Perkiomen School National wins wild tournament opener

PENNSBURG >> A packed gym with enthusiastic fans, an athletic and physical opponent and a game with 51 fouls and 39 turnovers all made for a wild ride for the Perkiomen School National team in the opening round of its tournament on Friday night.

The Panthers had a bit of a hard time handling all of that in the first half while falling behind by as many as 10 points. But they settled down on offense in the second half, cutting their turnovers in half, and Thomas Haugh and Preist Ryan led the charge from behind for a 90-84 win over Spire Institute (Ohio).

Perk School (9-2) will play a semifinal contest Saturday at 5:15 p.m. against First Love Christian Academy, an 83-82 winner over Springfield Commonwealth Academy (Mass.) The championship game of the eight-team tournament will be on Sunday at 3:45 p.m.

Haugh scored 23 points, Ryan scored 22 and Bobby Rosenberger followed with 16 points for the Panthers. Marcel Bryant led Spire with 22 points and Xavier Martinez scored 17.

“It was two very high-level teams, two physical teams and athletic teams playing pretty disciplined,” said Panther coach Thomas Baudinet. “The crowd definitely impacted the energy of the players and the intensity of the game.”

Perkiomen School got off to a good start – despite turning the ball over nine times in the first 10 minutes – and led by as many as eight points twice in the first half, the last time at 25-17. But Spire went on a 33-15 run for its largest advantage at 50-40 and held a 52-45 lead at the intermission.

The Panthers crept back after the break, eventually knotting the score at 62 on a dunk by 6-foot-9, Florida-bound senior Haugh off a pass from Rosenberger midway though the second half.

“We just talked a lot at halftime about them getting offensive rebounds. Coach talked about boxing out,” said Haugh. “They were a super-physical team, but we got it done.”

There were five lead changes and two more ties after that. But Haugh got another dunk for an 82-80 lead with 3:20 remaining, Brant Byers (9 points) sank a shot from the right baseline and Haugh dunked home an offensive rebound for an 86-80 lead with 2:20 to go.

“Wherever the ball ends up,” Haugh said concerning his ability to get the ball and stuff it through the rim. “That’s a big part of my game. Everybody does it at this level.”

“We definitely had to play a lot harder,” said Ryan. “They’re a strong team, a physical team. We just trust each other and trust the other guy will make the play.”

Ryan shot 10-for-12 from the field and pulled in seven rebounds.

“That guy can go and get a bucket anytime he wants to,” Haugh said concerning Ryan. “And Bobby. Everyone is able to dish to me and I dish to them.”

Bryant (headed for the University of Nebraska-Omaha) made four free throws to cut the margin to two, but Ryan scored on a drive with 38 seconds left and he and Trey Micah Lieb (11 points) each made a free throw to wrap up the win.

“We had to buckle down and play strong defense,” said Ryan, a 6-foot-6 senior.

But the key to the win was the Panthers’ ability to settle down on offense in the second half as they turned the ball over only seven times compared to 14 times in the first half.

“We got to play our own pace, slowed down and got to the basket,” said Ryan.

“I think we just got a little more poised,” said Baudinet. “And we got used to their physicality in the first half. We had two point guards with three fouls in the first half, but we were more poised with our cutting and passing.”

And the crowd definitely helped to inspire the tournament hosts.

“It was awesome, a great experience,” said Haugh. “All of our students came out.”

“It was great seeing a lot of people who graduated last year,” added Ryan. “The energy was huge. Especially on defense, it helped us make plays.”

Perkiomen School National 90, Spire Institute 84

Spire Institute: Middleton 3 0-1 8, Young 3 8-9 14, Martinez 5 4-7 17, Belhouchet 0 0-0 0, Pounds 4 6-7 14, Fall 1 1-2 3, Marbury 1 0-0 3, Green 0 0-0 0, Ford 1 1-2 3, Bryant 8 4-6 22, Totals 26 24-34 84

Perkiomen School: Salisbury 2 0-0 5, Lieb 3 4-5 11, Tanner 0 2-2 2, Ryan 10 2-2 22, Emory 0 2-2 2, Haugh 8 6-6 23, Addesa 0 0-0 0, Rosenberger 4 7-10 16, Herman 0 0-0 0, Downes 0 0-0 0, Byers 3 2-2 9, Totals 30 25-29 90
Spire Institute                         52 32 – 84
Perkiomen School National 45 45 – 90
3-point goals: Middleton 2, Martinez 3, Marbury, Bryant 2, Salisbury, Lieb, Haugh, Rosenberger, Byers