Nyreef Jackson and his Freedom High School boys basketball teammates distinctly remember what happened on Jan. 20. <\/p>\n
Parkland rallied for a two-point victory that night to ruin the Patriots' bid for an unbeaten season. <\/p>\n
Freedom wasn't about to be denied again. <\/p>\n
Jackson scored 16 points to snap out of a scoring slump and the Patriots hung on for a 45-40 victory over the Trojans in a Lehigh Valley Conference tournament semifinal at Allen High School's J. Milo Sewards Gymnasium. <\/p>\n
\"We really wanted this game,\" said Jackson, a junior forward. \"They beat us the last time and we didn't forget that. That was a tough loss and we wanted to see them again. We were really confident today.\" <\/p>\n
Freedom (20-3), which has never won a conference championship, advances to the title game against top-seeded Emmaus at 8 p.m., Friday at Allen. The Green Hornets defeated Easton 52-39 in the other semifinal. <\/p>\n
Emmaus dealt Freedom a 48-43 loss on Jan. 31 in Bethlehem Township. <\/p>\n
\"This is a special feeling,\" Freedom coach Joe Stellato said, \"but I don't want to get too emotional. We still have another battle coming up on Friday.\" <\/p>\n
Joe Lococo, Freedom's leading scorer at 14.7 points per game, was held to four points through three quarters. But the senior guard made six clutch foul shots in the final 2:51 to help seal the win. <\/p>\n
\"I've said it all year, this team finds ways to win,\" said Stellato, whose team was 8-14 last season. \"Every game they amaze me. I'm shocked at how these kids dig themselves out of holes.\" <\/p>\n
The Patriots' lead seemed safe when Derike Chiclana's two free throws gave them a 43-37 lead with 21 seconds left. <\/p>\n
Sophomore Justin Zajko made Parkland's only 3-pointer of the night to pull the Trojans within 43-40. Chiclana was immediately fouled with 12 seconds left, and the junior center missed the front end of the 1-and-1 free throw attempt. <\/p>\n
Parkland (18-5) got the ball into the hands of junior guard Austin Beidelman, who hit the winning 3-pointer in the first game against Freedom. This time Beidelman's high-arcing 3 bounced off the back iron. Lococo added two free throws with 1.8 ticks remaining. <\/p>\n
\"I'd let (Beidelman) take that shot again,\" Parkland coach Andy Stephens said. \"He's pretty good in tough situations. I give him a lot of credit just for wanting to take the shot. For a junior, that's definitely a good thing.\" <\/p>\n
Jackson, considered Freedom's top defender, was primarily responsible for harassing Beidelman (14.5 ppg) into a 4-for-17 shooting night for eight points. <\/p>\n
\"He's a tough player, an all-league player,\" Jackson said. \"I just tried to keep him in front of me and not give him wide-open shots. He has a nice shot with a lot of arc. I thought that (3-point attempt) was going to sink right in.\" <\/p>\n
The game evolved into somewhat of a chess match as Freedom extended its defense to deny Parkland the 3-point shot. The Trojans shot 1-for-12 from distance. <\/p>\n
Stephens seemed content to work the ball inside to burly forwards Rob Dvoracek and Daulton Charles, who finished with 10 points. <\/p>\n
\"I thought we could pound it inside and utilize our strength,\" Stephens said, \"and I thought that would open up our perimeter game. It was a hard-fought battle. Give Freedom credit. They have the record they do for a reason.\" <\/p>\n<\/p>\n
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\nFreedom High School boys basketball team advances to LVC title game with 45-40 victory over Parkland High School<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"