Edwards, Strath Haven pull away from Phoenixville, wind up back in Media

NETHER PROVIDENCE — Strath Haven’s Luke Edwards wanted to be more assertive in the second half Wednesday night. The junior guard knew he had to keep shooting and build upon a solid first half in which he scored six points.

But he knew he had to be better to ensure his team’s victory in the opening round of the District 1 Class 5A tournament.

“I just kept on thinking that I have to keep attacking, keep setting plays for the teammates,” Edwards said. “Read and react. I knew I had to get to the basket or to pull up and shoot. Just trying to react and make a play any way I can.”

Edwards made quite a few plays during a third-quarter run that changed the complexion of Haven’s battle with No. 11 Phoenixville. He poured in 10 of his game-high 18 points in the third period to help No. 6 Strath Haven to a 45-40 victory.

“Everyone contributes, it wasn’t just me,” Edwards said. “We look to attack holes. If one guy attacks the hole, and if my guy collapses, we look to kick out and move the ball around. That’s what we do. We’re always trying to make plays for each other.”

Despite Edwards’ 4-for-5 shooting performance in the third quarter, the Panthers weren’t in the clear yet. They led by seven points going into the final stanza, but the Phantoms (13-10) clawed back to make it a one-point game with 3:30 to go.

Strath Haven answered and staved off Phoenixville’s comeback bid.

Junior forward Robbie Guilday, quiet to this point in the second half following a great start to the night, rebounded his own miss and scored a basket to extend Haven’s lead to three. On the Panthers’ next possession, sophomore guard Matt Shuler drained a 3-pointer to increase the lead to six points.

Haven sealed the win at the free-throw line. The Panthers will play nearby rival and third-seeded Penncrest Saturday.

Guilday netted nine of his 11 points in the opening half. He added five rebounds and one assist.

“This was a tough game,” Guilday said. “We planned for No. 1 (Steven Hamilton) and No. 20 (Mike Memmo). (Stevenson) is an extremely athletic kid and (Memmo) is their big guy down low, so we knew we had to clear them off the baseline. Our defense was pretty good.”

Memmo had 16 points and Hamilton tossed in 14 for the Phantoms.

Both teams struggled in the first half, combining to shoot 29.5 percent from the floor.

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Strath Haven’s Luke Edwards drives past Phoenixville’s Chris Weiah en route to a basket in the third quarter of a District 1 Class 5A game Wednesday night won by the Panthers 45-40.