Allen, Penquis have Tigers’ number

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BANGOR – You’ve got to feel for the Sumner Tigers.

Two years ago, the boys from East Sullivan came into the Eastern Maine Class C tournament ranked No. 4 and lost to No. 1 seed and eventual East champ Penquis by 15 points in the semifinals. Last year, the No. 8 Tigers met the Patriots again, this time in the quarterfinals. The result was another loss for Sumner, this time by 31 points.

Monday afternoon, No. 6 Sumner met No. 3 Penquis in the quarters again and the only difference was the seedings as the Pats made sure the third time was no charm for Sumner with a 49-40 victory.

The 14-5 Patriots will meet the winner of Monday night’s Calais vs. George Stevens Academy game in a 3:35 p.m. semifinal on Friday.

“I was hoping the way these games have gone and the way this one unfolded that we’d have a good shot, but they adjusted well and mixed up their D. That’s why they win,” said coach Dana Smith, whose Tigers wind up 11-9.

Well, that and the fact the Patriots still have Jeremy Allen, one of the best big men in the state.

Despite suffering from some kind of stomach virus that caused him to be sick at halftime, the 6-foot-3 senior forward led the Pats with a game-high 26 points (18 in the second half) and 12 rebounds.

Thanks to Allen’s play, a suffocating defense that switched between a 2-3 matchup zone and a 1-2-2 press, and a patient offense that forced Sumner to foul late, Penquis won despite being outrebounded 15-8 offensively and 32-24 overall.

“We tried to mix it up and make them think,” said Penquis coach Tony Hamlin. “It came down to defense, keeping hold of the ball, and taking our time.”

That’s why another key was the ability of junior point guard Ben Knapp (five assists) to stay in the game even after picking up his fourth foul with 5:57 left to play.”

“Ben kind of controls our whole offense so it was very important keeping him in,” Allen said.

Penquis held a slim lead until midway through the third quarter, when Allen hit a 3-pointer from the right wing to make it 22-21 Patriots. The shot ignited a 10-3 run that gave Penquis the lead for good.

Penquis held a 41-32 edge with 2:30 left, but missed two one-and-one opportunities. Sumner made it 41-37 on senior forward Ross Grammer’s (11 points) 3-pointer with 1:15 left, but got no closer as Penquis went 8-for-10 from the line the rest of the way.

Patriots 49, Tigers 40

Sumner boys (11-9) Penquis (14-5)

Player G AG F AF TP Player G AG AF TP

Phinney 3 9 1 2 10 Perkins 0 0 0

Dunbar 0 0 0 0 0 Knapp 2 12 7

Polk 1 10 0 0 2 Learnard 0 1 4

Sprague 0 1 0 0 0 Ladd 0 0 0

Hills 0 2 0 0 0 Webb 1 4 2

Cowperthwaite 0 1 0 0 0 Gillis 2 5

Hardy 4 10 0 1 8 Allen 9 15 26

Jordan 0 0 0 0 0 Heal 2 2 5

Winslow 2 8 1 1 5

Grammer 4 6 1 1 11

Duke 2 2 0 0 4

Totals 16 49 3 5 40 Totals 15 36 14 20 49

Sumner 9 17 27 40

Penquis 7 17 31 49

3-pt. goals: Sumner (5-16): Phinney 3-4, Grammer 2-3, Sprague 0-1, Hardy 0-3, Polk 0-5; Penquis (3-8): Allen 3-4, Learnard 0-1, Knapp 0-3