GRATERFORD >> It’s shaping up as a year of firsts for Phoenixville’s boys’ basketball team.
The program’s first-ever Frontier Division championship afforded the Phantoms the No. 2 seed in the PAC Final Six tournament and a bye to Friday night’s semifinals at Perkiomen Valley.
Following a wire-to-wire 80-56 win over No. 3 Pottstown in the opener of a semifinal doubleheader, the Phantoms are off to the school’s first PAC championship game since their last league title in 2007.
Deacon Baratta rode an early three-point shooting barrage to a 25-point night to lead the victorious Phantoms, while Max Lebisky added 21 and Dawson Brown had 16.
Phoenixville (17-6, 11-3 PAC) swept the regular season series from Pottstown, and the squad spent the past few days hearing all variations of the old adage that “it’s hard to beat the same team three times.”
But in reality, Friday night was the most decisive of the three victories. In both regular contests, Phoenixville required a fourth-quarter comeback to overcome to Trojans.
Friday night saw the Frontier champions jump out early and run away.
“That’s a known thing, the idea that it’s hard to beat a team three times,” said Baratta. “Knowing that, we wanted to set the tone early and break that streak.”
Lebisky leads the Phantoms this season with 17.9 points per game, but he took a facilitator’s role in the early going, finding a cutting Christian Cervino for the game’s opening basket, then connecting with Deacon Baratta for the first of the forward’s three consecutive triples.
On the other end, the Phantoms’ zone forced Pottstown into rushed shots and turnovers, while an inside size advantage ensured most opportunities were one and done.
“We know them pretty well,” added Baratta, “so we went zone from the start. Once we were able to force a few turnovers, we got out in transition, hit cutters, hit open shooters. Our offense was flowing.
By the time Abdul Jackson (23 points) broke the ice for Pottstown, there were less than three minutes remaining in the opening quarter, and the Phantoms would lead 19-2 after the opening stanza.
When Pottstown started to threaten in the second quarter on a Nahzier Booker three-point play, Lebisky reassumed his scoring role, tallying the final six points of the half to send the Phantoms to the break with a 20-point edge.
“It’s just playing the game – trusting my guys,” said Lebisky. “Look at Deacon – he made three 3s in a row. If one guy’s not on, the rest have his back.”
Pottstown had 6-0 and 10-0 runs after halftime, but never got closer than 16 points as Phoenixville shot 90 percent (27-of-30) from the foul line and iced the contest.
Baratta and Lebisky each recorded double-doubles, finishing with 13 and 11 rebounds respectively. Lebisky also dished out a half-dozen assists.
For Pottstown (18-6, 11-4 PAC), it’s a second consecutive frustrating setback in the PAC semifinals after last year’s double-overtime loss to eventual champion Spring-Ford.
Abdul Jackson led the Trojans with 23, while twin brother Sadeeq chipped in 15.
“We lost Baratta early, he got hot – and Lebisky showed why he’s a college basketball player,” said Pottstown coach Ken Ivory. “We can score, we can shoot, but it’s tough when you fall behind like that from the start.
“It’s a tough one. Our seniors work their tails off, trying to get to the championship game this year. But we’ve still got a lot to play for.”
Namely, the Trojans will have a full week to prepare to host their opening-round District-5A playoff game next weekend. As Pottstown looks to qualify for states for the first time in recent program history, they know a fourth showdown with Phoenixville may loom in Districts.
“We’ve been seeing zone all year, but for some reason it seems to freeze us against [Phoenixville],” Ivory conceded. “But we know each other well. There’s no secret formula – it’s about executing and playing with urgency.”
Phoenixville moves on to Tuesday night’s championship game right back at Perkiomen Valley against No. 1 seed Spring-Ford, a winner over the host and No. 4 seed Vikings in the semifinal nightcap.
It’s a matchup of regular season division champs and a rematch of Spring-Ford’s 72-65 win back on December 21 – a game that in spite of the result instilled the Phantoms with a confidence that’s served them repeatedly through this historic season.
“It means a lot. Last year, we had mostly the same team and we didn’t make the PAC playoffs,” said Baratta. “We’ve been thinking about this season for a while.”
“It’s the fabric of our team,” Lebisky concluded. “Staying together no matter what.”
BOX SCORE
Pottstown – 2 13 15 26 – 56
Phoenixville – 19 16 24 21 – 80
POTTSTOWN (56): Mayes 3 0-0 6, Lyons 0 0-0 0, A. Jackson 5 3 4-6 23, Young 1 2-3 4, J. Jackson 0 0-0 0, S. Jackson 4 2 1-4 15, Whitehurst 0 0-0 0, Booker 3 2-2 8. Totals 16 5 9-15 56.
PHOENIXVILLE (80): Booth 3 0-0 6, O’Donnell 0 2-2 2, Brown 2 1 9-10 16, C. Cervino 1 0-0 2, Baratta 3 4 7-8 25, Lebisky 6 9-10 21, McClintock 4 0-0 8. Totals 19 5 27-30 80.
