PHILIPSBURG — The late night from being on the road the previous night did not stop the schedule for the Clearfield Bison cagers. The trip to Clarion-Limestone on Monday night left little time to get ready for the next game on the docket. Tuesday’s plate meant a trip down route 322 to face the Mounties of Philipsburg-Osceola.
Despite the weather outside, and the slow travel to the high school for Clearfield, the team was ready to take to the hardwood.
Whether on the gridiron or the hardwood, these two schools have a storied rivalry, and the game at certain moments had the physicality of what would normally be seen between the hash marks instead of the bleachers. But, the Bison came out fast, and scored early to help build a lead that they would not relinquish. In the end, despite P-O coming on late, Clearfield went on to win their third straight, finishing the night on the better side of a 49-42 final.
“We came out with energy. The kids came out ready to play. I know Philipsburg had a game last night, too, but we played at Clarion-Limestone, got home at around 11:15,” head coach Nate Glunt said afterwards. “Having the two-hour (school) delay helped, but the kids got up and came out. That’s a credit to them, wanting to be successful.
Things quickly got roaring just 20 seconds after the opening tip when Wyatt Porter drained the opening three-point basket. But the first quarter belonged to senior Reese Wilson.
Despite only scoring one basket in the opening frame, it was his play at the basket that mattered the most. In the opening eight minutes, Wilson pulled down eight rebounds, all of which helped lead to points from the likes of Cade Walker, Taye Lynch or Jonny Gates.
It wasn’t till the second quarter when Wilson wasn’t pulling down rebounds, but instead was getting to the net. WIlson finished his night with a game-high double-double of 20 points, 11 rebounds, plus four assists.
“He’s providing great leadership for us,” Glunt said. “He’s staying low, targeting the ball. He defends the tallest player, then Chew takes their best guard. They are having a great season.”
P-O had a better quarter in the second stanza, out-scoring the Bison 11-9, to pull within eight points, and would receive the ball when the third quarter began.
Despite the second half being a slightly lower scoring half for both teams, Glunt felt the game was working at a pace that both teams were comfortable with. Both teams were going after the ball, and contesting a lot of possessions. However, Glunt felt things were working out very well for his team because when the Bison had the ball, they weren’t just shooting to get points.
“We had the lead, looked for a good shot. Every possession we had a good shot,” he said. “Give them credit, too. We didn’t get a lot of stops. They kept scoring, we kept scoring.
“It was a low-scoring game, but neither team really had a stop. They got no closer than five points, but they just played smart.”
The Mounties only had one player make it into double digits, with Carson Jones finishing with 16 points before he fouled out late in the game. Ryan Whitehead led the team with nine boards.
Clearfield also kept pace in the opening jayvee game, finishing with the 48-34 victory.
Now sitting at 7-5 and in the second half of the season, Glunt really feels his team has come together and is playing better than when they started the season against Curwensville.
“We’re now healthy. That was the biggest thing at the beginning of the season,” Glunt said. “But we’re healthy, we’re improving. The kids have great energy at practice, great focus. Those little things people may not notice, but are helping out greatly.”
Clearfield gets a bit of a break before they head back out on the road for their third road game in a matter of five days. The Bison will travel to Central this Friday. The Dragons will be looking to sweep Clearfield, as they won the first game, 56-45, back on December 13 at the Bison Gym.
Tip for the varsity game is slated for approximately 7:15, following the jayvee contest.
SCORE BY QUARTER
Clearfield 16 9 11 13 – 49
Philipsburg-Osceola 6 11 11 14 – 42
Clearfield – 49
Lynch 2 0-0 4, Kline 0 0-0 0, Hess 1 1-2 3, Walker 4 1-2 9, Lezzer 0 0-0 0, Gates 2 1-2 6, Wilson 6 7-11 20, Chew 1 1-4 3, Geppert 0 0-0 0, Rumsky 0 0-0 0, Lopez 0 0-0 0, Porter 1 0-0 3, Billotte 0 0-0 0. TOTALS 17 11-21 49.
Philipsburg-Osceola – 42
Jones 6 2-2 16, Soltys 3 1-1 7, Doyle 1 0-0 2, Richardson 2 0-0 4, Slogosky 0 0-0 0, Taylor 0 0-0 0, WHitehead 2 0-0 4, Scalzo 0 0-0 0, Dixon 0 0-0 0, Kephart 0 0-0 0, Soltis 0 0-0 0, Wisor 4 1-2 9. TOTALS 18 4-5 42.
GAME STATISTICS
Clearfiled/P-O
Shooting: 17-40/18-42
Rebounds: 23/26
Fouls: 14/22
Turnovers: 10/16
Three-Point Field Goals: Gates, Wilson, Chew, Porter/Jones (2)
Fouled Out: Jones
Bison Scoreboard:
| Date | Opponent | Score | Record |
| 12/08 | CURWENSVILLE | 54 – 52 | 1 – 0 |
| 12/13 | CENTRAL | 45 – 56 | 1 – 1 |
| 12/15 | @ Huntingdon | 62 – 85 | 1 – 2 |
| 12/20 | @ Bellefonte | 50 – 41 | 2 – 2 |
| 12/28 | @ Purchase Line Christmas Tourney | ||
| 12/28 | vs. Harmony | 73-31 | 3 – 2 |
| 12/29 | @ Purchase Line Christmas Tourney | ||
| 12/29 | vs. Purchase Line | 45 – 56 | 3 – 3 |
| 01/05 | TYRONE | 56 – 63 | 3 – 4 |
| 01/08 | @ Punxsutawney | 54 – 68 | 3 – 5 |
| 01/10 | @ Bald Eagle Area | 56 – 45 | 4 – 5 |
| 01/12 | PENNS VALLEY | 40 – 28 | 5 – 5 |
| 01/15 | @ Clarion-Limestone | 57 – 41 | 6 – 5 |
| 01/16 | @ Philipsburg-Osceola | 49 – 42 | 7 – 5 |
| 01/19 | @ Central | ||
| 01/22 | DUBOIS | ||
| 01/24 | HUNTINGDON | ||
| 01/26 | BELLEFONTE | ||
| 01/30 | @ Tyrone | ||
| 02/01 | BROOKVILLE | ||
| 02/02 | BALD EAGLE AREA | ||
| 02/07 | @ Penns Valley | ||
| 02/09 | PHILIPSBURG-OSCEOLA | ||
| 02/12 | @ Curwensville |