Month: February 2018

By Neil Geoghegan

 It was undoubtedly a whirlwind, with two huge victories in a frenzied 24-hour span. And even though there were times when members of the Hill School boys basketball team openly wondered whether it was all just a dream, things started sinking in when the medals were doled out.“It honestly feels a little surreal,” acknowledged forward Nick Alikakos.

With Alikakos leading the way, the Blues pulled away in the second half to top Haverford School, 68-50, and capture the program’s second Pennsylvania Independent Schools Athletic Association (PAISAA) State Championship in five years.

“We wanted it more,” Alikakos said. “We’ve worked so hard for this and this was the day that we were waiting for.”

A day earlier, the Hill School shocked the two-time defending state champs from Westtown, 51-47, in the semifinal round. And on Saturday at Neumann University’s Mirenda Center, the fourth-seeded Blues finished strong against the No. 3 Fords, who went unbeaten in Inter-Ac play and won the league title for the first time since 1999.

(click on this link for the full story)

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By Owen McCue

Every morning on his way to his first period class, Joe O’Malley passes a picture on the wall at Bishop Shanahan High School.

The photo is of the Eagles’ 1984-85 boys basketball team, which won the Class AA state title. Pictured with the 11 of other members of that year’s squad is O’Malley’s father, Michael O’Malley, who makes sure his son doesn’t walk by without taking a look.

“He tells me to look at it every morning just to rub it in,” O’Malley said. “Sometimes I glance at it and hope we can do that with this team.”

The legacy of O’Malley’s father is visible in the gym at Bishop Shanahan High School as well. His name is printed on the school’s banner recognizing its 1,000-point scorers. He totaled 1,082 points during his career. Right next to it, his name appears on the banner commemorating that 1984-85 championship squad.

(click on this link for the full story)

Webmaster’s note: The Chester vs Bishop Shanahan game is our Game-of-the-Week and can be heard LIVE this Wednesday on Delcohoops.com!

By Bruce Adams

With six seniors on their roster – three who have played varsity basketball since their freshman year – Bishop Shanahan is looking to make this PIAA post-season a truly memorable one.
So, minutes after the Ches-Mont tournament champs defeated seventh seed West Chester Rustin, 63-50, in the PIAA 5A District 1 boys’ basketball quarterfinals Saturday afternoon, wrapping up a state tourney berth, the No. 2 seed Eagles (22-4) were focused on unfinished business.
“Today’s win feels pretty good, but it’s just a first step for what we want to accomplish,” said Shanahan’s big man, 6-foot-7 senior Kevin Dodds, whose powerful scoring (18 points), rebounding and passing underneath was key to the Eagles’ victory Saturday. “We lost in the district semifinals last year, and we want to do better than that this time.”
Wednesday in the District 1 5A semifinals, Shanahan will play the winner of Saturday’s evening’s quarterfinal between No. 3 seed Chester and sixth-seeded Sun Valley. Wednesday’s contest, to be held at Temple University, will be Shanahan’s fifth district semifinal since 2011. The Eagles have lost in the District 1 semifinal the past two years.
On Saturday, host Shanahan grabbed the lead for good late in the first period and kept building on it, relying on some crisp passing, with the 6-foot-7 Dodds as the hub of the Eagles’ attack.

(click on this link for the full story)

By Mike Cabrey

On a night when shots just were not falling for Pennridge, Tyrese Lewis could only feel that maybe a higher basketball power was at play.“We just shot it and it really felt like the rim was not on our side. I guess Kobe (Bryant’s) energy was in here or something,” the senior said. “I don’t know, they just wasn’t feeling us.”

In the gym barring the hoops legend’s name, the Rams’ offense struggled to get anything going throughout Friday’s District 1-6A boys quarterfinal. Host Lower Merion, meanwhile had no such problem. The third-seeded Aces hit it early and often from long range, connecting on 10 3-pointers to roll past the No. 6 Rams 63-39 and reach the district semifinals for the second time in three seasons.

“I felt like it was just clicking,” Lower Merion junior Steve Payne said. “Yesterday we got a lot of extra shots in the gym. I feel like that gained our confidence. That really helped us out. So we just came into this game with a lot of confidence. We shot the 3-ball really well, helped us win.”

(click on this link for the full story)

By Josh Verlin & Tyler Sandora

The District 1 class 5A field is down to eight teams, all of whom have at least three games left on their schedules — and all but one of which will play in the PIAA 5A tournament two weeks from now.

With seven bids coming out of the district, that means the four winners of Saturday’s games not only will be playing in the semifinals at Temple University’s Liacouras Center next Wednesday, but will guarantee themselves a spot in the state bracket. The other four teams will be alive in the play-back bracket, where the only team that won’t make states is the one that loses its final three games.

Here’s a look at each of the four quarterfinals (which all tip at 7 PM, aside from the Shanahan/Rustin game at 1 PM):

3) Chester vs. 6) Sun Valley

Even though they are only 3.7 miles away from each other in Delaware County, Chester and Sun Valley are not in the same conference. About a decade ago, Sun Valley left the Del-Val for the Ches-Mont. Sun Valley is hoping to make it to the state tournament for the first time since 1995 with a win, while Chester has won nine state championships in school history. Sun Valley is led by a junior-heavy lineup, featuring Vinny D’Angelo, a 6-2 sharpshooter, and Marvin Freeman, an athletic 6-4 wing. Expect Lance Stone and Isaac Keenan, also juniors, to chip in and contribute for the Vanguards.

Winning a game in the Clip Joint, arguably the toughest venue to play at in District One, is a very difficult thing to do. Besides the chaotic crowd, the Clippers boast one of the most athletic teams in the area. Senior Brian Randolph III is one of the tallest players on the roster at 6-4, but the lack of height is made up for by quick guard play. Junior Michael Smith, a true point guard with a tight handle, and classmate Rahmaad DeJarnette both scored 12 points in a first round win over Academy Park.

(click on this link for all the game previews)

Webmaster’s note: The Sun Valley vs Chester game is our Game-of-the-Week and can be heard LIVE tonight on Delcohoops.com!

By Tyler Sandora

It was a situation Plymouth-Whitemarsh wasn’t too familiar with.

The Colonials have been beating their opponents all year by margins as big as big as 50 points. Entering Friday night 25-0, and ranked the 23rd-best high school team in the country by USA Today, P-W has been beating most opponents with ease this year.

But against eighth-seeded Upper Darby in the quarterfinal round of the PIAA District One tournament, in a home gym which has seen the Colonials win 50 straight games, the top-seeded Colonials knew the Royals wouldn’t go down without a fight.

What they might not have been able to guess, however, is that Upper Darby would start the game by hitting six straight threes, and lead by 12 at the end of the first quarter.

Sure, Upper Darby is a talented shooting team. But jumping out to a 12 point advantage in the first quarter on P-W this season? Almost unheard of.

(click on this link for the full story)

By Josh Verlin & Tyler Sandora

After a wild first round that saw six of the eight games end in upsets, the top seeds got into the mix in the second round of the District 1 6A playoffs, and all eight held serve on their home courts to advance into the quarterfinals. Now things really get serious, with all eight safely qualified for states and one win away from playing at Temple University’s Liacouras Center in next Tuesday’s semifinals.

Also in action are the eight second-round losers, who are still alive in the play-back bracket, fighting for the two final spots the district gets in the PIAA Class 6A tournament.

Here’s an in-depth look at each of the four quarterfinals, plus a brief glance at the four play-back games as well:

By Jack McCaffery

Thirty one years after he’d been harshly reminded of everything cruel about the Palestra, Jack Concannon was reminded that it works the other way, too.Aware through a lifetime of basketball, and haunted by one moment since 1987, Concannon was convinced of one thing as he prepared Wednesday to coach Bonner & Prendie against Archbishop Carroll in the Catholic League semifinals.

“We knew,” he said, “it was going to be close at the end.”

That end would last only 18.1 seconds.

It would seem to take another lifetime.

Through the usual circumstances that define postseason high school basketball, the Friars needed to force three turnovers in that final stretch to hold off the Patriots, 48-45, and advance to the Catholic League championship game. That will be at 8:15 Monday night, also at the Palestra, against 18-5 Roman Catholic, a 69-66 winner over St. Joseph’s Prep Wednesday.

(click on this link for the full story)

By Matthew DeGeorge

There weren’t many certainties to be found Wednesday night at Sun Valley — not as Marple Newtown’s top two shooters failed to top 30 percent from the field, not as turnovers piled up and leads yo-yoed between double-digits and one possession.But when Sun Valley needed the space to exhale in a hectic, rugged District 1 Class 5A first-round contest, the Vanguards knew they just had to place the ball in the steady hands of Vinny DeAngelo.

The junior guard scored 19 points, but his contributions were far more numerous in a 62-56 win for the sixth-seeded Vanguards.

DeAngelo did a little of everything. He dished four assists. He pocketed four steals, setting the defensive tone that muzzled Marple Newtown’s high-powered duo of Mike May and Tommy Gardler to 9-for-33 shooting.

And most frequently, DeAngelo exuded a tempo-dictating calm that helped the Vanguards (17-6) nurse an occasionally shaky lead in the fourth for a wire-to-wire win that sets up a quarterfinal date with third seed Chester Saturday.

(click on this link for the full story)

Webmaster’s note: The Marple Newtown vs Sun Valley 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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By Matt Chandik

As his Academy Park team continued to turn the ball over and as Chester happily converted the turnovers into points, Knights coach Frank Wolf kept looking at the clock, waiting for the worst to end.The Clippers had turned a six-point lead after one quarter into a blowout in the teams’ District 1 Class 5A opener Wednesday night at the Clip Joint, and it seemed like that first half would never end for a young Knights team facing its first playoff adversity.

“I do think that it was a little eye-opening in the second quarter,” Wolf said. “Halftime couldn’t come quick enough. We couldn’t get out of that first half fast enough.”

The final, a 72-54 Chester victory, wasn’t indicative of the dominance that the Clippers put forth in the second quarter. Chester outscored the visitors 25-9 on the strength of its defense and transition game, which left AP bewildered and blitzed. Seven Clippers scored in that frame, paced by Michael Smith’s seven points, and the 40-17 halftime lead was all Chester needed to cement its win.

(click on this link for the full story)

Webmaster’s note:  The quarter-final game this Saturday between Sun Valley and Chester will be audio broadcast on Delcohoops.com.  Our broadcast begins at 6:45 PM.