Perrydale ousted in first-round playoff

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The boys basketball team falls at McKenzie.

Sam Scott

PERRYDALE -- Perrydale's boys basketball team was right with host McKenzie of Finn Rock Feb. 24 halfway through their Class 1A first-round playoff.

Unfortunately for the Pirates, it didn't stay that way for long as McKenzie opened the second half with a quick surge and pulled away for a 62-41 victory.

"The boys played pretty well in the first half," Pirates coach T.J. Bailey said. "We only trailed by five points at halftime, but McKenzie caught fire in the second half, and we couldn't keep up with their scoring.

"We definitely had trouble with their height. The boys battled as best we could. It just wasn't meant to be."

Perrydale (17-8) trailed 26-21 at the break. But it quickly became a 10-point deficit when McKenzie hit a two-pointer and a three-pointer in the first 60 seconds of the third period.

Tyler Brown led the Pirates with 19 points, and Blake Barnes finished with nine.

"Our boys played extremely hard," Bailey said. "They didn't give up regardless of the score. The seniors who are graduating will be very hard to replace next year. We finished 17-8, and seven of those losses came against playoff teams. I'm very proud of them."