Jarrad Saffren recaps all of Tuesday’s SOL boys’ basketball action. Neshaminy/Bensalem photos provided courtesy of Jesse Garber (http://jsgarber.zenfolio.com/p840488375 )
By Jarrad Saffren
All 22 Suburban One League boys’ basketball teams played on Tuesday night. Twenty played league games. Two—Harry S. Truman and William Tennent—met in a non-league game.
All 11 results and recaps are below.
SOL Continental
Pennridge 63, Central Bucks South 56 (OT)
Pennridge handed CB South its first league loss of the season, overcoming a 38-27 second half deficit to win in overtime. The Rams improved to 5-2 in league play. The Titans are 7-1.
The Rams trailed by 11 going into the fourth quarter, but they outscored South 19-8 in the final stanza. Then they won overtime 17-10. Sean Yoder buried a three to start overtime for Pennridge, and the Titans never recovered.
“That deflated CB South,” said Pennridge coach Dean Behrens of Yoder’s three. “They didn’t hit shots.”
Pennridge’s fast pace also wore down the Titans in the fourth and overtime.
“We started pressing full court. Tyrese (Lewis) face guarded (Nate) Robinson and that really shook him,” Behrens said. “We also started scoring and going to the basket, going to the basket. And we made our foul shots. We missed them early.”
Lewis (16), Yoder (15) and Jake Pestrak (14) scored in double figures for Pennridge. Jon Post added eight.
“Pestrak played great. Lewis really stepped up tonight,” Behrens said. “We played with a lot of pride and heart. It wasn’t about Xs and Os. The best thing we did was keep it simple. We guarded Robinson straight and just ran our sets.”
“It was an impressive win,” Behrens added. “We made that part of the pregame speech. We’re two games behind them and can control tonight’s game. So we gotta take care of business. Now we have to keep winning and hope they get tripped up. But we have to focus on us and get better every single day.”
Tommy Kuypers (24) and Nate Robinson (14) combined for 38 of CB South’s 56 points.
Pennridge (12-4, 5-2 SOL) hosts CB East on Friday night at seven. CB South (12-4, 7-1 SOL) plays CB West on Thursday night at eight.
Pennridge 8-13-6-19-17 63
Central Bucks South 12-15-11-8-10 56
Pennridge (63) – Sean Yoder 15, Brett Henofer 3, Jake Pestrak 14, Mike Molettiere 2, Tyrese Lewis 16, Jon Post 8.
Central Bucks South (56) – Brady Prezelski 3, Cole Prezelski 5, Nate Robinson 14, Mark Kannengieszer 6, Tommy Kuypers 24, Ian McCaw 4.
Central Bucks West 58, North Penn 43
Jake Reichwein (23) and Collin MacAdams (17) combined for 40 points, leading CB West to a double-digit win. The Bucks improved to 12-4 in 2017-18.
CB West held North Penn to 15 first-half points, taking a five-point lead into halftime (20-15). Then the Bucks dropped 38 in the second half.
“We defended well, holding them to 15 in the first half was a great accomplishment,” said West coach Adam Sherman. “Our defense and rebounding made up for our offense, which struggled at times.”
“Jake and Collin were able to get to the glass but both were a presence on the perimeter as well,” Sherman added. “Jake has been shooting pretty consistently all year.”
CB West’s Jack Mulhearn shot 8-of-8 from the line down the stretch. Shane McCusker had five assists. Jack Neri grabbed seven rebounds.
“Jack Neri gave us solid minutes off the bench,” Sherman said. “He rebounded and defended well.”
David Robinson (20) and AJ Mitchell (10) scored in double figures for North Penn.
CB West (12-4, 6-2 SOL) plays CB South on Thursday night at eight. North Penn (8-8, 3-5 SOL) battles William Tennent on Friday night at seven.
North Penn 8-7-13-15 43
Central Bucks West 9-11-19-19 58
North Penn (43) – AJ Mitchell 10, Joey Lindsay 3, AJ Catanzaro 3, David Robinson 20, Chris Coleman 7.
Central Bucks West (58) – Shan McCusker 3, Jack Mulhearn 8, Mika Munari 2, Collin MacAdams 18, ake Reichwein 22, Jack Neri 5.
Souderton 63, Central Bucks East 48
Four Souderton players—Kavi Ramchandani (20), Dom Natale (16), Tomas Hanrahan (12) and Trevor Watts (10)—scored in double figures, as the Indians won every quarter and beat an opponent with a winning record by double digits.
“We’ve had trouble dictating tempo. We usually play down to other teams’ energies. Today we were the aggressor and played with energy for 32 minutes. We haven’t done that since we beat CB West, so it was good to see,” said Souderton coach Tim Brown. “We also attacked the rim really well tonight. Sometimes we go in and put up floaters or dance around contact. Today we attacked the rim. I tell them to do it like they are going to dunk every single time, and they did a great job of it tonight.”
Ramchandani bounced back after a tough game against Pennridge last time out. Natale, a sophomore, continued to impress his coach.
“Dom Natale was unbelievable. He brought a different type of energy. He changed the game and made some huge momentum plays that got everyone going,” Brown said. “Kavi was great. It was nice to see him be mentally tough.”
Kyle Cassidy led CB East with 13 points. Leo Masterson added 10.
Souderton (6-10, 3-5 SOL) plays Boyertown on Thursday night at seven. CB East (9-7, 3-5 SOL) hosts Wissahickon on Wednesday night at seven.
Souderton 13-13-14-23 63
Central Bucks East 10-7-9-22 48
Souderton (63) – Stephen Luchansky 3, Kavi Ramcandani 20, Dom Natale 16, Tomas Hanrahan 12, Trevor Watts 10, Antonio Rodriguez 2.
Central Bucks East (48) – Kyle Cassidy 13, Leo Masterson 10, Ben Markowitz 7, Nick Roggio 7, Jesse Rivera 5, Collin Stein 3, Jackman 3.
SOL National
Abington 51, Pennsbury 45
Pennsbury gave Abington all it could handle, slowing the game down and packing the paint on defense. But the Ghosts still led throughout and improved to 8-0 in league play. Abington’s Eric Dixon had 27 points, 12 rebounds, four blocks and two steals. He shot 11-of-17 from the field and 5-of-6 from the line.
“Pennsbury is always tough. They came ready to play. They had a good game plan and made some shots,” said Abington coach Charles Grasty. “Our shots weren’t falling. We were settling for jumpers. In the second half, we emphasized dumping it down to Eric. We thought with his size we’d be successful.”
“Eric is a special player. It’s a luxury that when your shots aren’t falling, you have someone you can dump it down to,” Grasty added. “He’s one of the best players in the country, and that opens it up for our guards.”
Abington’s Robbie Heath had seven points and seven assists. Lucas Monroe and Darius Brown both had six.
Raylil Winton led Pennsbury with 15 points, on five threes. Gary Francis and Collin Connor scored 10 and nine, respectively.
Abington (12-2, 8-0 SOL) plays nationally-ranked Findlay Prep on Thursday at two at the Montverde Academy Invitational Tournament in Montverde, Fla. Pennsbury (9-7, 4-3 SOL) battles Neshaminy next Tuesday night, Jan. 30, at five.
Pennsbury 7-14-12-12 45
Abington 13-12-15-11 51
Pennsbury (45) – Collin Connor 9, Raylil Winton 15, Josh Arruda 6, Chad Weldon 3, Cooper Arnold 2, Gary Francis 10.
Abington (51) – Eric Dixon 27, Robbie Heath 7, Lucas Monroe 6, Darius Brown 6, Xavier Crawford 2, Hasan Whitby 3.
Bensalem 69, Neshaminy 53
Bensalem dominated the glass, scored easy baskets on fast breaks, shut down Chris Arcidiacono’s teammates and rolled to a convincing league win, improving to 9-7. The Owls outrebounded Neshaminy 46-22 and held Arcidiacono’s teammates to 17 total points.
“It was a great team win. We threw the book at Arch and he still scored 36. Arch is a great player, just unbelievable, how he uses his body. He’s just one of those guys who comes around every so often,” said Bensalem coach Mike McCabe. “They had some open looks but we played really hard as a team. We pressed them, they turned it over and we pushed it down the floor for easy baskets.”
Bensalem’s big guys stepped up and paced the effort on the boards.
“James Leible had a big game. Lamont Hasker had a big game,” McCabe said. “The key for us was we outrebounded them all night. Leible and Hasker rebounded well. We are also getting good guard play, so it’s coming together a little bit.”
Ward Roberts led Bensalem with 19 points. Leible (18) and Hasker (16) combined for 34.
Bensalem (9-7, 4-4 SOL) hosts CR North on Thursday night at seven. Neshaminy (9-5, 3-3 SOL) plays Pennsbury on Thursday night at six.
Neshaminy 13-8-17-15 53
Bensalem 22-12-12-23 69
Neshaminy (53) – Pat Campbell 2, Logan Williamson 4, Chris Arcidiacono 36, Anthony Papeo 6, Greg Deluca 4, Charles Dominick 1.
Bensalem (69) – Taco Douglas 7, Ward Roberts 19, Keith Parrish 2, James Leible 18, Lamont Hasker 16, Carlos Gonzalez 3, Kris Shields 4
Council Rock North 40, Council Rock South 28
CR North held CR South to six points or less in each of the first three quarters, building a 33-16 lead going into the fourth. Matt McAlister led the Indians with 13 points. James Duffy scored in double figures for the second straight game. DJ Mischak added eight.
“Our boys came out with a tremendous amount of energy. Our guys played with a lot of toughness,” North coach Jesse Krasna said. “South has a lot of guys that can make open shots. They run a nice high-low offense and are constantly moving and screening.
Our guys did a good job preventing open looks and making them do things they aren’t accustomed to doing. Offensively, we were really patient and moved the ball well, and we were able to score enough to win. The quality of our shots was really good. We had long possessions. South was tired at the end because they had to keep chasing us.”
North led 22-10 at halftime and never looked back.
“Everybody played well,” Krasna said. “We had a lot of guys contribute. Harry Wyatt did a great job attacking the rim and creating for his teammates. Brady Haggerty led us in rebounds and had some big ones in the fourth, when South was finding its groove on offense.
“Josh Fisher made it tough when South had the ball. We told them to pressure and got South to put it on the floor, and the guys did a great job executing the game plan.”
The Indians have won three straight games, improving to 7-9. They are playing great defense and sharing the ball.
“Our guys played with a lot of heart and were unselfish,” Krasna said. “That’s been a theme the last three games.”
CR North (7-9, 3-5 SOL) plays Bensalem on Thursday night at seven. CR South (3-11, 2-5 SOL) hosts Sankofa Freedom Academy on Wednesday night at seven.
Council Rock North 8-14-11-7 40
Council Rock South 4-6-6-12 28
SOL American
Hatboro-Horsham 47, Upper Moreland 38
Hatboro-Horsham improved to 7-8 overall and 4-5 in SOL American play.
“I was real proud of my kids tonight. We played hard and very well defensively,” said Hatboro-Horsham coach Ed Enoch. “Our shot selection was better than it has been all year. We played a very good basketball game.”
Two players were largely responsible for the Hatters’ success, Kyle Hogan on defense, Chris Edwards on offense. Hogan had 10 blocks and Edwards led a balanced scoring attack.
“Kyle Hogan was real effective tonight,” Enoch said. “And Chris Edwards did a nice job running the offense.”
Hatboro-Horsham hosts Quakertown on Friday night at seven. Upper Moreland (8-8, 4-5 SOL) plays Cheltenham on the same night and time.
Plymouth Whitemarsh 70, Wissahickon 50
Plymouth Whitemarsh beat Wissahickon by one, 67-66, on Dec. 22 at Wissahickon.
“We went over there and the focus was poor. We watched the film yesterday, the entire game, slowly and painstakingly,” said PW coach Jim Donofrio. “It became a really good lesson. They outplayed and outhustled us over there. Coming to your own place, you can turn that into a nice gift if you learn from it, and we did.”
On Tuesday night, PW built a 41-18 halftime lead and coasted through the second half. Over the course of the game, PW grabbed 24 more rebounds than Wissahickon (47-23), made 21 more free throws (26-5), scored 20 more points in the paint (42-22) and 16 more second chance points (22-6).
“We concentrated on a detailed game plan, on tendencies, and took them away. The kids put in 5:30-10:30 last night between practice and film. That’s what our guys do. They outwork people,” Donofrio said. “Wissahickon is going to do handoffs and backdoor cuts precisely. You have to talk better on screens and get them out of rhythm, for 32 minutes. They won’t go away. Their kids have a lot of heart.”
PW’s first half defensive effort really put Wissahickon away.
“Naheem McLeod raised his game defensively. Ahmad and Ahmin Williams were given the assignments of (Eddie) Fortescue and (Max) Rapoport, and Alan Glover on (Zach) Reiner, and they focused every possession in the first half, 41-18 half was a great effort of defensive concentration,” Donofrio said. “Wissahickon raised its game in the third and our kids responded then, too.”
Ish Horn (20), McLeod (18), Ahmad Williams (13), Ahmin Williams (10) and Alan Glover (9) combined for all 70 of PW’s points. Max Rapoport (15) and Eddie Fortescue (14) scored in double figures for Wissahickon.
PW (15-0, 9-0 SOL) plays Springfield Township on Friday night at seven. Wissahickon (11-5, 6-3 SOL) plays CB East on Wednesday night at seven.
Wissahickon 6-12-14-18 50
Plymouth Whitemarsh 16-25-17-12 70
Wissahickon (50) – Donovan Oliphant 14, Seth Compas 9, Tyler Caso 2, Max Rapoport 15, Alec Catterton 2, Anthony Lawrence 2, Zach Reiner 6.
Plymouth Whitemarsh (70) – Ish Horn 20, Naheem McLeod 18, Ahmin Williams 10, Ahmad Williams 13, Alan Glover 9.
Cheltenham 87, Springfield Township 62
Cheltenham won the second quarter 21-7, taking a 47-25 lead into halftime. The Panthers cruised through the second half and won easily, in their third game without Jack Clark, who is now out for the rest of the season with a torn ACL.
“So we’re officially moving forward. We’re three games into our season without Jack, so to me, it’s the start of a second season, and we have six games left to get better,” said Cheltenham coach John Timms. “I think we improved tonight. We were more efficient on the offensive end. We have to tweak some things on defense and find the right combination. We have six games before the playoffs start to figure all those things out. I’m excited about the challenge and I think the players are too. I still think we can score. It’s just a matter of figuring out our defensive chemistry.”
Amir Lewis (21) and Zahree Harrison (20) combined for 41 points for Cheltenham. Brandon Scott (12) and Tim Myarick (10) also scored in double figures. Ahmad Bickley had eight points, 12 assists and six steals.
Springfield Township put together a strong offensive showing, too, with four guys in double figures. Ben Rittenhouse (16), Quentin Johnson (15), Jordan Pauls (11) and DeJaun Waters (10) combined for 52 of Springfield’s 62 points.
Cheltenham (11-3, 7-1 SOL) plays Upper Moreland on Friday night at seven. Springfield (2-12, 0-10 SOL) hosts PW on the same night and time.
Cheltenham 26-21-18-22 87
Springfield Township 18-7-20-17 62
Quakertown 58, Upper Dublin 49
Quakertown won the middle quarters 27-12, overcoming a one-point deficit and holding its lead through the fourth quarter. The Panthers improved to 5-11. Upper Dublin fell to 4-13.
Eli Ortiz led Quakertown with 27 points, shooting 11-of-11 from the line. Matt Lucas (16) and Sam Rice (13) also scored in double figures. Lucas drilled four threes.
Upper Dublin’s Nyjee Scott led all scorers with 24 points.
Quakertown (5-11, 3-5 SOL) plays Hatboro-Horsham on Friday night at seven. Upper Dublin (4-13, 3-7 SOL) battles Wissahickon on the same night and time.
Upper Dublin 13-8-4-24 49
Quakertown 12-14-13-19 58
Upper Dublin (49) – Jason Williams 6, Nyjee Scott 24, Ian McGonagle 5, Corby Watkins 4, Brian Klammer 2, Mike Slivka 2, Cory Stoever 4, Joe Ryan 2.
Quakertown (58) – Eli Ortiz 27, Sam Rice 13, Matt Lucas 16, Matt Catalano 2.
Non-League
Harry S. Truman 57, William Tennent 52
Harry S. Truman ended a nine-game losing streak, winning three of four quarters and maintaining a lead from start to finish. Jeff Nixon (13), Zierr Reid (10) and Terrance Rogers (10) scored in double figures for Truman. Gabe Gipli and Cameron Culver added nine and seven, respectively.
“I told the kids I’m proud of them. We got the monkey off our back. Nine losses in a row was wearing on everybody,” said Truman coach Byron Conover. “I told the kids – just go play basketball like it’s your last game, and they responded. We had great energy, passed the ball, played unselfish and pulled out a win.”
Truman got off to an early lead, which made a big difference.
“We’ve been falling behind. That messes with your mind,” Conover said. “Tonight we got out to a lead. We saw the ball go through the net, so that was a positive thing. It felt good.”
Conover was also very pleased with his team’s defense.
“On the defensive side, Cam Culver played solid on-ball defense. He was also happy to finally see the ball go through the net. Kashun Holden had five blocks and five rebounds and they were huge. Gabe Gipli had some great rebounds and played solid defense,” Conover said. “It was a good team effort and we needed that. The way we were losing was uncharacteristic.”
Markeith Baxter (15) and Pat McCauley scored double-digit points for Tennent.
Truman (6-9, 2-5 SOL) hosts CR South on Friday night at seven. Tennent (5-11, 0-8 SOL) plays North Penn on the same night and time.
Harry S. Truman 11-15-12-19 57
William Tennent 9-13-14-16 52
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