Basketball Recap: New Castle Falls Short of Cumberland Valley in the Playoffs

New Castle and Cumberland Valley squared off in some playoff action on Saturday, but New Castle had to settle for second. They fell just short of the Cumberland Valley Eagles by a score of 51-49. For those keeping track at home, that's the closest loss the Hurricanes have suffered since January 3rd.

Kai Cox

Steals

03/08/25 vs Cumberland Valley	2
02/28/25 vs Upper St. Clair	2
02/24/25 vs Mt. Lebanon	4

Despite the defeat, New Castle saw an underclassman step up: freshman Kai Cox posted 18 points and seven rebounds. Cox is also on a roll when it comes to steals, as he's now grabbed two or more in each of the last three games he's played. Another player making a difference was Kyrell Harris, who had seven points and six assists.

Multiple players turned in solid performances to lead Cumberland Valley to victory, but perhaps none more so than Nolan Buzalka, who dropped a double-double with 21 points and 14 boards. Jared Dolimpio was another key player, putting up 14 points along with five rebounds and three blocks.

New Castle's loss ended a five-game streak of wins at home and dropped them to 21-5. The wins came thanks in part to their offensive performance across that stretch, as they averaged 66.4 points over those games. As for Cumberland Valley, the victory made it two in a row for them and bumps their season record up to 24-5.

New Castle does not have any more games scheduled as of now. As for Cumberland Valley, they will take on Coatesville on Wednesday. Cumberland Valley is strutting in with some offensive muscle as they've averaged 65.2 points per game this season.