Butler, Knoch girls drop hoops openers
MANOR TWP, Armstrong County — For Knoch, it was because of an eight-minute second-half dry spell. In Butler’s case, it was due to the struggle of inserting less-experienced talent into spots left empty by departed stalwarts.
Both girls basketball teams were bested in their regular-season openers Friday night at the Armstrong Tournament. The Knights were turned away by Kiski Area by a 50-38 final, while the Golden Tornado lost to host Armstrong, 62-38.
Knoch, a runner-up in WPIAL Class 4A last year, had some trouble out of the gate. Less than six minutes in, they trailed the Cavaliers by 10.
“We’ve had a slow start in both our scrimmage games and today,” Andreassi said. “That’s my responsibility to get that figured out and get these girls better prepared to play ... We’ve just got to work hard, do what we do, and do it better.”
The Knights would shake the rust off and overcome the deficit with a surge in the second frame but, after going into the half up by seven, their offense went quiet.
They’d only sink one bucket in the third quarter. A scoreless stretch of 8:10 followed, allowing Kiski Area to take over.
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