Zimmerman buzzer-beater in double OT sends No. 2 Upper Merion to first PAC championship

ROYERSFORD >> For 39 minutes and 58 seconds on Friday evening, Josh Zimmerman encouraged, cheered, cajoled, and generally had his teammates’ backs from the bench.

It took him only 1.5 seconds of playing time to similarly pick up a teammate – and make Upper Merion basketball history in the process.

Zimmerman, a senior forward, got the putback on an errant free throw at the buzzer, giving his No. 2 seed Upper Merion Vikings an improbable, 64-62 double overtime win over No. 6 Perkiomen Valley in the first of two boys’ basketball semifinals at Spring-Ford.

The thrilling victory sends the Vikings to the first PAC title game of their seven-year tenure in the league.

HOLY $#%+!!!

Zimmerman, GAME WINNER on the missed FT, UPPER MERION TAKES IT!!!

Upper Merion advances to its first PAC Championship ever.

FINAL 2OT — No. 2 Upper Merion 64, No. 6 Perkiomen Valley 62

Game of the damn year! pic.twitter.com/uDFOJC91wE

— Evan Wheaton (@EvanWheaton) February 11, 2023

Numerous players fouled out in the dying minutes of double overtime, opening the door for Zimmerman’s opportunity.

“The whole game, I’m ready to go,” Zimmerman said. “You never know what you’ll get coming off the bench. You might play 20 minutes; you might get one second.

“Either way, you’ve got to make them count.”

Zimmerman did just that as he fought across the lane, taking advantage of the extra second the ball rolled around the rim, and putting it up with his left hand off the glass to break a 62-all tie and give Upper Merion (13-10) the historic victory.

“Initially, the idea was to have a rebounder in there,” said Upper Merion coach Jason Quenzer, who celebrated his 100th career victory. “But then (Zimmerman) was going to guard the inbound pass (had Upper Merion made the free throw.)”

The errant free throw came off the hand of junior guard Nick Smiley. Up until that point, Smiley hadn’t missed in the second half, scoring 15 of his team-high 22 points after halftime and initially tying the game on a drive and layup with those pivotal 1.5 seconds remaining.

Initially, Upper Merion’s only lead of the night came at 4-3 in the first quarter. Smiley’s clutch shot marked the eighth time Upper Merion rallied to tie the score.

Upper Merion had to feel confident as the junior approached the line at a perfect 7-for-7 on the evening. Instead, his foul shot rimmed out and set the stage for Zimmerman’s heroics to cap off the win Smiley described with a word often applied to his squad.

“Scrappy – we hear that word a lot to describe us,” said Smiley. “I think it’s the right word because we don’t lose hope. We trust each other, we’ve got each other’s backs until the end.”

PAC leading scorer Julian Sadler had a game-high 25 points for Perkiomen Valley, which fell to 16-8. After Upper Merion recovered from a 10-point fourth quarter deficit to send the game to overtime, Perkiomen Valley held leads of four points in the first and second extra sessions only to see Upper Merion rally on each occasion to set the stage for the last-second victory.

“It’s a learning experience,” Perkiomen Valley coach Mike Poysden said. “We ask ourselves, where can we improve? An example is that we can’t leave opportunities out there, like 14 free throws (Perkiomen Valley shot 22-of-36 from the line). “You’re not going to win that way this time of year. But we’re in charge of that, it’s on us to clean it up.”

The overtime periods and late heroics flipped a game played for the majority of it at Perkiomen Valley’s preferred methodical pace. Sadler came out on fire with the first eight points for his squad and had 11 by halftime, but Perkiomen Valley led by only a single basket at the break.

Sadler hit the last of his quartet of 3-pointers to open the fourth quarter to give Perkiomen Valley its largest lead at 10, capping off an 8-0 run started by consecutive baskets from sophomore Mason Thear (17 points).

But Perkiomen Valley lost versatile forward Kyle Shawaluk to fouls at the four-minute mark, and despite a strong effort from Morgan McKinney (nine points, 14 rebounds) on the inside, allowed Upper Merion too many high-percentage shots late – the last of which, of course, made a hero of Zimmerman.

“It’s blurry right now,” said Zimmerman of his memory of the deciding play. “But I know that once I had the ball, I just tried to measure where I was in relation to the basket. I looked at the rim, stepped back and put it up.

“I’m going to remember this forever. There’s nothing that will rival that play.”

Except, perhaps, a potential PAC championship, which Upper Merion will try to capture on Tuesday night back at Spring-Ford against the host school and No. 1 seed Rams, a winner in similar double-overtime fashion over Pottstown in the nightcap.

Upper Merion will be looking to avenge a 62-47 loss to 21-2 Spring-Ford back on Dec. 22, but to call the Frontier champ undaunted would be an understatement.

“It’s an opportunity to make another career highlight,” Zimmerman said.

Upper Merion 64, Perkiomen Valley 62 (2OT)