Penncrest’s Marquis Tomlin helped the Lions advance to the second round of the District 1 Class 5A tournament.
By Bob Grotz
Penncrest was favored to defeat Chichester in the first round of District 1 Class 5A playoffs Wednesday.
After all, the Lions were seeded third, the Eagles 14th. Nobody expected a 57-23 beatdown that looked worse than the math.
Certainly not with the Lions missing point guard Saahir Lee, out with an injury. High school starting lineups can be fragile.
The Lions (20-6) didn’t miss a beat as they turned to Marquis Tomlin to do much of the ball-handling and Aidan Carroll to make Chi’s leading scorer, Josh Hankins, wish somebody else was guarding him.
“Hankins was one of the leading scorers in the county,” Lions coach Mike Doyle said. “And Carroll just gave up himself to play him. Carroll’s a shooter and we asked him just to run around and chase (Hankins) the entire game. And it really stymied them. They had no one else to go to.
“Hankins is their facilitator, he’s their engine. When he has it going on, he’s getting everyone else involved. He couldn’t’ get the ball and nobody else was involved. That was a key.”
The Lions take on Strath Haven, the sixth seed that beat Phoenixville in the first round, Saturday in the next round at Kaufman Gymnasium. They’ve played three times, the Lions losing once, on a buzzer-beater at home. Better get there early for the preferred seating.
Webmaster’s note: The District One, 5A quarter-final this Saturday between Strath Haven and Penncrest will be audio broadcast right here on Delcohoops.com. Our broadcast begins at 6:45 PM.