STATE COLLEGE — The State College High School boys’ basketball team took down Chambersburg High School, 59-42, in a rematch Jan. 24.
State High improved to 12-3 overall and 9-2 in conference play, while the Trojans fell to 9-7 overall and 3-7 in conference play.
It was the second win for State High over Chambersburg, following a 39-38 road victory in December.
Little Lions’ senior forward Tommy Sekunda, who led the team with 17 points Jan. 24, started the game off hot with a base line drive to convert a contested layup, giving State High early momentum. Chambersburg responded immediately behind junior guard Cole Christian, who nailed a 3-pointer to shake off their opponent’s attack.
State College went to the full-court press in the first, but it did not slow down Christian immediately, as he sank his second 3-pointer of the game to keep up with the Little Lions.
State High head coach Joseph Walker wanted to pressure the Trojans from the start.
“They’re really tough defensively in the half court, so we wanted to pressure them a little bit and speed up the pace of the game,” Walker said. “I think switching defenses kind of confused them and had some unforced turnovers for them.”
The press defense caught up to the Trojans, causing them to turn the ball over on back-to-back possessions. State High junior forward Brandon Clark led his team on a 6-0 run following the Trojans’ early miscues, scoring all of the points to give the Lions a sizeable lead by the end of the first.
In the second, Sekunda hit a shot from the top of the arc to put the Little Lions up 21-10. Both teams played stout defense, limiting their opponents and forcing tough shots.
As time was winding down in the first half, Christian corralled the ball and led a fast break before Clark came from behind and swatted the attempted layup away.
The Trojans still struggled to contain Sekunda, as the senior found the basket first to open up the third quarter. Down 37-20, Christian road the hot hand and sank his third 3-point shot of the game, hoping to jump-start some momentum.
Trojan senior forward Cade Whitfield answered Christian’s, call netting 13 points of his own in the loss. After a Little Lions turnover, Whitfield recovered the loose ball and took it to the hole for the basket and the foul, but it was not enough to break State College’s commanding 45-29 lead by the end of the third quarter.
State High senior guard Lee Koudela owned the fourth quarter, scoring half of his team’s 14 points in the final frame. Koudela hit a 3-pointer in front his team’s bench to keep the crowd loud throughout the remainder of the game.
The ferocious Little Lions maintained control with their aggressive defense, forcing multiple turnovers in the final minutes to seal the victory.
Chambersburg head coach Shawn Shreffler wants his players to have short-term memory following their loss to State High.
“The next step is to forget about this one and move onto the next one,” Shreffler said. “To dwell too much on one game will make the next one even harder.”
UP NEXT
State High will travel to Mechanicsburg on Friday, Jan. 27, to take on Cumberland Valley High School.
