CLARION - The Moniteau boys basketball team received an emotional return Monday night.

It wasn't a player that inspired the Warriors to perhaps their best all-around game of the season in a 72-44 whitewashing of Port Allegany at the Tippin Center in the District 9 Class AA semifinals.

It was the return of a coach.

Assistant coach Mark Kosick was back on the bench for the first time since his son, Lucas, was injured in an automobile accident Feb. 4.

Lucas, 15, is paralyzed, said Moniteau coach Randy Armagost, choking back tears.

"This was Mark's first game back," Armagost said. "The kids didn't know he was going to show up. I didn't tell them. I had to talk him into it. When he was gone, it was like a big part of the program was missing."

The tragedy brought back bad memories from the start of the year.

Moniteau's season-opener at the Slippery Rock High School tip-off tournament was canceled because of the death of a Slippery Rock basketball player.

The player, Nick Daubenspeck, was a friend of many of the Moniteau players.

"It's kind of been a tough season," Armagost said. "The gentleman who was killed came and played with a lot of our players during the summer."

With an extra emotional lift, Moniteau (15-9) didn't let Port Allegany get anything going Monday.

The win puts the Warriors in the championship game against Keystone - a 54-52 winner over Karns City - at 8 p.m. Saturday at Tippin Arena.

Moniteau outscored the Gators 18-0 over a six-minute stretch of the second and third quarters to take a 45-21 lead.

"At the end of the first quarter all I wanted to stress is defense," Armagost said. "I think to get far in the playoffs, to play District 7 and District 10 teams, you have to play defense with intensity."

Moniteau forced 21 turnovers, 14 coming in the second half as Port Allegany stumbled through most of the contest on offense.

"We never really got our offense untracked," said Port Allegany coach Bob Raudenbush. "At the end of the first quarter we were no where near getting our offense going and we were only down by three. I was thinking it could only get better. It didn't. It got worse."

Moniteau spread things out offensively, too, attacking the basket with a vengeance.

Tyler Grossman scored 26 points and Tyler Hempfling added 21.

Ryan Rumbaugh was also in double digits with 10 points and Scott Wiest added nine.

"Most of the games we win, we have two, three, four guys in double digits," Armagost said. "They also usually have a couple of guys with double digit rebounds, too. This was probably one of the best games we've played all season."

Claude Haskins, who scored 17 points, was the lone bright spot for the Gators (17-9).

Port Allegany is all too familiar with semifinal losses. The Gators are 0-8 in such District 9 games.

"I always feel like (in the Keystone Shortway Athletic Conference) they play a little more aggressive defense," Raudenbush said. "They do a good job taking away passing lanes. Moniteau is definitely a good team."

Armagost is excited to get the chance to play Keystone in the title game.

Keystone beat Moniteau twice this season, 47-45 in December and 64-48 in January.

"The way I look at it, Keystone is the champion," Armagost said. "I want to beat Keystone."