Upper Darby’s Alex Brown, left, and Harriton’s Saliem Potts battle for control of the ball in the second half Thursday in a Central League playoff game. (Pete Bannan – MediaNews Group)
By Matthew DeGeorge
Niymire Brown saw the right side of the basketball court open up before him in the fourth quarter Thursday evening, a lane that might as well have been lined with runway lights.
Throughout their Central League playoff opening-round game, Harriton had struggled to keep the Upper Darby forward earthbound. And the last installment of a 28-point, eight-rebound, three-block evening was by far the most emphatic.
Brown slammed home for two points in the open court, then got a curtain call on the way to the bench, his work done in a 83-61 win for the third-seeded Royals. It sends Upper Darby (17-6) to Saturday’s semifinal at No. 2 Lower Merion.
“Once the lane opens,” Brown said, “I like to fly.”