Tamaqua could have folded up.

But instead it bounced back.

After seeing a comfortable halftime lead turn into a third-quarter deficit, the Raiders put together a dominating late-game stretch to defeat Panther Valley.

Tamaqua’s 52-47 Schuylkill League victory left head coach Jim Barron pleased with the transformation he has seen in his program.

“A year ago, we probably lose this game,” Barron said. “We really struggled answering back after a team would put a run together against us last season. So it was really nice to see how far we’ve come.

“It was a disastrous third quarter. Panther Valley beat us in every facet of the game. But our kids found a way to turn things around and bounce back. It was nice to see.”

Panther Valley opened the third quarter with a 17-3 run to turn an eight-point halftime deficit into a 34-28 lead on a Bradley Hood three-pointer with 2:44 left in the period.

Barron called time out after the basket - and the Raiders responded.

Steven Hoffman drilled a three-pointer to close the third quarter and start a 17-0 Tamaqua run that was capped by a Connor Dillon layup with 3:20 remaining in the game that made it 45-34.

“We didn’t really change anything during that late third-quarter time out,” explained Barron. “We just needed to settle down and get back to how we were playing in the first half.

“I think we started playing a little tight when Panther Valley was making its third-quarter run. After we finally got a couple shots to fall, we seemed to loosen up a little. It was a resilient performance by our kids.”

Hoffman’s late third-quarter trey combined with one from Nate Gregoire to open the fourth quarter tied the game at 34-34. Hoffman added another basket later in the run while Dillon had a pair of field goals.

“We’ve been playing pretty good basketball lately,” said Barron about a Tamaqua team that has now won four of its last five games after starting the season 1-4. “I think the big difference for us has been that we are starting to score some points.

“Nate (Gregoire) has been pretty consistent for us all year, but lately Steven (Hoffman) and Connor (Dillon) have been helping him out offensively, and that’s made a big difference.”

While the Raiders have been hot, the Panthers have now lost three of their last four.

“Defensive breakdowns in the fourth quarter, poor foul shooting, and too many turnovers,” said Panther Valley coach Pat Crampsie. “It’s hard to win basketball games when you give up 21 fourth-quarter points, shoot 6-for-15 from the foul line, and commit 18 turnovers.

“I thought our kids played really well in the third quarter. We got after it defensively and on the boards, and took control of the game. But we’ve got to be able to finish, and we didn’t do that tonight. Give Tamaqua credit; they made plays on both ends of the court in the fourth quarter.”

GETTING DEFENSIVE ... During Tamaqua’s 17-0 second-half run, it held the Panthers scoreless for seven minutes and 44 seconds. During that stretch, Panther Valley missed nine straight field goal attempts and committed seven turnovers.

TOP SCORERS ... Dillon led Tamaqua (5-5, 3-2) with 18 points, while Gregoire added 11 and Hoffman chipped in eight. For Panther Valley (3-5, 0-4), Chase Weaver had 18 points and Mike Pascoe added 13.

STATS ... The Raiders held a 35-34 edge on the boards. Gregoire topped Tamaqua with eight rebounds, while Luke Kane added six. For the Panthers, both Weaver and Austin Hadley had eight rebounds, and Pascoe pulled down six.

NO HOODIE ... Panther Valley played the game without leading scorer and rebounder Steven Hood, who missed the game because of COVID-19 protocols.

TAMAQUA

Ansbach 1-0-0-2, Lewis 2-2-2-6, Hoffman 3-1-1-8, McLaughlin 0-0-0-0, Kane 1-1-4-3, Valentine 0-0-0-0, Dillon 5-5-6-18, Ligenza 0-2-2-2, Gregoire 4-2-2-11, P Coleman 1-0-0-2. TOTALS: 17-13-17-52

PANTHER VALLEY

Kokinda 1-0-0-3, Weaver 5-4-5-18, B Hood 2-0-0-6, Kindt 1-0-7-2, Pascoe 6-1-2-13, Hadley 2-1-1-5, Hoben 0–0-0-0, Turner 0-0-0-0, Goida 0-0–0-0. TOTALS: 17-6-15-47

Tamaqua 14 11 6 21 - 52

Panther Valley 7 10 17 13 - 47

Three-pointers: Panther Valley - Weaver 4, B Hood 2, Kokinda 1. Tamaqua - Dillon 3, Hoffman 1, Gregoire 1.