Penncrest finds its groove just in time

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By Matthew DeGeorge

There weren’t many enjoyable huddles for Penncrest Friday night.

Not at a halftime following a two-point second quarter. Not at the end of three quarters when they trailed Chichester by eight. Not at any of the myriad stopping points coach Mike Doyle chose for an uncharacteristically turnover-prone and jittery Lions squad.

However uncomfortable the process, the end result was what Doyle and company were looking for.

The Lions used a 12-0 run to start the fourth quarter to get back into touch, then scored 15 points in overtime to book a 65-59 win over a game Chichester squad at the Media Shootout hosted by Strath Haven.

The Lions will meet Academy Park, a 78-51 winner over the host Panthers in the nightcap, in Saturday’s title game.

Much of the fire the Lions used to get back into the game stemmed from their time on the sidelines and in the locker room.

“He just got us fired up, because we knew that we could play a lot better than we were,’ said Mike Doyle Jr., who led the Lions with 24 points. “And we showed that in the fourth quarter and overtime.’

As usual, it was the 3-pointer that did it for the Lions. They canned three triples — including two by Nolan Carroll as part of his 5-for-16 shooting day from beyond the arc — to key the run that started the fourth quarter and overcome a 39-31 deficit after three quarters.

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