CB West holds off North Penn, improves district chances
DOYLESTOWN >> Rattle proof in the game’s final minutes, playoff-hungry Central Bucks West held on for a crucial 63-56 victory over North Penn Friday night.
“I thought we controlled the ball well,” said Bucks point guard Jack Mulhearn, who scored a game-high 20 points. “That’s been our problem when we’ve had leads going into the fourth. We just struggled to contain and control the ball.
“And I thought tonight we did a good job with our press break and with sinking free throws at the end of the game.”
Jack Neri added 18 points, Mika Munari had nine and Reed Zerweck seven, providing a crucial lift to postseason hopes.
“It’s definitely big. We have three left after this and I think we need to win all three to have a chance at this playoff run,” Mulhearn said. “That was huge. I thought we played with a lot of energy.”
The Bucks played stingy man defense, effectively switched it up to zone during certain stretches, and held off a late surge by the Knights (8-11) in a battle of Suburban One League Continental Conference rivals.
“We really needed that,” West coach Adam Sherman said. “We kind of have our backs against the wall and it was great to see the guys come out, play good defense and play together as a team and find a way to get a ‘W’ against a very good team.”
A basket by Joe Larkins gave West its biggest lead — 58-47 — with two minutes to play.
Back came the Knights.
North Penn scored in consecutive trips, the second a short jumper by A.J. Mitchell (14 pts) that shrunk the gap to 58-51.
The Bucks sank 9-of-10 foul shots during a key stretch in the fourth, two by Mika Munari making it 60-51 with 1:03 to go.
Kolby Barrow (10 pts) hit a three for North Penn and then the Knights drew closer when Mitchell found Chaffee cutting to the basket, making it 60-56 with 37 seconds to go.
Mulhearn, typifying West’s collective calm, hit two foul shots with 29 seconds left, stretching the margin to 62-56. The Bucks made one more defensive stop to lock things up.
West’s offense moved with purpose and found its spots, especially in the final eight minutes.
“We made shots. We got some nice clean looks and we were able to put them down,” Sherman said. “I think that was a big difference maker.”
Mulhearn, Munari and Neri all hit threes in the contest and Neri and Zerweck were tough to handle down low.
“We can usually pound it inside when that happens,” Mulhearn said.
A three by Mulhearn gave West a 12-11 edge in the midst of a back-and-forth first quarter.
Munari came up with a loose ball for the Bucks and got out running on a fast break, his shot followed up by a quick rebound and putback by Zerweck.
Another three by Mulhearn had West up 17-13 before the Knights closed to within one. In the final seconds of the first, Neri backed in and put one through to give West a 19-16 lead.
Baskets by Tali McIver and a three by Michael Chaffee had the Knights out in front in the second quarter but Danny Miller made a nifty move down the lane to tie things up. West again made a buzzer-beating shot, this one a three by Neri that provided a 28-27 advantage at the half.
The Bucks led by eight heading into the fourth and pushed the lead to double digits before overcoming North Penn’s rally.
“I thought they were very physical,” Knights coach John Conrad said. “They made it very hard for us to get penetration.
“We can’t really control how (the postseason picture) plays out but we’d like to try and get ourselves on a roll and enter the playoffs heading in the right direction.”
