Prexies’ rally falls short against Lincoln Park
Wash High’s Anthony Popeck uses his shirt to wipe his eyes after the Prexies were defeated by Lincoln Park, 76-73, in the PIAA Class AA playoffs Wednesday at Peters Township High School.
Wash High’s Tariq Wilson goes for two points during the first half of Wednesday night’s game against Lincoln Park.
Wash High’s Isaiah Robinson and Lincoln Park’s Nelly Cummings both reach for possession of the ball during the second half of Wednesday’ game.
The Wash High basketball team leaves the court stunned after losing to Lincoln Park.
Wash High fans cheer as Wash High tries to rally against Lincoln Park Wednesday night.
McMURRAY – If there was any doubt whether Washington could compete with the WPIAL’s best, the Prexies proved to themselves and the sold-out crowd at Peters Township High School that this PIAA playoff run was no fluke.
As senior forward Nate Swart’s free throw gave the Prexies a one-point lead with 34 seconds remaining in regulation, Washington fans watched as head coach Ron Faust’s players inched closer to completing yet another comeback.
But Lincoln Park junior guard Nelly Cummings put a stop to one of the area’s most memorable postseason runs.
Cummings forced two turnovers in the final 30 seconds and made four free throws during that span to help Lincoln Park hold on for a 76-73 win over Wash High Wednesday night in the second round of the PIAA Class AA playoffs.
As Faust stood outside of the locker room following the game, he beamed with pride that his players finished their season with a bang, rather than a thud.
“Their confidence is they can play with anybody and they proved it,” Faust said. “They didn’t stop at any point. We could very easily be a winner and moving on to Saturday, but we’re not. I’m really proud of our seniors. As a coach, if you have to go down, this is the way to do it.”
Lincoln Park (25-3), the WPIAL runner up, advanced to play Quaker Valley, a winner over Greensburg Central Catholic Wednesday night, Saturday in the quarterfinals. The Prexies’ season ended with a 20-8 record.
Wash High trailed by 16 points with less than five minutes remaining in the third quarter before Swart re-entered the game and gave the Leopards’ defense fits. He scored all 16 of his points in the second half, including six in the third quarter to cut the deficit to 10 points.
Lincoln Park held a five-point lead with 90 seconds remaining, but committed four consecutive turnovers against the Prexies’ 2-3 zone defense. As the crowd grew louder, junior guard Matt Popeck, who finished with 16 points, sank two free throws, senior Anthony Popeck made two more after a steal at midcourt and Swart’s second free throw with 34 seconds left gave the Prexies a one-point lead.
On the ensuing possession, Cummings was fouled in the double bonus and sank both free throws. Less than 10 seconds later, he sped behind a Wash High player to knock a ball loose for the turnover and was fouled. Cummings, a Division I recruit, sank both attempts to finish with 20 points.
Wash High had one final possession with 9.3 seconds left, but Matt Popeck’s three-point attempt from the left wing went wide and Lincoln Park grabbed the rebound to secure the win.
“We knew that we could be explosive,” Lincoln Park head coach Mike Bariski said. “We know that’s the way we are and we’ll go on a run, but they’re very athletic, too. I don’t care what their record was. It’s in the second round of the PIAA, kids are going to step their game up. As athletic as they are, we knew that would happen.”
Anthony Popeck, who had 12 points, tied the score 27-27 late in the third quarter, but Leopards senior guard Nick Aloi, who had 19 points, scored the next seven poitns to give his team a five-point lead at halftime.
Wash High’s offense unraveled early in the third quarter, rushing possessions and forcing shots. It allowed Cummings and Aloi to lead Lincoln Park on a 13-2 run for the 16-point lead.
“We kind of sleepwalk at times,” Faust said. “I don’t know what causes that, but I simply reminded them we’re good enough to come back, the game is not over at any point and we’ve proven that. We can come back to win against a good team and it was almost proven there.”
The Prexies handled the Leopards’ press and trapping defense well, finding an open player to slowly chip away at the lead. Swart and senior guard Markel Pulliam, who scored team-high 19 points, helped Wash High climb to within eight points and Cummings’ missed fast break dunk gave the Prexies the momentum they needed.
Despite being guarded by 6-8 center Dermontti Welling, Swart created room for the Prexies’ guards to drive through the lane and Pulliam’s layup with 3:24 remaining tied the score 63-63. They took a four-point lead on another Pulliam lay-in with 2:45 left, but Wash High committed four consecutive turnovers to allow LP to regain the lead.
A win would have given the Prexies four postseason wins after trailing in the fourth quarter. The loss ended an exhilarating postseason run.
“One of the things that happen during a basketball season, or at least you hope it happens, is you get to the point where a coach has a lot of faith in his team and the team has faith in their coach,” Faust said. “We got to that point and when you put that together, you can do some darn wonderful things. They proved that.”