By DAN IRWIN
d_irwin@ncnewsonline.com

Jordon Rooney had a hand in Union High’s 67-61 overtime win last night at Neshannock. And it hurt him almost as much as it did the Lancers.

After missing four straight free throws at the end of regulation, Rooney came up with a key steal and went 3-of-4 at the foul line in regulation to help the Scotties advance to tonight’s championship came of the Neshannock Tipoff Tournament.

And he did it all with a sore right hand. “I had a hand injury from football, and they didn’t think I would play,” the senior guard said. “Yesterday, I told them I could play and they didn’t believe me.
“I went out there and sucked it up. It hurt like crazy, but I couldn’t let it show I had pain.”

With Union clinging to a 56-55 lead, Rooney went 0-for-4 in back-to-back trips to the charity stripe. Neshannock’s Mike Conglose, who had a game-high 31 points, then hit one of two free throw tries with 12 seconds remaining to send the game into overtime.

The two teams traded buckets to open the extra period before Jordan Clingensmith put Union ahead to stay, capping his 26-point effort off the bench with two free throws at the one-minute mark.

Neshannock brought the ball up in search of a tying basket, but Rooney came up with a steal in the back court, then fed Anthony Thomas on a breakaway for a 62-58 lead.

Union hit five of six fouls shots in the final 28 seconds to seal the win, with Rooney making three of four.

Conglose rounded out Neshannock’s scoring with his third three-pointer of the night with 18 ticks showing.

“I was reading the point guard’s eyes,” Rooney said of his forced turnover. “They were calling that play all game; just step in front of him, dish it off for a score.”

That play, along with his OT free throws, were just what Rooney had hoped for after his misfires at the close of regulation.
“I told my teammates, ‘Give me back the ball, I’ve got to make up for that; I can do it,’ ” he said, adding that his injured hand is his shooting hand. “It hurt when I was shooting those free throws, but I had to suck it up.”

Union’s first-year head coach Dave Smialowski was glad to see his entire team do the same.

“This team needs to learn how to win,” Smialowski said, “and this is how you build character. We won this close one. Hopefully now, we can build on this.

“Neshannock and Union, it’s always a big rivalry. We won’t play too many tougher games than this — at least I hope we won’t. Geez, the first game of my career, and I’m ready to have a heart attack. I couldn’t be more proud of the kids, though. They did things right.”
Veteran Neshannock head coach Jim Smiley, meanwhile, didn’t feel quite the same way about his Lancers.

“Mike (Conglose) had a nice game, and obviously, we look for him to score,” Smiley said. “But we have to get more help from our other people.

“I was a little disappointed in our shot selection in the first half, and I was much disappointed in our ball-handling in the second half. We kinda kicked the ball around a bit, and those are tough things to overcome.”

Smiley also lamented his team’s 8-of-14 effort at the foul line, especially its 2-of-6 stretch late in regulation and early in overtime.
“I think that was the difference,” he said. “Union made their free throws, and we didn’t make ours.

“It was a good game. I salute Union, and you have to give them credit. But we have work to do, if we want to get anywhere near where we want to be, we have to play better.”