No. 6 Perkiomen Valley pulls out last-second win over No. 3 Methacton in opening round of PAC boys basketball tournament

ROYERSFORD >> Julian Sadler has played the hero time and time again for the No. 6 Perkiomen Valley boys basketball team. With less than five seconds left in regulation and the game tied 42-42, the junior guard donned Superman’s cape once more.

Matching No. 3 Methacton’s Cam Chilson step-by-step from midcourt, Sadler bullied his way to the rim, sinking one last floater to rip out the carpet from the Warriors and deliver the Vikings a 44-42 victory in the opening round of the Pioneer Athletic Conference tournament at Spring-Ford on Wednesday.

With the win, Perkiomen Valley will take on No. 2 seed Upper Merion in the semifinals at Spring-Ford Friday at 6 p.m.

“They’ve been on the top of this league for years. We talked about that,” Sadler said, noting Methacton’s run of four PAC titles in the last five years. “We just had to come in with the edge.”

UNREAL!!!!

Julian Sadler hits a layup to put Perk up 44-42, Methacton gets a timeout off with 0.6 left on the clock!!!! pic.twitter.com/brYPZ5MTtz

— Evan Wheaton (@EvanWheaton) February 9, 2023

Warriors (17-6) coach Patrick Lockard was able to get a timeout with 0.6 on the clock following Sadler’s layup. Methacton forward Alex Hermann then caught a full-court lob from Matt Christian on the inbound pass, and with no one on him, Hermann put up one last-ditch shot that circled the rim and came out.

The near-miracle play was the last breath from a squad that was constantly trading leads all night with the Vikings. Chilson had a game-high 21-point outing for Methacton. Sadler led the Vikings (18-5) with 19 points and Mason Thear added 10.

FINAL — No. 6 Perkiomen Valley 44, No. 3 Methacton 42

Warriors with one last chance, it’s just short.

Perkiomen Valley will face No. 2 Upper Merion in the PAC semifinals.

Unreal game to kick off the tournament. pic.twitter.com/fF70ytYppv

— Evan Wheaton (@EvanWheaton) February 9, 2023

Round three between the Liberty foes was a tale that’s been told all season. Methacton won the first meeting 49-47 and prevailed 59-58 the second time around. The season series between the two is separated by just five points altogether.

“I think we’re two very even teams and all our final scores have shown that,” Lockard said. “We knew at a couple points early, three-point halftime lead, none of that stuff was gonna matter until the fourth quarter when we had to separate ourselves.”

The Vikings led 36-35 entering the fourth quarter. Both offenses stalled in the final few minutes after what was a back-and-forth slugfest up to that point. Sadler’s last-second bucket was the first score since the 3:20 mark in the fourth quarter. It was also Perkiomen Valley’s first basket in over five minutes of play.

Sadler and Chilson dueled all game, the two guards matched on one another throughout the contest and finishing with three 3-pointers apiece. But Sadler — the PAC’s leading scorer at 21 points per game — was able to break through in the right moments right to the end.

“It’s definitely a fun matchup. Cam Chilson is a good defender and as a competitor, I love playing against guys like that,” Sadler said.

Chilson came in clutch as well, hitting a halfcourt buzzer-beater to walk into the locker room with a 25-22 lead for the Warriors.

Having just made the PAC tournament with the final wild card spot after upsetting top-ranked Spring-Ford, Perkiomen Valley boosted its stock in the District 1 rankings. At No. 7 in the Class 6A field, the Vikings are primed for a first-round bye in districts following the PAC tournament.

Methacton will miss the PAC championship for the first time in the last five years, not including the absence of the tournament during the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020-21. Still, ranked No. 9 in District 1-6A, the Warriors look on to the District 1 tournament with solid playoff seeding.

“Most of our losses this year have been right in the fourth quarter, we just haven’t come out on top … We keep telling ourselves we’ve gotta learn from this,” Lockard said. “Now that we’re in playoff basketball, you don’t have many do-overs or, ‘Hey, we’ll get ‘em next time.’ It’s now or never, so fortunately we have an opportunity to go to districts and prove our worth.”

Perkiomen Valley 44, Methacton 42