Jeannette boys make memories in win over Clairton

By: Dave Mackall
Friday, February 7, 2025 | 11:15 PM

It was a special moment Friday on senior night for one Jeannette boys basketball player.

Oh, how Casen Clary knows it.

He scored the first points of his high school career for the second-ranked Jayhawks in the final minute of their 60-45 WPIAL Section 1-2A victory over visiting Clairton moments after Jeannette coach Adrian Batts cleared his bench and inserted Clary into the team’s lineup to close out the game.

“My first varsity minutes,” Clary said.

Indeed, his first points in a varsity basketball game, too.

“It was the happiest moment in 18 years. Made me feel like a baby again,” Clary said with a wide smile.

Sophomore Markus McGowan scored 17 points, and junior Kymon’e Brown added 14 as Jeannette (18-2, 11-2) bounced back from a 58-48 loss to top-ranked Greensburg Central Catholic on Tuesday.

The Jayhawks close their regular-season schedule at 1:30 p.m. Saturday at home against Bentworth.

With weather conditions expected to deteriorate into the evening, Jeannette announced a change in the start time for the game, a makeup from a previous postponement, moving it up an hour.

“We’ve got to take the game seriously,” Jeannette coach Adrian Batts said. “Clairton is behind us now. We’re going to get out and get after it. Bentworth is playing a lot better, so we’re going to play them like it’s a playoff game. It’s that time of year.”

Clairton, like Jeannette, already had qualified for the WPIAL playoffs, but Bears coach Rashawd Hatten still was hoping for a better performance from his team.

“We don’t want to go to the playoffs limping,” he said. “That was kind of the message today before this game. Of course, we didn’t come out on the right side of this one.”

Mikey Ruffin’s 11 points paced Clairton (8-10, 8-6), which concludes its regular-season schedule at 7:30 p.m. Tuesday with a nonsection game at Brentwood.

“We definitely want to take care of business, because we’re playing for a seed,” Hatten said.

Jeannette led Clairton for nearly the entire time and established its first double-digit margin in the second quarter on a 3-point shot by McGowan, giving the Jayhawks a 19-9 advantage.

They led by that same 10-point cushion at halftime (25-15) and after the third quarter (42-32).

After Ruffin was fouled early in the fourth on a 3-point attempt, he sank all three free throws to pull Clairton within 45-38. But Jeannette used a 12-2 run to stretch its lead to 56-40, the Jayhawks’ biggest advantage of the night.

Hatten called Jeannette a “solid” team after the Jayhawks defeated the Bears for a second time this season, but he lamented about the difference in free throws.

Jeannette was 15 for 30 from the foul line, whereas Clairton was 5 for 10.

He also was upset that officials ejected a group of Bears fans in the first quarter for allegedly voicing their displeasure over calls against their team.

“My frustration tonight was more so with the referees,” Hatten said. “They ejected some of our fans early on in the game, and that kind of killed the mood. It did have an effect on us.

“And then, the free throw disparity. They shoot 30 free-throw attempts to our 10. We’re driving to the basket the same way they are, so that part was frustrating.”

Batts for the first time this season called Clary’s name with about 2 minutes left, and the four-year starter on the Jayhawks soccer team answered the call with hustle and enthusiasm.

“I love basketball. I love to play the game,” said Clary, a defender in soccer. “It’s different from playing every single minute in soccer to sitting on the bench in basketball.

“But I don’t mind it. I tried out for the love of the sport.”

His teammates looked for Clary on the game’s remaining possessions.

After blowing a layup, on the next trip down the court, Clary took a pass under the hoop with time winding down and flipped in a reverse layup amid several Clairton defenders, sending the home crowd to its feet.

Even on the Clairton bench, Hatten began to smile at the scene as Clary’s teammates mobbed him and the final seconds ticked away.

“Those are moments you never forget, man. That’s a special moment for that kid. He’ll never forget it,” Batts said. “First time playing basketball, all-around great young man.”

Batts paused to gather his emotions.

“He said something to me that always sticks with us,” he said. “He told me, ‘Coach, during tryouts, I’ll do whatever it takes to make the team.’ And look where he’s at today. He never missed an open workout. I’m really proud of Casen Clary. Those are the reasons why you coach, for young men like that.

“It was a good way to top off the game.”