Halle Herrington lighting up scoreboard for Philipsburg-Osceola

PHILIPSBURG — Philipsburg-Osceola guard Halle Herrington is on a tear.

The 5-foot-6 sophomore began the 2016 season averaging more than 20 points per game in the Mounties’ first six games. She was scoring at a rate not seen by anyone in memory on a basketball floor in Philipsburg, much less by a sophomore just beginning her second year of varsity ball.

Other teams took notice, of course. It would be reasonable to assume that they’d begin to prepare double-teams, traps and various other strategies to try to slow Herrington down. And they did try.

Yet, whatever those plans were, they haven’t been working. Not even close.

Since the start of the West Branch Holiday Tournament on Dec. 28 and 29, Herrington has upped her production to still another level altogether.

Against Harmony in the opener of the tournament, she poured in 43 points in the Mounties’ 54-24 win. Then in the championship game against BEA, she netted 35 in her team’s 49-43 win.

Next, she scored 37 (out of P-O’s 45) in a loss at Central on Jan. 9, 38 in another loss to Clearfield, and 36 in her team’s fifth win of the season, a 65-49 romp against Huntingdon.

That was five straight games with over 35 points. In that stretch she scored 189 points — an average of 37.8 per game — and raised her season average to just more than 30 points per game.

Then, on Jan. 16, the Mounties traveled to Brookville, and the Lady Raiders had another idea. They were extremely physical with her, and fouled her if they had to.

It worked, in a way. Brookville held her to just four field goals, but she countered by going 20 of 26 from the foul line. She finished with 29 points, 14 of which came in the fourth quarter as P-O came from behind to take a 59-56 win and even its record at 6-6, going into play on Jan. 18 (after Gazette press time).

 “The tournament was definitely a fun time,” Herrington said. “We all worked together very well and ran our plays and got open. It was definitely fun scoring all those points.

“BEA came out strong, but we pushed the ball and worked it, and we were just the better team that night.”

P-O won two of three to open the season, against West Branch and BEA, but since they’d struggled a bit more, winning four of their next nine games. To be fair, four of those losses came to Mountain League powerhouses Juniata, Tyrone, Penns Valley and Central.

The loss to Tyrone on Dec. 14 was the low point. Herrington scored 18 points in the first half of that game, keeping the Mounties close, but Tyrone held her to just six after the break and raced away to a 78-45 win.

“Tyrone plays tough man-to-man defense,” Herrington said, “and they are all up on you when you shoot. They played us the toughest so far.”

Still, the season is only half over and Herrington thinks that her scoring, as well as her overall play, will ultimately have a positive effect on the whole team.

After all, P-O will get another shot at all those teams as well as St. Joseph’s Academy (twice), Bellefonte and Clearfield before the season ends.

“I definitely like to get our team pumped up,” Herrington said. “Once I start scoring, they get into a routine, and if I score, they want to score too. They’ll push it harder and get open more often.

“I always keep my head up, focus on the next quarter or on the next play. Can’t replay the past.”

Herrington has been playing basketball since she was in second grade, out in the driveway with her brother, and her life now is filled with basketball.

Besides school ball, she also has been playing on traveling AAU teams for the last four years.

Right now, though, it’s all about the Mounties and getting better.

“I’ve been working mainly on my step-back 3s,” she said, “That gets everyone going. Make a quick move, step back, and then get to it. I can make a lot of space. Like I can V-cut in or pass the ball and work it and get open.”

No matter how she manages to get into the clear, despite the best efforts of P-O’s opponents, Herrington has shown that she knows exactly what to do.