Boys PIAA playoff preview capsule: Monessen vs. Vincentian

By: Bill Beckner Jr.
Sunday, March 17, 2019 | 6:47 PM

PIAA basketball playoffs

Boys Class A

Semifinals

Monessen (18-9) vs. Vincentian (19-8)

7 p.m. Monday at Mt. Lebanon

Winner plays: Winner of Sankota Freedom Academy (16-10)/Lourdes Regional (24-4) 2 p.m. Thursday in championship at Giant Center, Hershey

Coaches: Dan Bosnic, Monessen; Tim Tyree, Monessen

Players to watch: Elijahwa Price, 6-4, Sr., F, Monessen; Angelo Reeves, So., F, Vincentian

Points scored/allowed per game: Monessen, 70.0/53.2; Vincentian, 66.3/56.1

About Monessen: The Greyhounds returned to the semifinals for the second time in three years with a 50-46 win over WPIAL champion Nazareth Prep in the quarters at Keystone Oaks. Price, made two free throws with 27.7 seconds to play to make it 48-45 before Dishon Howell made two more with 9.1 remaining to seal the win. Howell also had a key putback with about a minute left. Freshman Devin Whitlock scored 15 points and had nine rebounds for Monessen. This will be a rematch from the WPIAL semifinals when Vincentian won 61-49 at Peters Township.

About Vincentian: The senior-less Royals held off Cornell for the second time in three meetings this season with a 69-59 victory in the quarterfinals at Northgate. A slow start did not deter the team from reaching the state final four for the first time since 2011. Tyree is a Monessen graduate. Junior Ethan Embleton had 18 points, and Reeves had 16. Each post player stands 6-6 and can create matchup issues for opponents. Sophomore Alex Griggs and freshman Matt McDonough added 13 each in the win. When Vincentian beat Monessen in the WPIAL semifinals, the Royals kept up with the Greyhounds’ fast pace and overcame their pressure defense. Vincentian ended that game on a 16-2 run. Griggs had 18.

Bill Beckner Jr. is a TribLive reporter covering local sports in Westmoreland County. He can be reached at bbeckner@triblive.com.

Tags: Monessen, Vincentian Academy