Most teams in the Schuylkill League know when they play Panther Valley, they’ll be facing a size differential.

With a frontcourt that features Jarell Thomas and Danny Wehr, opponents know they’re going to be in for a rough night in the paint.

But on Friday night, one of the smaller Panthers came up with some key offensive rebounds and putbacks. That player — Jake Moyer — also delivered from distance at a crucial time to help PV earn a hard-fought 62-53 victory over rival Tamaqua.

“Jake is a basketball kid,” said Panther head coach Pat Crampsie. “He has a ball in his hands all the time. And he’s just progressively gotten better and I was real happy to see it come together for him tonight. We would have been in big trouble without him, for sure. He made big plays there, and he gives us another ballhandler, and he’s been shooting the ball well.

“As a guard, and we’ve noticed it in the second half of the season, the way he’s rebounding the ball from the guard position is very impressive. He has great instincts and he has a motor. He doesn’t stop.”

After the Raiders got off to a quick 9-2 start, Moyer aided a PV comeback that eventually gave the home team an eight-point lead at the half. His rebound and follow to open the second quarter trimmed the deficit to one, and later in the period he grabbed another offensive board and converted to make it 17-14.

“I usually try and play as strong as I can,” said Moyer, who finished with a game-high 22 points. “(An offensive) rebound is a scoring opportunity so I’m going to try and get the ball and put it back up. On defense, too, I think it’s fun ... to play big and try and get rebounds; feel bigger than you actually are.”

Wehr was also key for the Panthers in the second, knocking down a pair of three and scoring 10 points in the quarter.

The PV lead continued to grow after halftime as Moyer hit free throws, a driving basket and a three-pointer. With a minute left in the third, the Panthers enjoyed a 47-29 advantage.

But despite the score, and the rough season the Raiders have had, there was no quit from the visitors. Tamaqua closed the period with a 10-0 run, which was aided by treys from Jakin Tamagini and Gavin Edmonds.

A free throw and driving basket by Donovan Broadway in the opening minute of the fourth narrowed the margin to just five (47-42).

But again, Moyer came up “big” for Panther Valley — this time from the perimeter. The scrappy guard hit a pair of threes to extend the lead to 11. Free throws down the stretch sealed the decision for the winners.

“It was a good start,” said Tamaqua mentor Jim Barron of the 9-2 lead. “We made some shots and forced some turnovers. But then we went cold. We also made some mistakes that put us in bad situations. (During the comeback), we were getting hands on balls, we were pressing, got some turnovers, and made some shots. We got some momentum there, but then the momentum kind of stopped.

“Thomas, both games we played against them he was a factor. He does a lot for them, and we can’t simulate that anywhere. And Moyer shot the ball well tonight. He did what he needed to do. He got in the paint, finished and had some assists. He played a great game. He was probably the difference.”

While Panther Valley has already been eliminated from postseason action, getting a win in its final home game was something that was stressed.

“PV-Tamaqua is always an exciting game,” said Crampsie. “It’s always a game our kids look forward to. They grow up playing against each other in basketball, in Little League, in everything ... we knew they were going to come to play tonight, and they did.

“The thing I was happiest about tonight was the way the kids responded to the two situations — the start of the game when Tamaqua jumped out like that, and the end of the third quarter when we had an 18-point lead and they cut it to five real quick. Both times our kids responded and made big plays to stop the run. I thought our guys matured a lot during the season, and it showed tonight.”

STATS ... Besides being the leading scorer, Moyer added six rebounds. Thomas was his usual self on the boards and disrupting shots. He ended with 11 rebounds and six blocks, while adding 10 points — including a dunk to open the PV scoring. Wehr collected 13 points and eight boards. Tamaqua, meanwhile, received a team-high 16 points from Edmonds — 10 of them coming in the third quarter when the Raiders rallied. Terrence McDowell and Tamagini both added 11.

THREE IN THREE ... The game was PV’s third in three nights. “I feel like our adrenaline carried us through tonight,” said Crampsie.

TAMAQUA

McDowell 3-3-4-11, McCabe 1-0-0-2, Edmonds 5-4-4-16, Schickram 1-2-2-5, Shannon 1-0-0-2, Frohnheiser 0-0-2-0, Makovec 1-1-2-3, Tamagini 4-0-0-11, Broadway 1-1-2-3. TOTALS: 17-11-16-53.

PANTHER VALLEY

Moyer 7-5-6-22, Crampsie 0-0-0-0, McArdle 2-0-0-5, Breiner 2-5-6-9, Mitchell 0-0-0-0, Wehr 4-2-6-13, Baneravage 0-0-0-0, Thomas 3-4-4-10, Maynard 0-3-4-3, Williams 0-0-0-0. TOTALS: 18-19-26-62.

Tamaqua 9 10 20 14 - 53

Panther Valley 6 21 20 15 - 62

Three-pointers: Tamaqua - Tamagini 3, McDowell 2, Edmonds 2, Schickram 1; Panther Valley - Moyer 3, Wehr 3, McArdle 1.

Records: Tamaqua (3-16; 3-9); Panther Valley (8-13; 3-10).