The Dawg Pound was fired up during the Aces' 63-57 playoff win

The Aces advanced in the District 1 playoffs with a hard-fought, 63-57 win over gritty Methacton on Friday night. Senior Darius Hall led the way with 16 points, including two big threes in the second half. Mike Robbins '12 scored six of his 12 points in the fourth quarter to help seal the victory.

The game was a see-saw battle through much of the first three quarters. Methacton jumped to an early 10-4 lead, before the Aces stormed back with a 13-4 run to close the first quarter.  Methacton narrowed the Aces' advantage to two points at halftime and the score was knotted at 39 after three quarters. In the fourth, the Aces led by as many as nine points and hit enough free throws down the stretch to keep the Warriors at bay. It was not a good night for LM from the line; the team shot 11-24 and at one point was 2-13.

The Aces played hard throughout and though it wasn't necessarily pretty, the victory was an important measure of redemption after last year's heartbreaking first-round exit.  The win also sets the Aces up for a rematch with Central League champion Upper Darby in round two. The Royals, who beat the Aces twice this year, advanced by beating Kennett in their playoff opener.

More coverage of the Aces' playoff win and a preview of the match-up with Upper Darby will be posted on aceshoops.com this weekend.

Box Score:

Lower Merion: 17 9 13 24 - 63

Methacton: 14 10 15 18 - 57