It’s been an unusual high school basketball season thus far in that around the area there have been relatively few players who have topped the 1,000-point scoring milestone thus far.
In fact, up to this point in the year - well over halfway into the regular season - there have been just three area players who have topped 1,000 points for their careers, all from Somerset County schools and all since 2011 began.
In comparison, last season at this point, there had already been six players who had topped the mark. There were
16 area players in all during the 2009-10 season who went over 1,000 points.
This year, Berlin’s Alex Will holds the distinction of being the first to top 1,000 points.
The 6-foot-5 senior forward hit the mark with a 19-point output on Jan. 17 against Ferndale.
A three-year starer for North Star, the Cougars’ Jake Fleegle needed 11 points to become the seventh player in the school’s history (from 1970 to the present), to reach the plateau, doing so two days after Will in a win over WestPAC North rival Conemaugh Valley.
The 6-5 forward, who has been a proven leader with North Star, saw former teammates Luke Zellem and Alijah Petrilla hit the mark during his career. One of the other Cougars’ with the milestone includes the school’s all-time scoring leader Drew Shubik, who had 1,893 points. Shubik went on to play for Sacred Heart in the Northeast Conference.
The other 1,000-point scorers for North Star are Joe Shubik, Drew’s older brother, Jake Yoder and Dave Poehner.
Shade senior guard Kenny Gibbons scored his 1,000th point on Tuesday in the Panthers surprising loss to Conemaugh Township.
Gibbons attributed his scoring success to challenges from former teammates.
“Playing with the three 1,000-point scorers my freshman and sophomore years helped tremendously,” Gibbons said of graduates Joel Kaminsky, Josh Barnes and Garrett Berkey. “I don’t think I’d be where I am now without those three and going with them every day in practice. It was tough but it really paid off in the end.”
Coach Wade Fyock added: “I’m proud of Kenny for getting his 1,000 points. This (loss) kind of tempers the enthusiasm, but he’s always been the consummate team player. I’m sure he’ll remember this game and his 1,000 points ended up with a loss. But we’re all proud of Ken for his accomplishments and the loss doesn’t detract from that.”
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Other milestones: In addition to the 1,000-point milestone, there have been several other achievements among area teams.
On Jan. 19, Shanksville-Stonycreek shattered a school record for most 3-pointers in a single game with 12 against WestPAC South Section rival Salisbury-Elk Lick. The previous mark was 10.
Also, 16-year Cambria Heights girls coach Lee Stanek hit his 200th win mark on
Jan. 17 in his team’s victory over Bedford.
And, Forest Hills senior. Luke Gallaher set a school record for points on Jan. 19 against Johnstown. The record of 1,599 points that Gallaher eclipsed was set by Dave Richardson in 1985.
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Over the mountain: Greater Johntown lost its junior point guard Mark Watson right after the beginning of the year.
“Mark had to move to Altoona,” said Trojans head coach Neil Cobaugh. “At the start of the season, he was our starting point guard and it was a great loss for us. These kids played together with him for years. But the rest of the team has had to pick it up and have done a nice job picking up the slack.”
Watson, who was the MVP of the UPJ Tournament in December, is playing for the Mountain Lions, and has been a key contributor for the team while working to achieve more chemistry with his new teammates.
Johnstown is currently 11-1 overall, 8-1 in the Laurel Highlands Athletic Conference and still unbeaten at 6-0 in Section 2.
While the Trojans sit atop their section, Forest Hills holds the lead in Section 1.
The Rangers are the squad that handed Johnstown its only loss thus far, in a contest that was decided in overtime.
The two squads could end up playing for the Laurel Highlands title then running into each other again in the District 6 Class AAA playoffs. The Trojans are the two-time defending champions in Class AAA.
“Johnstown is the most athletic team we’ve faced this year and it’s satisfying to get this win, but we know we might see them again in the playoffs,” Forest Hills coach Lance McGough said after his team’s victory on Jan. 19. “Johnstown has been the team that elimitated us from the playoffs the last two years.”
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Cory Isenberg | 1,000-point mark elusive this season
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