Pukys Delivers Game-Winner in Final Seconds to Lift Leopards 52-49

Jake Pukys Louisville Leopards Basketball

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Louisville 52, Salem 49

Sophomore Jake Pukys hit the game-winning three-pointer with 3.5 seconds remaining to lift Louisville past visiting Salem 52-49 Tuesday. Junior Blake Hoover poured in a game-high 24 points and Freshman Chris Libertore dropped in 16 to lead the Leopards. With the victory, Louisville is now 9-5 overall and 6-2 in NBC play.

The Leopards trailed 17-11 after the first quarter, but cut the Quaker lead to 27-26 at halftime. Louisville Beatty's Sports Leopard Hoodietook command in the second half sparked by two key runs. The Leopards used a 7-0 run midway through the third quarter to pull out to a 35-31 advantage. Then they opened the final period on a 7-1 run to take a 45-38 lead with six minutes remaining.

Senior Bryce Mathie keyed the offense with 7 assists, while Joe Crank & Pukys each added 3 apiece. On defense, Hoover tallied 2 steals and a block to go along with his game-high 8 rebounds.

Despite their efforts, Salem refused to go away. The Quakers shutout the Leopards from the field for 4:40 as they used a 10-2 run to knot the game at 47-47. D.J. Pullie and Andrew Dolphin provided three-pointers from the right corner to spark the run. Pullie would finish with a team-high 17 while Mike Ciotti and Ryan Hoover each broke double digits with 10 for Salem.

Hoover and Pullie then exchanged buckets on opposite ends of the court to keep the game tied at 49-49. With 45 seconds remaining and the ball, Louisville waited for the final shot. That is all they would need as Pukys’ three-pointer from the top of the key rang true.

With the victory, the Leopards sweep the season series from the Quakers. The known series is an even 5-5 overall which includes a 3-3 record since Salem entered the league in 2011.

UP NEXT: The Leopards will next travel to Canton South to take on the Wildcats on Friday, January 24.

VARSITY STATISTICS

LEOPARDS 52, QUAKERS 49

Team 1-2-3-4–TOTAL

Salem 17-10-9-13–49

Louisville 11-15-12-14–52

SALEM QUAKERS STATISTICS

Player Name 3FGM 3FGA FGM FGA FTM FTA Points Assts OReb DReb Block Steal
Pullie 3 5 5 9 4 4 17 2 0 1 0 1
Fredrickson 0 1 0 1 0 0 0 1 0 4 0 0
Bezon 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Weikert 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Dolphin 1 2 2 3 0 0 5 4 1 0 0 2
Ciotti 0 1 3 6 4 4 10 1 0 1 0 0
Popa 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Toothman 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Hoover 1 3 4 8 1 1 10 1 1 2 0 0
Wolfgang 0 1 3 7 1 2 7 4 0 7 3 1
Totals 5 13 17 34 10 11 49 13 2 15 3 4

LOUISVILLE LEOPARDS STATISTICS

Player Name 3FGM 3FGA FGM FGA FTM FTA Points Assts OReb DReb Block Steal
Austin Shaheen 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Joe Crank 0 1 0 3 0 0 0 3 1 4 0 1
Matt Eddins 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Bryce Mathie 0 1 2 7 0 0 4 7 2 1 0 1
Andy Minster 0 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Drew Noble 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Jake Pukys 1 5 1 7 0 0 3 3 0 1 0 0
Aj Minster 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0
Chris Libertore 4 6 6 10 0 0 16 0 0 4 0 0
Brock Haren 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Jake Adams 1 3 2 6 0 0 5 0 0 1 0 0
Blake Hoover 0 0 10 15 4 7 24 1 7 1 1 2
Jake Mathie 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
John Lairson 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Totals 6 17 21 50 4 7 52 14 10 13 1 4

Fouls: 11-9 Salem

Turnovers: 14-8 Salem

Records: Louisville 9-5, 6-2; Salem 5-8, 4-4

JV: Louisville 34, Salem 26

The Leopards erased a 9-0 deficit in earning a 34-26 victory over the visiting Quakers. With the victory, Louisville is now 8-6 overall and 7-1 against the NBC this season.

Jake Mathie led the the Leopards with a game-high 9 points, Austin Shaheen poured in 7, and Matt Eddins added 6.

Salem led 9-0 at the outset and held Louisville off the scoreboard until there was less than a minute left in the opening quarter. The Leopards answered with an 11-1 run to take an 11-10 halftime lead. They held the Quakers to a single point in the second quarter and held them scoreless from the field over a span of 9:51.

Louisville then won the second half 23-16 to take the contest.

JV STATISTICS

LEOPARDS 34, QUAKERS 26

QUAKERS: Weingart 3 0-0 8, Weikart 1 3-6 5, Campolito 2 0-0 4, Economus 1 2-3 4, Bezeredi 1 0-0 2, Turney 0 2-2 2, Harper 0 1-2 1. TOTAL 8 8-13 26.

3-Pointers (2): Weingart (2)

Team FT: 8-13 62%

LEOPARDS: J. Mathie 3 2-2 9, Shaheen 3 1-4 7, Eddins 1 4-4 6, Adams 2 0-1 4, Hall 2 0-1 4, Hahn 1 0-0 2, Haren 1 0-1 2, Lairson 0 0-2 0. TOTAL 13 7-14 34.

3-Pointers (1): J. Mathie

Team FT: 7-14 50%

Team 1-2-3-4–TOTAL

Salem 9-1-6-10–26

Louisville 2-9-11-12–34

Fouls: 16-11 Salem

Records: Louisville 8-6, 7-1

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