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TAYLOR – Nico Antoniacci and Kyle Connor unleashed a relentless attack of outside shooting to open the state playoffs with a bang.
Firing away with confidence and precision, Antoniacci drained five from beyond the arc and finished with 36 points. Connor drilled six 3-pointers and had 18 points to earn the team’s game ball in a 74-50 win over Mifflinburg on Saturday in the first round of the PIAA Class 3A boys basketball playoffs.
Riverside (24-1) advances to Wednesday’s second round and will play the winner of the MaST Charter-HS Future game.
“This was a great team win,” Antoniacci said. “We worked super hard all week in practice for this game. Coach (Josh) Aniska wanted us to come out and make a statement.”
It was a complete game by the Vikings, with contributions from everybody in the final game at their home gymnasium.
While Antoniacci was once again brilliant, scoring 12 points in the first quarter as Riverside built a 25-11 advantage, Connor provided the complementary points that overwhelmed Mifflinburg, the third-place team from District 4.
The sharpshooting senior made six of 10 from the 3-point line. He had three in the second quarter and finished with two at the start of the fourth quarter that provided Riverside with a 66-33 lead and put the running clock in motion.
“The energy in the gym was amazing,” said Connor, who fed off the crowd that jammed into the bleachers an hour before the game, which sold out of tickets last Wednesday. “It erupted in here, and it was a great experience.”
Overall, Riverside made 13 of 36 from behind the 3-point line. Michael Schimelfenig and Jared Jackson had one each.
Impressive, but it wasn’t the only place where the Vikings dominated.
Brayden Rose collected 10 rebounds, including seven defensive, and had 12 points. Antoniacci had five rebounds, three assists, and three steals. Schimelfenig contributed at the defensive end and had six rebounds and three assists, and Connor added six rebounds.
“When other guys step up, that opens up shots for Nico and Brayden,” Connor said. “Once we are all knocking down shots, it makes things a lot easier for the team.”
Riverside built on its early burst of offense in the first half and outscored Mifflinburg, 21-11, in the third quarter when Antoniacci had 16 points before leaving to a rousing ovation.
In four career state playoff games, the sophomore has scored 97 points, and the Vikings are 3-1.
“Kyle came out today and made six 3-pointers, and that is huge,” Antoniacci said. “If we are going to go far in the state playoffs, we are going to need guys to make big shots. Once he started making shots, that opened things up for us.”
Brennan Snyder paced Mifflinburg with 18 points. Jackson Griffith added 12 points, JP Marr had 11 points, and Chad Martin contributed seven rebounds.
Warrior Run 72, Dunmore 54: At Loyalsock Twp., all five starters scored in double figures for the District 4 champions as Dunmore saw its season come to an end in the first round of the PIAA Class 3A boys playoffs Saturday.
James Keifer scored a game-high 22 points for Warrior Run, followed by Clayton Skokowski (16), Landon Palcyn (12), Aiden McKee (11), and Ethan Balzar (11).
Jimmy Clark led the Bucks (21-5) with 15 points, followed by Bryaden Canavan with 13 and Carter Sload with 11.
Susquehanna 55, Northeast Bradford 41: Griffin Fisk scored a game-high 21 points and Mason Keyes added 16 as the Sabers powered to the victory in the PIAA Class 2A boys first round Saturday at the home of the District 1 champions.
The Sabers (19-6), the runners-up from District 2, advance to the second round, where they will play the winner of Saturday’s game between 3-1 York Catholic and 12-2 Paul Robeson, on Wednesday at a site and time to be determined.
Delaware Valley 56, Abington 54: At Delaware Valley, the District 2 champions continued their exciting playoff run with a dramatic 56-54 win over Abington in overtime in the first round of the PIAA Class 6A tournament.
Sam Wood had an offensive putback off a missed shot at the buzzer for the win.
It was Delaware Valley’s first state-playoff win since 2012.
Trey Newton scored 30 points to lead Delaware Valley, which also won the District 2 Class 6A championship with an overtime win over Wilkes-Barre Area.
Colin McGarvey finished with eight points, and Sam Wood had seven for the Warriors, who advance to play District 11 champion Parkland (23-6) on Wednesday in the second round.
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Firing away with confidence and precision, Antoniacci drained five from beyond the arc and finished with 36 points. Connor drilled six 3-pointers and had 18 points to earn the team’s game ball in a 74-50 win over Mifflinburg on Saturday in the first round of the PIAA Class 3A boys basketball playoffs.
Riverside (24-1) advances to Wednesday’s second round and will play the winner of the MaST Charter-HS Future game.
“This was a great team win,” Antoniacci said. “We worked super hard all week in practice for this game. Coach (Josh) Aniska wanted us to come out and make a statement.”
It was a complete game by the Vikings, with contributions from everybody in the final game at their home gymnasium.
While Antoniacci was once again brilliant, scoring 12 points in the first quarter as Riverside built a 25-11 advantage, Connor provided the complementary points that overwhelmed Mifflinburg, the third-place team from District 4.
The sharpshooting senior made six of 10 from the 3-point line. He had three in the second quarter and finished with two at the start of the fourth quarter that provided Riverside with a 66-33 lead and put the running clock in motion.
“The energy in the gym was amazing,” said Connor, who fed off the crowd that jammed into the bleachers an hour before the game, which sold out of tickets last Wednesday. “It erupted in here, and it was a great experience.”
Overall, Riverside made 13 of 36 from behind the 3-point line. Michael Schimelfenig and Jared Jackson had one each.
Impressive, but it wasn’t the only place where the Vikings dominated.
Brayden Rose collected 10 rebounds, including seven defensive, and had 12 points. Antoniacci had five rebounds, three assists, and three steals. Schimelfenig contributed at the defensive end and had six rebounds and three assists, and Connor added six rebounds.
“When other guys step up, that opens up shots for Nico and Brayden,” Connor said. “Once we are all knocking down shots, it makes things a lot easier for the team.”
Riverside built on its early burst of offense in the first half and outscored Mifflinburg, 21-11, in the third quarter when Antoniacci had 16 points before leaving to a rousing ovation.
In four career state playoff games, the sophomore has scored 97 points, and the Vikings are 3-1.
“Kyle came out today and made six 3-pointers, and that is huge,” Antoniacci said. “If we are going to go far in the state playoffs, we are going to need guys to make big shots. Once he started making shots, that opened things up for us.”
Brennan Snyder paced Mifflinburg with 18 points. Jackson Griffith added 12 points, JP Marr had 11 points, and Chad Martin contributed seven rebounds.
Warrior Run 72, Dunmore 54: At Loyalsock Twp., all five starters scored in double figures for the District 4 champions as Dunmore saw its season come to an end in the first round of the PIAA Class 3A boys playoffs Saturday.
James Keifer scored a game-high 22 points for Warrior Run, followed by Clayton Skokowski (16), Landon Palcyn (12), Aiden McKee (11), and Ethan Balzar (11).
Jimmy Clark led the Bucks (21-5) with 15 points, followed by Bryaden Canavan with 13 and Carter Sload with 11.
Susquehanna 55, Northeast Bradford 41: Griffin Fisk scored a game-high 21 points and Mason Keyes added 16 as the Sabers powered to the victory in the PIAA Class 2A boys first round Saturday at the home of the District 1 champions.
The Sabers (19-6), the runners-up from District 2, advance to the second round, where they will play the winner of Saturday’s game between 3-1 York Catholic and 12-2 Paul Robeson, on Wednesday at a site and time to be determined.
Delaware Valley 56, Abington 54: At Delaware Valley, the District 2 champions continued their exciting playoff run with a dramatic 56-54 win over Abington in overtime in the first round of the PIAA Class 6A tournament.
Sam Wood had an offensive putback off a missed shot at the buzzer for the win.
It was Delaware Valley’s first state-playoff win since 2012.
Trey Newton scored 30 points to lead Delaware Valley, which also won the District 2 Class 6A championship with an overtime win over Wilkes-Barre Area.
Colin McGarvey finished with eight points, and Sam Wood had seven for the Warriors, who advance to play District 11 champion Parkland (23-6) on Wednesday in the second round.
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