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LIBERTY–Noah Shedden heeded some halftime advice and North Penn-Liberty started expanding its lead.
Coach Brian Litzelman challenged his 6-foot-4 forward to take charge inside and Shedden did, scoring eight third-quarter points and becoming an offensive difference-maker. Shedden already had established himself as a defensive difference-maker, moving to the top of North Penn-Liberty’s changing zone defenses and wreaking havoc.
Putting his whole arsenal together meant trouble for Sullivan County and Shedden played a monster role in helping North Penn-Liberty defeat the Griffins, 47-25 in Tuesday’s District 4 Class A quarterfinals. Shedden scored a game-high 19 points, grabbed 15 rebounds, made three steals and helped North Penn-Liberty overcome a slow start while reaching the semifinals for a third straight year.
Up next is a semifinal showdown this weekend against Northumberland Christian at a time and place to be determined.
“I would say it’s one of my top three games ever. My teammates helped me and had my back,” Shedden said. “I couldn’t do it without them and my coach. He was telling me to be in the post and just work.”
And oh, how he did.
North Penn-Liberty (14-8) had turned a five-point second-quarter deficit into a 24-19 halftime lead and Shedden helped it start pulling away as he took over in the third quarter. He made consecutive steals and layups, weaving through three defenders on the second one, putting North Penn-Liberty up, 32-22 as fans who filled every seat at the gym grew especially boisterous. He then found Hunter Thompson (8 points) inside before again scoring on a drive, making it eight points on four straight makes, in less than four minutes.
By the time his surge ended, Shedden had helped the Mounties go up 14 and by quarter’s end he already had produced a double-double. The senior forward made 5 of 6 second-half shots and was 8 of 10 over the final three quarters when North Penn-Liberty outscored Sullivan, 41-14.
“I really challenged him at halftime. I said I can’t have my 6-4 guy shooting 3s when you should be able to get to 20 points in the second half on the inside,” Litzelman said. “In the second half he was driving to the basket and getting to the rim which is exactly what we were talking about at halftime.”
North Penn-Liberty brilliantly executed its 1-3-1 and 1-2-2 defenses. It started with Shedden being a fabulous disruptor up top. After Litzelman moved Shedden there in the second quarter, the Mounties surrendered just five more field goals and forced 14 turnovers, including eight in the second quarter when the game’s complexion started changing.
Shedden made three steals, but it was all the passes he deflected and/or helped throw off the course which really made the difference. North Penn-Liberty then turned defense into offense, scored the second quarter’s final six points and went ahead for good by halftime. Shedden and the defense picked up where they left off in the second half and Sullivan (8-13) managed just six points over the final two quarters.
“We kept deflecting passes, stealing the ball and running and I think that changed the game,” North Penn-Liberty guard Derek Litzelman said after scoring nine points, grabbing six rebounds and making four steals. “They couldn’t get the passes they wanted.”
“They were a lot longer than I think my guys expected them to be and are strong kids,” Sullivan coach Glenn Vaughan said. “A couple of their zones bothered us and we had trouble getting easy scoring opportunities. We got off to a decent start, but in the second half we just looked like a deer in the headlights.”
Sullivan will not be advancing to the district semifinals for the first time in 12 playoff appearances, a testament to how strong this program has been. Early, however, the streak looked like it might continue. The Griffins were the ones forcing turnovers in the opening minutes as steals and layups by Riley King and Bryon Fitzgerald helped them lad 8-2 midway through the first quarter.
By quarter’s end, Sullivan still led by five and the lead changed hands five times in the second quarter, making it feel like this game might mirror the third-place game both played two years ago when the Griffins won a last-second thriller. Instead, North Penn-Liberty allowed just six points over the game’s final 17 1/2 minutes.
It was just the kind of response a team with four new starters this season needed following a rough start.
“We came out way more aggressive than any other game,” Shedden said. “Knowing it’s our first playoff game we had to shake things out in the first quarter and then we started grooving.”
“We all had pregame jitters,” Derek Litzelman said. “When they took the lead we talked about how the jitters are out and the game has started now, so we have to play our game and that’s what we did.”
North Penn-Liberty features four players averaging 9.4 or more points per game and it again was a balanced performance which helped it thrive Tuesday. Four players scored at least eight points, Kyle Davis played a key role defenisvely and Caiden Alexander, Stettson McGovern and Talon Kolb all played quality roles off the bench. Devin Bradley scored 11 points and made five steals, again playing a strong defensive game, and his steal and layup gave North Penn-Liberty its first lead less than three minutes into the second quarter.
Defense was a constant no matter who was in the game as North Penn-Liberty continued making life miserable for Sullivan the entire second half. Litzelman’s steal and layup extended a 12-0 run and made it an 18-point game. Riley King (15 points, 3 steals) briefly stopped the bleeding with a 3-pointer, but the Mounties did not allow another point over the game’s final four minutes.
As the defense constricted the offense opened up. Each complemented the other and the Mounties made 9 of 14 second-half shots. Thompson hit two key runners early in the third quarter, helping create a flame which soon grew into an inferno and carried the Mounties into the semifinals again.
“We talked in the huddle about how if we’re going to get back in this we have to have stops,” Brian Litzelman said. “We had to right the ship with defense. We had to get turnovers and we got a lot of transition, which I thought is what gave us some momentum to get back into it.”
SULLIVAN (25)
Trey Higley 0 0-0 0, Riley King 6 0-0 15, Bryon Fitzgerald 1 1-2 3, Ben Carpenter 2 0-2 5, Conner Smithkors 1 0-0 2, Landon Baldwin 0 0-0 0, Maddox Bahr 0 0-0 0, Enrico Capriotti 0 0-0 0. Totals 10 1-4 25.
NP-LIBERTY (47)
Derek Litzelman 2 5-7 9, Noah Shedden 9 1-3 19, Hunter Thompson 3 2-4 8, Devin Bradley 5 0-1 11, Kyle Davis 0 0-0 0, Caiden Alexander 0 0-0 0, Stettson McGovern 0 0-0 0. Totals 19 8-15 47.
Sullivan 11 8 3 3-25
NP-Liberty 6 18 12 11-47
3-pointers: Sullivan 4 (King 3, Carpenter); NP-Liberty 1 (Bradley).
Records: North Penn-Liberty 14-8. Sullivan County 8-13.