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COLLEGEVILLE — It’s no secret that Julian Sadler is the engine that makes Perkiomen Valley’s offense run. That being said, the deeper the Vikings advance in the District 1 Class 6A tournament, the more defensive pressure will be thrown Sadler’s way.
When that inevitably happens as the quality of opponents increases, Perk Valley’s supporting cast will need to deliver the goods in order to keep the season going.
Enter Josh Tagert and Ryan Murphy.
While Sadler certainly got his on Friday night in a district-opening 65-50 first-round victory over visiting No. 23 Avon Grove in depositing a game-high 27 points, it was the production of the senior duo of Tagert and Murphy that injected optimism into the belief that the 10th-seeded Vikings can make a deep run in the tournament.
Tagert, the team’s tallest player with a crafty inside-outside game, scored seven of Perk Valley’s first 10 points on two soft-touch layups followed by a 3-pointer from the top of the key that helped the Vikings lead the game from start to finish. He shot 5 for 11 from the field for 11 points while adding nine rebounds and several nice kick-out passes to open teammates on the perimeter. Tagert is Perk Valley’s third-leading scorer behind Sadler and Kyle Shawaluk, but he is playing at his most confident at just the right moment.
Murphy, meanwhile, has bounced back and forth from the starting lineup but is always one of the first reserves to enter the game if he’s on the bench. He was back in the starting five on Friday, and responded with 10 points on 4 for 7 from the field. If the Vikings can get that kind of consistent production from Murphy moving forward, he becomes yet another element that makes the team a tough out and equally tough to prepare for.
“Ending last season, I know we had a lot of seniors graduating, which meant a lot of spots on the roster opening up,” Tagert said. “Going into the offseason I knew I had a lot of work to do to improve myself and get ready for this season so that I can help the team make a deep playoff run this year. I’ve been seeing that work pay off, and me and the team have been gelling really well together.”
By the time Tagert scored his final two buckets of the game, Perk Valley’s lead had swelled to 13 points and got as large as 54-36 in the fourth quarter. He also made life difficult down low for Avon Grove leading scorer Adam Ziegler by playing a physical brand of defense that never allowed Ziegler to settle into a rhythm.
As for Murphy, his return to the starting lineup galvanized him almost instantly. He buried a 3-pointer on the Vikings’ second offensive possession to open up a quick 5-0 lead, and his put-back to end the first quarter gave the Vikings (20-5) a 17-9 advantage. Murphy is normally utilized as a ball-handler, screen-setter and hard-working defender, but on this night his offensive confidence perked up.
“Sometimes I find myself just kind of floating around, but today I really found my spots,” Murphy said. “My teammates found me on some nice kick-outs, and I was in the right place at the right time. Credit to them for getting me in great positions. Even if I’m not the main scorer, I just try to contribute in any way that I can. Obviously Julian is our main scorer, as he was tonight, but I feel like I have to be ready, and I am ready. I’ve put in a lot of work, and throughout games I just try to find moments where I can get open.”
As for Sadler, he was money in the bank as usual. After a slow first quarter in which he only had three points, he posted seven in the second period, six in the third and 11 more in the fourth. Even a rolled ankle that caused him to briefly exit the game in the second half couldn’t slow Sadler down, as he quickly re-entered and continued torching the Red Devils down the stretch. The Pioneer Athletic Conference’s second-leading scorer shot 10 of 14 from the field and made all three of his 3-point attempts.
Avon Grove didn’t have many answers for Sadler or his supporting cast, but the team still left the loss as one of District 1’s feel good stories. It was the first district appearance for the Red Devils (12-11) since 2017, and they got there under the guidance of first-year head coach Grant Harding, a 25-year-old Kansas native who was working on a cattle ranch in rural Colorado before deciding to head east to be closer to his wife’s family.
“The game unfortunately didn’t go our way, and we didn’t play our best,” Harding said. “But I’m proud of the way we battled and kept fighting. There’s a lot to take from this year. Our seniors did such a good job setting a new precedent for this program, and we hope to build from this. It stings to end this way now, but there’s a lot to be proud of this season.”
It almost feels like a tall tale that a head coach not much older than his players can move across the country and revive a dormant high school basketball program, but that’s exactly what Harding did; if he can do that in year one, then there’s plenty of potential moving forward for the Red Devils.
“When I took the job I had a vision of making it to this tournament from the beginning,” he said. “The guys all bought into what they were being taught, and all of the credit goes to our players. It was fun to watch them grow, come together and play the right way.”
Even on a team that will graduate six seniors, Avon Grove has some promising pieces returning. Sophomore Tashaan McClain led the Red Devils with 15 points and looks to have a bright future ahead of him. Ziegler and fellow senior Josh Cox posted 12 points apiece in their final game.
The Vikings will travel to face No. 7 Central Bucks East on Tuesday night, and if Perk Valley can get another balanced attack from its offense while also playing lockdown defense — they held a good outside shooting Avon Grove squad to just 2 of 9 from downtown — then they should be able to give CB East a run for its money.
Tagert and Murphy issued assurances that they and the rest of the team will be ready to go.
“My mentality is I have to be a key part of the team every day, especially preparing to go on the road to take on a tough team,” Murphy said. “It’s going to take everybody from top to bottom, and me personally, I feel like I work hard every day in practice to improve my game to help my teammates however I can so that we can keep this thing going.”
“We know we’re a group of a lot of seniors,” Tagert added. “We all want to keep playing together and get as many more games as we can. We’re just trying to keep it rolling and let this season go wherever it takes us.”
Perkiomen Valley 65, Avon Grove 50
Avon Grove 9 12 13 16 – 50
Perk Valley 17 17 15 16 – 65
Avon Grove: Cox 5 0 2-2 12, McClain 4 2 1-2 15, Bernstein 2 0 1-1 5, Mills 0 0 0-0 0, Ziegler 5 0 2-4 12, Borcky 2 0 0-0 4, Strong 1 0 0-0 2, Walsh 0 0 0-0 0, Gillin 0 0 0-0 0, Binstead 0 0 0-0 0. Totals 19 2 6-9 50
Perk Valley: Harken 2 0 2-3 6, Murphy 3 1 1-2 10, Sadler 7 3 4-5 27, Shawaluk 3 0 0-0 6, Tagert 4 1 0-0 11, Wagoner 0 0 1-2 1, Rodriguez 2 0 0-2 4, MacDonald 0 0 0-0 0, Hoppenwasser 0 0 0-0 0, Nester 0 0 0-0 0, Kelly 0 0 0-0 0. Totals 21 5 8-14 65
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