Perkins rolls into Div. IV regional final

Perkins faces Johnathan Alder in a Division IV boys regional final Saturday in Bowling Green. Don't expect either team to flinch. The Pirates take a 24-2 record into the 3 p.m. game at the Stroh Center. They have won four tournament games by an average of 27.3 points. Perkins also has a lineup that includes plenty of Pirates who have played in football and baseball state championship games. "Like I've said multiple times, these guys like great environments. They love big games," Perkins coach Andy Hoying said. "Jonathon Alder is a tough test; they've got some really nice ballplayers. They're well coached and run some good stuff offensively and defensively. "It's gonna be a really tough test, but I think these guys are up for it. Hopefully it's a great atmosphere coming back here Saturday. Get a couple good days prep and be rockin' and rollin.' " Perkins, which has never been to the final four, handled Lima Bath 55-35 in a regional semifinal late Wednesday. Junior guards Kaden Legando (16 points) and Bryce Davie (15 points) pushed the pace as the Pirates' fast break did plenty of damage. "We try to play our hardest and defend," Davie said. "It really got started on the defensive end when we were stopping them at the start of the game. We got the excitement going." Alder, which is located in Plain City west of Columbus, defeated Van Wert 63-45 on Wednesday to improve to 21-5. The Pioneers had four players score in double figures, led by 6-foot-1 junior Brady Sweet with 17. Like Perkins, Alder has never been to the final four. But they're prepared. "I told them at the beginning of the year I wanted to put a banner up," said fourth-year Alder coach Derek Dicke. "They put up one for final fours. Since then we haven't talked much about it. I just want to win a regional right now." Alder, which plays in the Central Buckeye Conference, made six of its first eight 3-point attempts in its regional semifinal. They were 9 for 16 for the game. "It obviously helps going to the closed end (at the Stroh Center)," Dicke said. "Last year we were the away team in both games and started out terribly from 3. I don't want to say it's the open end, but not a lot of high school gyms have the open end." Perkins did most of its damage inside Wednesday. The Pirates, who normally launch a lot of 3-pointers, made just two from beyond the arc. Alder led 18-9 after one quarter Wednesday and outrebounded Van Wert 32-20. Trey Bentley, a 6-2 sophomore, grabbed 11 boards. "At this point everybody is good and will make a run at some point," Hoying said. "You've gotta withstand it as much as you can and come back and throw your punch." Alder defeated Napoleon in a regional semifinal last year before losing 63-58 to Hawken. "I'm excited. I always tell my wife, it's like a puppy dies when the season's over," Dicke said. "She lets me be miserable for about 48 hours. I don't have to be miserable now." Both schools should bring big fan blocks to Bowling Green. That includes Perkins' rowdy student body. "I love how our students travel," Legando said. "There's a paper in our school for all the students to sign up for a spirit bus and there are like three pages. It's pretty cool to see how many students want to come this far and watch us."