HYDE — It was a tale of two different games, courtesy of one team. One night prior, the season for the Clearfield Bison on the hardwood got off to a rough start. After not being able to practice for almost a week, they came out tough, but ultimately fell to DuBois. One night later, the Bison Gymnasium was again ready for some action, this time the Mountain League opener against the Penns Valley Rams.
This night, it was the Bison that took early momentum, and rolled onto a 57-37 triumph that put them officially in the win column for the 2021 season.
“Coach Irwin (of Penns Valley) did a great job and had his team ready to go,” Bison head coach Nate Glunt said afterwards. “It’s their first game, and they came out much like we did last night. But we came out, played unselfishly by passing the ball well, and didn’t have many turnovers. A great team effort.”
Clearfield got things going early and often as they rolled out to a 9-0 lead to start the night with Karson Rumsky and Nick Ryan doing the bulk of the scoring, but also Ryan being able to capitalize on the rebound opportunities. The entire game saw the Bison defense prevent a lot of chances for the Rams to have second chance opportunities on possessions by getting defensive boards. On the opposing side of the court, Clearfield kept that momentum going as they would take every chance to put points on the board that they could.
Clearfield held a 19-4 lead after one quarter, and continued that momentum in the second as they rolled to a 33-8 cushion heading into halftime.
“When our team plays with confidence and attack the basket, it puts so much pressure on the opposition,” Glunt said. “Compared to last year, we’re not as big, but we are quick. So we’re trying to use that to our advantage.”
The second half, however, saw Penns Valley start to reel in the Bison as they spread the ball more in the third quarter. It wasn’t until the final stanza when it seemed the Rams finally found something as Zach Braucht found his footing, and did so from deep territory. Braucht hit three shots from the top of the key, the only three-point shots for the Rams the entire night, and finished the night with a team-high 19 points, 15 of them coming in the final quarter.
“I told the kids afterwards that he (Braucht) has been playing the last three years, we saw him as a freshman, and he could put 20 (points) on us right now, and he almost did,” Glunt said.
But, the Bison kept things under control, turning over the ball just 12 times compared to 21 for the Rams, and played disciplined defense with only six fouls the entire game.
Rumsky ended the night on top for Clearfield, draining 21 points including being 7-for-7 at the free throw line, and added in six rebounds plus five steals. Cole Miller added in another 16 points with four boards. Both Luke Winters and Matt Pallo led the Bison with six assists a piece.
Clearfield also won the opening junior varsity contest, 44-18, in a game that ended under the newly-updated Mercy Rule.
There is no time to wait and savor the win, because the schedule for Clearfield to start the season is grueling. Glunt mentioned that in the first week of the season, his team is playing seven games in eight days, with only Sunday as a day of rest. But, rather than look at it as a tough schedule, he took the opposite approach and looked at it in the most positive way considering what the last several months have been like for he, his team, and the school itself.
“We mentioned this last night; playing the game is a win. Every chance we get a chance to play, that’s a win,” Glunt said. “So we’re going out and playing as many games as we can, because we are not guaranteed tomorrow.”
The Bison were originally scheduled to play at home on Friday night against Bishop Guilfoyle, however that game was cancelled on Thursday. Instead, Clearfield will be going on the road on Friday night to face the Westmont Hilltop Hilltoppers. Tip off for junior varsity is 6 p.m. with the varsity to follow.
SCORE BY QUARTER
Penns Valley 4 4 10 19 – 37
Clearfield 19 14 12 12 – 57
PENNS VALLEY – 37
Emel 0 0-0 0, Welshans 0 0-0 0, Culver 1 2-2 4, Crater 3 0-0 6, Braucht 8 0-0 19, Niewinski 2 0-0 4, Brodzina 0 0-0 0, Aston 2 0-1 4. TOTALS 16 2-3 37.
CLEARFIELD – 57
Pallo 1 1-1 4, Ryan 1 0-0 2, Winters 3 0-0 6, Rumsky 7 7-7 21, Miller 6 0-0 16, Gearhart 1 0-0 3, Lezzer 0 0-0 0, Billotte 1 2-2 5, Way 0 0-0 0, Greslick 0 0-0 0. TOTALS 19 10-10 57.
GAME STATISTICS
Penns Valley/Clearfield
Shooting: 16-42/19-55
Rebounds: 21/28
Fouls: 11/6
Turnovers: 21/12
Three-Point Shots: Braucht (3)/Pallo, Miller (4), Gearhart, Billotte