Tigers Secure 20th Win Of Season, 61-55, Over Wolverines
The North Allegheny girls’ basketball captured their 20th win of the season on Monday afternoon with a 61-55 victory against Woodland Hills in a non-section contest at UPMC Court. The victory marks the 12th consecutive year the Tigers have won 20 games or more in a single season.
In the regular season finale for two playoff-bound teams, North Allegheny used a good shooting half from the perimeter to hold a 28-25 lead by intermission. The Tigers poured in six shots from beyond the arc in the first half and opened up a 38-27 lead in the opening minutes of the third quarter thanks to a 9-2 run and three immediate 3-pointers.
Following a timeout by head coach Von Pitts, Woodland Hills responded with a 13-5 run to trim the NA lead to 42-40 in the final minute of the third quarter. Senior forward Hope Hawkins led the charge for the Wolverines with a game-high 24 points. However, it was a basket that Hawkins didn’t make that turned momentum back toward NA. Following a Hawkins miss with six seconds left in the period, the Tigers quickly rushed ahead to set up senior Caroline Henderson for a buzzer-beating 3-pointer to lift NA to a 45-40 lead at the end of three quarters. Henderson knocked down four 3-pointers and totaled 14 points, 10 of which coming in the second half.
In the fourth quarter, the Tigers stretched the lead to nine points at 51-42 before an 8-0 run by the Wolverines cut the lead to two points again at 51-49. Undaunted, North Allegheny put Woodland Hills away for good with a 10-run that was spearheaded by senior guard Grace Heliger. The Baldwin Wallace commit finished with a team-high 18 points to earn Wright Automotive Player of the Game honors.
The 10-0 run by Heliger and the Tigers built a 61-49, and despite a late spurt by the Wolverines, North Allegheny prevailed for a 61-55 win.
The victory improves North Allegheny to a 20-2 record overall, while Woodland Hills falls to 10-10 on the season. The Tigers received the No. 3 seed in the WPIAL Class 6A bracket and will host sixth-seeded Upper St. Clair on Thursday, Feb. 22 at UPMC Court. The game will be broadcast live by the North Allegheny Sports Network. For a look at the entire Class 6A bracket, click here.
Girls Basketball vs. Woodland Hills, 2-12-24
| GAME SUMMARY | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| SCORE BY QUARTERS | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | FINAL |
| Woodland Hills | 10 | 15 | 15 | 15 | 55 |
| North Allegheny | 16 | 28 | 17 | 16 | 61 |
