Sharpened by early-season gauntlet, Latrobe boys find their stride
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Thursday, January 18, 2024 | 11:01 AM
Latrobe’s John Wetzel drives against Franklin Regional’s Cam Rowell on Jan. 9.
Latrobe’s Max Butler drives against Franklin Regional’s Cooper Rankin during their game on Tuesday, Jan. 9, 2024, in Murrysville.
Latrobe’s Quardarius Davis takes a shot against Franklin Regional on Tuesday, Jan. 9, 2024, in Murrysville.
Latrobe’s John Wetzel leads a fast break against Franklin Regional on Tuesday, Jan. 9, 2024, in Murrysville.
Latrobe’s Max Butler drives to the basket against Franklin Regional’s Colin Masten on Jan. 9, 2024, in Murrysville.
Latrobe head coach Brad Wetzel watches from the bench against Franklin Regional on Tuesday, Jan. 9, 2024, in Murrysville.
Latrobe’s John Wetzel drives to the basket against Franklin Regional’s Cam Rowell on Jan. 9, 2024, in Murrysville.
Latrobe’s Ja’Tawn Williams shoots a three-pointer against Franklin Regional on Tuesday, Jan. 9, 2024, in Murrysville.
Latrobe’s John Wetzel brings the ball upcourt against Franklin Regional on Jan. 9, 2024, in Murrysville.
When it came time to piece together the boys basketball schedule for this season at Latrobe, veteran coach Brad Wetzel stretched boundaries.
The Wildcats traveled south, then north, looking to sharpen their skills against teams from beyond the depths of WPIAL territory.
Seven of their first nine games were against such teams, including five from outside of Pennsylvania.
The opponents were not stat-padders or senior night cupcakes, either.
“It’s taking a risk,” Wetzel said. “There are some stiff challenges. But it’s exposure to good teams. We played some juggernauts.”
Latrobe played West Virginia power Morgantown in the second game of the season, following a trip to Johnstown to play Richland.
After a couple of WPIAL games, they hosted DuBois Area before welcoming Wheeling Central Catholic to “The Den.”
Then came a trip to Elmira, N.Y. for three games, against Epic South, Elmira and Horseheads, all schools from the Empire State.
Morgantown humbled the Wildcats, 111-49, the most lopsided loss in Wetzel’s 22-year career.
“You want to be as prepared as you can be and compete, but you don’t want to lose a team,” Wetzel said. “If you’re not solid, guys can start to have doubts. But I wanted them to realize why were playing teams like that. They bought into it.”
Morgantown (7-1), a 4A school and two-time defending state champion, is No. 5 in the MaxPreps West Virginia rankings. It is led by guard Sharron Young, who is nominated for the McDonald’s All-American Game.
Latrobe (7-7, 3-2), looking to get back into the WPIAL Class 5A playoffs after two years away, also dropped a 66-45 decision to Wheeling, which is ranked sixth in West Virginia.
“Nobody wanted to play Morgantown,” Wetzel said. “When Wheeling saw we were playing them, they called to get a game with us. Both teams have scholarship-level kids. I’d play (Morgantown) again.”
Latrobe was without three key players for most of those games, including junior football standouts John Wetzel and Alex Tatsch, both of whom were nursing injuries from the fall season. Wetzel has since returned and has sparked the backcourt alongside junior Max Butler.
“It focused us and gave us challenges, Latrobe senior Ja’Tawn Williams said of the front-loaded schedule. “It showed us we have to fight and not quit. Those games helped us get locked in.”
The trip to New York saw the Wildcats lose two of three games. After losses to Epic South (55-53) and Elmira (69-62), they defeated Horseheads, 67-59.
New York teams use a 35-second shot clock, which Latrobe had seen before when it played in the same Elmira tournament.
“We ran into some teams with size,” Brad Wetzel said. “With the shot clock, there wasn’t a lot of 2-for-1 stuff. Do you get a quick shot up and get the ball back? You see it more at the end of the quarter and in the last three or four minutes. I think it worked to our advantage. With seven or eight seconds left, you knuckle down.”
Said assistant coach Eric Butler: “There was no holding the ball for two minutes. It makes you play basketball.”
Latrobe returned home to defeat favored Kiski Area, 69-59, in its section opener. It followed with an 82-53 win over McKeesport. A 66-64 loss to Franklin Regional showed the Wildcats can play with a top contender.
The confidence started to build.
“Our speed outworks most teams,” Williams said. “We have good chemistry. We’re in a tough section, and we know no win will be easy.”
Perhaps the epitome of the iron-sharpening came Tuesday when the Wildcats went to Monroeville and upset No. 1 Gateway, 63-60, a victory Wetzel called one of the program’s best in years.
It followed a rare, blowout loss at home — 83-56 against Penn-Trafford.
“The last couple of years, we struggled to get a win like this,” Wetzel said of the Gateway victory.
Latrobe has a fearless facade, and John Wetzel is often the pace car.
“It showed that we are resilient,” he said of the Gateway win. “We don’t let one game define us, good or bad. We are just trying to be the best team we can be.”
Coach Wetzel said getting his son back at the point, and new role players emerging, have boosted the Wildcats.
Take junior forward Kyle McNeil, who made his first varsity start against Gateway and scored a career-high 13 points, including the go-ahead layup with 33 seconds to play.
McNeil suffered an injury over the summer that set him back, but steady rehab and determination allowed him to return to form and show the potential he has.
“Now we have people back in their proper positions,” the coach said. “We have had guys step up. Ian (DeCerb) answered the call. He was thrown into the fire as a sophomore. Kyle earned that starting job.
“We have a business-like group of guys.”
And they’re always ready for a business trip.
Bill Beckner Jr. is a TribLive reporter covering local sports in Westmoreland County. He can be reached at bbeckner@triblive.com.
Tags: Latrobe
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