WPIAL basketball playoffs: Jackson Bauman, Knoch prove toughness in 4A first-round win vs West Mifflin
-
Knoch's Teegan Finucan (21) scores in a WPIAL Class 4A boys basketball first-round game against West Mifflin at Knoch High School on Friday, Feb. 14, 2025. Morgan Phillips/Butler Eagle
-
Knoch's Zane Pacek (44) blocks West Mifflin from scoring in a WPIAL Class 4A boys basketball first-round game at Knoch High School on Friday, Feb. 14, 2025. Morgan Phillips/Butler Eagle
-
Knoch's Teegan Finucan (21) scores in a WPIAL Class 4A boys basketball first-round game against West Mifflin at Knoch High School on Friday, Feb. 14, 2025. Morgan Phillips/Butler Eagle
-
Knoch's Roman DeFelice (13) blocks West Mifflin in a WPIAL Class 4A boys basketball first-round game at Knoch High School on Friday, Feb. 14, 2025. Morgan Phillips/Butler Eagle
-
Knoch's Zane Pacek (44) battles for the ball with West Mifflin in a WPIAL Class 4A boys basketball first-round game at Knoch High School on Friday, Feb. 14, 2025. Morgan Phillips/Butler Eagle
-
Knoch's Liam Avon (24) blocks West Mifflin in a WPIAL Class 4A boys basketball first-round game at Knoch High School on Friday, Feb. 14, 2025. Morgan Phillips/Butler Eagle
-
Knoch's Vincent DeFelice (30) scores in a WPIAL Class 4A boys basketball first-round game against West Mifflin at Knoch High School on Friday, Feb. 14, 2025. Morgan Phillips/Butler Eagle
-
Knoch's Jackson Bauman (3) watches West Mifflin pass the ball in a WPIAL Class 4A boys basketball first-round game at Knoch High School on Friday, Feb. 14, 2025. Morgan Phillips/Butler Eagle
-
Knoch's Jackson Bauman (3) scores in a WPIAL Class 4A boys basketball first-round game against West Mifflin at Knoch High School on Friday, Feb. 14, 2025. Morgan Phillips/Butler Eagle
-
Knoch's Derek Lang (2) blocks West Mifflin from scoring in a WPIAL Class 4A boys basketball first-round game at Knoch High School on Friday, Feb. 14, 2025. Morgan Phillips/Butler Eagle
-
Knoch's Zane Pacek (44) passes the ball in a WPIAL Class 4A boys basketball first-round game against West Mifflin at Knoch High School on Friday, Feb. 14, 2025. Morgan Phillips/Butler Eagle
-
Knoch's Brody Bauman (5) blocks West Mifflin in a WPIAL Class 4A boys basketball first-round game at Knoch High School on Friday, Feb. 14, 2025. Morgan Phillips/Butler Eagle
-
Knoch's Liam Avon (24) rebounds the ball against West Mifflin after a failed scored in a WPIAL Class 4A boys basketball first-round game at Knoch High School on Friday, Feb. 14, 2025. Morgan Phillips/Butler Eagle
-
Knoch's Jackson Bauman (3) tries to steal the ball from West Mifflin in a WPIAL Class 4A boys basketball first-round game at Knoch High School on Friday, Feb. 14, 2025. Morgan Phillips/Butler Eagle
-
Knoch's Teegan Finucan (21) drives the ball down the court in a WPIAL Class 4A boys basketball first-round game against West Mifflin at Knoch High School on Friday, Feb. 14, 2025. Morgan Phillips/Butler Eagle
-
Knoch's boys basketball team celebrates their win against West Mifflin in a WPIAL Class 4A boys basketball first-round game at Knoch High School on Friday, Feb. 14, 2025. Morgan Phillips/Butler Eagle
-
Knoch's Jackson Bauman (3), left, and Zane Pacek (44) prevent West Mifflin from scoring in a WPIAL Class 4A boys basketball first-round game at Knoch High School on Friday, Feb. 14, 2025. Morgan Phillips/Butler Eagle
-
Knoch's Jackson Bauman (3), left, and Zane Pacek (44) prevent West Mifflin from scoring in a WPIAL Class 4A boys basketball first-round game at Knoch High School on Friday, Feb. 14, 2025. Morgan Phillips/Butler Eagle
-
Knoch's Teegan Finucan (21) and Roman DeFelice (13) block West Mifflin in a WPIAL Class 4A boys basketball first-round game at Knoch High School on Friday, Feb. 14, 2025. Morgan Phillips/Butler Eagle
-
Knoch's Jackson Bauman (3) tries to steal the ball from West Mifflin in a WPIAL Class 4A boys basketball first-round game at Knoch High School on Friday, Feb. 14, 2025. Morgan Phillips/Butler Eagle
-
Knoch's Roman DeFelice (13) drives the ball down the court in a WPIAL Class 4A boys basketball first-round game against West Mifflin at Knoch High School on Friday, Feb. 14, 2025. Morgan Phillips/Butler Eagle
-
Knoch's Liam Avon (24) looks to pass the ball in a WPIAL Class 4A boys basketball first-round game against West Mifflin at Knoch High School on Friday, Feb. 14, 2025. Morgan Phillips/Butler Eagle
-
Knoch's Derek Lang (2) attempts to make it to the netin a WPIAL Class 4A boys basketball first-round game against West Mifflin at Knoch High School on Friday, Feb. 14, 2025. Morgan Phillips/Butler Eagle
-
Knoch's Jackson Bauman (3) dribbles the ball while watching the clock wind down in a WPIAL Class 4A boys basketball first-round game against West Mifflin at Knoch High School on Friday, Feb. 14, 2025. Morgan Phillips/Butler Eagle
-
Knoch's Derek Lang (2) and Roman DeFelice (13) prevent West Mifflin from scoring in a WPIAL Class 4A boys basketball first-round game at Knoch High School on Friday, Feb. 14, 2025. Morgan Phillips/Butler Eagle
-
Knoch's Teegan Finucan (21) dribbles the ball down the court past West Mifflin's Arnez Logan (24) in a WPIAL Class 4A boys basketball first-round game against West Mifflin at Knoch High School on Friday, Feb. 14, 2025. Morgan Phillips/Butler Eagle
-
Knoch's Derek Lang (2) and Roman DeFelice (13) prevent West Mifflin from scoring in a WPIAL Class 4A boys basketball first-round game at Knoch High School on Friday, Feb. 14, 2025. Morgan Phillips/Butler Eagle
-
Knoch's Jackson Bauman, left, battles for the ball with West Mifflin’s Julian Dewberry (5) in a WPIAL Class 4A boys basketball first-round game at Knoch High School on Friday, Feb. 14, 2025. Morgan Phillips/Butler Eagle
-
Knoch's Jackson Bauman (3) battles for the ball with West Mifflin’s Julian Dewberry in a WPIAL Class 4A boys basketball first-round game at Knoch High School on Friday, Feb. 14, 2025. Morgan Phillips/Butler Eagle
JEFFERSON TWP — Jackson Bauman sat on the floor by midcourt and pressed his hand to his face. Supportive fans jeered from behind him at the officials.
With 3:25 to play in the opening frame of Friday night’s WPIAL Class 4A first-round boys basketball playoff game against West Mifflin, Knoch’s standout junior approached the bench. Red stained his front teeth and a metallic taste filled his mouth.
“I went for the loose ball, and the kid dived on the ball,” said Bauman, whose Knights were down 7-1 as he tried to make the play. “My teeth cut my lip, but it’s all good now.”
“Basketball play,” said Alan Bauman, the Knights’ coach and Jackson’s father. “You know, it happens.”
Scoreless when he momentarily exited, the younger Bauman returned with a vengeance. He scored a game-high 30 points as No. 5 Knoch beat the 12th-seeded Titans 56-23. The Knights will visit No. 4 Avonworth in Wednesday’s quarterfinals at a time to be determined.
Bauman fell just short of tying his career-best 31 in front of a home crowd.
“I saw the way the game was going, and I was like, ‘I need to do something,’” Jackson Bauman said. “I was able to do that.”
“He was upset,” his father said, “but for him to come in and respond like that, we needed that spark tonight.”
The Knights (17-6) scored just that one point during the first 6:18, then Bauman sank a pair of free throws. After that, he drove and was fouled on a layup before completing a traditional three-point play. During the next quarter, he swished back-to-back 3-pointers as part of a 15-point frame.
“I thought we came out tight,” Alan Bauman said. “You know, we missed some makeable shots early, and then we let them get loose in transition a little bit. I thought we showed our maturity tonight of, you know, to stay with it defending, and then finally getting into a little bit of a rhythm offensively.”
“We didn’t expect them to come out like they did, and we were a little shy of it,” Jackson Bauman said.
Bauman’s second and-one, which occurred 2:05 into the second quarter, gave Knoch a permanent lead over the Titans (8-15).
West Mifflin coach Hal Minford pointed out his side’s nine missed first-half free throws haunted them.
“We just got out early and then couldn’t put the ball in the hoop,” Minford said. “I mean, 19 (points) at halftime, we played their game. You know, they run a 2-2-1 zone to slow things down, and we played into it.”
The Knights’ defense never wavered. Their 69-22 section win over Valley on Jan. 17 is the only instance in which they allowed an opponent fewer points.
Knoch entered having allowed the third-fewest points per game (46.1) in WPIAL Class 4A this season, behind Central Valley (42.6) and Quaker Valley (46). The Knights have now held opponents to under 50 points on 15 different occasions this season.
“Defense is about effort and having pride, and we’ve had that all year,” Alan Bauman said. “To hold a team to four points in the second half — and they jumped out (to an 8-1 lead) — and to end a game on a 55-15 run, that’s because we defended and we rebounded.”
“Our defense drives our offense, that’s the way we look at it,” Bauman said. “If we get stops, that means we can get in transition and do what we want to do. ... Just physical, half-court man, and then we’ll switch it up.”
Knoch learned neither a bloody lip nor an early hole could deter it.
“We want to be tough, and we thought West Mifflin’s a big, strong, physical team,” Alan Bauman said. “The tougher team was going to win tonight, and that’s our personality. ... We want to win every inch.”
WEST MIFFLIN 23
Jose Perez 2 1-2 5, James Rideout 1 1-2 4, Isaiah Morrison 1 2-4 4, Daven Reynolds 1 1-4 3, Carmelo Yarbough 1 0-4 2, Joziah Smithwick 1 0-1 2, Julian Dewberry 1 0-0 2, Jerome Corbett 0 1-2 1. Totals: 8 6-19 23.
KNOCH 56
Jackson Bauman 11 6-6 30, Teegan Finucan 5 1-3 12, Roman DeFelice 2 0-0 6, Vinnie DeFelice 2 1-2 5, Zane Pacek 1 1-2 3. Totals: 21 9-13 56.
West Mifflin 9 10 3 1 — 23
Knoch 7 20 15 14 — 56
3-point goals: Knoch (Bauman 2, R. DeFelice 2, Finucan); West Mifflin 1 (Rideout)
Wednesday: Knoch at Avonworth, WPIAL 4A quarterfinal, site and time TBD
