New Castle is headed back to the WPIAL Championship Game as they took down Mt. Lebanon in a 6A semifinal at North Allegheny.
It was back and forth early as the lead changed multiple times. New Castle freshman, Kai Cox, had four quick points, but he also picked up two quick fouls. He was in foul trouble a lot in this one, but that didn’t stop him from being effective.
Down 8-4, Mt. Lebanon junior, Carter Gould, knocked down back to back threes to give Mt. Lebo a 10-8 lead midway through the first. New Castle senior, Ralphie Blundo, sank a three of his own as he started to heat up in the quarter. He followed up the three with his second and-one and had New Castle in front at the end of the first quarter by a score of 16-14. Blundo led all scorers with 10.
Junior, Damian Harrison, made his presence felt for New Castle in the second by scoring the first 4 points of the quarter. The 6’4” Harrison is a mega athlete. He makes highlight plays seemingly every night on the floor.
Mt. Lebo junior, Liam Sheely, would get going in the second quarter as well, getting an and-one to go and giving him 6 points so far in the game. Harrison followed up his own miss with a putback, giving New Castle a 22-17 lead, as he had all of the points in the quarter for the Hurricanes.
The foul total for Mt. Lebo was starting to rack up in the quarter with Ralphie Blundo drawing fouls multiple times down the floor as the Lebo guards were having a hard time staying in front of him. The Blue Devils hit the five foul limit early in the quarter and put New Castle in the bonus with five minutes left in the first half.
Blundo and Harrison continued to go to work in the quarter, scoring 18 of the first 24 points for New Castle. Blundo scored 2 more points on the drive and Sheely answered with a stepback two from the baseline and at the half, New Castle led 26-20. Blundo led all scorers with 13. Sheely led Lebo with 8.
New Castle started the second half without their big man, Jayden Shaffer. He went down with an ankle injury in the second quarter and didn’t return in this one. This didn’t slow them down though as his replacement, Qualin Davis, started the half with a bucket inside.
Gould answered for Lebo with another deep three, cutting the lead to 5. Blundo responded with a three of his own to make it an 8 point lead for the Canes once again. Mt. Lebanon began forcing turnovers midway through the quarter, getting a steal and a score and cutting the New Castle lead to just 4 points.
Cox went to work in the post and scored 4 straight points for the Canes, but Mt. Lebanon freshman, Jacob Zaber, cashed a three to keep Lebo close. Cox and Zaber continued to trade baskets in what was a very impressive display from the two freshmen. It’s not often you see freshmen making a big time impact in 6A basketball.
Cox picked up his 4th foul as he was called for the charge late in the quarter. Mt. Lebo cut it to 4 with Cox on the bench, but their foul total was climbing as well, putting New Castle in the bonus once again.
The last few minutes of the quarter were all New Castle. Harrison and Bludo each drained two free throws and Blundo ended the quarter with a tough floater in the lane. He was up to 18 in the game and New Castle led 44-37 after three.
Gould started the quarter with a 3 for Lebo to cut the lead to 5 once again, but Cox answered on the iso play and left-handed finish. After Blundo scored two more, Sheely laced a three to get the deficit to 8.
That was close enough for the Canes. Cox got another acrobatic lefty layup to go and Kyrell Harris got in on the action with a huge three in transition off the feed from Blundo. With the New Castle fans going crazy and the gym ready to erupt, Damian Harrison blew the roof off the place with 2-handed jam.
It was a 4 point game just a few minutes ago, but here we are midway through the fourth quarter and the Canes were up 15. Blundo (Coach) led New Castle teams have always been one of the best teams around when it comes to scoring in bunches. They put up points so quickly and blow games open before you can even realize it.
Sheely did his best to keep Mt. Lebanon in the game, scoring the majority of Lebo’s points down the stretch, but the game was too far out of reach. The New Castle cheerleaders and student section began chanting, “We’re going to the Pete,” and they were right as they went on to win by a final score of 67-56.
Ralphie Blundo led all scorers with 25 points. He was great in this one. He set the tone from the opening tip, and you could tell that he understood the position his team was in tonight. “I’ve understood this position since I was young. I’ve watched all of the great teams at New Castle. I’m a coach’s son,” said Blundo. “It’s actually a blessing because I’ve had the experience, and I’ve seen these positions”.
New Castle heads back to the finals after finishing as the runner-up in 2023, falling short in the championship game against Central Catholic and missing the playoffs altogether last season. But Head Coach, Ralph Blundo, is no stranger to the WPIAL Championships, as this will be his 10th finals appearance in 15 years at the helm for New Castle.
He spoke about what makes this year’s team different saying, “I like the group. I think it’s a group that’s grown and gotten better throughout the course of the year. They have their own identity. They’re not the same as other groups, but other groups aren’t the same as them. I’m pleased with their growth.
New Castle will take on the #1 seeded Upper St. Clair Panthers for the 6A title this Friday at 9pm at the Petersen Events Center. USC has been the favorites in 6A all year, as no one can match up with their size, but Blundo believes his squad is up for the challenge saying, “Any time they throw the ball up, you’ve got a chance, and we’re excited for the opportunity.”