By JON GERAMITA
jgeramita@ncnewsonline.com

NORTH SEWICKLEY TOWNSHIP — It didn’t matter who showed up to play Riverside High last night.

With the way the Panthers shot the basketball and defended, they would be hard for anyone to beat.

Unfortunately for Neshannock, the Lancers witnessed a near-perfect performance from a near-perfect team as Riverside cruised to a 64-35 WPIAL Section 2-AA win at home.

The Panthers led 27-9 after the first quarter, in which each Riverside starter had at least two points, two rebounds and an assist.

“I have no comment,” Neshannock coach Jim Smiley said, before turning to say, “Here’s my comment (pointing to the scoreboard), 64-35. It speaks volumes. Volumes.”

Riverside (7-0 section, 15-1 overall) shot 12 of 15 from the field (80 percent) in the first quarter, including 11 in a row during one stretch. The Panthers committed only three fouls in the first half and had four turnovers.

Bobby Nittinger’s 3-pointer cut Riverside’s lead to 16-7 midway through the first quarter, but the Panthers went on a 22-2 run to end the half.

Riverside scored every which way, from transition defense to inside with 6-foot-6 forward Jason Kolesar. The Panthers scored off offensive rebounds by scrappy guards Jake Wickline and Mike Vucelich, as well as from a pair of 3-pointers by sophomore Mason Marion.

“Without a doubt it’s one of the better first quarters we’ve had,” Panthers coach John Rorick said. “It all stems from defense. Sometimes they didn’t even get a shot, and when they did it was one and done.”

Riverside outrebounded Neshannock 40-21 and shot 25 free throws to the Lancers’ eight.

Neshannock (2-5, 5-9) trailed by as few as 17 in the second half. The Lancers fell behind 50-19 at one point.

Mike Conglose, who entered the game averaging 17 points, was held to a mere eight.

“Mikey’s our stopper. He loves the challenge,” Rorick said.

Nittinger had six points, with Richards adding seven. Sophomore Joey Fontana was a bright spot off the bench, grabbing a team-high seven rebounds.

Kolesar scored 21 points to go with eight rebounds. His foul line jumper with 5:33 left in the third quarter gave him 1,001 points for his career.

“I’m so happy for him, he’s gone through a lot of injuries here and its great to see him do this,” Rorick said of Kolesar, who has close to 900 rebounds, 200 assists and 150 blocks as well.

Wickline had 11 points, seven rebounds and five assists with Vucelich adding 10 points and six rebounds.

After beating Mohawk on Jan. 8, Riverside continues to play its best basketball this season and will be fighting for a high seed in the WPIAL playoffs down the stretch.

“When we go like this we’re fun to watch,” Rorick said. “We just want to keep rollin’.”

Neshannock remains two games behind fourth-place Summit Academy (4-3) for the section’s final playoff spot.