Mercury Boys Basketball (Feb. 25): Pope John Paul II escapes OJR 51-49 to stay unbeaten
Pope John Paul II 51, Owen J. Roberts 49 >> In a back-and-forth PAC divisional crossover game Thursday, the Golden Panthers kept their unbeaten record intact by escaping the Wildcats.
Kevin Green’s 14-point effort headed a trio of double-figure scorers that factored in PJP going from a 22-21 halftime deficit to a 42-40 lead through three quarters. Luke McCarthy added 12 points and Liam Haffey 10 as the Panthers stayed a notch ahead of OJR.
Sam Cerimele grabbed a share of game scoring honors with his own 14 points. Luke Fryer kicking in 11 more.
Methacton 49, Boyertown 33 >> Brett Byrne and Cole Hargrove combined for 25 points as the Warriors rode shutdown defense in the fourth quarter to a PAC Liberty Division victory over the Bears.
Byrne was the game’s leading scorer with 13, one more than Hargrove. The defense in the meantime held Boyertown to one point down the stretch, opened Methacton’s 35-32 lead through three quarters.
Aarick Salata was the Bears’ leading scorer with 10 points.
Phoenixville 64, Upper Perkiomen 22 >> The Phantoms combined offensive balance with stingy defense Thursday on the way to a PAC Frontier Division victory over the Indians.
While Zavier Mayo and Mike Memmo were each scoring 10 points, the Phoenixville defense limited UP to 11 points in the first half while putting up 41. Will Allain chipped in with another nine points, and Jackson Kuranda seven for a Phantom lineup that got scoring from 11 different players.
Upper Perk closed its season 0-15.
Spring-Ford 56, Upper Merion 41 >> Zack Skrocki keyed a balanced attack with a game-high 16 points, Nate Santiago dropped 13 and Gavin Schauder chipped in with 12 as the Rams rode a quick start and strong finish to the PAC crossover victory.
Spring-Ford climbed back to the .500 mark at 5-5 with its second straight success, racing out to a 28-14 halftime lead and closing things out with a 19-12 advantage in the fourth quarter after the Vikings had drawn within 37-29.
For UM, which got 10 treys from six different players, Madison Tatom led the way with 13 points and Collin Bowman added 8.
