Penns Valley boys’ basketball handles Tyrone in District 6 consolation game

For the first 16 minutes of action, it was easy to look away from what Penns Valley boys’ basketball was doing.

But in the second half, the Rams were hard to ignore.

Penns Valley (19-5) smoked Tyrone (15-9) on Thursday night 50-33 in the PIAA District 6 Class AA consolation game at Bald Eagle Area High School, overcoming a horrendous first half to rattle off a 24-2 run from the third to the fourth quarter.

Senior guards Logan Pearce and Ben Alexander led the Rams with 18 and 17 points, respectively.

“No one would have expected that,” Penns Valley coach Terry Glunt said of the comeback win.

And it’s hard to argue with the coach.

Penns Valley was dreadful from the get-go.

The Rams, normally efficient, connected on only 4 of 15 shots (26.7 percent) in the first two quarters. Before it went on its run midway through the third, Penns Valley shot 20 percent (5 of 25) from the field.

Add in six turnovers, and the Rams were in a 19-9 hole at halftime.

“That was the worst half of basketball we’ve played all year,” Glunt said. “Nothing seemed to be working.”

The lack of sharpness was at least partially attributed to Penns Valley’s heartbreaking 54-44 overtime loss in the district semifinals to West Branch on Tuesday night.

Glunt said the game took a lot out of his players, and he noticed it right away at the beginning of practice Wednesday.

“I looked at the kids and they looked older than some of their fathers,” Glunt recalled, “so I said, ‘Guys, shoot a couple of foul shots and let’s get out of here.’ They needed to get home and rest.

“And they were still resting in the first half.”

Even still, Glunt said he wasn’t irate at the break. Instead he was trying to find a solution.

His instructions? Attack.

The period was slow to start, but three 3-pointers by Pearce, a pair of baskets by Alexander in the lane, and a heightened sense of pressure applied at the top the key by the Rams’ 2-3 zone allowed them to tie the game at 24 heading into the fourth.

Penns Valley let the momentum flow, outscoring Tyrone 11-2 to start the final quarter.

“We were firing on all cylinders,” Pearce said.

For Tyrone coach George Gripp, it was difficult to see his team’s advantage evaporate so quickly.

“It’s tough to sit there and watch as a coach,” he said. “We couldn’t do anything right, and they couldn’t do anything wrong.”

With the victory, Penns Valley claimed District 6’s No. 3 seed in the state tournament. Tyrone is the No. 4 seed.

The Rams will play the District 9 champion, either Kane or Brockway, in the first round of the state tournament. The two schools play 4 p.m. Saturday, and Glunt said he and his team will travel to watch.

“We’ll see what our chances are against them,” the coach said.

But without getting too far ahead, the Rams want to enjoy this one.

“We went from one of the toughest losses I’ve ever been involved in, to one of the best wins,” Glunt said. “That’s nice in a two-day span.”

This story was originally published February 25, 2016 at 10:51 PM with the headline "Penns Valley boys’ basketball handles Tyrone in District 6 consolation game."