Belle Vernon sprints to big lead, routs Greensburg Salem in 3-4A boys basketball

By: Jeremy Sellew
Friday, January 10, 2025 | 9:40 PM

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Belle Vernon coach Joe Salvino couldn’t have asked for a better ending to the first half of Section 3-4A play Friday night.

The Leopards’ coach watched his team up its winning streak for four with an emphatic 65-28 thumping of visiting Greensburg Salem.

After being assessed a technical foul before the game even began, the Leopards came out fast, using a high-pressure full-court defense to swarm the Golden Lions (3-8, 2-3).

Before Greensburg Salem coach Paul Sapotichne knew it, his team was down 17-1 after the first quarter.

“Needless to say, it’s very disappointing,” the longtime coach said. “l thought we played scared, and we played intimidated. We had been playing better lately, and I definitely think we took a step backwards.”

Zion Moore scored a game-high 23 points, and Tommy Davis added 21 points and 10 rebounds for Belle Vernon.

The Leopards forced 21 turnovers alone in the first half and 33 in the game.

“That’s something we’ve really been working on since we got everybody back,” Salvino said. “We’ve been working on getting into this up-tempo defense. I thought we played it pretty well tonight.”

Belle Vernon’s defense didn’t allow a Greensburg Salem field goal until the 7:10 mark of the second quarter, when Jack Douty made a layup on one of the few opportunities the Golden Lions had when they were able to break the press.

“Just everything went wrong,” Sapotichne said. “We made terrible decisions when it came to passing the ball. We weren’t aggressive. We know they’re a good team, but you can’t be scared. That’s how we played.”

After Douty’s basket, the Leps (10-4, 5-1) went on an 11-0 run fueled by Davis and Moore.

BVA added another run late in the quarter to take a 39-7 lead into the half, despite having nearly 10 turnovers themselves in the second quarter.

“We talked about that. I just think we get our adrenaline flowing playing defense the way we do,” Salvino said. “Then when we get the turnover, we’re still trying to go a hundred miles an hour. We have to make better decisions, especially in a closer game.”

The Golden Lions had their best output in the third quarter as the Leopards quickly got the running clock started.

Freshman Solomon Cain hit a 3-pointer followed by another basket by Douty inside to make it 41-12. But that was the only time in the game the visitors had consecutive baskets.

The Leopards responded by scoring 14 of the next 18 points in the game. Zion Moore had a big dunk, and Davis had a pair of dunks, including a powerful two-handed slam that brought the crown and his teammates to their feet.

“Tommy has been playing really well,” Salvino said. “There’s a lot more confidence there, and he’s not hesitating when he gets that ball. I think this may have been his best game of the season”

Salvino emptied his bench two minutes into the final quarter as the lead grew to 60-21. The Leopards’ bench added a few more baskets to wrap things up.

“Again, extremely disappointing,” Sapotichne said. “We were playing well, but when we go up against those teams that we should beat, we play great. When we play against the better teams, we kind of go into a shell.

“I think there are some guys that are getting too comfortable. I think we’re going to open up a couple of positions and see who wants to step up. I thought we were playing well coming into this one, now it’s back to square one.”

Rullo led Greensburg Salem with five points. The Golden Lions are back to work Tuesday against West Mifflin at home. The Leopards will face the Titans Monday at home.

“We’re going to keep working on picking up the defense,” Salvino said. “We want to keep forcing turnovers and force mistakes.

“I’m really happy because we can play that way because I trust those guys more coming off the bench. When we had players out, a few of those guys really stepped up and proved to me that I can trust them when they’re in the game.”

Tags: Belle Vernon, Greensburg Salem