Matt Lyons and Gabe Gonzales combined to score all 29 of their points by the midway point in the second quarter Saturday afternoon as Holy Cross ran away early for a 58-30 rout of visiting Mountain View in a District 2 Class 2A boys basketball semifinal.
Lyons hit the last of his three 3-pointers to complete his 15-point scoring effort midway through the second quarter. That shot started a 9-0 run to a 35-11 lead late in the first half.
Gonzales scored 10 points in the first quarter to help the Crusaders to a 22-7 lead. He scored the team’s first two baskets of the second quarter, giving him 14 points.
The top-seeded and defending champion Crusaders (18-5) head to Mohegan Sun Arena at Casey Plaza to face second-seeded Blue Ridge (20-3) March 4 in the 2 p.m. district final.
In the six years since the Pennsylvania Interscholastic Athletic Association switched basketball from our to six enrollment classifications, Holy Cross has won five Class 2A titles. The only time it did not was when the Crusaders sat out the 2021 playoffs because of COVID.
Holy Cross scored the game’s first six points on the way to a 16-2 lead. Gonzales had seven points and Michael Hughes five to help build the 14-point lead in the first six minutes.
Lyons finished 6-for-11 from the floor, including 3-for-5 on 3-pointers. Gonzales was 6-for-8, making his only 3-pointer, and also hit a free throw.
Hayden Hosie had five saves in the win.
Tanner Stout made three 3-pointers to lead Mountain View with nine points. Ryan Drake added eight.
EDITOR’S NOTE: This story was created from the reporting of NEPA Sports Nation Student Journalist Spencer Decker.
