Westmoreland County boys basketball notebook: Greensburg Salem coach Paul Sapotichne gets back in saddle

By: Bill Beckner Jr.
Thursday, December 12, 2024 | 11:01 AM

Paul Sapotichne said he didn’t sleep a wink the night before Friday’s opening game at the Hempfield tipoff tournament.

Back for a second stint at Greensburg Salem, Sapotichne had coached in over 40 season openers, but this one felt different.

“I wasn’t sure what to expect,” said Sapotichne, 71, who led the Golden Lions for 29 years before stepping down in 2012. “We only had one scrimmage, so our guys were a little nervous. But we showed some heart.”

Connellsville sunk the Golden Lions on a buzzer-beating 3-pointer by Lucas Harwood, 66-63, in a thriller.

“It’s never a thriller when you lose,” Sapotichne said. “I hadn’t gone into a game like that in a long time.”

Sapotichne was stuck on 399 wins at Greensburg Salem — he has 464 overall with stops at Riverview and Wilmington — after the Golden Lions fell to Greensburg Central Catholic, 81-45, on the second day of the Hempfield tournament.

He resigned at Riverview in 2021 and hadn’t coached since.

Greensburg Salem honored Sapotichne that year when the Golden Lions hosted Riverview in a fitting nonsection game.

Who knew he would be back on the sidelines three years later?

“I’m not a good loser,” Sapotichne said. “But I was pleased overall with how we played. We played with effort.”

Latrobe unbeaten

Latrobe continues its full sprint out of the blocks as it tries to turn a corner in the program.

The Wildcats stayed unbeaten with another high-scoring affair Tuesday, rallying past Mars, 83-77, as Max Butler poured in 28 points.

Latrobe moved to 4-0, the first time that has happened since 2018-19 when the Wildcats went 18-3.

They are averaging 73 points per game, the second-highest scoring avearge in Class 5A behind Chartiers Valley (76.8).

Scorpion at WH

Former Franklin Regional coach Steve Scorpion has his new team playing well early.

Scorpion is the new coach at Woodland Hills. The Wolverines raced to wins over Gateway (49-43) and Steel Valley (59-26) at the Play 4 Mae Tournament before falling to McKeesport, 61-60.

Woodland Hills is playing in Class 6A and will compete in what appears to be a terrific Section 1 with Butler, Fox Chapel, New Castle, North Allegheny, Pine-Richland, North Hills and Seneca Valley.

Dunn returns to coaching

Longtime coach Joe Dunn, who has the most boys basketball wins at Trinity and Mt. Pleasant, also has made a return to the bench.

Dunn is the new lead man at Charleroi.

Dunn started coaching at Seton LaSalle in the early 1980s, then came to Mt. Pleasant, where he spent two stints (1986-92 and 1994-2000) and went 145-129 with three section titles.

Dunn had a record of 142-118 from 2001-14 at Trinity. He spent four years at Trinity as an assistant until 2021.

Dunn was lured to Charleroi by the administration after Joe Greer resigned in the offseason. His main assistant is Johnny Lee, who has done some broadcasting with the TribLive High School Sports Network.

Anthony returns

Penn-Trafford has been getting offensive production from a player only those close to the team have heard of, and that is senior Tyler Anthony.

That is because Anthony has battled knee problems on and off for the last two years.

Anthony had 18 points Tuesday against No. 1 Uniontown in the Section 1-5A opener.

“He’s finally healthy and able to show what he can do, especially defensively,” Penn-Trafford coach Doug Kelly said. “He’s a good shooter, but he’s been really good on defense.”

Davis does it again

Belle Vernon 6-foot-6 forward Tommy Davis came up with winning points twice in four days.

Both wins came on the road.

Last Friday, Davis made a pair of free throws with 10.8 seconds remaining to lift the Leopards to a 56-55 win over Uniontown.

Three days earlier, he made the go-ahead layup to beat the buzzer in a 55-54 win at Gateway.

Husenits in rhythm

Hempfield guard Danny Husenits opened the season in a flash few saw coming.

Husenits got hot from 3-point range and led the Spartans to an 83-79 over Penn-Trafford in the 20th Hempfield tipoff tournament.

He finished with six 3s and a career-high 28 points.

“We’re not surprised,” Hempfield coach Bill Swan said. “The kid’s gonna be a good one. He works so hard, and our guys are moving and sharing the ball well.”

A junior, Husenits averaged 10.5 points as a sophomore.

He scored 15 in Tuesday’s 50-47 win over Fox Chapel, the third in a row for the Spartans (3-1).

Section time

WPIAL section play opens Friday for a number of Westmoreland teams.

In Section 2-6A, Hempfield plays at Mt. Lebanon, and Norwin visits Connellsville.

Section 1-5A has Franklin Regional at Penn-Trafford and Latrobe at Gateway.

In Section 3-4A, Belle Vernon visits West Mifflin, East Allegheny plays at Derry and Greensburg Salem visits Yough.

And in Section 1-2A, Jeannette hosts California, and Frazier visits Greensburg Central Catholic.

Layup lines

Belle Vernon’s Zion Moore is now over 1,700 career points. … Derry’s Stanley Rajkovich had an impressive double-double in the opening game of the Derry tournament. The 6-foot-6 forward scored 22 points and grabbed 18 rebounds. … Greensburg Central Catholic is 4-0 and averaging 65 points a game. Jeannette is 4-0 and scoring 72 a game. GCC is ranked No. 1 in Class 2A, and Jeannette is No. 2.

Bill Beckner Jr. is a TribLive reporter covering local sports in Westmoreland County. He can be reached at bbeckner@triblive.com.

Tags: Belle Vernon, Derry Area, Franklin Regional, Greensburg Salem, Hempfield, Jeannette, Mt. Pleasant