Fort Zumwalt West Falls to Parkway South in GAC Tournament

Parkway South utilized a big third-quarter run to spark a 52-42 victory over in the first game of Sunday's session at the GAC/Suburban Basketball Challenge at the Family Arena in St. Charles.

The Patriots improved their record to 5-0, thanks to a 17-4 third quarter in which they turned a 26-24 halftime lead into a 43-28 bulge at the end of the third quarter.

"It was our best third quarter of the season," said South coach Mitch Stevens. "We mixed our defenses a little bit and we were able to get out and run a little bit more."

The decisive run in the third quarter for Parkway South was a 10-0 spurt in which it scored on five consecutive possessions, all on transition baskets from five different players.

Leading 33-28, junior forward Eric Laurent got the run going with a driving layup to push the lead to seven points. Junior center Tom Holaway scored on an offensive rebound, then reserve guard Raymond McGrew followed with a fast-break layup off a West turnover. Junior Sam Jaouni scored on a driving layup and senior center Darius Perry finished the run with a running tip-in to give the Patriots a 43-28 lead.

"We started to push the ball up court and we got some easy layups," said Laurent, who led the Patriots with 14 points. "Our team is all about endurance. We can run all night long."

The Patriots led by as many as 17 points in the second half, before West began to battle its way back. The Jaguars cut the lead to six points, but could not get any closer as they went down to defeat for the second time in seven games.

"To their credit, they increased their intensity level in the second half and we couldn't match it," said West coach Chad Towers. "We had some chances to stop the run, but we missed a few shots from close in. You make a shot here or there, it can slow down a big run. If we can learn from this game, we will be OK."

Laurent's 14 points led a balanced Parkway South scoring attack that has featured a different offensive standout in almost every game this season. Jaouni scored 11 points while 6-foot-6 post players Mark Waller (nine) and Holaway (seven) combined to score 16 points in the paint.

Many of the Patriots are seeing extensive varsity minutes for the first time after the graduation of five starters from last season's district-championship team.

"Every night, it's someone new and that's good because teams cannot just key on one player," Stevens said. "We're playing a lot of young players, so every game is a new adventure."

The Jaguars were led by its talented backcourt of Ray Harris and Dexter Walker. Harris scored a team-high 16 points while Walker added 12 points.

Parkway South will compete in the MICDS Tournament next week as the No. 2 seed. The Patriots will face St. Charles on Thursday, Dec. 23  at 3 p.m. Fort Zumwalt West will face district rival Fort Zumwalt South on Wednesday night before heading to the Meramec Holiday Tournament.