There really isn’t anything about District 9 basketball that
suggests two-handed alley-oop slams, but that’s what Elk County
Catholic brings to the table.

And that’s only the half of it, as Bradford High found out in a
63-46 loss to the top-ranked, undefeated defending PIAA Class A
state champion Crusaders on Tuesday.

ECC is a confident, talented, athletic and well coached squad
that can jump on opponents in a hurry and as BHS coach Dave Fuhrman
said, “They’re not a team you want to be behind in the fourth
quarter.”

The Owls did their level best to avoid that situation by racing
out to a 19-12 first-quarter advantage on points from all five
starters in front of a packed house at the Owls’ Nest.

“I thought it was going to be our night with the way we started
off in that first quarter,” Fuhrman admitted.

“We looked so good out of the gates. We were moving the ball and
we were making shots. We were getting it inside and shooting well
from the perimeter and then all of a sudden in the second quarter
we can’t throw it in the ocean.”

Indeed, the hosts scored only two points in the quarter (two Tom
Taylor foul shots) until Tommy Morris put up five quick points in
the period’s last 22 seconds.

The Crusaders, meantime, tallied 10 unanswered and added nine
more after that on a crucial 19-2 scoring spurt.

“You saw how well Bradford was prepared when they came out of
the gates and punched us right in the nose in the first quarter,”
commented Aaron Straub, Elk coach.

“Fortunately, we were able to create some turnovers into some
transition baskets to fight back into the game.”

Fuhrman agreed that the Crusader run was a key to the game.

“That can’t happen. You’re not going to overcome a 19-2 run
against a team like them. Their press bothered us and that was a
big part of their run.”

Morris’ five points just before halftime kept the hosts in the
game at 31-26, but the ECC heavyweight sent the Owls back to their
corner immediately after the break.

Senior standout Jesse Bosnik sent it in from way outside, Logan
Haberberger cashed in an eight-footer and Brad Meholic drove
through the defense for a 38-30 score.

But the knockout punch came when 6-5 senior Josh Salter jumped
behind the defense and took the lob from Bosnik for the two-handed
flush and a 40-30 game.

The Owls were never able to get the deficit back to
single-digits and the Crusaders came away with the 17-point league
win to retain sole possession of first place in the standings.

The victory also pushed Elk County’s impressive winning streak
to 47 consecutive games.

“We knew tonight was a key game because we had an opportunity to
put two games between us and second place and also to hold the
tiebreaker,” Straub remarked. “From that standpoint, it was a
really big game.

“This was the type of game that we needed because it really
exposed a lot of our weaknesses. It exposed our impatience – we
shot too many threes and we were in too much of a hurry. We tried
to make some passes that just weren’t there.

“We are going to learn a lot of things from this game that will
enable us to get better as a team.”

The Crusaders had good balance with eight players in the score
book. Bosnik and Haberberger led the way with 15 points each, while
Meholic contributed 13 points.

“If you told me Bosnik would have 15, Jimmy Higgins two and
Salter seven, I’d say you’d win,” Fuhrman reasoned. “But Meholic
and Haberberger stepped up with 15 points. Meholic hurt us with the
dribble penetration.

“That’s what good teams do. They have guys who can step up.”

Defensively, ECC’s intensity held the hosts to just 31 percent
shooting on their home floor, including a 2-for-17 showing from
outside the arc.

“It wasn’t hard to get up for this one,” Straub maintained.
“(Fuhrman) is an outstanding coach, (Bradford) is an outstanding
program and you’re playing at Bradford. It’s not hard to get up for
a game like this.”

Fuhrman, similarly, was pleased with his team’s effort, but
expressed his frustration with the Owls’ shooting struggles.

“We play better on the road, we honestly do. I can’t figure it
out. I did order two new rims for next year, maybe we ought to
replace them for the rest of this season.

“We talked to the guys about protecting our home floor and we
haven’t done a good job of that the last few years. There was a
time when we won 30-some straight games at home. This used to be
one of the toughest places to play around here.”

The Owls will try to recapture some of that home-court magic
when they welcome Brookville for another league tilt on Friday,
while Elk will host DuBois the same night.