As was the case on Tuesday night (December 14) against Upper Darby, Lower Merion struggled again in the first quarter against Central League rival, Garnet Valley. At the end of the first eight minutes, the Jaguars held a 12-10 lead.
But in the second quarter, the Jags went cold and scored just twice – on shots from the floor by Max Koehler and Jake Sniras. At the other end of the court – Jaylen Shippen, Justin Poles, Sam Brown, Demetrius Lilley and Gus Wright all scored for the Aces, enabling them to go to the locker room at the half with a 27-16 advantage.
Lower Merion padded their lead by five points in the third quarter, which saw Demetrius Lilley (herniated disk and all) drop five foul shots and a three-pointer.
Garnet Valley outscored the Aces 18-15 in fourth quarter, but it was way too little, too late.
Sam Brown led Lower Merion with 21 points. He has been their high scorer in all four games so far this season, averaging 24.5 points per game. Lilley scored 18 points (12 in the second half), and also pulled down 18 rebounds.
Garnet Valley had balanced scoring, but just not enough of it. Logan McKee dropped in10 points for the Jaguars, Koehler had 11, Ryan Facenda 9, and Sniras 11.
Read more game details and an update on Lilley’s medical situation by Josh Verlen – in City of Basketball Love.