Trib HSSN Girls Basketball Team of the Week for March 18, 2024

By: Don Rebel
Tuesday, March 19, 2024 | 12:13 AM

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Trib HSSN girls basketball team of the week: McKeesport Tigers

Coach: Matt Miller (1st season)

Record: 10-2 and second place in Section 3-5A, 24-4 overall

#Earned: After bouncing back from a tough semifinal loss to eventual champion South Fayette with a consolation win over Oakland Catholic and a PIAA first-round victory over West York, McKeesport faced a couple of WPIAL foes last week. In the second round Wednesday, the Tigers trailed by six after one quarter and by five points at halftime as McKeesport was limited to only 12 first-half points. However, the offense woke up in the third quarter as the Tigers outscored Indiana 19-6 in the third quarter and 17-4 in the fourth to pull away to a double-digit victory over the Little Indians, 48-27. Then in the quarterfinals, the round it was ousted in a year ago, McKeesport flipped the script and jumped out to a big first-quarter lead, 20-9, then finished with a strong fourth-quarter kick, outscoring WPIAL runner-up Armstrong 16-5 to win the game and advance to the state semifinals, 57-35.

Scoring stars: The daughter of interim coach Matt Miller led the scoring in the defensive-minded second-round victory over Indiana. Senior Madison Miller scored 13 points while fellow senior Rachael Manfredo added 12 points in the win 21-point over the Little Indians. Then in the state quarterfinals, Manfredo enjoyed another big game with a game-high 22 points while senior Brook Evans added 10 points. The game was highlighted for McKeesport by the return of 5-foot-10 senior Kaylee Charles, who had missed the entire postseason due to injury.

Last year: Much like this year, McKeesport finished in second place in Section 3-5A with a 10-2 record with both section losses coming against section champion Oakland Catholic. The Tigers beat Penn Hills and Hampton in the first round and quarterfinals of the district playoffs before falling against to Oakland Catholic in the district semis, 58-51. McKeesport regrouped, defeated Northern York and Penn-Trafford in the first two rounds of the state playoffs before discovering that the fourth time was no charm in yet another loss to the OC Eagles, 60-59, finishing with a record of 23-6 with four of the six losses coming against Oakland Catholic.

Remember when: The McKeesport girls basketball program has had many successful teams that came close in both the WPIAL and PIAA tournaments, but the Tigers have only one championship to show. It was 26 years ago when McKeesport faced North Allegheny in the 1998 WPIAL Class 4A championship and came away with the gold thanks to a game for the ages by one of the best players in district history. Swin Cash had a triple-double when she scored 40 points, grabbed 21 rebounds and had 10 blocks as McKeesport won the battle of the Tigers by beating North Allegheny, 69-52.

2024 Trib HSSN Girls Basketball Teams of the Week

Week 10 – North Catholic Trojans

Week 9 – South Fayette Lions

Week 8 – Laurel Highlands Mustangs

Week 7 – Penn Hills Indians

Week 6 – Trinity Hillers

Week 5 – Upper St. Clair Panthers

Week 4 – Lincoln Park Leopards

Week 3 – Elizabeth Forward Warriors

Week 2 – Aliquippa Quips

Week 1 – Norwin Knights

Tags: McKeesport