It was apparent from the beginning of Tuesday's game that St. Frances loves to run.
The No. 9 Panthers ran Mount Saint Joseph right out of the Maryland Interscholastic Athletic Association A Conference playoffs. St. Frances had its offense in high gear all night, making 11 of 14 3-pointers and coasting to an 80-52 win in the quarterfinal round.
Kurk Lee Jr. scored 25 points to lead the Panthers (24-9 overall, 13-6 conference), while Khalil Richard added 20. Darryl Morsell led the Gaels (19-12, 11-8) with 12 points.
"You could see we were having fun out there," Panthers coach Nick Myles said. "Mount Saint Joseph has a great program, and we knew we would have to come out very focused. Our shooting, especially on the 3s, was unbelievable."
The Panthers advance to play at top-seeded Mount Carmel on Thursday at 7 p.m in the semifinals.
"That's not what we intended to happen, but it just did," said Lee about the Panthers losing both regular-season meetings to the Gaels. "We just played together and made shot after shot. We knew we weren't losing at home again to them."
The teams were tied at 12 late in the first quarter when St. Frances turned up the defensive pressure. The Panthers forced Mount Saint Joseph into outside shots, and their height advantage became apparent as they continually collected defensive rebounds.
From that point, the Panthers used a jumper by Tarik Johnson followed by a 3-pointer from Richard to take a 17-12 lead at the end of the quarter.
It was more of the same in the second quarter, as St. Frances heated-up from the 3-point line. The Panthers made five 3-pointers in the quarter, including two by Richard late in the period to open up a 48-26 lead at halftime.
Mount Saint Joseph continued to struggle offensively in the second half, and the Panthers kept getting defensive rebounds. And St. Frances remained hot from 3-point range.
As hard as the Gaels tried to dig out of the hole, it just kept getting deeper. Mount Saint Joseph trailed by 37 at one point, 80-43, before the Panthers emptied the bench.
"We knew this was a win-or-go-home game for us," said senior Joshua Ayeni, who contributed 13 points for St. Frances. "We were talking more and boxing out and running our transition game. It seemed like it all worked. We kind of fell in love with the game. "
As impressive as the win was Tuesday, now the Panthers must travel to Mount Carmel.
"We split with them during the season," Lee said. "We won at home, and they won at their place. "If we're going to win, we have to come out and play with the same intensity we did tonight. This game shows that if we play hard, we are a tough team to beat."
NO. 5 JOHN CARROLL 53, MCDONOGH 37: John Carroll used a 10-0 run in the second quarter and a 10-point fourth-quarter advantage Tuesday to beat visiting McDonogh in an Maryland Interscholastic Athletic Association A Conference quarterfinal.
Patriots coach Tony Martin credited his team's defense with the win.
"We changed defenses and defended against the 3-point shot," he said. "We came out with more energy this time."
The Patriots (25-5) will visit No. 3 Calvert Hall in Thursday's semifinal round.
John Carroll senior guard Kimbal Mackenzie's scored six points in the second quarter to push the Patriots ahead, 24-14, after the teams ended the first quarter tied at 14. McDonogh's Noah Locke scored seven points in the final 2:25 before the break to bring the Eagles back, but John Carroll led, 26-21, at halftime.
Mackenzie took over in the third quarter, taking the ball to the basket and converting with one bucket and making five of six free-throw attempts. He finished with a game-high 17 points.
Malik Tyne (16 points) and Kevin Kangu (11 off the bench) added jumpers to give the Patriots a 37-31 lead through three quarters.
McDonogh (15-12) cut the deficit to four, but John Carroll made enough free throws (13-for-23 for the game) to pull away. The Eagles made just one basket and four free throws in the fourth quarter.
— Randy McRoberts, Baltimore Sun Media Group
MIAA A Conference
(Quarterfinals)
At St. Frances
No. 9 St. Frances 80, Mount St. Joseph 52.
MSJ – Morsell 12, Kendall 3, Barnes 8, Heyward 2, Miller 5, Doles 10, Jackson 8, Smith2, Robinson 2. Totals: 21 5-8 52.
ST FRANCES – Cobb 3, Lee 25, Goodwin 8, Sydnore 3, Ayeni 13, Johnson 4, Richard 20, Hazelton 4. Totals: 32 4-7 80. Half: SF, 48-26.