Tyler Palmer - By Paul Burdick
By Chris Rossetti
STATE COLLEGE – Sewickley Academy wasn’t supposed to win the PIAA Class A boys’ championship. The Panthers were supposed to be only a speed bump on the way to another all-Eastern Pennsylvania sweep of the boys’ basketball championships.
After all, Sewickley was playing Reading Central Catholic, team that not only featured super junior Marcus Dawkins, a sure-fire NCAA Division I player, but also had the likes of sophomore forward Marquis Marshall, the son of former Connecticut star and Big East Player of the Year and long-time NBA player Donyell Marshall, and 6-foot-7 sophomore center Donovan Jack among others.
But the Panthers weren’t deterred riding the first-half shooting of senior guard Tyler Palmer and a tremendous second-half defensive effort to win its first state title since 1997 with a 43-35 win Friday afternoon at Penn State’s Bryce Jordan Center.
“I really wanted to get here last year, so it was such a killer not to get here,” Tyler Palmer said. “I knew we would have an awesome team (this year), but I would also have to step up a lot more than last year. It’s a fantastic way to end my senior year.”
Palmer was the key in the first half helping to keep Sewickley Academy in the game when the Panthers’ star Tom Droney, who is headed to Davidson next year, was struggling mainly because he was under the weather. Palmer hit four 3-pointers in the half, including three following RCC baskets, to keep Sewickley Academy close. The Panthers trailed 26-23 at halftime.
“Tyler just steps up so big,” SA coach and Tyler’s father Win Palmer said. “This is his third big game (in the PIAA playoffs). It’s fantastic. I couldn’t be prouder.”
In the second half, Sewickley Academy clamped down on defense limiting Reading Central Catholic to nine points in the half including two in the third quarter. They also got Dawkins into serious foul trouble, and the junior guard fouled out with 7:38 to play on a charge.
“We had to take a risk (with Dawkins),” RCC long-time head coach Ken Esterly said. “Maybe I shouldn’t have gone to him so early, but all year he has played with fouls. He knew the situation. A big part of his game is taking it to the basket. I told him he couldn’t take it to the basket because they would take a charge on him. He took at least three charging fouls if not four. I thought the third one wasn’t a charge, but I thought the fourth and fifth were. You have to adept to that.
“Our kids played their hearts out without him. We played over six minutes without him. We played hard.”
When Dawkins fouled out, Sewickley Academy led 32-28, and Reading Central Catholic was twice able to close within two points before cutting the lead to one, 36-35, on a 3-pointer by Marshall with 2:04 left to play.
But Peter Schramm, who finished with five points and eight boards before fouling out himself, hit a layup with 1:37 left that started a game-ending 7-0 run for the Panthers.
Despite being sick, Droney still ended with 11 points, five rebounds and four assists.
“Even Tom sick is better than most players in the state,” Tyler Palmer said. “It still helped us out having him out there.”
Carrington Motley added 10 points, eight rebounds and four helpers for Sewickley Academy.
Marshall led Reading CC, which was looking for its first title since 2007, with 15 points, while Jack had eight and Dawkins five points and four rebounds.
NOTES – Reading CC would be a good bet to return to the title game next year. The Cardinals have only two seniors on their roster, and only Matthew Doyen started and played in the title game.