Blatt enjoys senior moment
BUTLER TWP — On Senior Night, Kaden Blatt got his senior moment.
Butler’s 5-foot-7 senior guard sank a layup in the fourth quarter — his first career varsity bucket — in the Golden Tornado’s 70-52 non-section boys basketball win over Hempfield on Monday night.
“I’m so happy for him,” Butler coach Matt Clement said. “Kaden knows how much I respect him, how much the team respects him. Everyone on that bench was pulling for him. He was able to start the game, play the first quarter, come back in and score a bucket.
“This is why I love Senior Night. It’s not always about the 1,000-point scorer. High school basketball means different things to different people.”
Blatt tried out for the team his sophomore year, but had to be cut as a lot of kids showed up for tryouts that year and there weren’t enough jerseys.
“I don’t usually cut anybody, but I had to that year,” Clement said. “I asked Kaden to stay on as team manager that year and he did. He knows so much about the game. He’s like having another coach on the bench.
“If he came out for the team the next year — and he did — no way was I going to cut him.”
Butler (11-2) won its ninth game out of 10 and started five seniors: Blatt, Ayden Davis, Ian Lenhart, Andrew Lucas and Braylon Littlejohn. Like Blatt, Lucas and Lenhart are not usual starters.
The Tornado trailed 18-11 after the first quarter. Clement put his regular lineup on the floor in the second quarter, took a 36-31 lead into halftime and never trailed again. The lead peaked at 68-49 when Davis sank a layup with less than four minutes to play.
“All of the seniors who don’t normally start held their own in the first quarter,” Clement said. “We missed a lot of shots or the score would have been closer.”
Junior guard Tayt Lucas scored 14 of his game-high 17 points in the second quarter. He saqbnk six of seven shots from the floor, including four treys.
“I don’t think I’ve ever scored 14 points in a quarter before,” Lucas said. “Coach told us to be ready to come in and play. If we weren’t, he was sticking with the seniors.”
Littlejohn ad 17 points, seven assists, four rebounds and three steals for Butler. Donovan Carney had 16 points and a pair of steals.
Hempfield (3-13), which dropped its sixth straight, had 15 turnovers to Butler’s four. Aaron Woodley led the Spartans with 14 points while Max Williams tallied 12 points nine rebounds.
But this night was all about Blatt and the other Tornado seniors. Coleton Welter, normally a senior starter, gave up his starting spot for one of his senior teammates.
“It felt good getting that bucket,” Blatt admitted. “But my role here is to help the team as much as I can off the court. I’ve stayed around this program because of the atmosphere. I love being a part of it.”
Lucas emphasized Blatt’s importance to the team.
“He knows everything about all of our plays,” Lucas said. “When someone has a question in practice, we go to Kaden. His knowledge of the game is incredible.
“We respect that guy so much. He ... all of the seniors on this team ... play such a big role in our success.”
HEMPFIELD 52
Jack Kopas 0-0 0-0 0, Dylan Firmstone 3-4 0-0 7, Trevor Donsen 0-2 0-0 0, Dom Detruf 1-3 0-0 3, Danny Husentis 4-5 0-0 11, Caden Biondi 0-2 0-0 0, Max Willims 5-9 2-2 12, Drew Gordon 2-8 0-0 5, AAron Woodley 6-9 1-2 14, Alex Waitkus 0-2 0-0 0. Totals: 21-42 3-6 52.
BUTLER 70
Ayden Davis 4-7 0-0 8, Andrew Lucas 2-4 0-0 4, Braylon Littlejohn 7-10 2-2 17, Kaden Blatt 1-4 0-0 2, Ian Lenhart 0-4 0-0 0, Donovan Crney 7-12 0-0 16, Tayt Lucas 6-7 1-1 17, Strainton Forbes 0-4 0-0 0, Coleton Welter 2-5 2-2 6, Andrew Gettinger 0-0 0-0 0. Totals: 29-57 5-5 70.
Hempfield 18 13 11 10 — 52
Butler 11 25 21 13 — 70
3-point goals: Hempfield 7 (Firmstone, Detruf, Husentis 3, Gordon, Woodley); Butler 7 (Littlejohn, Carney 2, T.Lucas 4)
JV: Butler, 67-50 (H: Jack Kopas 16, Trevor Donsen 16; B: Andrew Gettinger 11, Jayden Wilbert 11)
Tuesday: Butler at Hampton
More in Sports
