Author: delcohoops

By Matthew DeGeorge

The statistic was readily shared with Zach Crisler off La Salle’s iPad program, so he’s all too happy to pass it along.On 20 made baskets against Bonner & Prendergast Wednesday night, the Explorers handed out 13 assists, led by the five dimes that the 6-foot-9 Crisler distributed. When the junior forward, after a 61-50 win, opined that, “You couldn’t ask for a better team win that that,” he had the facts to back it up.

That’s before he got into specifics. About the no-look pass that Sean Simon tossed to Kahlil Diarrah for a corner 3-pointer that put La Salle up five in the fourth quarter. Or the pass that Diarrah, while falling out of bounds, directed volleyball-style toward Titus Beard for an open triple. Or Crisler threading a pass to Diarrah for a lay-in that put the Explorers (10-6, 3-4 Catholic League) up seven with three minutes to play and on the way to handing Bonner & Prendie (13-3, 6-1) its first league loss.

(click on this link for more game stories and scores)

By Matthew DeGeorge

It takes about 30 seconds after the coy, “you shouldn’t have” smile and silver balloons spelling out “200” recede into the distance for Mike Doyle to turn the conversation away from himself.

As the Penncrest coach recounts all the figures that led to the 199 wins before Tuesday’s 56-26 pasting of Ridley, the discussion meanders away from the coach’s contributions. It veers toward players and assistant coaches he’s been fortunate to work with. It ambles toward what Doyle calls his “classical training” as a coach, a path studded by notable mentors — Buddy Gardler at Cardinal O’Hara, Herb Magee at Philadelphia University, Jim Boyle and Phil Martelli at Saint Joseph’s.

And finally, Doyle finds himself at the point he really wants to sink his teeth into: How good was his team’s defense today, especially Justin Heidig?

“He was gold,” Doyle said, squarely rooted in his post-game wheelhouse. “He was unbelievable. He has really stuck with it and we were just waiting. I believed in him and knew he was ready for a breakout game.”

(click on this link for more game stories and scores)

By Matthew DeGeorge

At the halfway point of the Inter-Ac season, in search of its first league title since 1999, Haverford School is in the driver’s seat.

The Fords finished a perfect run through the first half of the league slate with a 60-48 win over Penn Charter Tuesday. Gavin Burke rediscovered his shooting touch to score 14 points, and Christian Ray chipped in 14. Christian Clover scored seven of his nine points in the first quarter as the Fords jumped out to a 21-8 league they would not relinquish.

Asim Richards chipped in 10 points for Haverford School (14-5, 5-0).

Also in the Inter-Ac:

(click on this link for more game stories and scores)

By Josh Verlin

Ever since he was a young boy, Harrison Klevan has wanted to play basketball for Lower Merion High School.

Now, he’s finally getting his chance to play a significant role for the Aces’ varsity squad — and he’s not letting it pass him by.

The senior guard has stepped up big-time for Lower Merion this season, playing a crucial role on a team that’s got Central League title aspirations, not to mention high hopes for the district and state tournaments as well.

After scoring a career-high 25 points in a win over Neshaminy on Sunday afternoon, the 6-foot-tall, 150-pound guard followed that up with a 15-point outing in a 77-69 win over Springfield (Delco.) on Tuesday evening.

“I’ve been an Aces fan for a while, so to be playing meaningful minutes for this team and producing has been really good,” he said. “Feels great.”

Born and raised in Lower Merion Township, Klevan says he’s attended basketball camps run by Aces coach Gregg Downer from the time he was four years old.

(click on this link for the full story)

By Graham Foley

Archbishop Carroll head coach Paul Romanczuk believes his team has turned a corner.

The Patriots suffered early season losses to Plymouth-Whitemarsh, Constitution and Our Savior Lutheran (N.Y.) in non-league matchups.

They then started Philadelphia Catholic League play with a crushing, 17-point defeat at home to Neumann-Goretti on Jan. 2. For a team that has 12 upperclassmen on its 15-man roster and starts three seniors, it was a disappointing start.

Since then, Carroll has won five straight PCL games, including a 70-59 victory at St. Joseph’s Prep on Monday afternoon. It was a tough road victory that can help give momentum to a team vying for the top spot in the Catholic League.

 

By Steve Moore

After three periods of tight, intense basketball between host Church Farm and Delco Christian, which saw neither team grab a lead larger than five points, the Griffins broke the Bicentennial League contest wide open with a devastating fourth-quarter run to take a 52-32 win Monday night at Church Farm School.It marked the third win in a row for the young Griffins.

The Griffins (4-4 Bicentennial, 7-6 overall) were led by 6-foot-10 junior and Division 1 prospect Jon Bol Ajak, who tallied a game-high 18 points to go along with 14 rebounds and three blocks. Ajak also altered many Delco Christian tries inside the lane with his massive wing span.

Senior Abdul Ogunsanya chipped in with 15 points and six boards as the Griffins controlled the paint on the smaller Knights (4-6, 7-6).

(click on this link for the full story)

By Michael Bullock

Appearing below are all six of our top 10s, with PIAA district and this season’s record displayed in parentheses. Only those schools competing for PIAA state championships are eligible for ranking purposes.

CITY OF BASKETBALL LOVE STATE BASKETBALL RANKINGS

(records through games of Jan. 21/OW-others to watch/NR-not ranked)

CLASS 6A

Reigning Class 6A state champion Reading willed its way into the top 10 for the first time this season by defeating previous No. 3 Hazleton 65-56 Saturday night in the final game of its own Geigle Shootout. Xavier Starks netted 15 points and Wesley Butler added 14 for the Red Knights, who have won seven straight. … No. 1 Plymouth-Whitemarsh rallied Saturday night from early deficits of 12-1 and 21-3 to beat Haverford School in the Kobe Bryant Classic at Lower Merion. Ish Horn scored 19 points for the Colonials, while Ahmin Williams added 15 and Naheem McLeod chimed in with 11.

No.  School                                          Rec    Pvs

1.     Plymouth-Whitemarsh (1)            14-0        1

2.     Abington (1)                                  11-2       2                           

3.     State College (6)                           13-0       5

4.     Roman Catholic (12)                     7-5       4

(click on this link for the full rankings for all six classifications)

 

By PAPrepLive

For sheer drama, it will take quite a lot to top the week the boys basketball team at Monsignor Bonner & Archbishop Prendergast experienced.

Isaiah Wong banked a mid-range jumper with seven seconds left to give the Friars their third straight win in their last possession or overtime with a 68-67 Catholic League victory over West Catholic Sunday afternoon.

A week ago Sunday, Ajiri Johnson’s dunk at the buzzer gave MBAP a 63-61 triumph over St. Joseph’s Prep at home. Five days later, Donovan Rodriguez scored five of his eight points in overtime to lift the Friars to a 68-66 victory over Roman Catholic at Community College of Philadelphia.

The Friars (13-2, 6-0 PCL) were sharp from the free-throw line once again, shooting 23-for-28. They were 17-for-22 from the line in the win over Roman. Wong led MBAP with 20 points. Tariq Ingraham (16) and Michael Perretta (12) also reached double figures.

By Owen McCue

A punch in the face.

That’s how Ish Horn described Plymouth Whitemarsh’s first quarter against the Haverford School on Saturday.

The Colonials came into the game with 13 wins in 13 games, winning by an average of 35 points per game in their last six contests.

They scored just three points in the game’s first eight minutes, falling behind by 18. A spectator in the stands had to ask someone near him: “This team was supposed to be undefeated, right? What did they not play any games?”

“We were embarrassed,” Horn said. “It was embarrassing. Coach got on us bad at halftime. We had to wake up.”

(click on this link for the full story)

By Matthew DeGeorge

Don’t look now, but Chester has won eight straight games, the latest a 56-50 decision over traditional power Harrisburg Saturday.

Michael Smith led the Clippers with 16 points, going 10-for-10 at the free-throw line and 8-for-8 in the fourth quarter. Brian Randolph contributed 10 points, and Isaiah Schmidt added nine.

Randolph put Chester (9-5) ahead for good via a 3-point play with 1:11 left in the game. He added four steals. Smith augmented his 16 points with seven rebounds and three assists.

In other nonleague action:

(click on this link for more game stories and scores)

Webmaster’s note: The Harrisburg vs Chester game was our Game-of-the-Week and can be heard on our Archives link by clicking on the player below

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