SECTION IV BOYS BASKETBALL: TIOGA FALLS TO SIXTH-SEEDED UNATEGO, 59-51, IN OPENING ROUND OF CLASS C PLAYOFFS (18 PHOTOS) (February 25, 2026)

Valley Sports Report
UNATEGO — Sixth-seeded Unatego used a 17-0 run that bridged the second and third quarters to take command of the game on its way to a 59-51 win over 11th-seeded Tioga here Wednesday night in the opening round of the Section IV, Class C girls basketball playoffs.

"I thought we started the game playing pretty well," said Tioga coach Connor Hutchinson. "Defensively, we were moving well and made it tough on them, and offensively we were doing some good things inside. 

"As the game progressed, we got a little loose with the ball and that allowed Unatego a lot of opportunities to score when we weren’t set in our defense. 

"The third quarter did not go well for us to start, they went on a run and got up 16 at one point. 

"The guys showed a lot of fight in that situation though, as we crawled back in it, getting it down to like six and we gave ourselves a real shot in the fourth. 

"Overall, the effort was certainly there tonight, we just didn’t execute often enough to win," added Hutchinson. "I’ll take responsibility for some of that, too. In regard to the execution, I feel like I could have put the guys in better spots early in that second half."

Junior Gavin Kithcart scored six points in the first quarter, but Unatego led 14-13 at the end of the opening stanza.

Junior Jackson Bombard's 3-pointer with a little more than a minute remaining in the first half gave Tioga a 23-19 lead, but Unatego scored the final five points of the first half to take a 24-23 lead at the halftime break.

Unatego also scored the first 10 points of the second quarter to take a 34-23 lead, and finished the quarter with a 21-6 advantage to take a 45-29 lead heading into the final eight minutes.

Senior James Miller knocked down a pair of 3-pointers in the fourth quarter, while Kithcart scored four points, and Bombard and 8th-grader Jonah Palmer each added 3-pointers as the Tigers closed the game with a 21-16 advantage.

Bombard led Tioga with 18 points, including a pair of 3-pointers, seven assists and three rebounds, while Kithcart scored 12 points and hauled down 13 rebounds, and senior Dominic Palmer had seven points and eight boards.

Miller added six points for the Tigers, and senior Brady Landmesser pulled down four rebounds.

Xander Johnson led Unatego with 29 points, including 24 in the second half.

Tioga, wrapped up the season with an 8-13 record, and will graduate five seniors in Miller, Dominic Palmer, Landmesser, Alan Seaberg and Talon Wood.

"I can’t say enough about the seniors," said Hutchinson. "I wish we could have gotten a playoff win with those guys tonight, but it just wasn’t in the cards. 

"Those guys always gave maximum effort, night-in and night-out," he noted. "They were the core I started my coaching career with, and I appreciate the effort they gave, and how coachable they always were. 

"It was a fun group as well, I always enjoyed going to practice both last season and this season, in large part because of those guys," added Hutchinson. "So, definitely a big thanks to them."

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IN PHOTO 1: Tioga's Gavin Kithcart. IN TOP PHOTO: Tioga's Jackson Bombard. ... PHOTOS BY BUCK PORTER.

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