PORT ANGELES — Peninsula College shook off a poor stretch of play with a stellar second-half comeback, rallying from 14 down at halftime for an 81-76 North Region men’s basketball victory over Bellevue on Wednesday.
The win was the 14th in a row for the Pirates (8-0, 21-1).
“I don’t remember what the score was, but we kind of crumbled over a six- or seven-minute stretch, and that’s dangerous to do against a team that can score at a clip,” Pirates coach Donald Rollman said.
“We got a little away from what we like to do offensively. We wanted to be aggressive and put pressure on the rim and make sure they were kicking it out when the defense collapses, but we weren’t getting what we needed.”
Bellevue closed the first half on a 14-3 run, going up 47-33 when Bulldogs’ leading scorer Owen Moriarty drained a buzzer-beating 3-pointer.
“The halftime conversation was about not letting that poor stretch define us,” Rollman said. “Our decisions on the offensive end weren’t great. Let’s get back to what we are and let’s chip it away one stop at a time.”
Fortunately for Peninsula, they’ve had some experience with second-half comebacks this season.
“The first five minutes of the second half has been huge for us all season as we’ve had to come back a number of times, so we got points out of our first action and a stop defensively, and we chipped away from there,” Rollman said.
The Pirates clamped down defensively, limiting Bellevue to 10 of 32 shooting after halftime.
Peninsula went on a 25-10 run in the first eight minutes of the second half to retake the lead at 58-57 with 12:17 left on a Malik Jackson jumper.
Peninsula’s Ese Onakpoma provided lock-down defense on the Bulldogs’ best player, Prophet Johnson, holding him to 11 points.
“Prophet Johnson is averaging 20-plus points a game and Ese was fantastic on him defensively,” Rollman said. “He stayed on him the entire night and made it tough on him.”
Jackson led Peninsula in scoring with 23 points, nine rebounds, three assists and two steals.
“Malik has delivered with three big games in a row,” Rollman said. “His aggressiveness and communication were great and he did all they needed.”
Roosevelt Williams Jr. added a double-double with 20 points and 10 rebounds.
Mikey Medlock sank all 15 of his points after halftime as the Pirates got back to their inside-outside game.
“He hit a big 3 with a little less than 3 minutes to go that pretty much sealed it,” Rollman said.
Medlock’s shot gave Peninsula a 76-69 lead and the Pirates saw the game out at the free-throw line.
“It was one of those pull-up in transition shots where you better make it, and he drained it,” Rollman said.
Peninsula will host Shoreline (3-5, 12-9) at 4 p.m. Saturday.
“They knocked off [second-place] Edmonds last night, so we have a two-game cushion in first place,” Rollman said. “Watching that game, Shoreline looks super dangerous. They look like they have their swagger back.”
Peninsula 81, Bellevue 76
Bellevue 47 29 — 76
Peninsula 33 48 — 81
Bellevue (76) — Moriarity 20, Tosi 19, Janssan 14, Johnson 11, Briceno 5, Cole 4, Senghore 3.
Peninsula (81) — Jackson 23, Williams Jr. 20, Medlock Jr. 15, Onakpoma 9, D’Amato 5, Dean 4, Olmstead 3, Tinsley 2.
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Sports reporter/columnist Michael Carman can be contacted at mcarman@peninsuladailynews.com.
Peninsula’s Max D’Amato, left, looks for his teammates as Bellevue’s Sayerr Senghore and Ayden Janssan, right, put up resistance on Wednesday at Peninsula College. (Keith Thorpe/Peninsula Daily News)
Peninsula’s Ese Onakpoma attempts a layup as Bellevue’s Bishop Tonsi tries to defend on Wednesday night at Peninsula College. (Keith Thorpe/Peninsula Daily News)
Peninsula’s Ese Onakpoma loses his balance at the top of the key as Bellevue’s Marcus Cole, left, and Ayden Janssan look on during Wednesday’s NWAC North Region game in Port Angeles. (Keith Thorpe/Peninsula Daily News)
Peninsula’s Roosevelt Williams Jr., right, shoulders his way past Bellevue’s Owen Moriarty during Wednesday’s game in Port Angeles. (Keith Thorpe/Peninsula Daily News)
