Kisan’s heroics lift Tigers to upset over LH

By Jose Negron
jnegron@yourmvi.com

There wasn’t much Brison Kisan didn’t do well Saturday afternoon.
In an early-season nonsection showdown with Laurel Highlands, Kisan scored in bunches, served as a steady presence on the boards and came up clutch when McKeesport needed him most.
Kisan, who fell one rebound short of a double-double, finished with a career-high 34 points, including a trio of free throws with less than a second remaining, to lead the Tigers to a dramatic 77-74 victory over the Mustangs at Neenie Campbell Gymnasium.
“Last year, scoring wasn’t my role,” said Kisan, who poured in 19 points in the second half and went 13 of 16 from the free throw line. “With (Deamontae Diggs) here, that was his role. Now with him gone, I feel like I need to take the lead.”
Following an LH turnover and a time out with just over two seconds left in regulation, the Tigers (2-0) looked to bring the ball in near midcourt with the game tied at 74-74.
Kisan inbounded to teammate Travarese Rowe, who pitched it back to Kisan for a desperation 3-pointer at the buzzer. While the shot was off line, Kisan was fouled and given the opportunity to sink the free throws that gave McKeesport its second win in as many days.
“We ran the give and go near the sideline before and got a layup, so my thought was they would overplay that and Rowe could turn around and have the jumper,” McKeesport head coach Kevin Kovach said. “I would have been comfortable with either Travarese or Brison taking it, so it worked out well.”
Kisan was able to outduel Laurel Highlands standout Rodney Gallagher, who was just as valuable to his team’s efforts. The sophomore scored a team-high 31 points for the defending WPIAL champion Mustangs (0-1).
“We saw the best player in Pennsylvania in Rodney Gallagher here, and Brison went man to man with him,” Kovach said. “Brison is Brison and I’m not surprised by this. He’s the hardest worker and he can’t be guarded getting to the basket, I haven’t seen anyone who can stop him from getting to the hoop. He added the jump shot now, too, so it’s a wrap.”
Gallagher was limited to just 11 points in the first half before netting 20 in the final 16 minutes.
Early in the fourth quarter with his team trailing by as many as nine points, Gallagher scored eight points during an 11-4 run that cut LH’s deficit from 63-54 to 67-65 with over four minutes to go.
“He singlehandedly brought them back into the game,” Kovach said. “He’s a special player.”
Kovach was quick to credit the defensive efforts of Caiden Holtzman, who missed a pair of late free throws in the junior varsity game before bouncing back to play a big role in keeping Gallagher somewhat contained.
“He did as good of a job as you can do on Rod Gallagher,” Kovach said. “There is nobody in this state that is going to stop him, but Caiden did a fantastic job.”
Gallagher was joined in double figures by teammates Brandon Davis (14 points) and Jayden Pratt (11).
Kisan was a part of a balanced scoring attack for the Tigers, too, as Rowe poured in 18 points and collected 12 rebounds. Kahreke Andrews, who Kovach refers to as “Baby Barkley,” added 11 points.
“This is the kind of team we have, one where every night it can be someone different stepping up,” Kovach said. “That’s why I think it’s a special team this year.”
After working through foul trouble in the first half and trailing by three points at halftime, McKeesport came back to tie the game three times in the third quarter.
With the game tied at 44-44 and 2:28 on the clock, Kisan scored two of his six points during a 10-2 run that gave McKeesport a 54-46 edge.
That lead was trimmed to four early in the final frame, but a Holtzman three and a Kisan jumper made it a nine-point cushion before Gallagher led LH on its late rally.
“We knew what a big game it was and we knew people weren’t picking McKeesport to do anything. That’s fine, actually I appreciate them for doing that because I’d much rather be the underdog,” Kovach said. “We’re from ‘the Port,’ we’re automatically underdogs to begin with, so we’re a lot better in that role than as the favorites.”
While Kovach wants his team to take time to enjoy their hard-fought victory over the talented Mustangs, he’s determined to ensure their focus turns to Tuesday’s matchup with Latrobe.
He might not have too much trouble accomplishing that task, considering the confidence and momentum his group is taking into section play.
“LH had a good year last year and I think they’ll be contending again this year,” Kisan said. “We have a special team here, too, though. I think we’ll be right there with them.”