By Mike McGraw
Executive Director
SEYMOUR – Many Greensburg fans will forever say that top-ranked Princeton’s 66-56 victory over the Pirates in the Class 3A Seymour Semistate hinged on one play March 21. In reality, the sequence they will point to was merely the straw that broke a very strong camel’s back.
With Princeton (28-0) leading 45-43 late in the third quarter, Greensburg (16-9) was on the attack. The Pirates got the ball into the low post and took it strong to the rim. The shot didn’t drop and, despite some contact on the play, no foul was called.
The miss triggered a Tiger fast break that ended in a layup where there was a foul. The three-point play gave Princeton a 48-43 lead, and Greensburg would get no closer the rest of the way.
In reality, the fact there was a play that late in the ballgame that could be considered critical was a great testament to Greensburg. The Pirates came into the game versus the undefeated Tigers with the worst record of any semistate squad.
They also entered without their most prolific player, Latroi Wright, due to suspension. This contest had all the earmarks of a blowout, but the Pirates had different plans.
Greensburg jumped to a 17-11 lead at the end of the first quarter. The Pirates’ discipline on offense produced several good shots in the paint, and defensively they took away Princeton’s vaunted transition attack. Left to attack solely in the half court, the Tigers looked sluggish and deteriorated into far too much one-on-one play.
You knew Princeton coach Tom Weeks was not going to let that continue, though, and he certainly didn’t. He had the Tigers step up their defensive pressure in the second quarter, and it paid immediate dividends. They also began looking to the baseline for offense, and that also worked.
The faster pace of the second quarter was to the benefit of Princeton, and the Tigers took a 31-29 lead to intermission.
Still, Greensburg wasn’t ready to fold the tent. The Pirates came out of the locker room blazing as they hit five of their first six shots in the third quarter. Unfortunately for them, Princeton had hit its offensive stride and kept pace through the blitz.
The give-and-take throughout the period led to the crucial play we spoke of earlier, and Princeton used the momentum to close the third stanza with a 50-43 advantage. Running out of time, Greensburg tried to step up the pace of its offensive attack in the final quarter.
That is what the opportunistic Princeton defense had been waiting for. The Tigers used the open-court play to create numerous turnovers that they immediately turned into layups at the other end, and Greensburg never mounted a challenge.
Princeton was led by the 25 points of senior forward Trevor George, while Greensburg got a team-high 17 markers from junior forward Andrew Dougan. Next up in the Tigers’ quest for a perfect season is the 3A championship game March 28 versus No. 7 Rochester (23-3), a 49-42 winner over 13th-ranked Delta at the Lafayette Jefferson Semistate.
After the game, Weeks acknowledged that the game turned on the defensive pressure applied by his charges. His comments are in the video player on this page.
Processing your request, Please wait....
