Reece Garvin-Exeter

Neffsville is becoming Reece Garvin’s second home. The 6’3 junior scored a career-high 21 points as Exeter beat Mechanicsburg 66-49 in the second round of the PIAA-5A playoffs at Manheim Township. The Eagles played the Blue Streaks here on January 18th and Garvin dropped 20 points in a 74-62 victory. “This is my gym,” he stated. Garvin said he was hitting all of his shots during warmups. He opened the game with a 3-pointer from the left wing. Garvin made five of Exeter’s eight treys. He started the second quarter with back-to-back treys to give the District 3 champs an 18-11 edge. Garvin sank consecutive 3-pointers in the fourth quarter to put the Eagles on top 57-42 with four and a-half minutes remaining. They outscored the (19-9) Wildcats 37-21 in the second half. Mechanicsburg was trying to reach the state quarterfinals for the first time since 1995. Josh Smith kept them in it during the opening half. The 6’1 sophomore crammed 14 of his 19 points into the first 16 minutes. Smith’s three-point play gave the Wildcats a 28-27 lead with 28 seconds to go. A putback by Anthony Caccese just before the buzzer made it 29-28 at the break. The 6’7, 280-pound senior provided 15 points including six in the final period. Kevin Saenz chipped in with eleven points and Zyion Paschall had ten. Paschall and Caccese picked up two fouls apiece in the first quarter. Head coach Matt Ashcroft kept his two all-county picks in the game and it paid off. Garvin was part of a pivotal sequence late in the third quarter. Exeter was up 42-34 when Teddy Snyder splashed a trey from the left corner and was fouled with seven seconds left. He missed the free throw, but Garvin snuck inside for the rebound and layup. Mechanicsburg trailed 47-34 entering the fourth quarter after giving up those five points. The #4 seed from District 3 never recovered. Garvin, who only weighs 165 pounds, is averaging 12 boards over his last six games. “It’s a dog fight. You gotta out-work the other players…You just gotta want it more than the other people,” he emphasized. The (25-6) Eagles have won 15 of their last 16 contests. They advanced because of a terrific second half. Garvin replied, “I think it’s how well-conditioned we are. We run these teams off the court. That’s all props to Coach Ashcroft.” Garvin averaged 3 ppg. a season ago. His scoring output is up to 11.5 this year. Exeter will meet District 7 runner-up Peters Township in the quarterfinals. The Eagles will be back to full strength on Friday. They were without Alex Kelsey on Tuesday after he was ejected late in the first round win over Fox Chapel. Exeter hasn’t been this far since its 1974 squad reached the Class 2A Final. If you need some last minute help with your NCAA Tournament bracket, Garvin did reveal his Final Four selections.