Palmer eighth-graders roll easily past Anchorage Christian School

The Palmer eighth-graders hosted Anchorage Christian School Thursday for a showdown of middle school basketball.

Taking advantage of its great height advantage and stellar defensive play, Palmer easily rolled over ACS 64-22.

"They couldn't stop our big guys," said Palmer coach Chris Jones. "We normally focus on defense, but the score really didn't show that today."

Jared Berberich, Trenton Berberich, and Cole Jacobson towered over ACS players, plugging up the inside to force ACS to do most of its shooting from the perimeter.

ACS was not allowed many second opportunities for shots as Palmer dominated the boards, rebounding missed shots to thwart ACS scoring chances.

The quickness of ACS allowed it to penetrate inside with limited success, but points were scarce as Palmer shifted to shut down the attack.

Palmer started the game by controlling the tempo with defense, establishing dominance inside and methodically setting up play on offense. Palmer established the early lead, up 16-9 at the end of the first quarter.

The slow pace continued throughout the second quarter, with Palmer taking a 27-17 lead into halftime.

To start the second half, Palmer opened up the game by pushing the ball up quickly to score points at a rapid pace.

Palmer's big boys took over the game and dominated the paint on the offensive side, shooting at will until the ball fell in the hoop.

The Moose switched to a full court press that stymied ACS players, causing three consecutive turnovers that Palmer quickly converted to points.

By the end of the third quarter, Palmer had blown out its lead to 51-21.

With a comfortable lead going into the fourth quarter, Palmer slowed the pace and cruised to a 64-22

victory.