Tornado boys 2-0 under Clement

By Mike Kilroy
Eagle Staff Writer

DORMONT — Fast starts. Strong finishes.
That has been the staple so far for the 2009-2010 version of the Butler boys basketball team.
For the second straight night, the Golden Tornado stormed out to an 8-0 lead in the first quarter. And for the second straight night, they flirted with disaster before pulling away late.
This time, it came at the expense of host Keystone Oaks in the championship game of its tournament with Butler routing the Golden Eagles 65-47 Saturday night.
"We want to come out with intensity early," said Butler coach Matt Clement. "What we need to figure out now is how to withstand it."
With a frenetic, but controlled defense, and sharp shooting in the first 13 minutes of the game, Butler built a 24-point lead.
But like on Friday against Bethel Park, the opposition launched a furious comeback, getting as close as six points late in the third quarter.
"We let the other team back in it way too far," Clement said. "In our section, that's not going to fly. That's how you lose games, and we are aware of that."
Keystone Oaks was certainly aware of Bobby Swartwout.
The 6-foot-6 junior dominated inside for the Golden Tornado and also showed off his mid-range shooting touch on the way to 22 points and 15 rebounds.
He had 12 points and seven boards in the first half as Butler led 37-23 after two quarters.
"That's a man-sized game there," Clement said. "When you see in eight-minute quarters going 22 (points) and 15 (rebounds), that's getting after it on the boards over and over and over."
Point guard Nate Snodgrass also played well for the Tornado with 14 points and seven assists.
Snodgrass also scored 14 points on Friday and was named the tournament MVP.
"Nate is so well beyond his years," Clement said. "He's so grounded. He controls the game and keeps everyone in check. I thought the biggest thing for me was everyone got in and contributed."
Seven Butler players scored in the first quarter.
When the game was in the balance heading into the fourth quarter, Jeff Tompkins scored eight of his 10 points and Vinny Schmidt hit a huge 3-pointer as Butler broke open what had become a tight game with a 15-2 run.
While 2-0 feels good for Butler and its first-year coach, Clement said he understands in the grand scheme of things not much has been accomplished.
"We want to create a winning attitude in Butler," Clement said. "Is that going to constitute wins? It did this weekend. Is that going to constitute a win on Tuesday? It remains to be seen.
"Let's not forget 2-0 means nothing right now," Clement added. "It's nice. We needed it. Coming off a seven-win year, these kids needed 2-0, let's not mistake it. ... We haven't beaten anyone in the section and we won two games in the section last season. We have a long, long ways to go."
Notes: Swartwout and Schmidt also made the all-tournament team. ... Butler shot 52.4 percent (44-of-84) in the tournament. ... Nine Golden Tornado players have scored already this season. ... Butler outscored its two opponents 42-12 in the first quarter.

BUTLER 65
Cole Harvey 0-0 0-0 0 Nate Snodgrass 6-10 0-0 14, Cody Herald 1-3 0-1 3, Jeff Tompkins 5-8 0-1 10, Vinny Schmidt 3-7 1-2 9, Bobby Swartwout 9-13 4-4 22, Eli Christy 1-1 0-0 2, Logan Renwick 0-3 0-0 0, Brian Jendesky 1-5 3-4 5, David Tompkins 0-1 0-0 0. Totals: 26-50 8-12 65.
KEYSTONE OAKS 47
Tyler Hans 6-19 3-4 17, Joey Grecek 0-1 0-2 0, Matt McCann 4-7 1-2 10, Michael Barrett 1-4 0-0 2, Reilly Burgunder 3-6 1-2 9, David Harouse 1-1 0-0 2, Rocco Constristano 1-1 1-2 3, Cory Sevacko 1-1 0-3 2, Andrew Smith 0-1 0-0 0, Jarek Skolnicki 1-2 0-0 2, Nick Tullio 0-0 0-0 0, Brendan Helt 0-0 0-0 0. Totals: 18-43 6-15 47
Butler 24 13 9 19—65
Keystone Oaks 6 17 14 10—47
3-point goals: Butler 5 (Snodgrass 2, Schmidt 2, Herald); Keystone Oaks 5 (Hans 2, McCann, Burgunder 2).