JACKSON TWP — If you can't count on a four-year starter, who can you count on?

After a pair of frustrating losses to Central Catholic (57-52) and North Catholic (56-54), the Seneca Valley boys basketball team hosted New Castle in a non-section affair Tuesday night.

Needing a victory to boost team morale, SV received 28 points from senior point guard Christian Durbin as the Raiders defeated the Red Hurricanes 66-58.

“The Central Catholic game was a tough section loss and we lost to North Catholic at the buzzer,” said Durbin. “Even though this was a non-section game, it was a big win for the team.”

Durbin drained a trio of 3-pointers in Tuesday's win and made four straight free throws late to keep the Hurricanes (3-2) at bay.

“Christian is an excellent player and he keeps getting better,” said Raiders' coach Vic Giannotta. “He never rests.”

Durbin was part of a zone defense that forced New Castle into 35 three-point attempts, with the Hurricanes making 11 of those.

Anthony Richards' trifecta with 1:20 left in the game cut SV's lead to 61-56, but New Castle got no closer.

The Hurricanes are no strangers to outside shooting. They attempted 31 three-pointers in a 53-46 loss to Hampton on Dec. 14.

But if they had any notion of going inside Tuesday night, SV's zone did not allow it.

The Raiders' inside presence included, at different times, Matt Smith (6-feet-3), Austin Bream (6-3), Beau Barclay (6-5), Chad Albert (6-4) and Pat Kulp (6-1).

New Castle attempted just 20 two-point field goals in the game, making 10 of them.

“With the size of Seneca Valley's interior guys, there's not much space down there,” said New Castle coach Ralph Blundo. “That zone can be very effective.”

SV's frontcourt also paid dividends on the offensive end. All eight of Albert's points came in the final quarter.

Junior guard Alex Maxfield added 11 points for SV while Shawn Anderson paced New Castle with 16.

The Raiders (3-2) will compete in the Mars Holiday Tournament, which begins Monday.

The team returns to Section 3-AAAA play Jan. 4 at North Hills.

“A lot of the teams in our section press on defense and we have to be ready for it,” said Durbin. “We just have to handle the ball better.”

NEW CASTLE 58Brandon Domenick 3 0-0 9, Antonio Rudolph 2 0-0 4, Corey Eggleston 5 3-3 15, Jermaine Cuffie 1 0-0 2, Shawn Anderson 6 0-0 16, Anthony Richards 3 0-0 8, Malik Hooker 1 2-4 4, John Materazzo 0 0-0 0.

Totals: 21 5-7 58.

SENECA VALLEY 66Matt Smith 3 1-2 9, Beau Barclay 2 0-1 4, Christian Durbin 8 9-13 28, Chad Albert 4 0-0 8, R.J. McCauley 1 0-0 2, Pat Kulp 1 0-0 2, Alex Maxfield 3 4-6 11, Jordan Brown 1 0-0 2, Mike Miles 0 0-0 0, Austin Bream 0 0-0 0.

Totals: 23 14-22 66.

New Castle 11 11 15 21—58Seneca Valley 14 15 16 21—663-point goals: New Castle 11 (Anderson 4, Domenick 3, Eggleston 2, Richards 2); Seneca Valley 6 (Durbin 3, Smith 2, Maxfield).

Monday: Seneca Valley at Mars Holiday Tournament