A few times South turned the ball offensively, but Quimby sprinted down court, forced a turnover and gave it possession again. They are little plays which might be overlooked but it is the sum of all those plays which creates big wins.

And Monday night, those hidden gems helped make South a champion.

Quimby scored nine points, grabbed 13 rebounds and dealt six assists, helping South fight off Muncy, 55-48 to capture the Mid-Penn West Division title. Andrew Walter scored 15 points, Levi Butler 14 and Samir Moy shined off the bench as South (17-4) won the tie-breaker game, holding off a furious fourth quarter Muncy rally, and earning a spot in Saturday’s Mid-Penn Conference championship against East winner Sullivan County.

“I wouldn’t expect anything else. It could be a 30-point game at halftime and one of us is going to come back in the end to make it interesting,” South coach Joe Simon said. “It was a great team effort.”

RALPH WILSON/Sun-Gazette Correspondent South Williamsport's Levi Butler (15) brings the ball past Muncy's Jermain Morgan (23) during a Mid-Penn West title game at Millville on Monday. South won 55-48.

South and Muncy both went 7-1 in division play, splitting their two games against each other, necessitating the tie-breaking contest. It was the latest slugfest in a series defined by riveting games, the last six which have been decided by seven points or fewer.

The Mounties ended Muncy’s two-year reign as division champions and will get a second chance against Sullivan, the last team to beat it, doing so early last month. South has won 12 straight games since, the program’s longest winning streak in 16 years.

“Beating Muncy is always fun. You always want to beat those guys. They’re always fun games,” Quimby said. “After a rough two years it feels good to get on this hot streak and keep winning and winning these big games.”

South led by eight at halftime and extended it to 45-28 late in the third before settling for a 15-point advantage entering the fourth. For the first time in three seasons, it looked like this grudge match might not be a thriller.

Instead, Muncy kept the script going and stormed back. The Indians cut it to seven with 2 minutes, 24 seconds remaining and had two good looks at 3-pointers which would have made it a four-point game, but they were just off the mark. A Butler to Quimby connection for a layup with 35 seconds remaining then helped South seal the win.

RALPH WILSON/Sun-Gazette Correspondent Muncy's Kyran Lisembee (5) reaches in to block as South Williamsport's Bobby Regan (0) eyes a shot during a Mid-Penn West title game at Millville on Monday. South won 55-48.

Muncy swarmed as Butler crossed halfcourt, trying to force a turnover. The team’s leading scorer and assist leader reversed roles with Butler throwing a dart to Quimby who worked himself open on the right wing. Jaxton Frantz (14 points, three steals) scored with 10 seconds remaining, but South was able to dribble out the clock from there.

“They were all clustered up top and everyone was getting hounded, so I slipped open,” Quimby said. “Levi scores a lot, but he knows how to find the open guy and make the good passes.”

So does Quimby who has done so all season. That included against Muncy as he consistently located cutters and set up high-percentage shots. He also played his usual stifling defense and showed again how one can impact a game in a massive way without personally lighting up the scoreboard.

It was a Quimby dish to Neeko Bowen (4 assists) to start the third quarter and an immediate interception of an inbounds pass which ignited a big South run. Quimby added a 3-pointer and was one of five Mounties who scored that quarter when South went ahead by 17.

“I’ve never been able to just put it in the basket all the time, but I love getting everyone involved. I’ve said it before, team basketball is the best thing,” Quimby said. “I love seeing everyone getting fired up after one of my teammates scores. It feels great.”

RALPH WILSON/Sun-Gazette Correspondent Muncy's Dominic Guardini (14) fouls South Williamsport's Levi Butler (15) during a Mid-Penn West title game at Millville on Monday. South won 55-48.

Quimby played great against Muncy.

The junior point guard has become one of the area’s best defenders and seemingly never tires while handling that role and also running the offense. He was the game’s leading rebounder and equally important, a calming influence late in the game when Muncy rallied.

South seemed out of sorts with three minutes remaining, but Quimby motioned to his teammates to settle down and they did, running nearly 40 seconds off the clock. Those moments do not show up on the stat sheet, but they sure help put check marks in the win column.

“He’s a great player and has a great mind and really pick things up on defense and leads us on offense as well,” Simon said. “He’s probably the best one on the team that if there is a mistake made on the offensive end, he’s the first one back on defense, trying to get it back. He has that next-play mentality already built in.”

Muncy displayed a similar quality, especially in the fourth quarter. Even when things weren’t going well the first three quarters, it was not from a lack of effort. The Indians found their rhythm in the fourth quarter with reserve Dylan Mausteller providing a lift and scoring four straight points like fellow sub Caleb Beaver did early in the game.

RALPH WILSON/Sun-Gazette Correspondent Muncy's Dominic Guardini (14) reaches for a rebound around South Williamsport defenders during a Mid-Penn West title game at Millville on Monday. South won 55-48.

Dominic Guardini scored eight of his 16 points in the fourth and his field goal and free throw moments later made it, 53-46. Nixon Lamper also scored during the comeback and totaled seven points with nine rebounds.

“They certainly didn’t give up, that’s the key,” Muncy coach Jason Gresh said. “We dug ourselves a little bit of hole, but they fought and fought and didn’t fold. That’s really important.”

So are both teams gaining experience from playing a championship game before the district playoffs start last week. Both teams are filled with underclassmen, many who had little to no experience in this type of contest. Now, they all have felt it, played through it and shown that they can handle it.

Now, the playoff atmosphere will be nothing new. In that sense, Monday’s game was a win for both teams. Muncy will try using that as a springboard, earning the No. 2 seed in the District 4 Class AA field. It will host the No. 7 team, either Cowanesque Valley or Montgomery in the quarterfinals next Tuesday or Wednesday.

“This is like a playoff game, so for a lot of them this is their first time in this atmosphere where a loss really has a consequence and they haven’t experienced that for themselves, so that experience is invaluable,” Gresh said. “Now it’s time to focus on districts. We got this under our belt, got our nerves out of the way and we move forward.”

RALPH WILSON/Sun-Gazette Correspondent Muncy's Kyran Lisembee (5) reaches to control a loose ball around South Williamsport's Chance Quimby (11) and Levi Butler (15) during a Mid-Penn West title game at Millville on Monday. South won 55-48.

Moy is a player growing accustomed to big game environments and thrived in it Monday. The freshman has made huge strides throughout the season and, with two starters having two fouls in the first half, delivered a key performance, securing eight rebounds, dealing two assists and playing strong defense.

A player who can handle either guard position, Moy had a hand in eight first half points, adding six rebounds as South went up as many as 11.

“He had a tremendous junior high career, but the speed was a little bit for him to adjust to and the physicality as well earlier this year,” Simon said. “We slowly worked him in throughout the year and when we need him, he’s ready to go and he performs well in a situation like this.”

Bobby Regan made three steals for South and was one of six Mounties who scored in the first quarter as South started strong and went ahead, 18-7. The fourth quarter did not go as smooth, but South persevered. And at this time of year, surviving and advancing is all that matters.

“It wasn’t all-around our best performance,” Simon said. “But it was a great performance, and we got the job done.”

MUNCY (48)

Jaxton Frantz 5 2-2 14, Dominic Guardini 7 1-4 16, Nixon Lamper 3 1-3 7, Kyran Lisembee 1 1-2 3, Gavin Barrows 0 0-0 0, Jermain Morgan 0 0-0 0, Dylan Mausteller 1 2-2 4, Caleb Beaver 2 0-0 4, Carter Feigles 0 0-0, Bohdy Thomas 0 0-0 0. Totals 19 7-13 48.

SOUTH (55)

Levi Butler 5 3-4 14, Andrew Walter 6 0-4 15, Chance Quimby 4 0-0 9, Bobby Regan 1 0-0 2, Neeko Bowen 2 0-1 4, Jaymes Carpenter 3 1-3 7, Samir Moy 2 0-0 4. Totals 23 4-12 55.

Muncy    7 11 12 18–48

South    18 8 19 10–55

3-pointers: Muncy 3 (Frantz 2, Guardini); South 5 (Walter 3, Butler, Quimby).

Records: South 17-4. Muncy 16-7.

RALPH WILSON/Sun-Gazette Correspondent South Williamsport's Samir Moy (2) looks for a way through Muncy's defense during a Mid-Penn West title game at Millville on Monday. South won 55-48.

RALPH WILSON/Sun-Gazette Correspondent Muncy's Kyran Lisembee (5) reaches in to block as South Williamsport's Bobby Regan (0) eyes a shot during a Mid-Penn West title game at Millville on Monday. South won 55-48.

RALPH WILSON/Sun-Gazette Correspondent South Williamsport's Jaymes Carpenter (31) looks for a way to the basket around Muncy's Dominic Guardini (14) during a Mid-Penn West title game at Millville on Monday. South won 55-48.

RALPH WILSON/Sun-Gazette Correspondent Muncy's Nixon Lamper (44) attempts to block a shot by Muncy's Chance Quimby (11) during a Mid-Penn West title game at Millville on Monday. South won 55-48.

RALPH WILSON/Sun-Gazette Correspondent Muncy's Jaxton Frantz(11) brings the ball past South Williamsport's Samir Moy (2) during a Mid-Penn West title game at Millville on Monday. South won 55-48.

RALPH WILSON/Sun-Gazette Correspondent South Williamsport's Neeko Bowen (4) and Muncy's Nixon Lamper (44) reach for a loose ball during a Mid-Penn West title game at Millville on Monday. South won 55-48.

RALPH WILSON/Sun-Gazette Correspondent Muncy's Dominic Guardini (14) brings the ball past South Williamsport's Neeko Bowen (4) during a Mid-Penn West title game at Millville on Monday. South won 55-48.