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WILKES-BARRE — All Kyle Gegaris had to do was see one ball rip through the nylon at the Wyoming Valley CYC.

Once it did, there wasn’t much Pittston Area could do to stop the scorching-hot Crestwood point guard.

Gegaris scored 12 in the second quarter, and his fourth 3-pointer of the game with five minutes left was the go-ahead bucket as Crestwood held off Pittston Area, 48-41, in the championship game of the 51st annual Robert McGrane Holiday Tournament.

Gegaris, who dropped a game-high 20 points through the hoop, was named tournament MVP.

“We were really stalling on offense in the first half, and I just felt that I had to be the guy to step up,” Gegaris said. “Being a senior leader, I thought it was my responsibility. I love that moment. There’s nothing like it, really. That’s why you play sports. You love that pressure moment at the end when you have to step up.”

Crestwood needed a spark. It’s not that head coach Mark Atherton didn’t try.

He called a timeout just two possessions into the game. He switched out his entire starting lineup midway through the opening quarter after Pittston jumped out to an 8-1 lead.

The Comets, which shot 1 of 10 from the floor in the first, needed something. Anything, honestly, to provide the flint to light a fire.

“I didn’t like our energy,” Atherton said. “Some of the things we talked about that we were going to do, I could just tell in a short period of time that we weren’t ready. I thought the guys coming off the bench were ready, and they played hard for that short span. I think that it got the other guys going.”

Enter Gegaris.

A soft, floating runner through the lane. A steal and transition layup. A straight-away 3-pointer that didn’t hit any part of the rim. All this in a one-minute span as Crestwood rallied from a 17-12 deficit to take a 21-17 lead.

“Kyle is a scoring point guard, and if he was ever 6-foot-2, look out,” Atherton said. “He likes to get the ball in the lane, and he can shoot the 3-pointer. His shot has been looking good, so he’s a dual-threat player. When he gets the ball in the lane, he does some big things for us.”

Pittston, which had a 23-22 lead at the break, put itself in position to defend its McGrane championship.

The Patriots (3-4) outscored Crestwood 9-5 in a sluggish third quarter in which the Pittston defense held the Comets to just 2 of 15 from the floor, and grabbed a 36-34 lead with less than six minutes remaining. But Alan Kiesinger’s squad turned the ball over 21 times, and was held to just one field goal – an Alex McAndrew bucket – in the final 5:35.

“Tonight wasn’t really about shooting. It was about turning the ball over,” Kiesinger said. “We had too many costly turnovers, not only in the fourth quarter, but back to start the game, too. We made too many bad decisions. You have to value the ball, and every single possession. It’s not always about making the play. Sometimes, you just have to look to control the ball.”

Again, it was Gegaris that sparked Crestwood (4-2).

He scored eight points in the final eight minutes, and helped spark a 14-5 run to end the game. The Comets were pretty clutch from the free-throw stripe in the final ticks, connecting on 8 of 10.

“We didn’t have that intensity to start the game like we had in the second half,” Atherton said. “We always feel that it starts on the defensive side of the court, and that gets the offense going.”

Pittston Area’s Chris Klein, who was honored with the tournament’s Sportsmanship Award, knocked down four 3-pointers for a team-high 16 points, while McAndrew added nine. Kyle Richards chipped in with 13 for the Comets.

Wyoming Area 46,

Western Wayne 32

The Warriors opened the game with a 13-3 lead after one quarter en route a road win.

Tony Saitta hit three threes and led Wyoming Area with 12 points.

Northwest 52,

Warrior Run 41

Sam Saxe finished with a game-high 22 points as the Rangers won at the Milton Tournament.

Mitchell Mazonkey added 16 points while Jaxson Yaple scored 10 for Northwest.

Robert McGrane Holiday Tournament

Crestwood 48, Pittston Area 41

Crestwood `6`17`5`20 – 48

Pittston Area `15`7`9`10 – 41

CRESTWOOD (48) — Kyle Gegaris 7 2-3 20, Lance Blass 0 2-2 2, Kevin Klusewitz 3 2-4 7, Kyle Richards 3 6-10 13, Noah Jackson 1 0-0 2, Sean Murphy 1 0-0 2, Camden Boris 0 2-2 2, Nick Andrews 0 0-0 0, Mike Ayala 0 0-0 0, Mike Kozelsky 0 0-0 0, Evan Knapp 0 0-0 0. Totals : 14 15-21 48.

3-point field goals:

PITTSTON AREA (41) — Chris Klein 4 4-4 16, Matt McGlynn 3 0-0 8, Alex McAndrew 3 2-3 9, Mike Mazurkivich 0 0-0 0, Pat Mitchell 2 0-0 4, Naseem Guillaume 0 0-0 0, Keemar Woodruff 0 0-0 0, Brennan Higgins 0 0-0 0, Jimmy Pliska 0 1-2 1, Brian Miller 1 1-2 3. Totals: 13 8-11 41.

Three-point goals — CRE 5 (Gegaris 4, Richards); PA (Klein 4, McGlynn 2).

Wyoming Area 46, Western Wayne 32

WYOMING AREA (46) — Anthony Nardell 3 0-0 8, Kyre Zielinski 2 2-2 6, Sam Greenfield 3 1-1 7, Tony Saitta 4 1-2 12, Matt Wright 3 2-3 8, Ryan Shuleski 1 0-0 3, Cole Keating 1 0-0 2. Totals 17 6-8 46.

WESTERN WAYNE (32) — Luke Pike 0 1-2 1, Scott Walck 1 0-0 2, Kobe Sauter 0 0-0 0, Zach Rowinsky 5 0-0 11, Dalton Frisbie 7 0-0 18, Dan Boots 0 0-0 0. Totals 13 1-2 32.

Wyoming Area`13`13`12`8 — 46

Western Wayne`3`10`10`9 — 32

Three-point goals — WA 6 (Saitta 3, Nardell 2, Shuleski); WW 5 (Frisbie 4, Rowinsky)

Northwest 52, Warrior Run 41

NORTHWEST (52) — Sam Saxe 7 6-7 22, Tyler Stevens 2 0-2 4, Jaxson Yaple 4 1 -2 10, Nick Levandowski 0 0-0 0, Mitchell Mazonkey 5 6-8 16, Walker Yaple 0 0-0 0. Jesse Tarnowski 0 0-0 0. Totals 18 13-19 52.

WARRIOR RUN (41) — Abulavich 2 1-2 5, Burrows 3 2-2 8, Hoffman 6 1-2 14, Rogers 4 0-0 8, Meyer 1 1-1 3, Hennigan 1 0-0 2, Beachel 0 0-0 0, Soltesz 0 0-0 0, Hazzem 0 0-2 0, Madilia 0 0-0 0. Totals 17 5-7 41.

Northwest`8`10`19`15 — 52

Warrior Run`8`15`4`14 — 41

Three-point goals — NW 3 (Saxe 2, J. Yaple); WR 1 (Hoffman)

Pittston Area’s Pat Mitchell goes up for the block against Crestwood’s Noah Jackson.
https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/12/web1_TTL122916HSBBCrestPitt1.jpg.optimal.jpgPittston Area’s Pat Mitchell goes up for the block against Crestwood’s Noah Jackson. Sean McKeag | Times Leader

Pittston Area’s Alex McAndrew dribbles past Crestwood’s Lance Blass.
https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/12/web1_TTL122916HSBBCrestPitt2.jpg.optimal.jpgPittston Area’s Alex McAndrew dribbles past Crestwood’s Lance Blass. Sean McKeag | Times Leader

Crestwood’s Kyle Gegaris (3) and teammate Kyle Richards double team Pittston Area’s Jimmy Pliska 21 during the championship game of the 51st annual Robert McGrane Holiday Tournament at the Wyoming Valley CYC Wednesday night.
https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/12/web1_TTL122916HSBBCrestPitt3.jpg.optimal.jpgCrestwood’s Kyle Gegaris (3) and teammate Kyle Richards double team Pittston Area’s Jimmy Pliska 21 during the championship game of the 51st annual Robert McGrane Holiday Tournament at the Wyoming Valley CYC Wednesday night. Sean McKeag | Times Leader
Point Guard scores 20 in 48-41 victory

By Tom Fox

For Times Leader

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