McKeesport slips past new ‘rival’ Greensburg Salem

By: HSSN Staff
Tuesday, December 18, 2018 | 10:27 PM

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There’s been no rivalry between McKeesport and Greensburg Salem in recent years, if ever. The teams played in different classifications.

There might be something to it now if the first of two regular-season boys basketball games is anything of a guage.

Brison Kisan scored 17 points, including the go-ahead shot with 22 seconds left. Deamontae Diggs also scored 17, and No. 5 McKeesport escaped with a 64-62 Section 1-5A victory on Tuesday night at Greensburg Salem.

The Tigers (3-2, 2-0) rallied with a 20-13 fourth-quarter edge to pull out the victory.

“It was our toughness and heart in the fourth quarter that did it for us,” McKeesport coach Kevin Kovach said. “We could have folded, but our defense came on and we held together. Everybody that played tonight made contributions.”

After Jack Oberdorf put Greensburg Salem in front, 62-61, with a 3-pointer, Kisan responded moments later with a driving layup to give the lead back to McKeesport, and Christian Moore followed 1 of 2 free throws to put the Tigers ahead, 64-62.

Greensburg Salem had a chance to retake the lead after Kisan’s bucket, but Dante Parsons, who led the Golden Lions with a season-high 28 points, had his jumper near the 3-point arc blocked by McKeesport’s Thomas Wyatt.

“Dante thought there was less time left than there was,” Greensburg Salem coach Mark Zahorchak said. “They kind of rushed in on him, and I think he figured time was about to be up, or he might have been able to drive the lane.”

Greensburg Salem (3-3, 0-2) was able to get the clock stopped after Wyatt’s game-saving block, leading to Moore’s free throw with 5.8 seconds left. But the Golden Lions were unable to respond and dropped their second section game in a row to the start the season.

“I told my guys afterwards, ‘You’ve won some games together, but this is the first time you’ve proved you could play in the big time,’ ” Zahorchak said. “McKeesport is an established and proven program, and we were right there with them the entire time.”

Both coaches are in their first season at the varsity level, leading teams that have very little recent history in the sport.

“I’ve never even been here before,” said Kovach, a McKeesport graduate.

McKeesport previously had played in a higher classification than Greensburg Salem before the PIAA in 2017 expanded to six classifications.

“I think it’s safe to say we’ve got the potential for a rivalry,” Kovach said. “I can’t wait til they come to our place because this was a fun game to be a part of.”

Zahorchak agreed, saying, despite the loss, he was proud of Greensburg Salem’s effort.

The teams meet again, at McKeesport, on Jan. 22.  

The teams played to a 34-34 halftime score after Greensburg Salem outscored McKeesport, 19-14, in the second quarter. The Golden Lions were ahead after three, 49-44, and led by as many as seven points early in the fourth before McKeesport came back.

Zahorchak will take Greensburg Salem to Woodland Hills on Friday for a game against another nontraditional opponent, but he’s counting on the Golden Lions to continue to improve.

After the tight loss to McKeesport, Zahorchak said he also told his players: “You now know you can beat anybody in this league.”

Dave Mackall is a freelance writer.

Tags: Greensburg Salem, McKeesport