By Ryan O'Connor
Staff Writer

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The Pembroke boys basketball team just couldn't compete with Pelham's all-around talent. On Friday, Jan. 13, the Spartans traveled to the Pythons. den in Pelham, but came up well short in their efforts to upset the team Chris Gleason feels is the best in the league.

"It's a tremendous program," said Pembroke's head coach. "They seem determined to win it all this year, and it seems like they are the team to beat." Pembroke immediately fell way behind, trailing 18-2 following the first period and 45-13 at halftime.

The Spartans, however, played much better in the second half, more than doubling their production from the first two periods.

Still, when the final buzzer sounded, the scoreboard read 84- 42 in Pelham's favor.

"We didn't change anything," said Gleason. "The philosophy in the second half was, 'We have nothing to lose.' The time to go out and play scared is over. You are either going to go out and try to execute against the best defense you are going to see, or go home embarrassed.

"After awhile it became a matter of pride," added the PA mentor. "We got so sick of being pounded on, we just decided to come out and attack."

The loss brought Pembroke's record to 2-4 in Class I, and 3-5 overall.