George Guido: A-K Valley teams complete basketball season like none before

By: George Guido
Saturday, March 13, 2021 | 1:46 PM

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The truncated high school basketball season in the Alle-Kiski Valley ended Tuesday when the Leechburg and Fox Chapel boys, along with the Knoch girls, were eliminated.

Suffice to say, it was a season like no other.

Things looked bleak when there was a three-week shutdown in December, just hours after the season opened Dec. 11. Teams battled the coronavirus as intently as they did opposing teams in the hopes of finishing the season.

There were starts and stops, leaving some schools amazed they even got a season in. You heard the word “first” a lot, such as “first” open tournament since the 1984 season.

Because of covid-19, the WPIAL held an open tournament because teams didn’t play an equal number of games. And it was the first time teams played playoff games on their home courts since ’84. But in 1984, only first-round games were on home courts.

This is also the first time since 1990 that no A-K Valley teams made the PIAA playoffs. That’s because this also is the first time since 1971 only WPIAL champions advanced to the state tournament.

This was also the first time the Knoch girls made it to the WPIAL semifinals, knocking off a wildly successful Blackhawk program.

It was also the first time since 2002 the Plum girls won a playoff game, which was the only other postseason win in team history.

Other things were routine, such as the Highlands boys winning a fourth consecutive section title.

So without further delay before the next virus outbreak occurs, let’s pass out this season’s awards. But first, let’s congratulate the players, coaches, school administrators, health officials and anyone else who worked to get the season in.

Best run

The Mars boys staged a 24-0 run in a quarterfinal game last weekend against Trinity. It was also the 17th playoff win the senior class experienced.

Best defense

Butler. In the final 6 seconds against North Allegheny on Feb. 22, the Golden Tornado employed six defenders on the floor and held off the Tigers, 78-75. No one noticed until after the game, and the error appeared on video on social media. Nothing like the old 2-2-2 defense. People in Iowa shrugged because that state’s girls basketball has had six on the floor for years.

Best improvement

Burrell boys. The Bucs won just one game last season but finished 9-10 this season. Burrell earned a No. 10 seed and hung with Central Valley for a while in its playoff game. With only one starter graduating, the Bucs should get double-digit wins next season.

Marlon Brando Award (“Coulda been a contender”)

A covid-19 victim was the No. 4 Springdale Dynamos. The Allegheny Valley School District pulled the team from the playoffs, even with a protest organized by parents hoping for a reversal. The Class 2A bracket was loaded with quality teams, but we’ll never know what the Dynamos could have done.

Movin’ on up

Speaking of Springdale, it looks like the girls program is ready to emerge from a difficult period. Five wins doesn’t seem like much, but the question at Springdale is no longer whether it can put five girls on the floor in a given night. The Dynamos won three in a row for the first time since 2012.

‘Welcome Back Kotter’ Award

Ray Bartha returned as Apollo-Ridge girls basketball coach after 10 seasons away and did a Ray Bartha-esque job, with his team winning seven of its last eight regular-season games. The veteran coach has 544 wins, 24 playoff appearances and his signature phrase “gee-zo-mackeral” when a call goes against the Vikings.

Edge of 200

Deer Lakes coach Terry Parham will go into the offseason with 199 career coaching wins. The Lancers once went 34 years without a playoff victory. With Parham at the helm, a Deer Lakes playoff win is no longer a reason to close off East Union Road for a parade.