Frederick, Stutz shine for Tornado
Butler boys roll past Riverside, 79-48
By Derek Pyda
Eagle Staff Writer
FOX CHAPEL — There were a number of excuses Butler's players could have used
for coming out flat against Riverside.
They ignored them all.
The Golden Tornado forced 10 first-quarter turnovers and jumped
out to a 24-8 lead before coasting to a 79-48 boys basketball win over the
Panthers in the final day of the Peter Sauer Memorial Tournament at Shady Side
Academy on Thursday.
“A low point for us this season was the first game of this
tournament, blowing a (15-point) lead and losing to Woodland Hills,” said
Butler coach Matt Clement of a 69-67 defeat on Tuesday. “Today, this was the
third game in three days for us and our kids could have come out against a
smaller school and figured we could just show up and win.
“But the pressure we applied and the way we played, I was
impressed, especially since we played at that pace the whole game (Wednesday in
beating Cumberland Valley).”
The Panthers found themselves against the ropes early on, turning
the ball over on their last five possessions of the first quarter. Butler
senior forward Tyler Frederick scored eight of his game-high 22 points in the
opening period and senior guard Joel Stutz drained the first two of five
3-pointers.
“It really wasn't hard at all to get up for this game,” said
Frederick, who was 11-of-16 shooting. “We lost that first game and Coach always
tells us to learn from our losses.”
When the Panthers (5-4) did get shots off, they scored more times
than not. They were 8-of-12 from the field in the first two quarters and
18-of-33 in the game. But they turned the ball over regularly throughout the
first half — 19 times — whether it was against the Tornado press or half-court
defense.
Butler (6-3) took full advantage of the miscues, building a 47-21
edge by halftime. Riverside finally settled down in the second half, but its
deficit was simply too great to make a comeback.
Butler drained 12 three-pointers in the win. Along with Joel
Stutz's five makes from beyond the arc, Andrew Yonker and Ian McCarrier both
hit two.
As a team, the Tornado made 12-of-23 treys.
“We average between 15 and 25 attempts from the outside per game,”
said Clement. “It's not like we were taking contested shots from out there.
Riverside was packing five guys in the lane and we just took what they were
giving us. Joel has been shooting the ball so well the last few games.”
Ethan Morton contributed 13 points and six assists to Butler's
cause.
Stutz and Frederick were both named to the all-tournament team.
Frederick added seven rebounds.
“This is the affect he should have on every game,” Clement said of
Frederick. “When he is playing like this, we are a better team.”
Since both Butler and Seneca Valley lost on Tuesday and won in
Wednesday's action, they could have played each other in the tournament
Thursday.
But the programs are Section 1-6A rivals and will be playing each
other twice over the next six weeks.
“We decided that if both teams made the championship game, we
would play them,” said Clement. “But if it was a loser's bracket game, there
was no point.”
Riverside coach John Rorick was unavailable for comment.
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Butler's
Connor Ollio (24) makes a move against Riverside's Justin Baust during the
Holden ornado's 79-48 boys basketball win Thursday at Shady Side Academy. |
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RIVERSIDE
48
Ty Thellman 2 3-4 8, Austin
Dambach 5 1-2 11, Will Yasenka 2 0-0 5, Jesse Fornataro 3 2-2 8, Justin Baust 3
1-2 7, Gunnar Boehm 1 0-0 2, Daevon Williams 2 0-0 6, Dan Zelch 0 1-2 1, Brian
Macmurdo 0 0-0 0, Luke Bookamer 0 0-0 0. Totals: 18 8-12 48.
BUTLER 79
Andrew Yonker 2 0-0 6, Jace
Stutz 1 0-0 3, Ian McCarrier 2 0-0 6, Tyler Frederick 11 0-0 22, Connor Ollio 4
1-2 9, Ethan Morton 6 0-0 13, Joel Stutz 5 0-0 15, Jason Gray 0 0-0 0, Cade
Negley 0 0-0 0, Jefferson Ford 1 0-0 3, Tarik Taoufik 0 0-0 0, Isaiah Scribner
1 0-0 2, Dillon Uranker 0 0-0 0. Totals: 33 1-2 79.
Riverside 8 13 16 11 — 48
Butler24 23 17 15 — 79
3-point goals: Riverside 4
(Williams 2, Yasenka, Thellman); Butler 12 (Jo. Stutz 5, Yonker 2, McCarrier 2,
Ja. Stutz, Ford, Morton).