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Girard downs Campbell for first AAC Blue win
By Jon Moffett
Campbell
For first-year Girard coach Nolan Cubellis, the scoreboard clock in the Campbell Memorial High gym seemed to move in hours rather than seconds.
But when those final seconds finally expired, Cubellis and his Indians basketball team had their first conference win of the season — and the first of his tenure.
Afterward, a reserved Cubellis addressed the game. And despite earning his first conference win, he wasn’t jumping for joy or popping any champagne.
“It was great, but the clock just didn’t seem like it was moving fast enough in that fourth quarter,” he said with a smile after the 56-46 win. “That’s a great win for us. We came off a disappointing loss where we had a lead in our first conference game, and for them to bounce back here and get the win, I’m very proud of them.”
The Indians (2-7, 1-1 AAC Blue) got a good performance from senior point guard Mat Pagano. He led all scorers with 17 points and provided his team with solid defense and leadership.
Cubellis said the 6-foot Pagano is an extension of the coaching staff when he’s on the court. And he is also the team’s emotional leader and leading scorer.
“He’s a three-year starter and he understands pressure,” Cubellis said of Pagano. “He’s strong with the ball and he does a good job for us.”
Pagano said the win was huge, especially after a game he felt the Indians should have won against Champion earlier this year.
“We didn’t have many conference wins last year, and this one is just a huge building block to give us some good momentum,” he said. “We lost a cheap one at Champion and we should be 2-0 in the conference. So this was a huge one for us.”
The Indians had just three other scorers besides Pagano, but three of them had 10 or more points. Mike Bornemiss was second in line with 12 points, followed by Patrick Rhodes with 11 and A.J. Weibel with 10.
Three players also scored in the double figures for the Red Devils (4-6, 1-1 AAC Blue). Leading the pack was senior Claxton Lebron with 14. But Lebron’s time on the court was limited because of foul trouble. Lebron had three fouls in the first half and sat for about eight minutes to bridge halftime.
Senior Ty Underwood picked up the slack in his teammate’s absence, but the team still trailed 32-25 at halftime.
Head coach Brian Danilov praised Cubellis and the Girard program for their intensity and game plan.
“You have to give credit to Girard, their coaching staff did a really good job tonight,” he said. “They came to play hard, and their kids played well.”
But aside from the praise, Danilov didn’t have many positive things to say about his squad. Actually, he really didn’t have much to say at all.
“You want something you can put in the paper? Basically, we need to learn how to put four quarters of effort and team play together,” he said.
One of the main reasons the Indians were so successful was a play Cubellis drew up.
While he wouldn’t reveal the play — we’ll just call it “Play X” — he explained how it works.
“Basically, it’s just a screen-and-roll where we try to get mismatches,” he said. “Pagano is pretty heady and knows what to do when he has a mismatch. We try to get him at the top of the key with some space so he can either drive and kick it out, or drive and go to the hoop.”