Knoch's comebacks fall short vs. McLane
EDINBORO — Knoch kept coming back, but it couldn't come all the way back.
The Knights sliced double-digit deficits down to two points in each half, but they never got over the hump in a 64-59 loss to General McLane in the first round of the PIAAClass AAA playoffs at Edinboro University Friday.
The loss overshadowed a sterling 26-point performance by senior guard Jordan Shoop as well as the final game of Les Shoop's coaching career.
"I couldn't have been any prouder of a team in my 37 years," said the elder Shoop. "As proud of, but not more than another team. They battled to the end, even when it looked like there was no hope."
The Knights (16-9) trailed by 15 points (49-34), their largest margin of the evening, with 2:28 left in the third quarter before scoring the next eight points and 15 of 17 to make it 51-49 with 3:02 remaining.
Shoop hit two 3-pointers and a basket and teammate Scott Muska added a trey and two free throws to highlight the run.
But the Lancers (24-4) answered with consecutive driving layups and a free throw apiece from Bob Stauffer and Ben Swank to open a 57-49 advantage with 1:08 remaining.
The Knights trailed 62-55 with 19 seconds left before Shoop was fouled while attempting a 3-pointer. He sank the first two free throws, but his third became lodged against the rim. Knoch retained possession and Alex Whisler scored with five seconds remaining to make it 62-59.
Swank, however, was fouled and calmly sank two free throws to ice the game.
"I was proud of the way our kids battled hard," said Lancers coach Andy Schultz. "They play to the point of exhaustion. ... We knew Knoch was good. I saw some tapes from their better games and I knew they had a quality coach."
In the first half, the Knights trailed 20-17 following a three-point play by Shoop, but the Lancers went on a 7-0 run to take a 27-17 lead with 4:23 left before halftime.
Knoch responded with an 8-0 spurt of its own, a pair of Shoop buckets surrounded a score by Bill Elliott and two free throws from Rob Briggs to trim the deficit to two points.
Next, it was General McLane's turn to make another run, this time a nine-pointer on three consecutive treys to take a 36-25 lead with 1:16 left.
Shoop and Briggs had a 3-pointer and a score, respectively, to pull the Knights back to six, but a last-second 3-point attempt by Drew Astorino off a long bounce off the rim was good to give the Lancers a 39-30 lead at the break.
Briggs added 14 points to the Knights' cause while Lancers received 17 points from Stauffer, 14 by Chris Orr, 12 by Shawn Walker and 11 by Swank.
For coach Shoop, he may not have ended his career with a win, but he feels he's leaving with a lot more.
"I'll remember the warriors Knoch had on the court my last game," said Shoop. "We battled to the end. One of (General McLane's) coaches told me 'I've coached 32 years and your son is the best player I've ever coached against.' I'm proud of that too, and all these kids."
Notes: Jordan Shoop finished his career with 1,367 points. At one point, he had nine consecutive points for the Knights. ... The Lancers connected on seven of their 20 3-point attempts in the first half.
KNOCH 59Scott Muska 2 2-2 8, Jordan Shoop 9 5-8 26, Bill Elliott 2 0-0 4, Rob Briggs 6 2-2 14, Alex Whisler 3 1-3 7, D'Ante Natili 0 0-0 0. Totals: 22 10-15 59.
GENERALMcLANE 64Ben Swank 2 7-10 11, Chris Orr 5 0-0 14, Drew Astorino 2 3-4 8, Bob Stauffer 6 2-4 17, Shawn Walker 6 0-0 12, Dan Skelton 0 0-0 0, Kelley Ponsoll 1 0-0 2. Totals: 22 12-18 64.
Knoch 12 18 10 19—59Gen. McLane 14 25 10 15—643-point goals: Shoop 3, Muska 2; Orr 4, Stauffer 3, Astorino
