BVA’s press too much for Mt. Pleasant to handle

By Jose Negron

jnegron@yourmvi.com

After a pair of signature victories over Elizabeth Forward and Laurel Highlands earlier in the week, Belle Vernon Area head coach Joe Salvino didn’t want to see a letdown from his group Friday night. 

The Leopards hosted visiting Mt. Pleasant and continued their winning ways, rolling to a 78-39 victory in Section 3-4A action. 

“They disappointed me in the first couple of minutes, but then after that we picked the defense up,” Salvino said. “That helped us create a lot of turnovers and create transition points off of that.” 

BVA’s speed and pressure defense made a difference all night long but especially so in the first half. Mt. Pleasant (2-4, 2-2) committed 20 of its 28 turnovers in the opening 16 minutes and fell into a 27-point hole heading into halftime.

“Their press really hurt us,” Mt. Pleasant head coach T.J. Kravits said. “We hung with them a little while, at least the majority of the first quarter, but they called a timeout, ratcheted up the pressure and our kids couldn’t handle it.” 

Senior Jake Haney hit big shot after big shot for the Leopards (4-1, 3-0) as he drained five 3-pointers and finished with a game-high 25 points. He collected 21 by halftime. 

“Jake played a really good game and not just offensively, but defensively as well,” Salvino said. “He’s a senior and he realizes this is it for him. He really wants to go out on a good note. He doesn’t want to disappoint and he’s doing his best to take every game seriously.”

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