skip navigation

PIAA Class 5A: Upper Merion shakes off district title loss to advance

03/10/2017, 11:30pm EST
By Rich Flanagan

Matt Faw (above, in Feb.) and Upper Merion advanced to the second round of the 5A tournament. (Photo: Josh Verlin/CoBL)

Rich Flanagan (@richflanagan33)
--

Upper Merion had to eventually come to grips with what had transpired.

Following a heartbreaking, two-point loss to Penncrest in the District 1 Class 5A title game, the Vikings walked off the court as if the season had officially ended. A district title was the goal from the outset for head coach Jason Quenzer and his team, but not accomplishing what they set out to do lingered with them.

While working to revive his team’s psyche, Quenzer noted getting players to believe there was still something to play for after it seemed as if everything had been lost was tougher than he expected.

“It was tough because that was our goal. That was the ultimate tournament we had in sight. There was nothing past that,” Quenzer said. “We knew there was a state tournament but it was hard in the locker room and then the days after. Until you play another game, it’s never really going to go away.”

Making its first appearance in the state playoffs since 1993, Upper Merion needed a lift and it got a big one from its two biggest players in Matthew Faw and Ethan Miller. Faw had a double-double on a game-high 23 points and 11 rebounds to go along with six blocks, and Miller added 20 points and nine rebounds as the Vikings broke out of their funk following the district title loss to down Greencastle-Antrim 62-46 in the opening of the PIAA 5A playoffs at Cheltenham High School.

Quenzer felt playing in another game helped ease the pain but also stressed having veteran players who lead by example on and off the court made things even easier.

“Having seniors is important, too because they said at the end of practice, ‘Guys, clear your heads. We carried that weight back into our gym. Let’s leave that weight at home and come back tomorrow,’” Quenzer said. “They were loose and focused after that.”

Miller, the 6-foot-6 Pioneer Athletic Conference All-Conference First Team selection, got things going by scoring 14 of his 20 in the first two quarters including a stretch of five consecutive baskets for the Vikings, one of which gave them their first lead at 15-14 with 52.6 seconds remaining in the first quarter. Miller was the only Upper Merion (17-10) player who had success against the Blue Devils’ zone in the first half and Greencastle-Antrim took a three-point advantage into the locker room at the break.

Miller was the story of the first half, but Faw took over in the second. The 6-8 forward bound for Holy Cross finished a layup inside to cut the Greencastle-Antrim (18-10) lead to 30-29 during Upper Merion’s decisive third-quarter run. Later, he hit 1-2 from the free-throw line then drained a three-pointer from the left corner followed by a putback, which pushed the Vikings’ advantage to 39-30 at the 2:41 mark of the quarter.

The Vikings outscored the Blue Devils 20-5 in that third quarter and Miller credits Faw’s increased workload and focus as the prime reason for the comeback.

“I just wanted to get Matt involved because he came out in the first half a little timid and wasn’t playing his game. I tried to calm him down a little bit and got him involved,” Miller said. “I thought getting the ball out in transition was the key, particularly for Matt where he can finish and get his game going.”

Greencastle-Antrim, making its first trip to the state tournament since 2012, jumped on the timid and lackadaisical Vikings early, led by 6-3 junior forward Bryan Gembe’s 10 first-half points. Gembe, who finished with 14, hit a pair of treys that gave his team an early 12-9 cushion and the Blue Devils appeared to be in control.

Their zone defense stifled Upper Merion for much of the first half, but when Faw and Miller were able to get out in transition, control the glass and even knock down a perimeter jumper as Faw did on three occasions (twice from deep, once from the elbow), Greencastle-Antrim did not have an answer.

Head coach Rick Lewis, whose team knocked down nine three-pointers, felt the Vikings' defense in the second half facilitated their offense and his team was not able to match that.

“We went cold, but they amped up the intensity. There’s no question about it. We got their attention there in the first half,” Lewis said. “They’re long and sped us up just a little bit, which forced us to rush some things. They got that little bit of separation and it caused us a challenge to get back.”

Upper Merion advances to the second round to play Northeastern (York), which defeated Wissahickon 78-66 in the opening round. Quenzer knows there’s a still a bitter taste in his player’s mouths and he’s hoping that added motivation from dropping the district title game will help them moving forward.

“It feels good in a sense but you come in the locker room and there’s no jubilation or excitement. It’s about what’s next,” Quenzer said. “I just think that they don’t want to be done and it’s going to get tougher as we go.”

~~~

CLASS 5A
FIRST ROUND

Friday, March 10
Hershey 51, Penncrest 42
Chester 72, Milton Hershey 53
Abington Heights 67, Lampeter-Strasburg 48
Martin Luther King 43, Bishop Shanahan 33
Mechanicsburg 49, Springfield-Delco 45
Archbishop Wood 92, New Oxford 62
East Stroudsburg North 58, Manheim Central 55
Spring Grove 49, West Scranton 48
Northeastern York 78, Wissahickon 66
Upper Merion 62, Greencastle-Antrim 46
Archbishop Carroll 61, Great Valley 48
Palmyra 58, Pottsville 43
Mars 85, Hampton 81
Erie Cathedral Prep 55, Central Mountain 46
Franklin Regional 52, Moon 51
Meadville 55, Chartiers Valley 45

SECOND ROUND
Tuesday, March 14
Sites and times, TBA
Hershey (3-10, 14-13) vs. Chester (1-5, 21-6)
Abington Heights (2-1, 23-3) vs. Martin Luther King (12-2, 21-9)

Mechanicsburg (3-2, 23-6) vs. Archbishop Wood (12-1, 24-3)
East Stroudsburg North (11-1, 18-10) vs. Spring Grove (3-4, 21-8)
Northeastern York (3-1, 28-2) vs. Upper Merion (1-2, 17-11)
Archbishop Carroll (12-3, 19-8) vs. Palmyra (3-6, 22-5)
Mars (7-4, 16-9) vs. Erie Cathedral Prep (10-2, 14-12)
Franklin Regional (7-5, 14-11) vs. Meadville (10-1, 23-1)


HS Coverage:

Recruiting News:

Tag(s): Home  Contributors  Rich Flanagan  Pac-10 (B)  Upper Merion  Greencastle-Antrim