Underclassmen spark Knights

PALMER — Tuesday, during a win over Wasilla, Colony looked to its seniors for a lift. Two nights later it was the youngsters who have the Knights a spark.

Freshmen Patrick McMahon and Jeremiah Hersrud, and sophomore Colton Spencer combined to score 11 of Colony 20 first-half points during a 46-41 win over rival Palmer Thursday night at Palmer High.

Spencer hit back-to-back shots at the tail end of the first half, including a short jumper with one second left in the second quarter that gave Colony the 20-19 advantage, the Knights’ first lead of the game.

“He did a really good job of sizing it up, going to the rim or shoot the little jumper,” Colony head coach Tom Berg said after the game.

With the Knights trailing 8-1 late in the first, Hersrud and McMahon teamed up to provide Colony its first field goal of the game. Hersrud grabbed a steal off a Palmer inbound, slipped a behind-the-back pass to McMahon, who got the bucket, with about two minutes left. McMahon followed with another steal and basket on the ensuing inbound pass to cut Palmer’s lead to 8-5.

“(Hersrud) and Patrick are really good basketball players,” Berg said. “I really like them. I don’t hesitate for a second when we’ve got to put them in.”

McMahon scored all seven of Colony’s first-quarter points.

“It’s awesome, a luxury,” Colony captain Sullivan Menard said of the impact the freshmen have made this season. “They were great players coming out of middle school. It’s nothing I could have done as a freshman. It’s impressive. Playing with them early in open gym, I could tell they could play.”

Menard scored 14 of his game-high 19 points in the second half to help Colony improve to 6-0 in the Northern Lights Conference. The junior also made an impact on the other side of the floor, helping the Knights slow down Clayton Southwick, Palmer’s all-state senior standout. Southwick was held to only seven points in the loss. After sitting for nearly half of the first half with three fouls, Southwick didn’t get his first points until he hit a pair of free throws with 2:41 left in the third. Southwick’s first bucket came with 4:55 left in the game.

“I think he’s a great player. I have a lot of respect for him. He’s a great athlete, big kid,” Menard said of Southwick. “I love the challenge of playing defense against him.”

Berg said Menard was certainly up for that challenge.

“I like the matchup,” Berg said. “They’re both competitive. They kind of guarded each other for most of the game. (Menard) gives up a few inches, but he’s up for the challenge, and he wants to be good defensively.”

Berg said when the Knights prepare for the Moose, Southwick is the first name that comes up.

“Certainly I have a lot of respect for (Southwick). I think he’s the best player in the conference. That’s saying something. I think there’s some really good players in the conference,” Berg said.

Berg credited the Moose for some of the work they were able to do as Southwick earned so much attention on the floor.

“They did a good job working through him. He did a good job of being unselfish and waiting for his moment,” Berg said.

Isaac Atkins stepped up for the Moose with a team-high 17 points in the loss. Atkins used an early three to help Palmer jump out to an 8-0 lead in the game.

Colony led for just about the entire second half, but the Moose kept it close and threatened late. Southwick and Ronny Marshall combined for 10 points in the fourth quarter. Southwick used his first field goal of the day to cut Colony’s lead to a pair of possessions, 36-31. Marshall went on a five-point run by himself to tie the game at 36. Marshall buried a three from the corner, and hit a layup to tie the game. Southwick nailed a three-pointer to give Palmer its lone lead of the second half, 39-38, with 3:23 left.

Colony’s Will Freeman finished 3 of 5 from the free throw line during the final minutes to help Colony cap the game on an 8-2 run.

Palmer, which hosts Soldotna Saturday at 4:30 p.m., dropped to 1-2 in NLC play.

Contact Mat-Su Valley Frontiersman sports editor Jeremiah Bartz at sports@frontiersman.com

Colony 46, Palmer 41

Thursday, Palmer High School

Colony 7-13-13-12—46

Palmer 11-8-10-12—41

Colony (46) — Pomrenke 2 0-0 4, McMahon 3 1-2 7, Freeman 0 3-5 3, Menard 5 8-9 19, Spencer 2 0-0 4, Kizer 1 0-0 3, Hersrud 2 2-2 6; Totals: 15 14-18 15 46.

Palmer (41) — Atkins 6 4-7 17, Osiensky 1 1-2 4, Titus 1 0-0 3, Hawkins 1 2-3 4, Southwick 2 2-3 7, Marshall 2 1-2 6; Totals: 13 10-16 41.

3-point field goals: Colony 2 (Menard, Kizer 1), Palmer 5 (5 tied with 1).