Millennium Administrators – in memory of Mark Picard - sponsored Tuesday night’s Souderton game against North Penn.
By Scott Huff
Franconia – In a game with major PIAA Quad-A District One playoff implications, it came down to a simple statement – you can’t score without the basketball.
Souderton (12-9 overall, 8-5 conference) valued each possession in the fourth quarter and defeated visiting North Penn (11-10, 6-7) by a 53-44 score in what should be the final career home game for the Indian seniors. The victory puts the Big Red in a good position for a district playoff invitation – while the Knights are on that proverbial playoff bubble.
Souderton held a slim 43-42 lead at the outset of the fourth quarter, but the next Big Red ‘possession’ saw a precious two minutes and 43 seconds of game time run off the clock. In that sequence, Souderton collected no less than six offensive rebounds and kept the surging Knights without a shot from the field or free throw line for over four minutes.
“We just wanted the ball so badly, and we did a great job of hitting the boards,” said Souderton head coach Pete Chimera. “We tell the players all the time about how important it is to control the ball and value possessions.”
“I think that we showed a lot of guts and just wanted the ball more,” said Souderton’s outstanding senior Evan Slone who scored a game-high 22 points and collected a game-high 13 rebounds. “Defense and hard work wins games.”
“I thought we were in the middle of a football game – and we never had enough possessions in the fourth quarter,” said North Penn head coach John Conrad. “That sequence at the beginning of the fourth took a lot out of us – it’s tough to play good defense that long – and we never really got back into a rhythm.
“Evan Slone is so good – so tough off the boards,” added Conrad. “But what really separates him from the others is his mental toughness.”
“I have run out of superlatives to describe what Evan has done for us all year,” said Chimera. “He is just unbelievable – and much more.”
The fact that it was a one-point game at the outset of the fourth quarter was somewhat surprising. Souderton was terrific in the first period, and with 2:12 left in the initial period led by a commanding 15-2 margin. Both Tracy Simsick and Austin Eberhart scored six of their 11 points in the first period to fuel the Big Red offense.
However, North Penn recovered behind a pair of three-point bombs and eight points in all from diminutive senior sharpshooter Cordell Lord to close to within 19-10 by the close of the quarter.
“We knew that Lord could get hot – and he did,” said Chimera. “We switched defenses to try and slow him down, but he kept them in the game.”
“We got that early lead, and then it seemed like we took the foot off the gas,” said Slone. “Cordell is a great shooter – and he started hitting his shots.”
The best period of the game for the Knights came in the third period as NP outscored the Big Red 18-11. Souderton led 30-22 at intermission – but North Penn opened the third period on a 12-3 run and actually took a 34-33 lead. The Knights forced turnovers with their half-court pressure – but Souderton recovered and took a 41-40 lead into the final period.
The worst period of the game for the Knights came in the fourth period as Souderton outscored NP 12-4. The Blue & White shot just 2-for-14 from the field in the final eight minutes against a swarming Indian defense and did not attempt a single shot from the free throw line
Both teams entered the game with identical 11-9 overall records – and it was hard working Souderton that exited the contest with the coveted victory and a 12-9 mark.
“We won the game – and that is all that matters,” said Chimera. “I told the players that we are now in elimination games for the rest of the season. If we want to play next week (in districts) we are going to have to win every basketball game.
“Friday is another day – and we play Central Bucks East at 3:30 at their place,” added Chimera. “The kids probably like playing then – they get out of school early, but I’m not too sure how I feel about it. We need to win that game.”
“We lost the game – and what we do against Hatboro-Horsham in our next game is all that matters,” said Conrad as the Knight travel to play the Hatters. “If we have any shot at the playoffs – we have to win. It is either win or go home for us.”
North Penn Knights 10 12 18 4 * 44
Souderton Indians 19 11 11 12 * 53
North Penn: Cordell Lord 15; Jared Melone 8; Joe Richards 6; Kyle Hulmes 6; Derek Heisermann 5; Matt Pickford 2; and Ricky Johns 2. Total – 44.
Souderton: Evan Slone 22; Tracy Simsick 11; Austin Eberhart 11; Ty Salone 4; Ben Wonderling 3; and Tim Markow 2. Total – 53.
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