NTL BOYS' BASKETBALL: KAPICHOK LEADS CANTON PAST NEB (2023-01-27)

Northern Tier Sports Report
ROME — The NTL Division-II boys’ basketball bracket just got a little bit wilder as Canton edged out NEB, 53-49, on Thursday. The win continues the division’s 4-way battle for the championship.

Canton built a 44-36 lead after three quarters, and then held off a Panther rally in the fourth to bring home the win.

Kyle Kapichok continued his strong play with 19 points - six of them in the fourth - on 8-for-16 shooting to go with five boards, and two blocks.

Weston Bellows added 12 points and three blocks, as Austin Allen had nine points, eight boards, and two steals.

Hunter Brackman added eight points plus three steals, as Ben Fitch chipped in with five points and 11 boards.

Joe Stanton had a big game for NEB with 17 points on 7-for-12 shooting, to go with three assists, and four steals.

Brayden Miller added 11 points and four boards, while Josh Stanton had eight points, eight boards, and six assists.

Cayden McPherson finished with seven points, as Dillon Donnelly netted four, and Cooper Brown added two. Andrew Beers chipped in with five rebounds.

Kapichok had six first quarter points, while Allen netted five, to give Canton a 13-10 lead after the first quarter. Donnelly netted all four of his points in the frame for NEB.

Bellows and Kapichok had five points each to lead Canton in the second quarter, though Joe Stanton rallied NEB with seven points as they kept pace, falling behind just 27-23 at the half.

Then came Canton’s big third quarter, led by Brackman’s eight points - including two 3-balls - while Bellows finished with five. 

McPherson kept NEB in the game with seven points of his own, but they were down by eight going into the final frame.

In the fourth Joe Stanton rallied with six points, with Miller getting four as Josh Stanton hit a 3-ball. However, the Warriors did enough to hold thanks to Kapichok’s three field goals.

NEB won the JV game 55-26 behind 14 points from Tyler Thoman. Brown had 12, and Tanner Herb scored 10. Raiden Lyon led Canton with 10 points.

The loss sends NEB to 4-5 in the NTL, and 3-3 in the division, while Canton improves to 4-6 in the NTL, and 4-2 in the division.

NPL beat CV on Thursday to improved to 5-6 in the league, and 4-2 in the division, while Sayre came into Thursday 5-6 in the NTL, and 4-1 in the division.

That basically means that it’s still up in the air, not just the Small School title, but also the top two spots for the NTL Showcase.

Canton (7-8) will get a chance to pick up another spot in the standings as they travel to Wyalusing on Saturday with a 1:15 p.m. start time. 

NEB (7-7) travels to Sayre next Tuesday in a game that might go a long way to deciding things - or just make them even more mixed up.

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PHOTO CAPTION: Canton’s Ben Fitch drives against NEB…PHOTOS BY MATT PATTON