LEBANON – It's the ultimate in “coach speak” when you can criticize a 37-point victory. But that's what they do, and that's why we love 'em.
Following Lebanon Catholic's 70-33 annihilation of Mount Calvary in a non-league boys' basketball showdown on Assumption Hill Saturday night, Beavers coach Scott Clentimack – the winning coach, mind you – wasn't exactly thrilled.
“We just played [Friday] night, so coach was emphasizing getting out with energy and not to be dull, but that's kind of what happened,” said senior Timmy Orr, who wasn't exactly dull in scoring 23 of his 29 points before halftime.
“We came out a little flat, and coach wasn't happy about that. Second half we stepped up and kind of pulled away from them, but he still wasn't happy with our performance.”
Even Clentimack, though, had to laugh a little at the sound of his own explanation after this mercy-rule, running-clock victory.
“It's tough – not even tough, but probably a little stupid – to be upset when you win by 37 points,” he admitted. “But I'm not looking at tonight. I'm looking at Monday, at Wednesday, at Friday, and we just need to be a little better.”
So how do you think Chargers coach Randy Fisher feels? His club entered on a five-game winning streak and was hoping to make a statement in this battle of District 3-A teams rated No. 1 (Lebanon Catholic) and No. 4 (Mount Calvary) in the latest PennLive.com district rankings.
“[Lebanon Catholic] has no weaknesses, one through five,” Fisher said. “They can beat you at any position. What killed us tonight, in particular, was transition. They get out and run, push the ball in transition. And I did not expect them to shoot quite like that tonight [28-for-47 overall, 16-for-27 in the first half], but obviously they have some shooters who can knock down some shots. They're just athletic across the board.”
The Beavers (9-2) rattled off the game's first 10 points, all coming on fast-break buckets with most forced off turnovers.
Then Orr really got going, nailing five of his team's eight first-half 3-pointers. He finished three points shy of his career high of 32, a number certainly within reach if Orr didn't stumble at the free-throw line (0 for 6).
Lebanon Catholic led 21-11 after one quarter, 40-20 at halftime, then really poured it on by blitzing the Chargers (9-2) by a 26-5 count in the third quarter. The mercy clock ran the entire fourth quarter.
Ultimately, though, what this game helped prove is the Beavers are back and playing as one of the favorites not only in District 3-A, but in Section IV of the Lancaster-Lebanon League.
This is a program that finished 5-17 and out of the playoffs each of the previous two seasons, but Clentimack points out the lack of graduation losses over the past two seasons. Orr, still, is the team's only senior.
But he's certainly not its only threat.
Anthony Thomas, one of two transfers into the program this year (Anthony Pletz from Elco is the other), scored 15 points, and Alex Frattaroli added 12. Pletz tallied nine points and eight assists and tied Orr with a team-high six rebounds.
“This is what you hope for when you go through seasons [like the previous two],” Clentimack said. “It's not just going through the motions. We're looking at the bigger picture, looking down the road and building on that.
“The chemistry is really, really good with this group. Might be the best since I've been here, and I've had some pretty good teams. When you have a good team, it's not just about talent.”
Only time will tell if the Beavers have what it takes to dethrone defending 3-A champ Greenwood, but games like this certainly don't hurt the confidence level.
“I don't think anything is earned already,” said Orr, who finished 12-for-16 from the floor, 5-for-8 from deep. “It's still early in the season, so we have to keep working hard and keep our mind set on the ultimate goal of districts.”
If you're Mount Calvary, which was led by Tyrae Bryant's 14 points and nine rebounds, put this one in the rearview mirror. Chargers leading scorer Jason Kuntzelman, by the way, was limited to just three points on 1-for-14 shooting.
“He makes us go, and good defense kind of took him away tonight,” Fisher said. “They knew to key in on him, and he just never got on track. And that hurt.”
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