Union Cleaners ends losing streak

By JEREMY SELLEW

jsellew@yourmvi.com

It took well over a year, but Union Cleaners and head coach Kevin Kovach picked up their first win in Mon Valley Independent Summer Basketball League Boys Division play.

But the team made it crystal clear Tuesday in the division’s opening night, this is a different Union Cleaners team than last season’s, which went 0-10.

After allowing Elite Physical Therapy to come back and take a lead after an eight-point halftime deficit, Union Cleaners used an 8-0 run over a span of 1:27 late in the second half to pull away for a 71-60 win.

“Last season, rebounding killed us. We don’t have much size this season, but we did such a great job boxing out and getting rebounds,” Kovach said. “I can’t believe how many rebounds our smaller guys had tonight.”

Union Cleaners dominated the boards and was led in the scoring column by the league’s No. 1 draft pick, Laurel Highlands’ Brandon Davis.

Davis, a junior, finished with a game-high 27 points and grabbed 12 rebounds for a double-double. The key for Union Cleaners (1-0), was that they had a double-barrel attack thanks to Uniontown junior Bakari Wallace.

Wallace finished with 23 points for the winners and ripped down 15 rebounds for his team.

“Fifteen rebounds, that’s unbelievable. It’s all effort and Bakari was huge for us tonight,” Kovach said. “I knew when we drafted him that he’s from Uniontown, so he’s going to be a tough kid. We knew he could score, but he really surprised us and let Brandon do what Brandon does because they couldn’t really double him.”

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