Momentum carried over from soccer success helps Burrell girls basketball team to 7-1 mark

By: Michael Love
Wednesday, December 17, 2025 | 8:15 PM

Trailing Class 6A Connellsville by eight at halftime last Friday, the Burrell girls basketball team went to work.

The Bucs rallied, held a one-point lead at the end of the third quarter and made plays down the stretch in the fourth to produce a 51-45 victory which extended their early-season win streak to six games.

“If you can knock off a 6A school, you are pretty excited by that,” Burrell coach Shaun Reddick said. “That (Sage) Mickens girl is just an incredible athlete. For us, it was finding a way to contain her. When we did that, we ramped up our defense, got a few steals and got some transition points. That makes all the difference.”

Mickens had 29 of the Falcons’ 45 points, but Burrell senior Casey Brancato and freshman Chase Coury led the charge with 17 and 16 points, respectively.

“No one was in the locker room (at halftime) thinking that we had lost that game,” Brancato said. “We knew what we needed to do and knew what we could do. We just had to go back out there and fix it.”

Burrell’s mix of experience and freshman newcomers have meshed well in the early season, Reddick said. The Bucs are 7-1 overall and 2-0 in Section 1-4A heading into Thursday’s section matchup with Derry.

“When you have that many freshmen (seven of 11) running around on the floor and working in with the more experienced players, you are going to have things that will take time to smooth out,” Reddick said.

“We’re still working on cleaning some things up. I am comfortable with where we are at, but we know we have things to still work on with details on both offense and defense. We’re playing well, but we’re not where we want to be.”

Seven of the 11 players on the roster came in after completing a soccer season that saw the Bucs finish as the WPIAL and PIAA runners-up in Class 2A.

“Everyone brought the energy from soccer,” Brancato said. “We’re excited. We come in every day and work hard to be a better team.”

Burrell’s season started against Class 5A Armstrong at the Armstrong Tip-Off Tournament. The Bucs led by six at halftime, but the River Hawks rallied with a big third quarter and pulled out a 48-45 victory. Brancato scored 16 in the loss, and freshman Kendall Coury added 12 in her varsity debut with twin sisters Chase and Peyton.

“We only had four practices going into that first game,” Reddick said. “We made a lot of mistakes and did a lot of things wrong because we just didn’t have any time on the floor.

“But you could see the excitement. They carried a lot of momentum over from soccer. At the same time, they knew that would soon fade into a different type of grind.”

That grind continues Monday at North Catholic and against against DuBois Central Catholic on Dec. 29 at Indiana High School. The Bucs then jump back into section action against Freeport on Jan. 5 and Oakland Catholic on Jan. 12.

“We want to shock some people,” Brancato said. “I don’t know if people think we have a chance in a couple of those games, but everyone here does, and I think that is pretty good.”

Added Reddick: “We’re going into the games looking to deliver. Yes we want growth while we hope to play better, but we need to find more ways to win games. We have to grow up pretty quick. We’re going to find out where we stand in these games coming up.

“These girls have been in pressure situations from the soccer season and even from last year. In the game with Connellsville, we called a timeout in the fourth quarter, and you didn’t see any fear in their eyes. They were ready to do the next thing to get the win.”

Junior McKenna Miller hopes to be back soon. She continues her road to recovery from a knee injury suffered over the summer. She played through it during the soccer season, including the run through the WPIAL and PIAA playoffs.

Reddick hopes she will be back at practice and ready to play in the first part of January.

“We’re going to wait until she is healed 100%,” Reddick said. “I appreciate the fact that she doesn’t miss anything. She’s here every day supporting her teammates. She’s also on the bench helping out any way she can. She’s doing all the right things, and that is why she still is one of my captains.”

Michael Love is a TribLive reporter covering sports in the Alle-Kiski Valley and the eastern suburbs of Pittsburgh. A Clearfield native and a graduate of Westminster (Pa.), he joined the Trib in 2002 after spending five years at the Clearfield Progress. He can be reached at mlove@triblive.com.

Tags: Burrell