FARWELL — The latter part of the season has not been as kind to the Curwensville Golden Tide on the hardwood. Five of their last six games have been ones that the squad has came out on the wrong end of the scoreboard. Sitting just below .500, the Tide were not wanting to end the year with more losses than victories, especially with how some games came down to the wire. The regular season finale for Curwensville would mean a final road trip to face the Bucktail Bucks, a team they beat already once this season.
It was a competitive game as the Bucks had a strong showing in the second half. But, they fell behind early, and Curwensville capitalized as they would conclude the regular season with a 72-59 victory.
The first quarter set the tone for the first half as Curwensville launched out to an early lead, taking an 18-8 advantage after eight minutes. What really defined this game was the foul shot opportunities, for both squads. In the entire game, a combined 44 attempts were made from the free throw line. However, the Bucks were struggling mightily on the night, finishing an abysmal 5-for-20. By contrast, Curwensville would go 19-for-24 at the line.
The Tide dominated the second quarter and took a 35-17 lead into halftime. Bucktail came out of the locker room with a much stronger attitude, and actually outscored the Tide in the second half, 42-37. However, the struggles at the line kept them from closing the gap, leading to Curwensville’s victory.
Davis Fleming had the best game of anyone, finishing with 27 points. Parker Wood added in 13, with Grant Swanson draining four shots from deep range to account for his 12 points. Brody Pentz led the scoring for the Bucks, finishing with 21 points. Brett Mason added in 17 with Braylon Fataski finishing with 15.
Curwensville finishes the regular season at an even 11-11, and now as the number nine seed in the District 9 AA playoffs, will travel to Coudersport on Tuesday February to face the eighth seed Falcons.
SCORE BY QUARTER
Curwensville 18 17 16 21 – 72
Bucktail 8 9 18 24 – 59
Curwensville – 72
Grant Swanson 4 0-0 12, Davis Fleming 9 6-9 27, Chandler English 2 1-2 5, Braden Holland 3 3-3 9, Hunter Tkacik 1 0-0 2, Louie Tkacik 0 4-4 4, Parker Wood 4 5-6 13. TOTALS 22 19-24 72.
Bucktail – 59
Brody Pentz 8 5-16 21, Will Steele 0 0-0 0, Brett Mason 7 0-2 17, Braylon Fataski 7 0-0 15, John Green 3 0-2 6, Gary Whipp 0 0-0 0, Gavin Pick 0 0-0 0. TOTALS 25 5-20 59.