Check out the results for SOL boys’ basketball teams in action Friday.
American Conference
Plymouth Whitemarsh 49, Wissahickon 32
Leading by only two points and displaying what Plymouth Whitemarsh coach Jim Donofrio called a “lack of energy,” the Colonials went to their bench early.
PW played three different juniors off the bench in the first half, and they gave the Colonials the spark they needed in what turned out to be a double-digit win over host Wissahickon.
Junior Grady Minick came off the bench and played some of his best basketball of the year, scoring six points in a game which didn’t see a single PW player reach double digits in points.
“It was a weird game,” Donofrio said. “I didn’t like the energy that we started out with out there with our starters, so it was kind of interesting to see. We were thinking we were playing hard, but we weren’t. We were going through the motions, so I gave the bench some opportunities and they really responded with younger guys.”
Minick, who Donofrio claims has had a frustrating season, made the most of his opportunity on the court.
“We basically had three new guys out there with Andre Mitchell and Cameron Johnson,” Donofrio said. “Grady really stepped up when we were looking for energy and there hadn’t been enough.”
The Colonials led 9-8 after one quarter and stretched that to 24-14 by halftime. PW took a 36-19 lead into the final quarter.
Mitchell and Jimmy Murray led PW with nine points apiece.
The Trojans were led by Brandon Pace with 12 points and Ron Brundage with nine
The Colonials, who have now won five in a row after losing its first and only game of the year, improved to 16-1 overall and 9-1 in conference play. Wissahickon fell to 9-7 and 7-3, respectively.
Plymouth Whitemarsh 9 15 12 13—49
Wissahickon 8 6 5 13—32
Plymouth Whitemarsh (49) – Grady Minick 3, Malone 6, Felter 5, Jimmy Murray 9, Montiero-Gray 2, Cameron Johnson 6, Burrell 3, Andre Mitchell 9, Lotito 6.
Wissahickon (32) – Todd Bentley 4, Ron Brundage 9, Stephen Driscoll 5, Brandon Pace 12, Zach Reiner 2.
Cheltenham 63, Springfield 39
Things couldn’t have gone better for Cheltenham against the Spartans.
Cheltenham raced to a 16-4 lead after one quarter took a 29-10 lead into the half. The Panthers increased their lead to 57-18 after three quarters before the Spartans put up some numbers in the fourth with the Panthers’ bench having been cleared.
Anthony White led Cheltenham (10-7, 7-3) with 15 points, while Khalil White added 12. Vaughn Jenkins and Fatiir Al-Ahad added eight and seven, respectively. The Panthers saw 11 different players score points on the night.
Springfield (2-15, 0-10) was led by Noel Franzik’s 10 points. Quintin Johnson scored eight, while Ryan Daly added seven.
Cheltenham 16 13 28 6—63
Springfield 4 6 8 21—39
Upper Dublin 45, Upper Moreland 30
Clinging to a 28-27 lead entering the final quarter, Upper Dublin took complete control of the game in the final eight minutes and got past host Upper Moreland in convincing fashion.
A 17-3 showing in the fourth broke the game wide open after the Bears, who trailed 24-17 at the half, had cut their deficit to only one (28-27) after three quarters.
Simeon Fryer’s 11 points led Upper Dublin (11-6, 8-2), while John Barrett and Ryan Stover each scored eight.
Upper Moreland (6-12, 2-8) was led by James Martin’s 11 points.
Upper Dublin 10 14 4 17—45
Upper Moreland 6 11 10 3—30
Upper Dublin (45) – John Barrett 8, Ryan Stover 8, Simeon Fryer 11, Phil Santerian 4, Ben Abel 1, Will Derr 5, Jimmy Gallagher 4, Luke Teesdale 4.
Upper Moreland (30) – Brendan O’Donnell 3, Ryan Coyle 2, Casey Decker 7, Aaron Heller 2, James Martin 11, Joe Trovato 3, Shane Stone 2.
Norristown 68, Upper Merion 62
Darryl Carr led Norristown with 18 points and 10 rebounds in a win over host Upper Merion.
Carr scored 15 of his points before halftime, when the Eagles (8-8, 6-4) led 42-30. The Vikings (2-15, 1-9) crawled back in the second half, outscoring Norristown 32-26, but it wasn’t enough to erase the double-digit deficit.
Khalif Sinclair scored 12 points and dished out six assists for Norristown, while Roy Green tallied 11 points. Desmond Gorski added 10 points, while Kyle Simpson scored eight.
Upper Merion was led by Matt Faw and Andrew Persaud, who scored 19 points apiece. Aidan Newell scored 10, while Ethan Miller added eight.
Norristown 21 21 11 15—68
Upper Merion 15 15 14 18—62
National Confrence
Council Rock North 53, Harry S. Truman 49
A big second quarter was enough to help Council Rock North hold on for a win over host Harry S. Truman and give the Indians a much needed win after losing five of their previous six games.
The Indians outscored Truman 30-21 in the first half before the Tigers (5-11, 4-6) slowly chipped away at CR North’s lead in the second half. The Tigers led briefly, but the Indians managed to pull it out.
“It was good to see our guys finish a game off with a ‘W’ tonight,” CR North coach Derek Wright said. “We’ve had some tough losses at the end, so it was good to see them follow through. They deserved it.”
Three players – Riley Thompson as well as Steve and Tyler Nowmos – finished with 12 points apiece. Steve Nowmos also added 10 rebounds. Seven of Thompson’s points came in a second quarter which saw CR North (10-7, 6-4) outscore Truman 18-10.
“Our balanced scoring was big tonight,” Wright said. “We had a lot of foul trouble in the first half, and Tyler Nowmos, who is normally a big defender and rebounder, really stepped on the offensive end and made some big shots.
“Riley Thompson was solid all game against some pressure, and Steve Nowmos made some big buckets down the stretch. We needed every bit of it tonight.”
James Clowney and Tyquan Law each scored 15 points to lead Truman, while Jair Brown added 10.
After Truman took the lead in the third quarter, the Indians buried a couple big free throws and made some defensive stops to come out on top.
“Truman does well at home all the time, and they really brought their pressure in the second half when they were down,” Wright said. “They took the lead, but our guys stuck together and made some real smart plays down the stretch. We took care of the ball, hit some big shots and a couple big free throws.”
Council Rock North 12 18 12 11—53
Harry S. Truman 11 10 15 13—49
Council Rock North (53) – Steve Nowmos 12, Riley Thompson 12, Drew Glenn 8, Matt Margolis 3, Tyler Nowmos 12, Will Desautelle 4, James Kosyla 2.
Harry S Truman (49) – James Clowney 15, Tyquan Law 15, Jair Brown 10, Lucas Water 2, Danell Snelling 7.
Glen Mills 64, Bensalem 35
Bensalem (7-11) hosted Glen Mills in a non-conference meeting and found itself outscored in all four quarters. The Owls trailed 23-16 at halftime and never got any closer.
Keith Howard led Bensalem with 11 points, while Kevin Wade added seven. Brandon Vaughn chipped in with six.
Glen Mills 11 12 19 22—64
Bensalem 8 8 10 9—35
Continental Conference
Central Bucks West 49, Souderton 45
Five weeks ago, Souderton went into Central Bucks West High School and left with an 18-point win in a game that saw the Bucks manage just 23 points on offense.
On Friday, a completely different CB West team took the court as the Bucks traveled to Souderton and escaped with a win over an Indians team that humbled them just last month.
Cal Reichwein led all scorers with 20.
“I think we progressed offensively,” CB West coach Adam Sherman said. “Last time, we held them to 41 points, so it was a solid defensive effort, but offensively, we were very impatient. We weren’t making the extra pass, but tonight, we were much more patient on offense, and we got off much better shots.”
Following a low scoring first quarter that saw the Bucks hold a 9-8 advantage, the Bucks completely dominated in the second quarter, outscoring Souderton by 10 to take a 24-13 lead into the half. From early in the second until the end of the game, CB West held the lead.
“We shot the ball much better and our guys played well,” Sherman said. “Cal Reichwein hit his free throws and his shots. Nico Munari did a great job of finishing inside and Jimmy McCusker passed the ball well and had some real nice interior passes down low.”
Munari scored six points, while Owen Cooney added five for CB West (10-8, 6-4). Evan Slone and Tracy Simsick led Souderton (14-4, 7-3) with 16 and 12, respectively.
“It’s a nice win,” Sherman said. “It’s the end of the year and you want to see yourself get better. It’s a good measuring stick for us. I feel like we’re a much better team this time and it showed. Hopefully we continue to grow as a team.”
Central Bucks West 9 15 9 16—49
Souderton 8 5 14 18—45
Central Bucks West (49) – Bill Power 4, Luke Irons 4, Connor Lynch 3, Jimmy McCusker 1, Seamus Fox 2, Cal Reichwein 20, Owen Cooney 5, Erich Hohenleitner 4, Nico Munari 6.
Souderton (45) – Evan Slone 16, Ty Salone 2, Ben Wonderling 3, Tracy Simsick 12, Tim Markow 6, Steve Sosnowicz 6.
North Penn 47, Quakertown 43
Quakertown brought a four-game winning streak into Friday night’s contest, and they didn’t go down quietly to the visiting Knights, rallying from 15 down to make things interesting down the stretch
North Penn’s Joey Richards scored with 43 seconds remaining to help lift the Knights to a close win. He scored the game’s final four points and led North Penn (11-7, 6-4) with 14 points.
“I guess there are two ends of the spectrum,” North Penn coach John Conrad said. “I’m disappointed that we didn’t extend the lead and close out the game, but we talk regularly about overcoming adversity, and we got a big stop at the end. Ricky Johns had a big rebound and Joey Richards finished. It’s what we expect out of our senior leaders.”
While Johns didn’t record any points, Conrad said that he stepped up in more than one way.
“Ricky did really well defensively and he got a couple big rebounds for us down the stretch,” the North Penn coach said. “Cordell Lord really pushed the ball and helped us to get our lead.”
The Knights led 26-21 at the half and took a commanding 40-25 lead into the fourth before Quakertown (9-9, 3-7) went on an 18-3 run to tie the game at 43-43.
“Quakertown won six of its last seven and that team is playing great,” Conrad said. “We were more worried about them (than looking forward to districts), and I thought our kids played exceptional on the defensive end. We just had trouble converting on the offensive end in the fourth.”
Kyle Hulmes added 11 points for North Penn, while Lord and JJ Melchior each scored six.
Kevin Norvaisis led the Panthers with 16, while Jake Perrine added 14. Griffin Schmidt scored 10.
North Penn 11 15 14 7—47
Quakertown 11 10 4 18—43
North Penn (47) – Matt Pickford 5, Joey Ricahrds 14, Kyle Hulmes 11, Cordell Lord 6, JJ Melchior 6, Derek Heiserman 5.
Quakertown (43) – Griffin Schmidt 10, Jake Perrine 14, Brian Rejniak 3, Kevin Norvaisas 16.
Hatboro-Horsham 48, Central Bucks East 45
Walter Kimble’s 20 points helped lead Hatboro-Horsham to its first conference win in exactly one month, beating visiting Central Bucks East by one possession.
After going into the half tied at 20-20, the Hatters (7-9, 3-7) outscored the Patriots by eight in the third to go on top 32-24 going into the fourth. CB East (5-13, 0-10) fought back in the fourth, but Hatboro-Horsham held on to get the win.
“It’s a win that we really needed,” Hatboro-Horsham coach Ed Enoch said. “It’s been a pretty big dry spell and we’ve been close on many occasions, but we just haven’t been able to finish games. Tonight, we were able to finish the game. It’s a good win and a needed win for the kids.”
Kimble’s 20 points led all scorers and marked the first time that a Hatboro-Horsham played hit the 20-point mark all season.
“Walter had a pretty big game for us tonight and being the first kid to hit 20 was very important,” Enoch said.
Brian McEachern added 11 points for the Hatters, while Zeke Sloan and David Robinson each scored six.
Travis Ives led the Patriots with 17 points, while Tommy Strasburger added 13. Justin O’Neil tallied 10.
Central Bucks East 12 8 4 21—45
Hatboro-Horsham 4 16 12 16—48
Central Bucks East (45) – Matt Pattyson 3, Justin O’Neil 10, Travis Ives 17, Sean Dann 2, Tommy Strasburger 13.
Pennridge 64, Central Bucks South 52
Three days removed from its first conference loss of the season, Pennridge was able to rebound quite handily. Dan Long’s 26 points led all scorers in a double-digit win for first place Pennridge over visiting Central Bucks South.
The Rams trailed by one point after quarter (10-9) but took a 22-16 lead into the half. They added to that lead throughout the second half.
Stephen Lowry added 14 points for the Rams (15-2, 9-1), while Joe Molettiere contributed nine.
The Titans (10-7, 6-4) were led by Chris Hones’ 11 points. Sean Gallagher added 10, while Alex Karras scored eight.
Central Bucks South 10 6 17 19—52
Pennridge 9 13 21 21—64
Central Bucks South (52) – Alex Karras 8, Josh Brodie 2, Tommy Doyle 4, Ian Vogt 2, Ryan Joerger 3, Tim Waddington 6, Chris Hones 11, David Drea 6, Sean Gallagher 10.
Pennridge (64) – Joe Molettiere 9, Dan Long 26, Zach Muredda 4, Stephen Lowry 14, Joe Unangst 7, James White 2, Kyle Yoder 2.
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