Pandora-Gilboa's seniors step up to roar past Perry
Dec. 1—PERRY TOWNSHIP — When a basketball game gets tight, it's awfully handy to have some seniors on the floor in the boys basketball season opener.
Pandora-Gilboa's experienced players stepped up to turn a tied game with 1:27 left in the third quarter at Perry into a convincing 54-41 win at Leonard V. Volbert Gymnasium.
"Perry's kids really played hard against us," Pandora-Gilboa coach Mike Lee said. "It's easy to forget that they had us tied in the third quarter. Then we really got some things going."
Namely, the Rockets turned to seniors Aiden Harris (6-4) and Colin Harris (6-2) in the final 10 minutes of the game, when P-G outscored the Commodores 22-9. Aiden Harris had eight of his game-high 26 points in the stretch, while Colin Harris had eight of his 10 points in the stretch.
Colin Harris put an exclamation point on it at the end of the third quarter, stealing the ball from Perry and taking it in for a layup as the horn sounded, turning that tied game into a six-point Rocket lead.
"It was great to be back on the court with the boys, you know., and be able to play with my family," he said.
Pandora-Gilboa has three three-year starters back this year, including both Harris boys and 6-foot senior Aidan Morris.
The Commodores played well in spurts, especially when they were able to get their transition game going. At the end, the Pandora-Gilboa defense stalled that fast-paced offense and made it run a more deliberate halfcourt set. Sophomore Marcus Hill had 11 points, including three 3-pointers.
"We want to get out. We want to push it," first-year Perry coach Thomas Nolte said. "We want to get layups. In my opinion, I think that we kind of stopped ourselves on that."
Perry actually shot better in the game, hitting 50% of its shots, compared to Pandora-Gilboa's 40% shooting. The teams were comparable with rebounds, with the Rockets' Aiden Harris having six of the team's 22 rebounds, and Hill having five of Perry's 20 rebounds.
The difference was on steals, though. Aiden Harris had four of his team's 10 steals, compared to seven steals by the Commodores.
"They're fast. They're really fast," Aiden Harris said. "It's just getting them out of transition, stopping their transition. We knew coming in that they were quick, and we just needed to stop them."
Nolte acknowledged his team is learning a new offense and new style of play, and Pandora-Gilboa was a strong team to face in the opener.
"Heading into the first game of the season, that's all you ask for is energy, toughness, grit and communication. Those were our four keys this weekend. I thought we did a really good job with all four of those."
Pandora-Gilboa 54, Perry 41
Pandora-Gilboa 10 15 13 16 — 54
Perry 10 10 12 9 — 41
PANDORA-GILBOA
Colin Harris 10, Aiden Harris 26, Owen Huffman 7, Aidan Morris 3, Nate Walker 2, Zach Neuenschwander 4, Nate Maag 2. Totals: 18-15-54.
PERRY
Marcus Hill 11, Andrew Nanchoff 8, Za'mere Daniel 7, Hunter Scott 5, Micah Olatunde 2, Dezzmin Cobb 4, Brady Shively 4. Totals: 16-3-41.
Reach David Trinko at 567-242-0467 or on Twitter @Lima_Trinko.
