PW edged Pennridge in classic PIAA Quad-A second round game at Spring-Ford High School on Wednesday. To view photos of the action, please visit the Photo Gallery.
By Scott Huff
Royersford – If the PIAA would give out Academy Awards – the winner of the Best Game of the Season just might be the spine-tingling Plymouth Whitemarsh victory over Pennridge in the second round of the Quad-A State playoffs. The high-spirited Colonials overcame a remarkable performance by the Rams to capture a 73-70 victory.
“These great high school basketball games are heartbreakers to lose,” said an emotionally spent Plymouth Whitemarsh head coach Jim Donofrio. “I can’t say enough about the performance of Pennridge. They have great kids – they play like a great team – and they are relentless.
“You have to give our kids credit for being able to win an emotional game like this,” added Donofrio. “We have a program with a (winning) history, but the players on this team have never been to a state tournament. This is all new to them – and so far they have been incredible.”
“Plymouth Whitemarsh has fabulous guards – and the team isn’t ranked 10th in the state for nothing,” said Pennridge head coach Dean Behrens. “It was tough enough watching them on tape getting ready for them – but coaching against them in a game is even tougher.
“This game is really what high school basketball is all about,” added Behrens. “Both teams let it all hang out on every single possession of the game. It was a great game.”
In the Best Player category would be a pair of impressive juniors – Xzavier Malone of Plymouth Whitemarsh – and Danny Long of Pennridge. Malone led all scorers with 27 points that included 10-for-14 shooting from the field and five-of-seven from the free throw line. Long led the Rams with 24 points and had a more-than-impressive triple-double that also included 11 rebounds and 10 assists.
“Malone is so athletic and was as good as advertised – he really played well for them in the second half,” said Behrens. “And Danny had to run the point after Zach (Muredda) got hurt in the first quarter and did such a great job. You could tell he was giving it everything he had when he had to (throw up) in a trashcan a couple of times in the fourth quarter.”
“That # 4 (Long) – and really their whole team – competed so hard the entire game,” said Malone. “They pushed us to our limit – and we knew that we were going have to get into another gear to beat them.”
“He (Long) played the game like a football player playing with a basketball,” said PW senior tri-captain Andre Mitchell. “It was a game that both teams played as hard as they could. It feels good to be able to play another playoff game. We want to be able to put PW back in the playoff talk.”
The Best Supporting Player category would have a couple of strong nominations from each team.
Plymouth Whitemarsh could boast the silky-smooth pair of senior forward Devon Monteiro-Gray (18 points) and senior point guard Jimmy Murray (17). Pennridge would counter with dynamic duo of sophomore Ryan Cuthbert (18) and senior Joey Molettiere (17). All four of these players stole the spotlight at different times during the game.
Plymouth Whitemarsh appeared to have the game under control, leading 55-44 after three quarters. And the Colonials led 59-49 with 5:37 left in the game – but the Rams refused to surrender.
Pennridge would outscore PW by an 18-9 margin in the next 4:26 to close to 68-67 with 1:11 left in the game. Molettiere fueled the comeback with nine points in that stretch – while Long scored six – and Cuthbert drained a 3-pointer.
Malone hit a pair at the free throw line to give the Colonials a 70-67 lead and Monteiro-Gray scored on a breakaway basket to give PW a 72-67 lead. However, Long banged home a 3-pointer with just two seconds left to cut the lead to 72-70 – and Mitchell would make 1-of-2 from the line to make the score final at 73-70.
“We played a great game – but we have played great games all year,” said Behrens. “It has been a great year for us.”
“This was a game where the coaches respected each other – and the players respected each other,” said Donofrio. “It was a great game for the coaches, the players, the schools, and both communities. It was great to be a part of all that.”
And for this magnificent night – the Oscar goes to Plymouth Whitemarsh.
Free Throws – Plymouth Whitemarsh (27-2) will now advance to the PIAA Quad-A quarterfinals against Martin Luther King (22-4) on Saturday at a site to be determined… the Colonials are the # 2 seed from District 1 losing to Abington in the district final…MLK is the # 2 seed from District 12 losing to Roman Catholic in the district final…. MLK defeated District 3 champion York by a 70-56 score to advance…Pennridge (26-5) concluded the most successful season in Ram basketball history…. Pennridge set a school record for wins with 26…. the Rams took place in their first-ever state tournament…. and Pennridge won its first-ever state playoff game with a 61-59 victory over Reading.
Pennridge Rams 17 16 11 26 – 70
Plymouth Whitemarsh 18 19 18 18 – 73
Pennridge: Danny Long 24; Ryan Cuthbert 18; Joe Molettiere 17; Joe Unangst 7; James White 2; and Kyle Yoder 2. Total – 70.
Plymouth Whitemarsh: Xzavier Malone 27; Devon Monteiro-Gray 18; Jimmy Murray 17; Andre Mitchell 11; Cameron Johnson 0. Total – 73.
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