Butler boys basketball looking for grit after blowout loss to McDowell: ‘The losses feel so heavy right now’
BUTLER TWP — At the moment, things feel a lot worse for Butler boys basketball than they actually are. Though, the Golden Tornado aren’t sugarcoating things.
Including Saturday afternoon’s 79-62 home loss to McDowell, Butler (4-6) has been outscored by a combined 50 points over its past three outings, all losses.
The most recent defeat marked the Tornado’s worst setback on its own court since falling to Gateway 70-47 in the 2023-24 regular-season finale.
“We’re 2-2 in the section, and it feels like we’re 0-5 right now based on these last three games,” Butler coach Matt Clement said. “We’re right in the middle of the mix in the playoff hunt, and these next (10) games, we’re gonna try to win as many as we can because that’s how this section rolls. And we’re gonna be battle-tested.”
The Trojans (8-2) gave up the first points of the non-conference matchup, but took the lead on the next possession and controlled matters for most of the rest of the way. Thanks to Stainton Forbes’ nine first-quarter points — including a buzzer-beating 3-pointer — the Tornado only trailed by one after eight minutes.
Forbes’ trey on his team’s first possession of the second quarter put them up 22-20, then another made it 25-23 a few minutes later. But McDowell finished the half with an 11-2 run.
Forbes had 15 of his team’s 27 points at the midway mark.
Clement felt like his side was outmatched physically despite having a size advantage. The Tornado committed 17 turnovers, had only two offensive rebounds through three frames and finished with five on the day.
“We didn’t stand up to the physicality today,” Clement said. “And that’s on me. I’ve gotta find the right combination of people that can stand up to that and the right subs to make when some of our more physical guys get knocked out of the game with fouls.”
“All the losses that we’ve had, they’ve been by high double digits,” Forbes said. “It’s just been rough because it’s the little things that are killing us — offensive rebounds, defensive rebounds, effort all around. ... That’s why the losses feel so heavy right now. It doesn’t feel like we’re really working hard.
“We’re honestly playing soft right now.”
Depth is already an issue for the Tornado. Rough and tumble play isn’t something teams can simulate without potential consequences.
“You get extra physical with Stainton or Getty, and you get one of them hurt in practice,” Clement said. “It makes for a tough balance. What I’ve tried to do during this Christmas break is I’ve subbed a lot of people. I’ve given people a lot of chances. ... That’s when you have to show it.
“You have to go in there and go after rebounds, go after loose balls, take a charge, whatever the case may be. Something that will keep you on the court.”
Mavrik Clement cut McDowell’s lead to four points with a corner 3-pointer to start the second half, but it gradually got worse for his team from there. The Trojans’ lead peaked at 22 with 4:04 to go.
Forbes finished with a game-high 24 points and added seven rebounds. Gettinger had a 10-point, 10-rebound double-double.
“(Forbes) is an athletic freak, (Gettinger) can definitely play. Those guys are next-level players,” McDowell coach Kevin O’Connor said. “But we knew just pressuring everybody else might impact the game in our favor. And it’s not that we weren’t paying attention to them ... but we knew 35 and 4 were their go-to guys.
“Everywhere they were at, we knew. We were tagging them and talking all the way through possessions.”
McDOWELL 79
Andrew Tarasovitch 9 1-2 23, Liam Marsh 7 2-2 19, Zane Simons 6 0-0 13, Robert Kwiatek 3 2-2 9, Leo Finazzo 1 2-4 4, Kingston Horton-Dickerson 1 1-2 3, Deonte Flemings 1 1-2 3, Brett Dovichow 1 0-0 3, Delvon Pinczewski 1 0-0 2, James Feronti 0 0-0 0, Brayden Loomis 0 0-0 0, Aiden Costello 0 0-0 0. Totals: 30 9-14 79.
BUTLER 62
Stainton Forbes 9 2-3 24, Andrew Gettinger 4 1-2 10, Tobias Geibel 2 0-0 6, Boden Lenyk 2 1-2 6, Zavyr Gregory 1 2-2 4, Jaydon Wilbert 2 0-0 4, Joseph Porneluzi 1 0-0 3, Mavrik Clement 1 0-0 3, Jace Gratzmiller 1 0-2 2, Cael Hanley 0 0-0 0, Nelson Hilliard 0 0-0 0, Edan Singer 0 0-0 0, Karsten Lenyk 0 0-0 0, Max Byers 0 0-0 0. Totals: 23 6-11 62.
McDowell 20 14 20 25 — 79
Butler 19 8 15 20 — 62
3-point goals: McDowell 10 (Tarasovitch 4, Marsh 3, Kwiatek, Simons, Dovichow); Butler 9 (Forbes 3, Geibel 2, Porneluzi, Lenyk, Clement, Gettinger)
Tuesday: Seneca Valley at Butler
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Butler fell to McDowell 79-62 in a boys basketball game Saturday, Jan. 3, 2026, at Butler High School. Rob McGraw/Butler Eagle
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Butler’s Boden Lenyk (13) takes it to the rim in a boys basketball game Saturday, Jan. 3, 2026, at Butler High School. Rob McGraw/Butler Eagle
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Butler’s Andrew Gettinger (35) shoots over McDowell’s defense in a boys basketball game Saturday, Jan. 3, 2026, at Butler High School. Rob McGraw/Butler Eagle
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Butler fell to McDowell 79-62 in a boys basketball game Saturday, Jan. 3, 2026, at Butler High School. Rob McGraw/Butler Eagle
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Butler’s Stainton Forbes (4) pump fakes before passing the ball in a boys basketball game on Saturday, Jan. 3, 2026, at Butler High School. Rob McGraw/Butler Eagle
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Butler fell to McDowell 79-62 in a boys basketball game Saturday, Jan. 3, 2026, at Butler High School. Rob McGraw/Butler Eagle
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Butler fell to McDowell 79-62 in a boys basketball game Saturday, Jan. 3, 2026, at Butler High School. Rob McGraw/Butler Eagle
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Butler fell to McDowell 79-62 in a boys basketball game Saturday, Jan. 3, 2026, at Butler High School. Rob McGraw/Butler Eagle
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Butler fell to McDowell 79-62 in a boys basketball game Saturday, Jan. 3, 2026, at Butler High School. Rob McGraw/Butler Eagle
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Butler fell to McDowell 79-62 in a boys basketball game Saturday, Jan. 3, 2026, at Butler High School. Rob McGraw/Butler Eagle
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Butler fell to McDowell 79-62 in a boys basketball game Saturday, Jan. 3, 2026, at Butler High School. Rob McGraw/Butler Eagle
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Butler’s Jaydon Wilbert (2) dribbles the ball as a defender guards him in a boys basketball game Saturday, Jan. 3, 2026, at Butler High School. Rob McGraw/Butler Eagle
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Butler fell to McDowell 79-62 in a boys basketball game Saturday, Jan. 3, 2026, at Butler High School. Rob McGraw/Butler Eagle
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Butler fell to McDowell 79-62 in a boys basketball game Saturday, Jan. 3, 2026, at Butler High School. Rob McGraw/Butler Eagle
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Butler fell to McDowell 79-62 in a boys basketball game Saturday, Jan. 3, 2026, at Butler High School. Rob McGraw/Butler Eagle
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Butler’s Andrew Gettinger (35) takes it to the rim in a boys basketball game Saturday, Jan. 3, 2026, at Butler High School. Rob McGraw/Butler Eagle
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Butler’s Jace Gratzmiller (3) throws a pass in a boys basketball game on Saturday, Jan. 3, 2026, at Butler High School. Rob McGraw/Butler Eagle
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Butler’s Stainton Forbes (4) takes it to the rim in a boys basketball game on Saturday, Jan. 3, 2026, at Butler High School. Rob McGraw/Butler Eagle
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Butler fell to McDowell 79-62 in a boys basketball game Saturday, Jan. 3, 2026, at Butler High School. Rob McGraw/Butler Eagle
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Butler fell to McDowell 79-62 in a boys basketball game Saturday, Jan. 3, 2026, at Butler High School. Rob McGraw/Butler Eagle
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Butler fell to McDowell 79-62 in a boys basketball game Saturday, Jan. 3, 2026, at Butler High School. Rob McGraw/Butler Eagle
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Butler fell to McDowell 79-62 in a boys basketball game Saturday, Jan. 3, 2026, at Butler High School. Rob McGraw/Butler Eagle
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Butler’s Boden Lenyk (13) passes the ball in a boys basketball game Saturday, Jan. 3, 2026, at Butler High School. Rob McGraw/Butler Eagle
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Butler’s Stainton Forbes (4) shoots over McDowell’s defense in a boys basketball game on Saturday, Jan. 3, 2026, at Butler High School. Rob McGraw/Butler Eagle
