Play 4 Mae showcase photos: shady side academy 57, John Carroll (Md.) 20; Belle Vernon 53, imhotep charter 51

Shady Side Academy senior Karis Thomas scored 18 points to help the Bulldogs beat John Carroll (Md.) 57-20 during the Play 4 Mae Showcase at Woodland Hills High School. Josh Rizzo/Pittsburgh Preps and Colleges

CHURCHILL - Imhotep Charter coach Richard Gullien, who was filling in for coach David Hargrove Saturday, has the right idea for what the early part of the basketball season should be about. The opportunity is there for most schools to take a trip and see competition they typically wouldn't see otherwise.

The Panthers left Philadelphia and traveled to Woodland Hills High School for the Play 4 Mae Showcase. Imhotep came away with losses to Shady Side Academy and Belle Vernon, but came away with information about the program.

"It's so early in the season and we're still just trying to find ourselves," Gullien said. "Every season has its own story, so the big adjustment was let's just stick to our principles, let's stick to our values and the discipline of the fundamentals and let that just kind of work its way throughout the game."

The Panthers missed six of their first seven 3-pointers against the Leopards, but came back to take the lead in the second half thanks to its aggressive defense. Read a full story on the game here.

​"I thought defensively we played well and we were able to create turnovers," Guillen said. 

​The Leopards bounced back after only scoring seven points in their season opener. Belle Vernon trailed by 10 points before it came storming back to beat the Panthers.

"It was just hustle," Belle Vernon forward Isis Almighty said. "We worked as a team and hustled."