Smith, Howell lead Hounds over visiting Eagles, 92-50

By Dean Dellamalva Jr.

MVI Sports

Entering Friday night, the Monessen boys basketball team suffered two tough section losses in a row at the hands of Geibel Catholic and Bishop Canevin. 

The Greyhounds needed to respond against visiting Avella, and that’s exactly what they did.

Overcoming another slow start, the Hounds dominated the boards, forced 30 turnovers and crushed the Eagles, 92-50, in Section 2-A play. 

Dawayne Howell notched a double-double for Monessen (8-12, 7-3), scoring 19 points with 11 rebounds. He also had five steals. The Hounds took over in the final two minutes of the opening quarter by outscoring Avella, 12-1.

“We were able to pressure them and that was the difference,” Monessen coach Dan Bosnic said. “We made a change defensively and we were able to get easy baskets. We put ourselves in a position to get layups, that is what happened during that early run.”

The other big difference in the game was on the boards, which was an area dominated by Monessen. In the first half, the Greyhounds had a 26-7 advantage on the glass, many of which came on the offensive end. For the game, the Hounds grabbed 44 rebounds to only 17 for the Eagles. Those extra opportunities helped Monessen grow its lead.

“We need those because we do struggle to score the basketball,” Bosnic said of the rebounding. “When we’re getting second and third opportunities, it makes a big difference for us.”

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