HYDE — Usually when one thinks of the term “double-header” it is namely reserved for the baseball diamond, often to make up a game that had to be postponed because of weather. It is not really seen much when it comes to the hardwood, but on Friday night, the Clearfield Area Junior/Senior High School had an opportunity that may not be seen again. The Bison Gymnasium would host not just one, but two, basketball games, as the Lady Bison and the Bison round-ballers would play host to Greater Johnstown.
At the end of the night, the home team would go home disappointed, dropping both contests.
The Lady Bison opened the action as head coach Missy Helsel would see her squad take to the home court for the first time this season against the Lady Trojans. For Clearfield, maybe the home jitters got to them, as they were out-paced early and could not recover, falling 60-43.
The Lady Trojans would get multiple opportunities behind the arc in the opening eight minutes, while Clearfield struggled for control of the ball. At the same time, the Lady Bison could not make the usual go-to shots to get points, as they were limited to just 2-for-8 in the opening stanza, eventually trailing 13-4 after eight minutes. Things got better in the second quarter as star freshman Sonny Diehl began showing why she has already become one of the breakout players in the Laurel Highlands Athletic Conference, putting up the most shots of any Clearfield player in the quarter. She would add in some key rebounds, as she would be one of three Lady Bison to finish with 11 points. She also would go on to record another double-double, adding in 13 boards, plus seven steals.
Both Hannah Glunt and Cayleigh Walker would also manage to put up 11 points on the night, while Alayna winters added in eight rebounds.
Still, Clearfield found itself behind in the quarter, heading into halftime staring at a 33-19 deficit.
The third quarter would see more of the same for Clearfield, despite outscoring the Lady Trojans 14-12, as many of the easy shots that would normally fall for the Lady Bison would not go in the net. For the game, the Lady Bison only shot 20 percent from the floor, finishing 12-for-60.
Greater Johnstown was paced on the evening by Nalonai Tisinger, who finished with a game-high double-double effort of 21 points and 14 rebounds.
Clearfield did not give up as they would use that third quarter and a lot of the fourth to cut into the lead of the Lady Trojans, getting as close as eight points early in the fourth quarter. But, turnovers and having to play conservatively with fouls would not be enough to hold on as Greater Johnstown would pull away late in the going, dropping the Lady Bison record to 2-2 on the year.
Helsel would say afterwards that it does not get any easier this season, but she felt her girls played hard despite the score at certain points, and was already wanting to get back on the court.
SCORE BY QUARTER
Gr. Johnstown 13 20 12 15 – 60
Clearfield 4 15 14 10 – 43
Greater Johnstown – 60
Zayona Thomas 2 0-0 6, A Nash 2 1-4 5, Nalonai Tisinger 10 1-1 21, Zaniyah Reed 1 0-2 2, M White 6 1-2 15, Kylan Kelly 0 0-0 0, Angela Pinson 4 0-0 9, Sha’kia Young 1 0-0 2, L Womac 0 0-0 0. TOTALS 26 3-9 60.
Clearfield – 43
Sonny Diehl 4 3-6 11, Hannah Glunt 3 3-4 11, Alayna Winters 2 1-2 5, Cayleigh Walker 2 7-8 11, Mia Helsel 1 3-6 5, Elia Evilsizor 0 0-0 0. TOTALS 12 17-26 43.
GAME STATISTICS
Greater Johnstown/Clearfield
- Shooting: 26-62/12-60
- Rebounds: 32/38
- Fouls: 19/11
- Turnovers: 25/23
- Three-Point Shots: Thomas-2, White-2, Pinson/Glunt-2
After about a 20-minute turnaround to clear the floor and also begin the warmup period, it was then time for the boys to take to the floor, the second home game for Clearfield this week, as they were looking to potentially get in the win column for the first time this year. But, the opposition of the Trojans would prove to be an uphill task with the depth of talent they have on the roster.
That was proven early, and often, as one of the most dominant quarters that has been played in the Bison Gymnasium set the tone. The Trojans would drop 40 points in the first eight minutes, cruising to a 70-35 win that finished under a running clock.
From the opening tip, the Trojans relied on their top scorer, Donte Tisinger, to set the pace. Although he did not score the opening basket, during the first quarter what he put up would outmatch anything that any player had done in the Bison Gym at any time. Tisinger would hit is first trey from the left wing to get the visitors out to a 5-0 lead, and shortly thereafter head coach Nate Glunt called a timeout as the lead would grow to 7-0. Clearfield would not have an answer and the lead continued into double digits, as another timeout got used less than a minute later, hoping to settle down the home team.
No matter what, the Trojans kept feeding Tisinger, and vice versa. Every basket seemed to be on the money and every pass was on target. After only eight minutes, the Trojans held a dominant 40-7 advantage, as they averaged five points every 60 seconds
“That kid is good,” Glunt said afterwards. “They are well coached, take care of the ball, and they have a lot of talent. We knew we were outmatched, but I’m proud that we kept playing.”
Glunt would call three timeouts in the first quarter alone, frustrated that his team could not contain, but Tisinger was having a game to remember. He would finish the night with a game-high 29 points, with 19 of them coming in the first quarter, as he drained a total of four treys, all from near NBA-range, and would finish his first-half scoring with a massive jam that ignited the fans that made the trip up route 219 to Clearfield.
Clearfield would manage to outscore the Trojans in the second quarter, but the 51-19 deficit at the half meant a running clock for the final two quarters. Johnstown had their starters play for a majority of the third quarter, but began pulling them out in the later stages.
Despite the gap, the Bison continued to play hard, as Glunt could see the team not giving up and played up until the final whistle. Braison Patrick led the Bison with 21 points on the night, adding in five rebounds. Only four players added points for Clearfield, as they finished just 12-for-29 from the floor as turnovers and less possessions led to fewer chances at the basket. The loss dropped Clearfield to 0-3 on the year, the first time they started the year winless through the first three games since Glunt became head coach.
SCORE BY QUARTER
Gr. Johnstown 40 11 11 8 – 70
Clearfield 7 12 7 9 – 35
Greater Johnston – 70
Jamir Collins 7 0-1 14, Aubrey Robinson 0 0-0 0, Tommy Ashcom 0 0-0 0, Demaunie Dudley 1 0-0 3, D’Myah Carr 0 0-0 0, Raheem Brawell 4 0-1 8, Dom Alberter 1 0-0 3, Blake Porath 1 0-0 2, Hakim Brawell 0 1-2 1, Mekhi Mathews 0 0-0 0, Donte Tisinger 10 4-4 29, Dion Dixon 3 2-4 8, Messiah Armstrong 0 0-0 0, Jamieer Dykes 0 0-0 0, Amire Robinson 1 0-0 2. TOTALS 28 7-14 70.
Clearfield – 35
Parker Collins 0 2-2 2, Evett Maines 3 1-2 9, Cooper Broad 0 0-0 0, Kai Lynch 0 0-4 0, Braison Patrick 8 5-7 21, Jake Rumfola 1 0-0 3, Anthony Lopez 0 0-0 0, Braylon Way 0 0-0 0, Karter Kaskan 0 0-0 0. TOTALS 12 8-15 35.
GAME STATISTICS
Greater Johnstown/Clearfield
- Shooting: 28-51/12-29
- Rebounds: 22/16
- Fouls: 19/13
- Turnovers: 8/18
- Three-Point Shots: Tisinger-5, Alberter, Dudley/Maines-2, Rumfola
Both the girls and the boys will be back in action next week to face off with Bellefonte. However, the games will be on different days, and different locations. The guys will be on the road to face the Red Raiders on Monday night. Meanwhile, the Lady Raiders will come to the Bison Gymnasium on Wednesday.
Each game will see the junior varsity tip-off at 6 p.m. with the varsity contest to follow at approximately 7:30 p.m.