Perry press wears down Temple Christian

LIMA - The Perry full-court pressure is designed to wear on the other team, and wear it did on Temple Christian in a 52-43 win Friday night in the season opener for both teams.

The visiting Commodores fell behind 8-3 early to the Pioneers before coach Matt Tabler called a time out and decided it was time to apply the pressure.

Perry promptly went on a 9-0 run before Shane Holloway hit a three-pointer at the buzzer and the Commodores led 14-13 after the first quarter.

The two teams went back and forth the entire second quarter and only some foul shooting woes (4 of 9) by Temple Christian allowed Perry to grab a 30-28 halftime lead. Brandon Riepenhoff led the Perry charge with 11 first half points.

The Pioneers committed nine first half turnovers against the Perry press but the constant harrassment began to take its toll physically.

"We don't always get turnovers but we get them tired and that causes them to miss some shots," Tabler said.

The second half slowed down considerably and Perry outscored the Pioneers 9-8 in the third period to take a 39-36 lead going into the fourth period.

"Our pressure paid dividends in the fourth quarter; we wore them down and found a way to win," Tabler said.

Brandon High hit a trey for Temple Christian midway through the final quarter to tie the game at 41 apiece.

Perry then closed out the game on an 11-2 run to seal the victory.

"We played extremely hard but they pressured us into those turnovers," Pioneers coach Bruce Bowman said. "We rushed it a couple of times and also allowed them to get to the hoop, but give Perry credit, they played hard."

Junior Tyler Sutton paced Temple Christian with 11 points while senior Shane Holloway chipped in with 10 for the Pioneers.

Perry had three players in double digits and had another add nine points in a balanced effort.

Riepenhoff totaled 11 points, as did senior Devonaire Johnson. Kodee Kirchner had 10 points and center Alex Howell finished with nine.

Johnson grabbed a key offensive rebound and put it back in for a four-point lead during the Perry 11-2 run.

"Coach always says we need a leader to step up and score a key basket or grab a big rebound," Johnson said. "It was a crucial rebound and basket for the team and it feels good to start the season with a win."

Perry shot the ball well and finished with 59 percent shooting (17 of 29) from the field. The Commodores also made 15 of 27 from the free throw line.

Even though Perry and Temple Christian are members of the Northwest Central Conference, this game was not a league game.