Athens clinches NTL title with win over Towanda

TOWANDA - The Wildcats clinched their second straight NTL East title Wednesday, beating Towanda 66-51 in boys' basketball action.

But Athens' coach Bob Fauver still has his eyes looking ahead.

"It's good, it's a step in the right direction," he remarked. "But I think everybody knows it's not finished yet. We still have two league games and one crossover left. The kids are looking forward to playing some more."

The Wildcats jumped out to a 23-14 first quarter lead, then held Towanda to two points in the second quarter to take a 39-16 advantage at the half. The Knights out scored Athens 35-27 in the second half but the damage was done.

Mark Wright led an Athens' team effort with 17 points, six boards, four assists and two steals. Luke Wright added a double-double of 14 points and 10 boards while dishing out six assists.

Ray McDougan netted 14 points, eight boards and two steals, while Robert Fauver hitting three threes for nine points. His younger brother Brandon had two threes for six. Craig Moore rounded out the Wildcat scoring with six points.

Garret Clark added nine assists in the game for Athens.

Casey Huff led Towanda with 20 points while Mason Roof scored 18. Noah Huff, Dave Rodenhizer and Joel Miller had three points each while Garret Mosier and Jake Serrano-McEwen had two a piece.

Athens won the JV game 48-40 behind 15 from Jared Priester. Tristan James led Towanda with nine.

For the most part Fauver likes what he sees.

"We've had some mental lapses now and then but we've been playing well," he said. "When we get the ball out and are able to run were a pretty good team. We need to maintain this and take it up more with districts around the corner."

Towanda will host Canton Friday while the Wildcats welcome Troy.

Sullivan County 54, St. John Neumann 49, OT

The Griffins got a double-double from Sharif Welton as they escaped from Neumann with a Heartland Conference boys' basketball win Friday.

Sullivan led 17-8 after the first quarter but Neumann rallied to tie it at 23 all at the half. The Griffins out scored Neumann in the third 10-9 but Neumann reversed it in the fourth 12-11.

Down three in regulation Neumann's Jorden Cole hit a three to send things in to overtime. However, Sullivan's Derek Wilkins began the period with a jumper and the Griffins controlled things from there on it.

Welton had 28 points and 10 boards to lead the Griffins while Wilkins added nine and seven rebounds. Kelby Mullen had seven points and six assists, Zach Meyer added six points while Conner Wylie and Dalton Molyneux had two points each.

Mike Wenner led Neumann with 19 points while Alize Johnson added 17.

Overtimes were in the cards Wednesday at Sullivan edged Neumann in the JV game 62-57 after four extra periods. Adam Szklanka led the Griffins with 19 points.

Sullivan will host Montgomery Saturday.

Canton 66, Troy 36

CANTON - The Warriors jumped out to a 21-4 first quarter lead and never looked back in NTL East boys' basketball action Wednesday.

Emmett Watson led Canton with 26 points while Eddie Larcom flirted with a triple-double: 21 points, 10 assists and seven boards. He also had three blocks.

Senior Ryan Ball had a double-double on senior night with 10 points and 11 boards. Tim Bassett added eight points and nine rebounds while Jesse Lattimer had one point.

Freshman Brandon Mattocks led Troy with 11 points while Jed Wright added 10. Quintin Wandell added four while Evan Polly netted three.

Troy is at Athens Friday while Canton travel to Towanda.

Wyalusing 69, Northeast Bradford 33

The Rams pulled away from the Panthers in the second quarter in NTL boys' basketball action Wednesday.

Wyalusing led 16-12 after the first quarter but a 20-9 run in the second gave them the breathing space they needed for the win.

Aaron Johnson led the Rams with 29 points while Jeremy Allyn had 16 and Mitchell Pickett scored 11. Kye Novak had four, Cody Pickett netted three with Anthony Benninger and Domenic Ciccolini scoring two points each.

Todd Bonin had a double-double for the Panthers with 16 points and 11 boards while adding three blocks. Shawn Hakes had six points, five boards, four assists and three blocks with Davis Young adding six points, five boards and three assists. Jake Hottle netted five points with 10 boards and two assists.

Wyalusing won the JV game.

The Panthers travel to Galeton Friday while the Rams host Sayre.

Sayre 85, Liberty 57

The Redskins out scored Liberty 54-26 over the middle quarters to pick up an NTL cross-over basketball win Wednesday. Sayre led 18-12 after one before going on their big run.

Nate Williams led the Redskins with 21 points while Riley Card added 18. Jared Donovan had a double-double of 14 points and 12 boards while Adam Wampole chipped in with 13. Tyler Williams netted eight with Trey Hildebrandt scoring four and dishing out eight assists.

John Shaw had two while Seth Murrelle and Brad Felt scored one point each. Alex Lyons added three steals for the Redskins.

Jacob Spring had 25 points to lead Liberty with J.J. Walker adding 13 and Cody Fritz scoring 10. Cody Schmouder netted eight points for the Mountaineers while Tyler Upham had one.

The Redskins are at Wyalusing Friday while Liberty faces North Penn.