Garnet Valley’s Palis works Plan B to perfection

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CONCORD >> Cole Palis and his Garnet Valley teammates know both ends of the bargain in a late-game situation like Tuesday’s. Call them Plans 1A and 1B.

With the clock ticking under a minute in overtime, trailing Ridley by one point, everyone in the gym knew the ball would find Garnet Valley’s Austin Laughlin, the high-scoring guard looking to wiggle out the sliver of space he needs to launch his effective jump shot. That’s Plan 1A.

But as Laughlin ran a pick and roll with Brandon Starr near the top of the key and defenders in green shirts gravitated toward him, Palis, idling on the left wing, knew to be ready.

Palis received the feed from Laughlin without a defender near him and swished home a 3-pointer with 35 seconds left, powering Garnet Valley’s 61-60 Central League win.

Plan A, it might not have been. But when afforded the spotlight, Palis was ready to step up for a Garnet Valley team headed to the District 1 Class 6A playoffs.

Ridley’s Jimmy Bramwell, shown here putting up a shot against Lower Merion’s Jack Forest last Friday, scored 20 points Tuesday in a losing effort against Garnet Valley. (Digital First Media/Pete Bannan)

“He’s a good teammate,” Palis said of Laughlin. “You’ve got to always be ready when you’re with him. Hands have always got to be up and ready for the ball.”

Ridley had two chances to answer Palis’ shot, which made the game 60-58. A Starr missed free throw with 16.5 seconds remaining handed Ridley the final possession to tie, but Damir Fleming elected to take a 14-foot runner, with the clock expiring before the Jags had to inbound after it fell home.

The Jaguars (14-7, 9-6 Central) aren’t exactly poster children for scoring balance, with Starr and Laughlin accounting for 68 percent of their points this season. But Tuesday, contributions materialized from throughout the roster.

Laughlin played the central role with 23 points, including the final seven of regulation. But he deferred in overtime.

Starr (nine points) started the extra session with a 3-point play. Palis, Danny Guy and Jacob Buttermore each contributed two made 3-pointers to the 11 the Jags splashed home. Connor O’Brien supplied one of the most consequential shots, a 3-pointer on the first possession of the fourth quarter assisted by Starr that arrested a 13-2 Ridley run.

“They had the momentum coming into the fourth,” Palis said. “Connor hits the 3, rejuvenates the bench, gets the crowd going. The momentum helps so much.”

“I think it’s their defense keying on me and Brandon the most,” said Laughlin. “And these guys were left open. When they’re left open, I have faith in them to knock down the shot. Pretty much when they’re left open, they’re going to hit it.”

The Jags did so early on, leading by 11 at the break, aided by two Laughlin free throws on a questionable Ridley bench technical followed by Laughlin dishing to Guy for a corner triple. (Equally regrettable: An 8-for-17 shooting performance at the line for the Green Raiders).

But Ridley fought back with that third-quarter spurt, fueled by Fleming’s eight points in the frame and limiting Garnet to a mere five points.

Jimmy Bramwell took command late, putting Ridley ahead for the first time at 45-44 with 5:42 left. He was 5-for-5 from 3-point land.

“Right away, they were hitting 3s,” Bramwell said. “They didn’t miss. We knew we had to have a rebuttal and do the same thing and play the best defense we could.”

Fleming hit two free throws with 1:58 left to tie the game at 50, then answered a Laughlin drive with a pull-up jumper from 18 feet to knot the score at 52. Laughlin sank two free throws to surge ahead, but Bramwell drove to the basket and laid in off the glass with 12 ticks left to restore parity at 54.

“We were running the play and we knew they were going to switch, so Liam (Thompson) told us to slip,” Bramwell said. “And I slipped through and I was open, and I just took it.”

The ending was anticlimactic for the Green Raiders for a second straight outing, both in the hands of Fleming. Last Friday, the guard hit a 3-pointer at the buzzer against Lower Merion to pare a four-point deficit to one. Tuesday, he had more control, but opted for the “quick two,” a concept that doesn’t hold water in high school where the clock doesn’t stop on a made basket. He finished with 24 points.

“It was kind of a disappointment because we knew we needed a 3 no matter what,” Bramwell said. “To shot a 2 like that and not have anybody near you, it was kind of a disappointment. It was upsetting because that could’ve cost us district playoffs.”

The loss likely rules out the postseason for Ridley (10-11, 7-8), which has lost seven games by five points or fewer.

But the Green Raiders afforded Garnet Valley a dry run with a playoff-like atmosphere to which Palis and company responded splendidly.

“We’ve been in games like this all year,” Palis said. “It’s just preparing us for the playoffs.”

Also in the Central League:

Penncrest 45, Springfield 42 >> Tyler Norwood poured in 19 of his 21 points after halftime as the Lions (15-6, 11-4) clinched a spot in the Central League semifinals.

Mike Mallon added 12 points, and Justin Ross added 10 for Penncrest.

Great Orjih and Kyle Long led Springfield (12-9, 8-7) with eight apiece.

Marple Newtown 75, Harriton 68 >> Mark Dever scored 31 points to go with seven rebounds as the Tigers (10-11, 6-9) kept their playoff hopes alive.

Mike May added 18 points, and Luke Cantwell chipped in 14.

Radnor 62, Strath Haven 57 >> Mason Ressler’s 16 points gave the Raiders life in the playoff picture. Sami Ghazzi added 11 points, and Vernon Harper chipped in 10 for Radnor (8-13, 4-11).

John Harrar scored 21 of his game-high 23 points after halftime to go with 12 rebounds. Cooper Driscoll paired 15 points with 11 rebounds for Haven (13-8, 9-6).

Conestoga 64, Haverford 50 >> Kevin DePrince (16 points) and Luke Verzella (14) contributed to a season-high for points, but it wasn’t enough for the Fords (1-20, 0-15).

Lower Merion 71, Upper Darby 41 >> Bayir Hodges scored 11 points, but 12 3-pointers (including four each from Steve Payne and Noah Fenell) doomed the Royals (6-14, 5-10).

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Matthew De George

Matthew De George
Matthew De George is the Asst. Sports Editor and the lead Union writer for The Daily Times.

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