beavers come to the Bison Gym. Glunt made it perfectly clear what to expect.
“We have a tough one on Monday night. They are a well coached team,” Glunt said. “They are probably the most physically gifted team we’ll face all season. They have (Dante) Dawson, probably the best athlete we’ll face on the entire schedule, a stud player. They have a 6′ 5″ post, another 6′ 2″ point guard, and a 6′ 1″ player that doesn’t miss three’s. They are just extremely talented.”
Tip-off is set for 6 p.m. for the jayvee contest, with the varsity game to follow. It is another theme night for the Bison as it is a “Groovy” theme in the gymnasium as the Bison will wear tie-dye uniforms.
SCORE BY QUARTER
Central 6 11 16 17 – 50
Clearfield 12 25 19 11 – 67
Central 50
Muthler 3 2-2 9, Helsel 2 0-0 5, McKnight 2 1-2 5, Kerstetter 0 0-0 0, Dodson 10 2-3 23, Smith 0 0-0 0, Buchart 4 0-0 8. TOTALS 21 5-7 50.
Clearfield 67
McGinnis 0 0-0 0, Lezzer 0 0-0 0, Gates 0 0-0 0, Brown 2 0-2 5, Lynch 0 0-1, 0, Strouse 2 1-1 5, Porter 0 0-0 0, McKenzie 2 1-2 6, Hazel 9 1-2 24, Spaid 7 2-2 16, Myers 3 2-2 11. TOTALS 25 7-12 67.
GAME STATISTICS
Central/Clearfield
Rebounds: 15/30
Team Fouls: 13/12
Turnovers: 14/14
Shooting: 21-47/25-58
Three-Point Baskets: Helsel, Dodson, Muthler; Myers (3), Hazel (5), McKenzie, Brown
Bison Scoreboard:
Date Opponent Score Record
12/07 CURWENSVILLE 76 – 35 1 – 0
12/09 @ Central ppd. 1 – 0
12/11 HUNTINGDON 77 – 64 2 – 0
12/15 BELLEFONTE 44 – 30 3 – 0
12/16 ST. MARYS 68 – 59 4 – 0
12/18 @ Tyrone 59 – 50 5 – 0
12/21 @ Punxsutawney 48 – 66 5 – 1
12/23 @ Bellefonte 56 – 39 6 – 1
12/29&30 Purchase Line Christmas Tourney
12/29 vs. Harmony 60 – 30 7 – 1
12/30 vs. Purchase Line 63 – 24 8 – 1
01/05 BROOKVILLE 64 – 48 9 – 1
01/06 BALD EAGLE AREA 89 – 56 10 – 1
01/08 @ Penns Valley 58 – 49 11 – 1
01/12 PHILIPSBURG-OSCEOLA ppd. 11 – 1
01/14 PHILIPSBURG-OSCEOLA 80 – 42 12 – 1
01/15 CENTRAL 67 – 50 13 – 1
01/18 DUBOIS
01/20 @ Huntingdon
01/26 TYRONE
01/29 @ Bald Eage Area
02/01 @ Central
02/03 PENNS VALLEY
02/05 @ Philipsburg-Osceola
02/08 @ Curwensville