Marple Newtown’s Ryan Keating, left, dribbles in a game against Strath Haven’s last season. PETE BANNAN-DAILY TIMES)
By Matthew DeGeorge
The attention of Haverford’s defense Thursday night, Ryan Keating knew, was always going to be tuned primarily to the threat of Matt Gardler.
While Gardler is uniquely capable of persevering with multiple hands in his face, the challenge on the night and on the season for his Marple Newtown teammates has been to punish opponents that fixate on Gardler.
Keating stepped to the fore in the second half of a tight affair Thursday, saving 15 of his game-high 22 points for the second half as Marple Newtown pulled away from Haverford, 55-38.
“Matt’s a great player and obviously he’s been doing great this season,” Keating said. “At halftime, they were playing Matt really well, and coach (Sean) Spratt told us, someone else has to step up. I think as a team, we did a really good job of that.”
Haverford did an outstanding job on Gardler. The high-powered guard scored 12 points in the first half. But the Fords (2-9, 0-6 Central) still led 28-26 at the break. With Keith Heinerichs as the primary defender shadowing Gardler from just about the instant the layup lines concluded, Gardler didn’t have a basket in the second half. He only attempted two shots, both forced 3-pointers, and none in the first seven minutes of the third, with the game up for grabs.
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