Patterson looks to upset Peabody on the road

Patterson High School will look to knock off one of Louisiana’s basketball powerhouses Tuesday when it travel to face Peabody in a 6:30 p.m. contest Tuesday in Class 3A regional round action.
Patterson (17-10), Class 3A’s 15 seed, topped No. 18 South Beauregard 56-51 in first-round action, while No. 2 seed Peabody (29-4) defeated No. 31 Iowa 110-37 in other first-round action.
Patterson and Peabody met earlier this season in St. Martinville’s tournament with the Warhorses beating Patterson 64-52.
“The first time we played them we were just overwhelmed in the first half,” Patterson Coach Ryan Taylor said. “ A lot of that had to do with not knowing what to expect. You hear the words ‘they are going to trap you,’ but until you feel it, you just don't understand it. We had too many turnovers in that first half, and they feast off of that. It would be hard to find another team who transitions to offense off of a steal better than these guys.
“The second half we handled the traps better and gave our teammates better passing angles,” Taylor added. “And in doing that, we were able to get some good looks and knocked them down.”
This time around, Taylor said his squad can’t fall behind big.
“We have to protect the basketball,” he said. “They are coming with several different variations of traps. Along with protecting the ball, we will have to rebound better than we did last time. They had close to 20 offensive rebounds the last time. We cannot let that happen this time. Will it be tough? Absolutely. But it's why you play. We have an opportunity in the playoffs to play one of the most storied programs in the state. It’s not supposed to be easy.”
While Peabody is led by a 6-foot, 5-inch guard who leads the team in scoring and rebound, Taylor said nearly all of the team’s players can handle the basketball and hit three-pointers. They also have size.
“So it’s not like you can just take the point guard out the game and make someone else dribble,” Taylor said. “It’s one of the reasons why they are so tough to match up with. Not to mention the athleticism and quickness. They are fast and aggressive. They do a great job of rotating on defense. Their anticipation of the next pass is very good, so they never give you a break.”