PLAYOFFS: South Side Boys Upset Top-Seeded Lawrence

The South Side boys basketball team caught the momentum early on in its Tuesday Class A quarterfinal against Lawrence, upsetting the top-seeded team in a 62-59 nailbiter.

“They played very hard defensively,” South Side Coach Jerry D’Angelo said of his team. “We contested on threes, rebounded well and did a good job of executing. We had a great defensive stance.”

The No. 8 Cyclones (11-8) jumped on the scoreboard early and kept the pressure on Lawrence, giving South Side a six-point lead at the end of the first quarter, at 18-12. By halftime, South Side’s advantage grew to 11 points, at 37-26.

The Golden Tornadoes (15-4) rallied at the top of the third, as the team edged closer to South Side with 45-42. But the Cyclones kept the pressure on, overcoming Lawrence’s comeback attempt.

With less than a minute left, Matt Pandolfi put up a pair of free throws for South Side, leaving the score at 61-57. Lawrence’s Eddie Robinson, who led the team with 19 points, put up the team’s last basket, but the Golden Tornadoes couldn’t find the hoop in the last seconds of the game.

A late game foul gave South Side’s Brendan McDerby the opportunity to put up the last point of the game and end Lawrence’s season.

Paul Pandolfi led the Cyclones with 15 points, followed by McDerby with 14 and Alex Sorensen with 13.

Lawrence was led by Robinson, who finished with 19 points.