By Shannon Fagan, WEIS Sports Director
SPRING GARDEN – Behind senior guard Noah Barber’s five 3-pointers and a smothering defensive effort, the top-ranked Spring Garden Panthers clinched home court in the upcoming Class 1A, Area 12 basketball tournament with a 58-32 victory over visiting Donoho on Wednesday.
The Panthers (24-0, 8-0) held the Falcons to just 13 points in the first half and without a 3-pointer in the game.
Meanwhile, Barber sank four of his treys in the first half – including three in the second quarter.
“Noah came out and hit some big shots for us early, and that set the tone on offense for us,” Spring Garden coach Levi Hatcher said. “When you can get out there and hit a few shots on the outside and stretch the defense some, it kind of gives you more options on what you can do on the offensive side. When we’re able to sit out there and shoot, it creates better driving angles. It creates more one-on-one matchups on the inside. It just kind of eases the rest of the game when we can hit some on the outside.”
Barber tossed in 17 points. John Welsh scored a game-high 21 points and grabbed eight rebounds. Jake Welsh finished with with eight points and seven boards.
“It just comes down to the way we practice,” Barber said. “Coach (Hatcher) makes us get a lot of shots up, a lot of game-type shots that are quick. I’m kind of used to it. It’s no different than practice.
“I’m sure they were worried about John and Jake. They’re a force inside in the paint. That opens things up for me a lot of times, and I’ve just got to knock them down.”
John Welsh simply described the Panthers’ success on Wednesday as “just teamwork.”
“You’ve got to be able to shoot outside,” he said. “The past few years we haven’t been able to shoot outside as good, but (this season) it’s made it to where we haven’t had to drive as much. Noah knocking them down makes it easier for Jake and me to make baskets, and us making baskets makes it easier for him to shoot.”
That teamwork was also present on the defensive end for the Panthers. Bruce Downey led the Falcons with 12 points, but no other Falcon player reached double figures. Ethan Crawford came away with seven points and James Beckwith finished with six.
Spring Garden led 13-8 at the end of the first quarter and 32-13 at halftime. The Falcons went on a 6-0 run to open the third quarter, the Panthers closed it out by outscoring Donoho 15-6 to take a 47-25 edge.
“I feel like the defense set the tone for the game,” Hatcher said. “That team has a couple of kids who can score, and to hold them to 13 in a half is tough. We did a good job of game planning for them. The guys did a good job of being able to execute on that end.”
And that execution led to another Panther goal being checked off the list –hosting the area tournament.
“The way our guys have played and as experienced as they are on the road winning some tough games, we’re confident if we have to play on the road, but it’s a lot nicer to play on your home court in front of your home fans when it comes to the area tournament,” Hatcher said. “It kind of puts us in the position we want to be in when we go into the playoffs.”
“It’s awesome to be able to play here (in the area tournament),” Barber added. “It’s good to have a home environment like we have at Spring Garden. We’re blessed to have a community like this to back us up.”
