JACKSON TWP — Vic Giannotta isn't doing much to endear himself to New Castle basketball fans.

And he loves it.

The Seneca Valley boys basketball coach watched his team come up with clutch shots down the stretch in a 60-54 home win over the Red Hurricanes Thursday night.

The Raiders grabbed a 39-36 win at New Castle on Dec. 22.

"This is the first time in 15 years that Seneca Valley has swept New Castle, so, I give them credit," said Hurricanes coach John Sarandrea.

"I can't say I feel sorry for John," said Giannotta. "He's won his share of basketball games."

The win didn't come without a few anxious moments late in the fourth quarter, however.

The Raiders (11-8, 3-6) led 57-52 with 11 seconds left to play when New Castle's Antonio Mathews drained two free throws to make it a one possession game at 57-54.

Following a timeout, SV was unable to inbound he ball within five seconds, and the Hurricanes (10-9, 4-5) had a chance to tie the game with a 3-pointer.

But Anthony Harvey, the team's star guard, watched what would have been New Castle's eighth trey of the game bounce off the rim.

SV's C.J. Brown sealed the deal with a free throw at 2.3 seconds for a 58-54 lead.

The Raiders were 3-of-8 from the free throw line in the final eight minutes.

"Maybe we had to exorcize some of the ghosts out of this building," said Giannotta. "We sure did try to lose this game tonight.

"We just couldn't make free throws," he added.

But it was the Raiders' clutch shooting from the floor that put them in the lead.

With the score tied at 43 entering the final period, the Raiders went on an 8-2 run to take a 51-45 lead.

That stretch included a basket by Kevin Mayberry and two 3-pointers by Gabe Grinder.

After New Castle had pulled to within 51-50, it was Shawn Eagle and Brown who teamed up to score six straight points for a 57-50 edge with 38.6 seconds left.

Mayberry led all scorers with 16 points.

Though he didn't start the game, Mayberry scored 10 points in the second quarter and the Raiders entered halftime down just 29-28.

"This was the best game he's played all year," said Giannotta.

Brown added 13 points, and Grinder scored 12 points on four of the Raiders' six 3-pointers.

"It wasn't just the 3s," said Sarandrea. "It was the timing of them. Every time we'd start to pull away, they'd hit a 3."

Antonio Mathews led the Hurricanes with 15 points.

But Harvey, who entered the night averaging 18.8 points per game, scored only nine. He managed no more than one field goal in any quarter.

"Coach told us to treat this like a playoff game," said Mayberry. "We have to win the rest of our games to make the playoffs. This was a huge win."

Girls BasketballNew Castle 56, Seneca Valley 26Seneca Valley's early lead turned out to be a mirage.The Raiders held an 8-3 first-quarter edge on undefeated New Castle, but they collapsed under the pressure of the Red Hurricanes' man-to-man defense.SV committed 15 turnovers in the first two quarters and trailed New Castle 24-12 at halftime.Kelsey Spencer led the Raiders (11-9, 2-7) with nine points.The Raiders put up only 28 points in a loss at New Castle on Dec. 21."They have without a doubt the toughest defense we've faced this year," said SV coach Kelly Mathews. "They pressure the ball so well and all of their players are physical."Jaleesa Sams led New Castle (18-0, 9-0) with 23 points, including 15 in the second half.

Boys BoxscoreNEW CASTLE 54Anthony Harvey 4 1-2 9, Tyrone Steals 2 2-2 7, Nick Colella 4 0-0 11, Chris Richards 2 1-2 7, Michael Andrews 2 1-2 5, Antonio Mathews 6 2-4 15.

Totals: 20 7-12 54.

SENECA VALLEY 60Gabe Grinder 4 0-0 12, Kevin Mayberry 5 4-5 16, Tony Treser 1 1-1 3, Pat Heery 2 1-3 5, John Bryant 1 0-1 2, C.J. Brown 5 3-6 13, John Fitzpatrick 0 3-4 3, Drew Deitch 1 0-0 2, Shawn Eagle 2 0-0 4, Dustin Anewalt 0 0-0 0, Kevin Rohm 0 0-0 0, Nate Herrman 0 0-0 0. Totals: 21 12-20 60.

New Castle 11 18 14 11—54Seneca Valley 12 16 15 17—603-point goals: New Castle 7 (Colella 3, Richards 2, Steals, Mathews); Seneca Valley 6 (Grinder 4, Mayberry 2).

Monday: Seneca Valley at Butler

Girls BoxscoreNEW CASTLE 56Shelby Rodgers 1 0-0 2, Ryenn Micaletti 4 0-2 8, Logan Hartman 4 1-2 9, Tasia Wise 3 0-0 6, Jazelle Dennis 1 0-0 3, Jaleesa Sams 7 7-8 23, Kara Joseph 2 0-0 5, Nikki Wise 0 0-0 0, Javonna Moss 0 0-0 0, Abby Allen 0 0-0 0.

Totals: 22 8-12 56.

SENECA VALLEY 26Aly Eagle 1 0-2 3, Kelsey Spencer 3 3-3 9, Kelsey Patsilevas 1 0-0 2, Amanda Johnson 2 0-0 4, Jackie Mangola 2 0-0 6, Amanda Mauck 1 0-1 2, Nicole Roche 0 0-1 0, Catherine Messmer 0 0-0 0, Megan Gebrosky 0 0-0 0.

Totals: 10 3-7 26.

New Castle 14 10 15 17—56Seneca Valley 10 2 10 4—263-point goals: New Castle 4 (Sams 2, Dennis, Joseph); Seneca Valley 3 (Mangola 2, Eagle)

Monday: Seneca Valley at Butler