PW and Central Bucks West will be in action in Wednesday’s PIAA Quad-A second round.
By Scott Huff
And the beat goes on…
PIAA Quad-A State ‘Elite Eight’ Playoffs
Wednesday – March 9, 2016
[11-2]Bangor Slaters (26-2) vs. [1-1] Plymouth Whitemarsh Colonials (26-2)
@ Geigle Complex – Reading High School – 6 pm
State Playoff Resume:
Bangor opened the state playoffs with a 57-37 victory over [1-7] Central Bucks East in a game played @ Freedom High School. The Slaters outscored the Patriots 26-10 in the final period to seal the victory. Bangor featured a balanced scoring attack as four players scored in double figures. Michael Martino led the Slaters in scoring with 15 points – while Dylan Benton (14), Seth Benton (11), and Reece Jones (11) also scored in twin digits.
Plymouth Whitemarsh opened the state playoffs with an 81-41 rout of [3-8] Lebanon. It was the Xzavier Malone Show for the Colonials as the Rider-bound senior torched the Cedars for 30 points. Sophomore Ahim Williams also scored in double digits for the winners with 12 points. All in all, 12 different players were able to score points in the lopsided victory.
District Playoff Resume:
Bangor had a fine District 11 run as the Slaters reached the D-11 finals. However, Bangor came up short in a 68-49 loss to Parkland in the finals. Michael Martino scored a team-high 15 points in the loss, while Reece Jones also scored in double digits with 11 points. The Slaters opened the tournament with a 53-49 victory over Whitehall. Martino led Bangor with 22 points, while Dylan Benton added 13 points and Jones scored 12 points. The Slaters advanced to the D-11 finals with a 57-40 victory over Pocono Mountain West. Martino led all scorers with 26 points, while Benton added 10 points and Anthony Schiavone also scored in twin digits with 10 points.
Plymouth Whitemarsh captured the PIAA Quad-A District One title with a 68-57 victory over # 9 Chester. Xzavier Malone was terrific with a 29-point scoring performance, while Oakley Spencer came up with key steals and clutch free throw shooting and added 10 points. The Colonials punched their ticket to the PIAA Quad-A District One Finals with a 53-42 victory over # 11 Lower Merion. The Colonials were led in scoring by Malone who scored a game-high 19 points. Spencer (14) and Mike Lotito (12) also scored in twin digits in the win over the Aces. PW advanced to the semifinals with a thrilling 43-41 victory over SOL Continental Conference opponent Central Bucks West. Spencer scored the game winner with 0.7 seconds left in the game. Malone led the Colonials with 16 points, while Lotito scored in twin digits with12 points. PW advanced to the district quarterfinals with a 60-56 victory over # 18 Academy Park. Malone led the Colonials with a 26-point outburst, while Ahmin Williams came off the bench and scored eight points. PW opened the district playoffs with a 49-36 victory over # 31 Radnor. Malone led PW in scoring with 14 points. Lotito and Kevin Ashenfelter each scored in double digits for the Colonials with 12 and 10 points respectively.
Season Resume:
Bangor: The Slaters finished the regular season as champion of the Colonial East Division with a record of 17-1.
Plymouth Whitemarsh: The Colonials finished the regular season as the champion of the SOL American Conference with a record of 13-1.
Players To Watch:
Bangor: Michael Martino, Dylan Benton, Seth Benton, Anthony Schiavone & Reece Jones.
Plymouth Whitemarsh: Xzavier Malone, Mike Lotito, Oakley Spencer, Ahmad Williams, Ahim Williams & Kevin Ashenfelter.
Plymouth Whitemarsh head coach Jim Donofrio says: “Bangor reminds me of a Pennridge or a CB West in that they have good three-point shooters and can run different sets. They are unselfish and have balanced scoring. Anytime you are a 26-2 team – you are a good team and will play with confidence. Our team knows that we are one and done for the season and will approach the game the proper way. We know that they will want to control the pace of the game, and we can’t let that happen. We’re playing at a really high level defensively, and we have evolved into a very good team the last few weeks. We are playing our best basketball at the right time of year.”
Plymouth Whitemarsh senior Mike Lotito says: “We saw them on film and they have some really good shooters. They like to spread to the floor, but we want to be able to do what we do well. Coach ‘D’ told us that 30 percent of our offense comes from our defense. We are going to have to continue to play the game fast. The other day in practice I was cognizant that if we don’t win I will never have another practice. But once I get on the floor during the game – all of that stuff goes out of my head. We have some good underclassmen on this team that have had an opportunity to get better. I am proud of the way that they have played this season.”
Winner Gets: The winner of this game will play the winner of the game between [12-3] Simon Gratz vs. [3-7] Lancaster McCaskey game in a PIAA Quad-A quarterfinal game on Saturday (3/12/16).
[1-6] Central Bucks West Bucks (24-6) vs. [12-1] Roman Catholic Cahillites (23-4)
@ Bensalem High School – Bensalem – 7 pm
State Playoff Resume:
Central Bucks Westopened the state tournament with a hard fought 60-55 victory over [3-2] Central York. The Bucks showcased a balanced scoring attack with four players scoring in double figures. Luke Irons led West in scoring with an 18-point performance, while Billy Power (14), Cal Reichwein (13), and Connor Lynch (12) also reached twin digits.
Roman Catholic opened the state playoffs with a 73-58 victory over [1-9] Academy Park. The Penn State trio of recruits did the scoring damage as seniors Tony Carr (33 points), Lamar Stevens (13 points), and Nazeer Bostick (10 points) all scored in twin digits for the winners.
District Playoff Resume:Central Bucks West entered the state playoffs with a 58-56 double overtime loss to # 12 Spring-Ford. Erich Hohlenleitner led the Bucks with 15 points. Luke Irons (14), Billy Power (10) and Jake Reichwein (10) also scored in twin digits for CBW. The Bucks captured a district playoff win with a 59-31 victory over # 14 Conestoga. Power led the Bucks with 14 points, while Connor Lynch also scored in twin digits with 11 points. CBW fell in the PIAA Quad-A district quarterfinals in a 43-41 loss to # 2 Plymouth Whitemarsh. Power led the Buck scoring with a 13-point effort, while Jake Reichwein also scored in twin digits with 11 points. West lost the game on a Colonial basket with 0.7 seconds remaining. The Bucks advanced to the district quarterfinals with a 40-32 victory over # 10 Phoenixville. Irons played perhaps his best game of the year with a team-high 17 points. Power, Hohlenleitner and Jake Reichwein each scored six points for the winners. The Bucks opened the district playoffs with a 54-35 victory over # 26 Downingtown East. CB West was led is scoring by Hohenleiter with 15 points, while Cal Reichwein and brother Jake Reichwein scored in twin digits with 12 and 11 points respectively.
Roman Catholic captured the District 12 championship with a 65-53 victory over Public League champion Martin Luther King. The Cahillites advanced to the title game with a 72-65 victory over Neumann-Goretti in the PCL finals. Stevens led RC in scoring with 22 points, while Carr also had a nice game with 21 points. The Cahillites advanced to the PCL finals with a 64-63 victory over Archbishop Carroll. Carr scored 24 points in the win over AC, while Bostick added 14 points and Stevens tallied 13 points. RC won its PCL quarterfinal game over St. Joe Prep 56-39. Stevens (15), Carr (14) and Bostick (10) all scored in double digits for the winners.
Season Resume
Central Bucks West: The Bucks finished the regular season as the second place finisher in the SOL Continental Conference with a record of 12-2.
Roman Catholic: The Cahillites finished the regular season as the second place finisher in the Philadelphia Catholic League.
Players To Watch:
Central Bucks West: Bill Power, Luke Irons, Erich Hohenleitner, Cal Reichwein, Connor Lynch & Jake Reichwein.
Roman Catholic: Tony Carr, Lamar Stevens, Nazeer Bostick, D’Andre Vilmar & Paul Newman.
Central Bucks West head coach Adam Sherman says: “Roman Catholic is a very big, very athletic team. We played them over the summer and we know what they want to do. They love to bang the ball inside and get into transition. We are going to have to do what we do best – spread them out and make shots. Any team that wants to be successful at this time of year has to be able to shoot well. We will have to find a way to win. In the summer in a team camp at West Chester, we were actually winning at halftime, but the game got away from us in the second half.”
Central Bucks West senior Luke Irons says: “Roman is a team that is really big and athletic – much like Abington – but even bigger and more athletic. We played them in the summer, so we know something about how good they are. We have played teams all year that we bigger than us, and we know what we have to do to win games. This has been an unbelievable ride this year, and to be able to play (defending state champion) Roman in the state playoffs is –‘ Wow – we’re playing Roman.’ We are playing them at Bensalem which isn’t too far from home – we have played at Bensalem (against Abington in the SOL playoff title game) – and won at Bensalem.”
Winner Gets: The winner of this game will play the winner of the game between [11-1] Parkland vs. [1-3] Ridley in a PIAA Quad-A quarterfinal game on Saturday (3/12/16).
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