38th Annual Porreco Cup
ERIE, Pa. –
Adam Blazek's (Erie, Pa./Cathedral Prep) 21 points, nine steals and five assists guided a red-hot Gannon men's basketball team to a convincing 94-62 victory against Malone in the 38th annual Porreco Cup semifinals before a holiday crowd of 1,153 Thursday night at the Hammermill Center.
Gannon will face a familiar face in Friday's championship game. Two-time defending Porreco Cup Most Outstanding Player Chris Giles scored on a driving lay-up with four seconds left as Seton Hill stunned Grand Valley State 75-73 in the first semifinal. As a result, the Griffins will face the Golden Knights in the title game at 7:30 p.m. Grand Valley State and Malone will battle in the consolation game at 5:30 p.m.
Head coach
John T. Reilly's club raced out to a halftime lead and then shot lights out in the second half against a Malone team that had ended home streaks of 105 consecutive games by the University of Findlay and 48 straight games by Walsh earlier this season. The Pioneers are playing their final season as an NCAA Division II Independent, before becoming a member of the Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (GLIAC) in 2012-13.
Gannon followed a 46-35 scoring advantage in the first half with 71 percent shooting in the final 20 minutes, hitting 22-of-31 attempts. The Golden Knights put the game away midway through the second half. Leading 56-44, the squad produced a 29-9 run that pushed the lead to 85-53 with 5:09 left in regulation.
Tanner Furno (Columbus, Ohio/Whetstone) brought the crowd to its feet with an alley-oop dunk on a fast break that gave the Golden Knights a 65-46 edge at the 12:05 mark. The Peach Street kids converted nine straight field goals at one point. In all, eight minutes and 41 seconds expired between a three-point miss at the 15:44 mark and the next misfire with 7:03 left.
The first half tipped off on the right foot. Blazek hit a three-pointer 29 seconds into the affair. Thirty-one seconds later,
Darrell Blanton's (Cleveland, Ohio/Euclid) jumper gave the Golden Knights a 5-0 advantage.
The Gannon lead stood at 12-11 when the home squad produced the only sizable run of the first half.
Oscar Macias (Cicero, Ill./Morton) and
Brandon Belt (Odenton, Md./Arundel) drilled back-to-back three-pointers, starting a 13-2 run over the next two minutes and 37 seconds. Furno followed with a pair of jumpers, before
T.J. Wilson (Lorton, Va./Hayfield Secondary) capped the blitz with an old-fashion three-point play. His free throw gave the Golden Knights a 25-13 lead with 10:34 showing on the clock. The two teams played on even terms for the final 10 minutes of the first stanza.
Blazek led all scorers with 21 points, falling two points shy of his season-high. The true freshman recorded nine steals, the most by a Golden Knight since at least the 2001-02 campaign. He also added five assists.
Furno reached double digits for the second consecutive game with 16 points off the bench, converting 8-of-11 field goals. Belt was red-hot from long range, hitting five three-pointers to account for 15 points off the bench. Macias completed the group of double-digit scorers with 14 markers.
The Gannon point guards continued to be near-flawless with the ball.
Steve Piotrowicz (Erie, Pa./Cathedral Prep) dished out a team-high seven assists with no turnovers in 19 minutes off the bench. The senior has 18 assists and no turnovers during the last three games, logging a total of 59 minutes during those contests.
Piotrowicz and Blazek combined for 12 assists compared to only three turnovers in 48 minutes Thursday night. The duo have dished out 30 assists and turned the ball over only five times during the last three games.
Gannon shot 56.2 percent (41-73) from the field, hitting over 56 percent for the third consecutive game and over 53 percent for the fifth time this season. The Golden Knights shot 50 percent (8-16) from three-point range and 44.4 percent (4-9) from the free throw line.
Eric Coblentz headlined the Malone attack with 13 points. Cory Veldhuizen and Michael Shull added 12 and 11 points, respectively.
Malone shot 41.2 percent (21-51) from the floor, 21.1 percent (4-19) from behind the arc and 66.7 percent (16-24) from the charity stripe.
Rebounding proved to be a huge difference. Gannon out-rebounded Malone 41-28, including a 15-8 edge in offensive rebounds. The Golden Knights forced 22 Pioneer turnovers, creating a 29-5 advantage in points off turnovers and 29-2 difference in fast break points. Meanwhile, Gannon had a season-high 27 assists on 41 baskets.
Gannon improved to 6-3 with its third consecutive victory. The Golden Knights have won five of their last six affairs. Malone dropped to 7-6 with its second straight setback.
In the opener, Seton Hill shot 59.3 percent (16-27) in the first 20 minutes while grabbing a 38-35 halftime lead against Grand Valley State. Porreco Cup fans then saw a fantastic finish. Grand Valley State initially tied the contest at 70 on Breland Hogan's jumper with 1:14 remaining.
Oliver McGlade's three-pointer pushed Seton Hill back in front 73-70 with 43 seconds left. GVSU answered again as James Thomas drained a game-tying triple with a defender draped all over him at the 28-second mark.
With the shot clock off, Giles drove the lane and scored on an acrobatic shot while being fouled with four seconds left. He followed with a missed free throw, allowing the Lakers one last chance. Thomas grabbed the rebound and fed Nick Waddell, whose long three-pointer bounced off the rim at the buzzer.
Malone and Grand Valley State (7-3) will lock horns in Friday's consolation game at 5:30 p.m. Gannon and Seton Hill (4-4) take the court at 7:30 p.m. for the championship tilt. The two squads have met in the last two Porreco Cups. Seton Hill posted a 64-44 victory in the 2009 semifinals while Gannon earned a 71-67 decision in the 2010 semifinals.
