WPIAL Class 2A boys basketball championship: Aliquippa vs. Northgate

By: Bill Hartlep
Friday, March 3, 2023 | 10:24 PM

Purchase Photo Options

Purchase Photo Options

Previous Next

WPIAL Class 2A boys basketball championship

No. 1 Aliquippa vs. No. 6 Northgate

1 p.m. Saturday, Petersen Events Center

On the air: Video livestream: TribHSSN.TribLive.com; Radio: WBVP (1230 AM), WBVP (99.3 FM), WMBA (1460 AM)

WPIAL titles: Aliquippa 12 (1949, ‘87, ‘88, ‘94, ‘98, 2000, ‘03, ‘04, ‘06, ‘07, ‘15, ‘16); Northgate 0

Aliquippa (19-6)

Coach: Nick Lackovich

Projected starting lineup

No., Name, Ht., Cl., Pos.

3, Donovan Walker, 6-1, sr., G

4, Marquis Council, 6-2, fr., G

5, Quentin Goode, 5-9, jr., G

23, Cameron Lindsey, 6-3, jr., F

32, Jayace Williams, 6-2, jr., F

Notable: The Quips reached the WPIAL semifinals last season before making a run to the PIAA finals and finishing as the state runner-up in Class 3A. They dropped down to Class 2A in the offseason via PIAA realignment. Aliquippa won Section 1 at 10-0 and averaged 55.3 points, while allowing 42.7. The Quips have won 10 of their past 11 games. They have outscored their playoff opponents, 199-106. Junior guard Quentin Goode provided a spark in the semifinals, scoring 24 points to lead a 61-36 victory over Greensburg Central Catholic. Senior guard Donovan Walker averages 12 points per game and junior forward Cameron Lindsey averages 11. The linebacker recruit has football scholarship offers from Pitt, Penn State, West Virginia, Syracuse and Toledo, among others.

Northgate (19-6)

Coach: Cam Williams

Projected starting lineup

No., Name, Ht., Cl., Pos.

1, Landon Lockett, 6-0, jr., G/F

2, Austin Mitchell, 5-9, jr., G

5, Josh Williams, 6-0, jr., G

10, Stephen Goetz, 5-10, sr., G

24, Carson Cooper, 6-1, sr., F

Notable: Northgate is playing in the WPIAL championship game for the second time. The Flames were runner-up to Carlynton in 1988. The Flames finished second in Section 1 with a record of 7-3, including a pair of losses to Aliquippa — 62-51 on Jan. 10 and 60-42 on Feb. 3. The Flames average 69.0 points, second in Class 2A behind Fort Cherry (71.4) while allowing 54.2. Junior guard Josh Williams (19.5 ppg) and senior guard Stephen Goetz (19.1) lead the way for the Flames. In a 63-54 win over No. 2 Bishop Canevin in the semifinals, Josh Williams, who surpassed 1,000 career points in the first round win over Jeannette, poured in 38 points. Landon Lockett and Desmond Williams each had 10.

Bill Hartlep is the TribLive sports editor. A Pittsburgh native and Point Park graduate, he joined the Trib in 2004, covering high school sports. He held various editing roles before assuming his current position in 2019. He can be reached at bhartlep@triblive.com.

Tags: Aliquippa, Northgate