Butler digs itself WPIAL boys basketball section hole with third straight loss to New Castle
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Butler's Stainton Forbes shoots over a New Castle defender in a boys basketball game Friday, Dec. 20, 2024, at Butler High School. Rob McGraw/Butler Eagle
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Butler's Tayt Lucas (12) drives the ball past New Castle's Kyrell Harris (3) in a boys basketball game Friday, Dec. 20, 2024, at Butler High School. Rob McGraw/Butler Eagle
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Butler's Tayt Lucas (12) shoots over New Castle's Damian Harrison (2) to score in a boys basketball game Friday, Dec. 20, 2024, at Butler High School. Rob McGraw/Butler Eagle
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The Butler boys basketball team fell to New Castle 62-60 in a boys basketball game on Friday, Dec. 20, 2024, at Butler High School. Rob McGraw/Butler Eagle
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The Butler boys basketball team fell to New Castle 62-60 in a boys basketball game on Friday, Dec. 20, 2024, at Butler High School. Rob McGraw/Butler Eagle
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The Butler boys basketball team fell to New Castle 62-60 in a boys basketball game on Friday, Dec. 20, 2024, at Butler High School. Rob McGraw/Butler Eagle
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The Butler boys basketball team fell to New Castle 62-60 in a boys basketball game on Friday, Dec. 20, 2024, at Butler High School. Rob McGraw/Butler Eagle
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The Butler boys basketball team fell to New Castle 62-60 in a boys basketball game on Friday, Dec. 20, 2024, at Butler High School. Rob McGraw/Butler Eagle
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The Butler boys basketball team fell to New Castle 62-60 in a boys basketball game on Friday, Dec. 20, 2024, at Butler High School. Rob McGraw/Butler Eagle
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The Butler boys basketball team fell to New Castle 62-60 in a boys basketball game on Friday, Dec. 20, 2024, at Butler High School. Rob McGraw/Butler Eagle
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The Butler boys basketball team fell to New Castle 62-60 in a boys basketball game on Friday, Dec. 20, 2024, at Butler High School. Rob McGraw/Butler Eagle
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The Butler boys basketball team fell to New Castle 62-60 in a boys basketball game on Friday, Dec. 20, 2024, at Butler High School. Rob McGraw/Butler Eagle
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The Butler boys basketball team fell to New Castle 62-60 in a boys basketball game on Friday, Dec. 20, 2024, at Butler High School. Rob McGraw/Butler Eagle
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The Butler boys basketball team fell to New Castle 62-60 in a boys basketball game on Friday, Dec. 20, 2024, at Butler High School. Rob McGraw/Butler Eagle
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The Butler boys basketball team fell to New Castle 62-60 in a boys basketball game on Friday, Dec. 20, 2024, at Butler High School. Rob McGraw/Butler Eagle
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The Butler boys basketball team fell to New Castle 62-60 in a boys basketball game on Friday, Dec. 20, 2024, at Butler High School. Rob McGraw/Butler Eagle
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The Butler boys basketball team fell to New Castle 62-60 in a boys basketball game on Friday, Dec. 20, 2024, at Butler High School. Rob McGraw/Butler Eagle
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The Butler boys basketball team fell to New Castle 62-60 in a boys basketball game on Friday, Dec. 20, 2024, at Butler High School. Rob McGraw/Butler Eagle
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The Butler boys basketball team fell to New Castle 62-60 in a boys basketball game on Friday, Dec. 20, 2024, at Butler High School. Rob McGraw/Butler Eagle
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The Butler boys basketball team fell to New Castle 62-60 in a boys basketball game on Friday, Dec. 20, 2024, at Butler High School. Rob McGraw/Butler Eagle
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The Butler boys basketball team fell to New Castle 62-60 in a boys basketball game on Friday, Dec. 20, 2024, at Butler High School. Rob McGraw/Butler Eagle
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The Butler boys basketball team fell to New Castle 62-60 in a boys basketball game on Friday, Dec. 20, 2024, at Butler High School. Rob McGraw/Butler Eagle
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The Butler boys basketball team fell to New Castle 62-60 in a boys basketball game on Friday, Dec. 20, 2024, at Butler High School. Rob McGraw/Butler Eagle
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The Butler boys basketball team fell to New Castle 62-60 in a boys basketball game on Friday, Dec. 20, 2024, at Butler High School. Rob McGraw/Butler Eagle
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The Butler boys basketball team fell to New Castle 62-60 in a boys basketball game on Friday, Dec. 20, 2024, at Butler High School. Rob McGraw/Butler Eagle
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The Butler boys basketball team fell to New Castle 62-60 in a boys basketball game on Friday, Dec. 20, 2024, at Butler High School. Rob McGraw/Butler Eagle
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The Butler boys basketball team fell to New Castle 62-60 in a boys basketball game on Friday, Dec. 20, 2024, at Butler High School. Rob McGraw/Butler Eagle
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The Butler boys basketball team fell to New Castle 62-60 in a boys basketball game on Friday, Dec. 20, 2024, at Butler High School. Rob McGraw/Butler Eagle
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The Butler boys basketball team fell to New Castle 62-60 in a boys basketball game on Friday, Dec. 20, 2024, at Butler High School. Rob McGraw/Butler Eagle
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The Butler boys basketball team fell to New Castle 62-60 in a boys basketball game on Friday, Dec. 20, 2024, at Butler High School. Rob McGraw/Butler Eagle
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The Butler boys basketball team fell to New Castle 62-60 in a boys basketball game on Friday, Dec. 20, 2024, at Butler High School. Rob McGraw/Butler Eagle
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The Butler boys basketball team fell to New Castle 62-60 in a boys basketball game on Friday, Dec. 20, 2024, at Butler High School. Rob McGraw/Butler Eagle
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The Butler boys basketball team fell to New Castle 62-60 in a boys basketball game on Friday, Dec. 20, 2024, at Butler High School. Rob McGraw/Butler Eagle
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The Butler boys basketball team fell to New Castle 62-60 in a boys basketball game on Friday, Dec. 20, 2024, at Butler High School. Rob McGraw/Butler Eagle
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The Butler boys basketball team fell to New Castle 62-60 in a boys basketball game on Friday, Dec. 20, 2024, at Butler High School. Rob McGraw/Butler Eagle
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The Butler boys basketball team fell to New Castle 62-60 in a boys basketball game on Friday, Dec. 20, 2024, at Butler High School. Rob McGraw/Butler Eagle
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The Butler boys basketball team fell to New Castle 62-60 in a boys basketball game on Friday, Dec. 20, 2024, at Butler High School. Rob McGraw/Butler Eagle
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The Butler boys basketball team fell to New Castle 62-60 in a boys basketball game on Friday, Dec. 20, 2024, at Butler High School. Rob McGraw/Butler Eagle
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The Butler boys basketball team fell to New Castle 62-60 in a boys basketball game on Friday, Dec. 20, 2024, at Butler High School. Rob McGraw/Butler Eagle
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The Butler boys basketball team fell to New Castle 62-60 in a boys basketball game on Friday, Dec. 20, 2024, at Butler High School. Rob McGraw/Butler Eagle
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The Butler boys basketball team fell to New Castle 62-60 in a boys basketball game on Friday, Dec. 20, 2024, at Butler High School. Rob McGraw/Butler Eagle
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The Butler boys basketball team fell to New Castle 62-60 in a boys basketball game on Friday, Dec. 20, 2024, at Butler High School. Rob McGraw/Butler Eagle
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The Butler boys basketball team fell to New Castle 62-60 in a boys basketball game on Friday, Dec. 20, 2024, at Butler High School. Rob McGraw/Butler Eagle
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The Butler boys basketball team fell to New Castle 62-60 in a boys basketball game on Friday, Dec. 20, 2024, at Butler High School. Rob McGraw/Butler Eagle
BUTLER TWP — Butler boys basketball appeared to get the stop it needed.
The basketball didn’t cooperate.
New Castle freshmen Kai Cox drove to the basket with time running out in a tie game Friday night in the Golden Tornado gym. He lost his footing under the hoop, the loose ball getting picked up by teammate Damian Harrison, who laid it into the basket with less than a second remaining to give the Red Hurricane a 62-60 boys Section 1-6A victory.
“I thought we got the stop we needed,” Butler coach Matt Clement said. “But the ball didn’t bounce our way.”
Butler (5-3, 0-3) had tied the game at 60 on a pair of Ayden Andrews free throws with 8.6 seconds remaining, setting up the dramatic finish.
“We wanted Kai to have the ball going downhill, get the ball to the rim, maybe get a tip-in or something,” New Castle coach Ralph Blundo said. “Kai lost the handle, but fortunately, we had two guys underneath to their one.
“At that point, on that play ... yeah, it was a numbers game.”
While the Tornado had the lead in this game for fewer than two total minutes, New Castle (7-0, 3-0) never had a lead greater than six points. That was at 33-27 with 33 seconds left before halftime. Andrews’ free throws created the seventh tie of the contest.
“This is such a classic rivalry,” Blundo said. “It’s a respectful one, too. That’s what I like most about it.”
Clement said it was “a great basketball game ... a lot of fun when you win it, not so much fun when you lose. But I’m seeing definite signs of improvement over these last two games.”
Butler is winless in section play thus far, its past two defeats are by a combined six points.
While the Red Hurricane turned the ball over only five times all night, the Tornado forced a critical one when Mavrik Clement jarred the ball loose and Stainton Forbes grabbed it near midcourt with a minute to play and Butler trailing 59-56. Andrew Gettinger canned a jumper to pull the hosts within a point.
Ralphie Blundo sank one of two free throws with 12.3 seconds remaining. Andrews went to the line four seconds later to score the tying points.
“Our players bailed their coach out in the end,” Coach Blundo said. “I should have called a timeout after (Ralphie’s) free throw to set up our defense, and I didn’t. But we made the play in the end.”
Cox led the Red Hurricane with 20 points, seven rebounds and four assists. Blundo added 18 points — including five treys — and four boards, Harrison had 12 points, four rebounds and three steals.
Forbes led the Tornado with 17 points, seven rebounds and three assists. Gettinger contributed 17 points and five boards, Andrews 13 points and Tayt Lucas 12 points and three assists.
“We’re in a bit of a hole right now,” Clement said of the section standings. “But there’s a lot of games left to be played, a long way to go. We need to get better in all areas, and we’re starting to do that. We made some plays at crunch time tonight that we hadn’t been making in previous games.
“Losing is not OK. There are no moral victories. But we’re competing hard. I’m seeing a lot of positive signs right now.”
NEW CASTLE 62
Damian Harrison 6-17 0-0 12, Kyrel Harris 3-6 2-2 10, Ralphie Blundo 5-12 3-4 18, Kai Cox 10-18 0-0 20, Nate McKnight 1-2 0-0 2, Noreaga Jackson 0-0 0-0 0, Chase Lemmon 0-0 0-0 0, Kingston Russell 0-0 0-0 0. Totals: 25-55 5-6 62.
BUTLER 60
Ayden Andrews 3-6 6-6 13, Jace Gratzmiller 0-0 0-0 0, Stainton Forbes 5-7 4-5 17, Mavrik Clement 0-1 1-2 1, Kyle Casteel 0-3 0-0 0, Tayt Lucas 5-11 2-2 12, Andrew Gettinger 6-9 2-2 17. Totals: 19-37 15-17 60.
New Castle 14 19 16 13 — 62
Butler 16 13 17 14 — 60
3-point goals: New Castle 7 (Harris 2, Blundo 5), Butler 7 (Andrews, Forbes 3, Gettinger 3)
JV: New Castle, 65-41 (NC: Noreaga Jackson 13, Travis Whetsell 13, Mason Cook 10; B: Cael Hanley 15)
Dec. 28: Taylor Allderdice at Butler
