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PIAA Class 6A: Millington, Barnes lead Carlisle past Coatesville

03/12/2017, 12:45am EST
By Anthony Dabbundo

Ki Barnes (above, in Jan.) has adjusted to his bench role, and Carlisle is in the second round of states. (Photo: Mark Jordan/CoBL)

Anthony Dabbundo (@AnthonyDabbundo)
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Ki Barnes has been back and forth from the starting lineup and the bench all season long.

It’s clear it’s mutually beneficial when he comes off the bench.

On Saturday afternoon in a packed house at Spring-Ford for the first round of the 6A state playoffs, Barnes checked into the game midway through the opening quarter.

The impact was immediate.

He may have missed what would have been a highlight putback dunk with his first shot attempt, but Barnes contributed with a crucial 14 points in Carlisle’s 64-56 win over Coatesville.

“We wanted to make sure this wasn’t our last game,” Barnes said. “After the dunk I missed, my intensity picked up, and I was feeling my shot.”

“I think he’s way better coming off the bench,” teammate DeShawn Millington added. “He’s our energy, he’s our hype man.”

The Thundering Herd’s 6-foot-4 senior committed no turnovers, grabbed an important eight rebounds, and went 6-for-6 from the line late in the game to ensure that this group of Carlisle seniors weren’t playing its final game in green and white.

After trailing 11-6 early on, head coach Andre Anderson called a timeout, and had a simple, yet effective message for his team.

“Coach called timeout and told us that if we wanted to go home we could pack our stuff now, and  we weren’t going to let this be our last game,” Barnes said.

They had already given away the ball with four mostly unforced turnovers, and that timeout sparked a Carlisle run that allowed them to finally get themselves into the game.

Once Barnes hit a three with seconds left in the first quarter, and Carlisle found themselves tied at 11 after playing a bad quarter, the Thundering Herd settled in. They handled the Coatesville press, and while they did have 15 turnovers, almost none came against the daunting Red Raiders’ press.

“We practiced and practiced and practiced against the press and once our guys saw that we could beat the press it helped our confidence,” Anderson said.

While the young Red Raiders withered and became more frustrated as the shots continued to misfire, the Herd’s group of eight seniors never cracked. From Millington, to Barnes, to senior guard Ben Milligan who added a crucial 10 points, the Herd were more patient and poised at both ends of the floor.

“That experience is taking us to another level in the postseason,” Anderson said.

“We have eight seniors and there’s no doubt that it helps,” Millington added.

Of the eight seniors on the Herd roster, none are more essential than Millington himself, an explosive 6-foot-1 guard who is near impossible to stay in front of. His quickness and finishing around the rim frustrated Coatesville all afternoon.

Despite a shaky start and seven total turnovers, Millington was crucial down the stretch, finishing with 21 points on 8-of-14 shooting from the field.

“I’m not really thinking too much late in the game,” Millington said. “When you think too much, you start to turn the ball over, and in the first half I was thinking too much and turning the ball over.”

“We’re blessed to have a guy with his ability, and to have a  guard like him in the state tournament is huge,” Anderson added.

His night seemed to turn around right before the end of the half, when the 6-1 guard stole the ball at the defensive end, then completed a three point play at the opposite end to send Carlisle into the lead at the break.

Once Ethan Houston hit a three straight out of halftime, the Carlisle lead ballooned to five, and the Herd never trailed again.

Despite multiple efforts to cut down the deficit and retake the lead, Coatesville just could not get shots to drop around the rim and from beyond the arc.

As a team, they were 20-of-61 from the field and 4-of-19 from beyond the arc. Carlisle had a plan to make them a jump shooting team, and they executed it flawlessly.

“We watched film and knew they didn’t have many great shooters so we packed the paint,” Barnes said.

Next up for the Herd is Lincoln, the District 12 runner-up on Wednesday night in the second round of the 6A playoffs.

For Anderson and the Herd, it seems they have identified their x-factor.

“If Ki plays like that, we can make a deep run here,” Anderson said. “If he performs like that, with that kind of heart, we’re a different team.”

~~~

CLASS 6A
FIRST ROUND
Saturday, March 11
Central Dauphin East 64, Abington 63 (OT)
Archbishop Ryan 77, Parkland 55
Hempfield 62, William Allen 57
Williamsport 59, Penn Wood 41
Perkiomen Valley 57, Roman Catholic 55
Reading 58, North Penn 45
Plymouth-Whitemarsh 80, Lebanon 64
Pocono Mountain West 71, Lower Merion 57
Harrisburg 55, Downingtown 34
Emmaus 68, Cheltenham 67
Abraham Lincoln 66, Conestoga 60
Carlisle 64, Coatesville 56
State College 82, Woodland Hills 71
Butler 51, Canon-McMillan 46
Pine-Richland 83, Latrobe 82
Taylor Allderdice 85, North Hills 61

SECOND ROUND
Wednesday, March 15
Sites and times, TBA

Central Dauphin East (3-6, 17-10) vs. Archbishop Ryan (12-3, 21-5)
Hempfield (3-2, 20-9) vs. Williamsport (4-1, 21-4)
Perkiomen Valley (1-8, 23-6) vs. Reading (3-3, 26-3)
Plymouth-Whitemarsh (1-3, 24-5) vs. Pocono Mountain West (11-1, 23-4)
Harrisburg (3-1, 20-6) vs. Emmaus (11-4, 21-6)
Abraham Lincoln (12-2, 23-5) vs. Carlisle (3-5, 19-8)
State College (6-1, 21-4) vs. Butler (7-2, 18-9)
Pine-Richland (7-1, 25-1) vs. Taylor Allderdice (8-1, 19-8)

~~~

CLASS 4A

FIRST ROUND
Saturday, March 5

West Philadelphia 78, Lancaster Catholic 65
Wilkes-Barre GAR Memorial 72, Selinsgrove 59
Conwell-Egan 81, Saucon Valley 59
Nanticoke 58, Bethlehem Catholic 56
Imhotep Charter 74, Harrisburg Bishop McDevitt 41
Scranton Prep 99, Salisbury 46
Universal Audenried 84, Jim Thorpe 36
Berks Catholic 59, Lewisburg 39
Middletown 71, Danville 56
Johnstown 62, Schuylkill Valley 52
Quaker Valley 76, Harbor Creek 52
Grove City 57, Central Valley 50
New Castle 72, Sharon 38
McGuffey 48, Clearfield 46
Beaver Falls 62, Central Martinsburg 52
Erie Strong Vincent 67, South Fayette 48

SECOND ROUND
Wednesday, March 15

Sites and times, TBA

West Philadelphia (12-4, 14-9) vs. Wilkes-Barre GAR Memorial (2-2, 19-7)
Conwell-Egan (12-2, 10-14)) vs. Nanticoke (2-3, 19-7)

Imhotep Charter (12-1, 27-2) vs. Scranton Prep (2-1, 23-3)
Universal Audenried (12-3, 19-5) vs. Berks Catholic (3-3, 22-7)
Middletown (3-2, 21-5) vs. Johnstown (6-1, 16-10)
Quaker Valley (7-2, 23-3) vs. Grove City (10-2, 20-6)
New Castle (7-1, 24-2) vs. McGuffey (7-5, 19-6)
Beaver Falls (7-4, 13-9) vs. Erie Strong Vincent (10-1, 24-3)

~~~

CLASS 2A
FIRST ROUND
Saturday, March 11

Julia Masterman 70, Marian Catholic 62
Halifax 47, Muncy 42 (OT)

Northeast Bradford 41, Mountain View 38
Math, Civics & Sciences 52, Christopher Dock 35
Constitution 53, Church Farm 49
Scranton Holy Cross 52, Shenandoah Valley 35
Ridgway 54, North Penn-Mansfield 50
Berlin Brothersvalley 66, Purchase Line 62
Sewickley Academy 60, Rocky Grove 47
Altoona Bishop Guilfoyle 36, McConnellsburg 35
Greensburg Central Catholic 66, West Middlesex 53
Coudersport 80, United 45
Johnstown Bishop McCort 65, Jeannette 51
Our Lady of Sacred Heart 61, Cambridge Springs 52
Bishop Canevin 74, Brockway 38
Wilmington 69, Chartiers-Houston 38

SECOND ROUND
Wednesday, March 15
Sites and times, TBA

Julia Masterman (12-3, 21-5) vs. Halifax (3-1, 17-10)
Northeast Bradford (4-2, 16-10) vs. Math, Civics & Sciences (12-1, 19-9)
Constitution (12-2, 16-9) vs. Scranton Holy Cross (2-1, 19-8)
Ridgway (9-3, 22-5) vs. Berlin Brothersvalley (5-1, 17-9) Purchase Line (6-3, 16-9)
Sewickley Academy (7-1, 21-4) vs. Altoona Bishop Guilfoyle (6-2, 18-7)
Greensburg Central Catholic (7-4, 24-1) vs. Coudersport (9-1, 25-0)
Johnstown Bishop McCort (6-1, 22-4) vs. Our Lady of Sacred Heart (7-2, 19-7)
Bishop Canevin (7-3, 20-5) vs. Wilmington (10-1, 19-7)


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