Cruz Earns Boys’ Clarion Co. YMCA D9 All-Star Game MVP Award as White Beats Blue

KNOX, Pa. (D9Sports) – The White squad used a game-ending 8-1 run to defeat Blue, 89-88, in the 19th edition of the Clarion County YMCA Sportsmanship 1 District 9 All-Star game Saturday afternoon at Keystone High School.

(Jonathan Cruz of DuBois receives his game MVP award from game director Norb Baschnagel. Photo by Jared Bakaysa of JB Graphics. See more of Bakaysa’s work here)

Relisten to the game:

Trailing 87-81 with 4:32 to play following back-to-back 3-pointers by Blue’s Korey Mills (North Clarion) and Ethan Blose (Punxsutawney), White scored the next eight points with the go-ahead basket coming from Ian Callen (Clarion-Limestone) off a backboard pass from Daunte Allegretto (Ridgway) with 2:36 to play.

Blue got its final point when Alex Breindel (Elk County Catholic) made the second of a two-shot foul with 2:23 left.

Neither team was able to score the rest of the way despite some great looks, the last of which came from Keaton Kahle (Redbank Valley) from just beyond the arc on the right wing just before time expired that would have won the game for Blue.

Kahle’s opportunity came after Korey Mills blocked a Jake Reynolds’ (Ridgway) shot by pinning it off the glass with about six seconds left. Blose got the rebound and threw quickly ahead to Kahle, who took one dribble to his left before getting a clean look at the basket. But his shot was just a little strong, and Jonathan Cruz (DuBois) collected the rebound as time expired.

Cruz was named the game’s MVP after scoring a game-high 21 points while hitting five 3-pointers. He added three rebounds.

Hitting three triples in the first half while scoring 15 first-half points, Cruz helped White take a 51-50 halftime lead.

Kyle Mills (North Clarion) scored all 13 of his points for White in the opening half and finished with a double-double by adding 12 rebounds.

Kyle Mills had the game’s lone double-double, although two additional players reached double digits in rebounds with Kyle Mills’ North Clarion teammate Tyler McCord-Wolbert hauling down a game-high 13 rebounds for the Blue squad while adding six points, and Callen having a team-high 12 boards to go with nine points for the White team.

The White squad had three additional players back Cruz up vt scoring in double digits.

Dempsey Glover (Austin) had 16 points, Reynolds added 12 and Zane Puhala (Brockway) had 10.

Puhala added eight rebounds, while Will Thompson (Ridgway) had four points and nine rebounds, Allegretto added eight points, five assists and three rebounds and Blake Burgett (Austin) chipped in three points and six boards.

Ben Gillispie (Venango Catholic) and Korey Mills tied Kyle Mills for team-high honors with 13 points each for the Blue team. Nick Smith (Redbank Valley) added 12 tallies on four 3-pointers and Alec Wehler (Elk County Catholic) had 10.

Wehler completed perhaps the best all-around performance of the game with eight assists and six rebounds, while Kahle chipped in two points, seven rebounds and five assists, Breindel added six points, seven rebounds and two helpers and Gillispie also grabbed six rebounds.

Kyle Mills was named the Sportsmanship Award for the game, while Gillispie edged Allegretto in the 32-shooting contest, whose finals were held at halftime of the game.

WHITE 89, BLUE 88

Score by Halves

White 51 38 – 89
Blue 50 38 – 88

WHITE – 89

Zane Puhala (Brockway) 4 0-1 10, Jake Reynolds (Ridgway) 4 1-2 12, Jonathan Cruz (DuBois) 8 0-0 21, Isaac Schloder (Johnsonburg) 3 0-0 6, Christian Bakaysa (Curwensville) 0 0-0 0, Ian Callen (Clarion-Limestone) 4 0-0 9, Daunte Allegretto (Ridgway) 3 1-2 8, Blake Burgett (Austin) 1 0-0 3, Dempsey Glover (Austin) 7 0-0 16, Will Thompson (Ridgway) 2 0-0 4. Totals 37 1-3 89.

BLUE – 88

Austin Fahlor (Karns City) 3 1-2 8, Nick Smith (Redbank Valley) 4 0-0 12, Ben Gillispie (Venango Catholic) 6 0-0 13, Keaton Kahle (Redbank Valley) 1 0-0 2, Alec Wehler (Elk County Catholic) 4 0-0 10, Korey Mills (North Clarion) 5 0-0 13, Tyler McCord-Wolbert (North Clarion) 3 0-0 6, Ethan Blose (Punxsutawney) 2 0-0 5, Alex Breindel (Elk County Catholic) 1 3-6 6, Kyle Mills (North Clarion) 6 0-1 13. Totals 35 4-8 88.

Three-pointers: White 14 (Cruz 5, Reynolds 3, Puhala 2, Glover 2, Callen, Allegretto, Burgett). Blue 14 (Smith 4, Korey Mills 3, Wehler 2, Fahlor, Gillispie, Blose, Breindel, Kyle Mills)

Rebounds: White 54 (Callen 12, Thompson 9, Puhala 7, Burgett 6, Glover 5, Schloder 4, Cruz 3, Bakaysa 3, Allegretto 3, Reynolds 2). Blue 64 (McCord-Wolbert 13, Kyle Mills 12, Kahle 7, Breindel 7, Wehler 6, Gillispie 6, Fahlor 5, Blose 5, Smith 2, Korey Mills 1).

Assists: White 15 (Allegretto 5, Puhala 3, Schloder 3, Reynolds 1, Burgett 1, Glover 1, Thompson 1). Blue 21 (Wehler 8, Kahle 5, Breindel 2, Fahlor 1, Smith 1, Gillispie 1, Korey Mills 1, Blose 1, Kyle Mills 1).