Mars tops Moon for key win
should be pretty scary to some teams that I don’t have to score a lot of points, and we still put up high numbers. We have a lot of highlevel players to get the job done.”
Don’t think that Carmody was a no-show in this game. He still scored 27 points. But he was only 7 of 22 from the field and 3 of 14 from 3-point range.
Junior guard Andrew Recchia came through with 20 points, including four 3pointers. Big Mike Carmody, a 6-foot-6 sophomore and Robby’s brother, added 10 points.
Mars, the No. 1 scoring team in the WPIAL at 81 points a game, held a 45-36 halftime lead and upped the advantage to 14 points midway through the third quarter.
But Moon, led by the Ryan twins at guard, pushed back. Connor Ryan is tremendous at getting to the basket for a small guard. He made 10 of 13 shots and scored 26 points while his twin, Austin, added 13. Austin’s basket with 2:52 left tied the score, 61-61.
“I was proud of our guys. I thought they showed a lot character and gave ourselves a chance at the end,” Moon coach Adam Kaufmann said.
“We just didn’t make enough plays. They did.”
Austin Ryan missed a 3pointer that would’ve put Moon ahead before Recchia scored a three-point play to make it 64-61 with 2:17 left. Recchia added two more free throws to make it 66-62.
Robby Carmody scored the final six points for Mars, fourfrom the free-throw line.
“I think Andrew Recchia is one of the best guards in the WPIAL,” Robby Carmody said.
Besides Robby Carmody, Recchia, Mike Carmody and senior guard Cade Hetzler all average in double figures.
“We’re not a one-man team,” said Rob Carmody, Mars’ coach and the father of Robby and Mike. “I’ve said this is probably the best offensive team I’ve ever had because we have so many ways to score the ball.
“What I love about this group is they’ve all been together since kindergarten. They’ve played soccer, baseball, football, basketball — all together. They’re very close. That closeness and togetherness gives us a collective toughness.
“When it got to be a tied game, we had a timeout and I just said, ‘There’s no reason to panic.’ And they didn’t. I loved our first half, the first two minutes of the second half and the last 30 seconds. But not in between, and I’ll take the blame for that.”