Sewickley Academy steps into spotlight, fends off Pine-Richland at PPG Paints Arena

By: Antonio Rossetti
Monday, December 22, 2025 | 8:21 PM

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A late Pine-Richland surge wasn’t enough as Sewickley Academy held firm for a 59-53 win in the Edgar Snyder Holiday Hoops Classic at PPG Paints Arena on Monday.

The Panthers were led by Mamadou Kane, who delivered 18 points. Adam Ikamba had 11.

“Every practice, we compete,” Kane said. “I compete against him, and it’s hard every day. It’s fun to play with him because when we play together, we are ready and it gives us a big advantage.”

The 6-foot-7 Kane scored the game’s opening eight points and the 6-8 Ikamba notched two powerful slam dunks.

“Every practice, coach tells us to go up hard,” Ikamba said. “In the game, I just went up to the rim and did my thing. I’m happy we had this opportunity to be here. I’m grateful for that.”

Rob Southall provided instant offense off the bench with eight points in crucial runs.

Sewickley Academy led 35-28 at halftime.

Nonetheless, Pine-Richland surged in the third quarter, outscoring Sewickley Academy 17-6.

The Rams were fueled by Grant Spacciapolli’s 22 points and five 3-pointers. He notched 12 points in the first half.

Down 47-43, the Panthers needed to slow down the Rams. Sewickley Academy locked in on defense and forced tough shots.

The Panthers went on a 11-0 run to go up 54-47 and eventually take home the win.

“We knew that they shoot really well, so in the second half, we knew we had to limit the 3s,” Kane said. “We just needed to guard the 3 because they cannot play inside against us.”

Southall tied the game at 47, and Caiden Battles buried a 3 to take a 50-47 lead.

Back-to-back contested layups from Kane and Southall put them up 54-47.

The Rams wouldn’t go away, though, and an Alex Castner layup and Spacciapolli 3 cut it to 54-52.

However, the Panthers iced the game at the line and took home the win.

Southall and the Panthers defense found the formula to slow to Spacciapolli as they held him without a 3-pointer for the first seven minutes in the final quarter.

“We were making sure that he wasn’t able to shoot, because we knew he could shoot, and making sure that he had to dribble the ball before shooting,” Southall said. “That was about it. It was trying to make sure he couldn’t shoot.”

Southall provided a spark off the bench on offense and defense.

“We were trying to get back into it,” Southall said. “Coach (Mike Iuzzolino) always preaches, to keep going and never get down. We just found a that drive and pulled through.”

After an Ikamba slam dunk and a three-point play on back-to-back possessions, the Panthers looked to be firmly in control up 13-4.

The Rams, led by Spacciapolli’s seven first-quarter points, cut it to 22-18, sparking a 14-5 run to end the quarter.

With Ikamba and Kane taking a rest on the bench, Sewickley Academy’s bench helped the Panthers get ahead, and after a steal and layup from Southall, the Panthers led 31-22 and went on to lead by seven going into halftime.

Sewickley Academy was motivated stepping onto the big stage.

“This was our first time in PPG, and it was very exciting,” Ikamba said. “When we got here, we said that we needed to show what we could do.”

Tags: Pine-Richland, Sewickley Academy