NTL BOYS' BASKETBALL: TOWANDA OPENS SEASON WITH BIG WIN OVER MONTROSE (December 5, 2025)

BY CHRIS MANNING
Northern Tier Sports Report
TOWANDA — The Towanda boys’ basketball team couldn’t have asked for a better start to the season as they rolled past Montrose, 55-27, in non-league action Friday.

They jumped out to a 13-0 lead in the first quarter and never looked back, building leads of 31-13 at the half, and 48-21 going into the fourth.

“We were super excited to be able to kick-off our season at home,” said Towanda coach Landon Henry. “That team beat us last year, and I know some of the guys had that in the back of their heads going into tonight.”

Three different players hit double figures, led by Markel Garner’s 19 points as he controlled the paint.

“I thought Markel did a really good job of being patient inside tonight,” Henry said. “It was the best all-around game I’ve seen from him. I think he was having fun, too. He’s starting to learn that, ‘hey, you can play this way, under control, and it leads to good decision, and it can lead to good outcomes.’ He’s a guy that we believe that can only get better and better.”

Boom Thompson added 12 points with Darrius Farrell scoring 11. Lucas Vincent had five, Landon Clark netted four, as Josh Maye, and Hudson Stevens each had two.

The defensive side, though, was where Towanda excelled, especially in the first half. They led 17-8 after one, and of Montrose’s four first half field goals, three were 3-pointers.

“Defense is the end of the floor that we’ll hang our hat on, always,” said Henry. “You’re not always going to be able to score the ball at a good clip on any given night, but defense is something that you can control, with the effort you put on that end. I think our guys have bought into that. They’ve played enough basketball together where everyone knows that defense is non-negotiable, and everyone has to performa as an individual, and as a collective.”

Sawyer Brown had 10 points to lead the Meteors.

Five different Knights scored in the first quarter, led by six from Thompson, and five out of Garner. Garner netted four more in the second with Farrell adding six.

Garner would go off for eight of his team’s 17 third quarter points with Thompson and Vincent hitting 3-balls as they pushed the lead into mercy rule.

It’s a busy week next week for Towanda as they host Sayre on Tuesday, then travel to the Muncy Tournament Friday and Saturday.

“(It’s) always a good tournament,” Henry said. “We get out and play some non-conference opponents and I think our guys like that. I think it’s good just to go out and play different teams.”

— —

PHOTOS BY CHRIS MANNING



Print Friendly Version