Check out the recaps for SOL boys’ basketball teams in action Saturday. CR North/Bensalem photos courtesy of John Gleeson, and Tennent/New Hope-Solebury photos courtesy of Karla Donohoe. Check back for galleries of both games. All SOS photo galleries for BOYS’ BASKETBALL can be viewed by clicking HERE.
SOL Patriot Division
COUNCIL ROCK NORTH 64, BENSALEM 51
A shorthanded Indians’ squad defeated the division-leading Owls, setting the stage for an interesting final week of the season. With the win, the Indians trail the Owls by just one game in the loss column with three division games remaining.
“Down two starters with injury and without a key reserve, we viewed this game as an opportunity to rise in the face of some adversity,” Rock North coach Jesse Krasna said. “Bensalem has been at the top of the SOL Patriot since Coach (Ron) Morris took over, and we have a tremendous amount of respect for his program. We knew we would have to play our best, and the boys all stepped their game up to get this win.”
Bernie Parent once again came up big when it mattered most, turning in a dazzling 26-point performance that included a pair of 3s and a 10-for-12 effort at the foul line. He scored 16 points in a 30-point fourth quarter that sealed the Owls’ fate.
“Bernie Parent scored 26 points while being faceguarded for all 32 minutes,” Krasna said. “He recognized he was drawing crowds of defenders on drives, and his teammates were ready to finish plays when Bernie found them.
“There are a lot of good players in this area, but I would put Bernie against anyone. He got himself into tremendous aerobic shape and built up his body in the weight room during the off-season, and boy, has his hard work shown all year. A lucky college program is going to end up with a huge steal.”
Parent wasn’t the only player to come up big for the Indians, who limited the Owls to 28 points in the first three quarters while opening up a 34-28 advantage.
“Logan Saifer defended Bensalem’s second leading scorer well, guarding his yard and limiting penetration,” Krasna said. “His energy and competitive spirit is contagious and so valuable to our team.
“Shane Anhalt is 6-1, and he started at center for us today and was undersized by about six or seven inches. What he gave up i
n height, he made up for with his heart, toughness and IQ. He was sensational today.
“Jack Blum battled foul trouble for most of the game but was very good defensively slowing down Bensalem’s leading scorer.”
In addition to turning in a standout defensive effort, Saifer also scored 10 points – seven in the second half, and Blum had eight points, including a pair of 3-pointers.
Sophomore Tyler Rodowicz earned his first start of the year in one of the Indians’ biggest games.
“Tyler has been playing really well in practice, and even though he is just a sophomore, he never seems to get rattled and has a steady demeanor to him regardless of the score of flow of the game,” Krasna said. “He played excellent defense and finished plays for us.”
Other new faces also stepped to the fore for the Indians.
“When our game versus Truman was postponed last Friday, we had an intrasquad scrimmage to give the boys a chance to compete and play in different teams than usual at practice,” Krasna said. “Freshman Oliver Schaefer was the leading scorer in that scrimmage and played with a ‘try to stop me’ attitude. He is a tremendous shooter, decision maker and his confidence with the ball versus pressure was key to us being able to extend our lead in the second half.
“Grady Burt is also a freshman playing his best basketball of the year. He knocked down a three pointer in the first half and was steady handling the ball versus pressure. Grady has a natural ability to score and make plays with the basketball, but it is his growth on the defensive end and in the hustle department that everyone in our program is so impressed with, and it has allowed him to step in and compete at the varsity level as a freshman.”
Schaefer buried 6-of-7 at the foul line in the second half.
Junior Matt Henricksen was another of the game’s unsung heroes.
“I have been around the game my whole life and haven’t come across a better servant leader than Matt Henricksen,” Krasna said. “When people watch us play, one of the first things people say ‘Who is number 0? he is an awesome teammate!’ You can’t help but notice him because he is loudest person in the gym cheering on his team in a reserve role.
“Matt is the ultimate teammate and today he took full advantage of his first major varsity minutes of the season. He brought us a physical presence and calmly sank a left-handed hook shot — a move that he added to his repertoire working out at 6 am every day last summer with our assistant coach Kevin Gallagher, so it is no surprise he was ready to do it on the big stage when his opportunity came. Matt has every intangible you want in a player and has made our program so much stronger with his leadership. His on-court play is improving at a rapid rate because of his work ethic, and he got a chance to show what he can do today. The way he carries himself on a daily basis is inspiring.”
For the Owls, Allen Myers led the way with 18 points while Jeremy Rodriguez added 16. Aaron Sanders was held to just seven points.
Council Rock North (13-5, 9-4 SOL) will close out its regular season with four games in five days next week. The Indians will be on the road at Pennsbury on Monday and then will host Neshaminy on Tuesday. On Thursday, the Indians will host Pennsbury to complete its division play, and on Friday, the Falcons will travel to New Hope-Solebury for a non-league game.
Bensalem (15-5, 11-3) will travel to Council Rock South on Tuesday and then will host Neshaminy on Thursday.
Bensalem 5-10-13-23 51
Council Rock North 10-10-14-30 64
Bensalem (51) – Jeremy Rodriguez 6 2-3 16; Tra Edwards 0 1-2 1; Allen Myers 7 4-11 18; Eric Gonzalez 1 0-0 2; Aaron Sanders 2 3-4 7; Antonio Morris 2 0-0 4; Jack Wineburg 1 0-0 3. TOTALS 19 10-20 51.
Council Rock North (64) – Matt Henricksen 1 0-0 2; Oliver Schaefer 0 6-7 6; Shane Anhalt 2 0-2 4; Bernie Parent 7 10-13 26; Jack Blum 3 0-0 8; Grady Burt 1 0-0 3; Logan Saifer 4 2-2 10; Tyler Rodowicz 2 1-2 5. TOTALS 20 19-27 64.
3-point goals: Bensalem – Jeremy Rodriguez 2, Jack Wineburg; CR North – Bernie Parent 2, Jack Blum 2, Grady Burt.
WILLIAM TENNENT 48, NEW HOPE-SOLEBURY 41
The Panthers were looking to bounce back after Thursday’s disappointing loss to a strong Wissahickon squad in a game they led by eight at
halftime. They did just that, opening up an early lead and maintaining it the rest of the way in a contest that was originally scheduled for Friday night but was postponed to Saturday.
“After a tough loss on Thursday and no practice yesterday, I was pretty happy with how consistent they were throughout the game,” Tennent coach Robert Mulville said. “We made mistakes, but we didn’t compound them and make five in a row.”
The Panthers led 13-8 after one quarter, but it could have been more.
“We were trying to hold for the last shot, and we gave it up too early, and they hit a long three,” Mulville said. “We got some good inside drives to the basket, and we were able to knock down 3s today.”
The Panthers led 26-19 at halftime, but the Lions cut into that lead with a 14-point third quarter, and Tennent led 37-33 heading into the final quarter.
“I think we do a pretty good job of closing out games at the foul line,” Mulville said. “(George) Marion was 2-for-2, (Zach) Stanfield was 2-for-2, and that stretched our lead there.”
Five different players connected on 3-pointers for the Panthers, who were without center Brandon Beluch. Stanfield had a pair, and contributing one each were Marion, Kirby Mooney and Evan Devor.
Mooney, who is averaging close to 16 points a game, led the Panthers with 17 points and eight rebounds. The standout sophomore also had 
three steals and two blocks.
“He’s going to score more as he gets older because right now he gets in the lane a lot and he gets fouled,” Mulville said of Mooney. “He’s going to grow into his body. He’s 6-2 now, and his 3-point shot is getting better, and he works at it a lot.”
Stanfield added 13 points and six rebounds. Marion finished with nine points and two steals.
The Lions were led by the 16-point effort of Miles Demby. Liam Ross was also in double figures with 10, and Charlie Albano added nine points on three 3s. Dylan Hildebrant had six points on two 3s.
William Tennent (7-10, 7-6 SOL) will host Upper Moreland on Tuesday and Lower Moreland on Thursday. New Hope-Solebury (2-17, 1-13) will host Cheltenham on Tuesday and travel to Upper Moreland on Thursday.
William Tennent 13-13-11-11 48
New Hope-Solebury 8-11-14-8 41
William Tennent (48) – George Marion 3 2-2 9; Kirby Mooney 7 2-4 17; Isiah Dawson 2 1-2 5; Conner Fithian 0 1-2 1; Zach Stanfield 3 5-5 13; Evan Devor 1 0-0 3. TOTALS 16 11-15 48.
New Hope-Solebury (41) – Dylan Hildebrandt 2 0-2 6; Charlie Albano 3 0-1 9; Miles Demby 4 5-7 16; Liam Ross 5 0-1 10. TOTALS 14 5-11 41.
3-point goals: WT – Zach Stanfield 2, George Marion, Kirby Mooney, Evan Devor; NHS – Charlie Albano 3, Miles Demby 3, Dylan Hildebrandt 2.
Non-league
ABINGTON 57, SANKOFA FREEDOM 49
The playoffs have started early for a Ghost team that would be on the outside of the 24-team District One 6A Tournament field if districts started today. With four games in five days next week, the Ghosts, ranked 26th, know they need to finish strong.
“We told our guys – these are our playoffs right now,” Abington coach Charles Grasty said. “We don’t know if we’ve got to win out or if it’s too late. We don’t know. We’re just treating every game like it’s a playoff game.”
The Ghosts came out of the gate strong on Saturday, opening up a 20-14 lead after one quarter.
“We came out and played well,” Grasty said. “We shared the ball. I thought we played with a lot of energy in the first quarter.”
Defensively, the Ghosts, who averaged 8.8 steals a game, came up with a season-high 17 steals.
“I thought our pressure, especially early, gave them a hard time,” Grasty said. “They adapted in the second half, but the first couple of minutes we jumped out on them because we came out with a lot of energy – got our hands on some deflections, we were able to get some steals and some easy (baskets), and that helps. The first quarter was a good quarter for us.”
Derrius Lucas scored a team high 20 points and also pulled down six rebounds. Connor Fields added 10 points, eight rebounds and six steals, and Fhenyx Scutt had eight points, three rebounds, four assists and two steals. Jimmy Marino contributed four rebounds, three steals and five points, and Jeremiah Lee had five points and three steals.
They were not the only contributors, according to Grasty.
“I thought Liam Rardin played well – he came in and gave us some good minutes,” the Ghosts’ coach said. “Jeremiah Lee and Damon Rawls gave us some good minutes.”
The Ghosts connected on 17-of-45 shots from the field (37.7 percent). They were 5-for-16 from beyond the arc (31.2 percent) and 18-for-34 at the foul line (52.9 percent).
The Ghosts were solid from the line in the closing minutes, connecting on 7-of-8 with Marino burying 3-of-4 while Fhenyx Scutt and Lucas made 2-of-2.
Abington (10-8, 8-5 SOL) will have three straight home games next week, hosting Plymouth Whitemarsh on Tuesday, Penn Wood in a non-league game on Wednesday and Quakertown on Thursday. On Friday, the Ghosts will travel to Hatboro-Horsham for a make-up game.
“We had two good practices this week,” Grasty said. “They’re aware of the situation. They don’t harp on it, but they talk about it. It’s enough talk – it’s put up or shut up.”
Sankofa 14-8-8-19 49
Abington 20-15-7-15 57
Sankofa (49) – Josiah Johnson 1 0-0 3; Zaki Alston 7 2-4 20; Stanley Parker 2 0-1 4; Rakim Precha 1 0-0 2; Nasir Williams 1 0-0 3; Khris Coleman 1 0-0 2 Christian MacKay 1 0-0 2; Ansar Saleem 1 1-2 4; Shamer Parker 3 2-3 9. TOTALS 18 5-10 49.
Abington (57) – Connor Fields 4 2-5 10; Fhenyx Scutt 2 3-4 8; Derrius Lucas 6 6-13 20; Jimmy Marino 1 3-4 5; Jeremiah Lee 2 0-0 5; Paul Glants 0 1-2 1; Josh Young 0 1-3 1; Liam Rardin 2 0-0 5; Chris Dorman 0 2-2 2. TOTALS 17 18-34 57.
3-point goals: Sankofa – Josiah Johnson, Zaki Alston 4, Nasir Williams, Ansar Saleem, Shamer Parker. Abington – Fhenyx Scutt; Derrius Lucas 2, Jeremiah Lee, Liam Rardin.
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