CALN >> Coatesville’s veteran point guard Zuri Harris can control a basketball game without scoring. But on Tuesday, in the postseason opener, he scored points in bunches to pull the Red Raiders back from a double-digit deficit and on to a 77-60 win over visiting Cheltenham in the District 1 6A Round of 16 contest.
“We never panicked,” the 5-foot-11 senior said. “When teams go up on us, we always stay solid because we know how good we are. As long as we play defense, we know we are going to win every single game.”
Now 17-6 overall, fifth-seeded Coatesville has now won seven of the last eight and will advance to the district quarterfinals, where they will meet No. 4 Chester on Friday. The Panthers fall to 18-6 and into the playbacks on Friday.
“At this time of year, every game helps you,” said Raiders’ head coach John Allen.
Midway through the second quarter, Coatesville was having all kinds of trouble with No. 12 Cheltenham, an equally quick opponent. And with the deficit 30-19 and backcourt mate Amon Fowlkes on the bench with two fouls, Harris took over.
“Before the game — before we knew what defense (Cheltenham) was going to play — my dad said: ‘take what they give you,’” Harris recalled. “I can shoot 3-pointers – I made four of them last game – but if they give me a lane, I am going to take it to the basket.”
He did exactly that on three straight possessions, and Harris fearlessly came up with back-to-back-to-back three-point plays on strong moves to the hoop. He added a couple free throws, and then Fowlkes returned to hit a 3-pointer at the buzzer to give the Raiders a 36-33 lead at the half. They never trailed after that.
“We kind of expect that stuff from Zuri,” Allen said. “And then in the second half he probably took two shots and still controlled the game. He was awesome. But he also expects that from himself, just like we do. It’s been happened now for two seasons.”
With momentum clearly on its side, Coatesville then seized control by scoring 13 of the first 15 points in the second half, with Fowlkes connecting on two more from beyond the arc.
Senior forward Dior Kennedy added eight of his 13 points to help the Raiders outscore the Panthers 28-12 in the third and build a 61-48 advantage.
“It was in front of our home fans and our first (postseason) game, we just had to settle down,” Allen said. “(Cheltenham) made it tough for us, so credit to them.”
A junior, Fowlkes wound up with a career-high 22 points that included four made 3-pointers. Senior Marquis Peoples chipped in 11 for Coatesville.
“We have a lot of scorers and it can be anybody’s day. Today was my day. I was making shots and my teammates just trusted me,” Fowlkes said.
“A long as (Amon) plays his game, we know he is going to score,” Harris added. “And I trust him. He is coming into his own, and that helps everyone.”
Harris wound up scoring 13 of his 17 points during the crucial second quarter comeback.
“We came out lackadaisical,” Fowlkes acknowledged. “The coaches told us to stay focused and that it’s a long game.
“I got two fouls and had to sit out most of the second quarter. But (Zuri) told me stay in the game (mentally) and he picked up where I left off.”
In all, the Raiders went quite deep into the bench and got scoring from eight different players. Afterwards, Allen said he was just searching for some answers.
“If we want to make a district and state run, we are going to need depth from everybody, whether it’s P.J. (Frank Miles), Will (Fowlkes), Jake (Van Orden) or Armon (Shockley),” Harris said.
Coatesville 77, Cheltenham 60
CHELTENHAM – Hutson 7 0-0 14; Wilson-Worley 10-0 2; Addison 5 1-1 11; Harmon 1 3-4 5; O. Johnson 3 0-0 8; A. Johnson 1 0-0 3; Blackledge 3 0-0 7; Tinsley 2 0-4 4; Mason 2 1-2 5; McClendon 0 1-2 1. Totals 25 6-13 60.
COATESVILLE – Harris 4 8-9 17; Kennedy 6 1-2 13; Peoples 3 4-6 11; Brown 1 0-2 2; Shockley 2 0-0 4; Miles 2 0-0 4; W. Fowlkes 2 0-0 4; A. Fowlkes 7 4-5 22. Totals 27 17-24 77.
Cheltenham 19 17 12 12 — 60
Coatesville 13 20 28 16 — 77
3-pointers: O. Johnson 2, A. Johnson, Harris, Peoples, A. Fowlkes 4.
