PW defeated top-seeded Lower Merion to advance to Friday’s District 1 6A title game. PW/LM photos courtesy of Michael Price Photography & Larry Small. Check back for a gallery of photos. CLICK HERE to go directly to Suburban One Sports’ BOYS’ BASKETBALL GALLERIES.
District 1 6A semifinal
#5 PLYMOUTH WHITEMARSH 58, #1 LOWER MERION 50
The Colonials will be playing for a District 1 6A title on Friday at St Joseph’s University.
It’s a spot not many would have predicted to find them in during an up and down season. Their growth as a team was underscored in Tuesday’s district semifinal against top-seeded Lower Merion.
The game got off to a less than promising start as the Colonials found themselves in an early 11-2 hole. It could have marked the beginning of the end in a sold-out Kobe Bryant Gymnasium.
That didn’t happen.
Instead, behind 13 points from junior Michael Pereira, the Colonials rallied, knotting the score 19-19 at halftime and going on to earn the heartstopping win.
“It was kind of like a punch to the head in a boxing fight, but I feel like we recovered quickly,” Pereira said of falling behind early. “We were bobbing and weaving a little bit, dodging those punches and then hit them with the knockout in the fourth quarter.
“We played hard, we played as a team. We knew we were the better team going into it. They’re really well coached, and all respect to them – they played their butts off, but going into the game, we knew if we played harder, we would come out with the victory. We were definitely playing harder than them in the second half especially.”
The Colonials outscored the Aces 14-9 in the third quarter, a quarter that was capped with Mani Sajid burying a 3-pointer at the buzzer to send PW into the fourth quarter with a 33-28 lead.
“That was an incredibly timed shot right there,” Pereira said. “It gave us momentum going into the fourth quarter.
“If it were to be a two-point game, who knows what would have happened. They might have come out and trapped us, and maybe we lose the ball one or two times. I still think we would have pulled it out, but that shot was incredibly timed by Mani.”
Armed with a five-point lead heading into the final frame, the Colonials refused to let the game slip away, outscoring the Aces 25-22.
Buddy Denard was a perfect 6-for-6 from the foul line in the quarter, and Jack Hayes was 3-for-4 from the line in the quarter with five points. Periera led the Colonials with nine points in the frame, which included a 5-for-8 effort at the foul line.
With the Colonials on top 58-50, the final buzzer sounded, and the celebration began.
“It felt incredible,” Pereira said. “I hope to experience this again next year and hope to win on Friday as well.
“Going into the season, we knew we were a really good team. We just had to figure out how to play together. We’ve been doing that these past couple of games. The expectation for us has been to win.
“When we didn’t win our league title, that was a disappointment. When we didn’t win the postseason season tournament for Suburban One, that was a disappointment. It will be a disappointment if we lose districts and maybe not so much states, but we believe in ourselves enough to go win it all.”
Key players: Michael Pereira scored a game-high 28 points – 26 in the final three quarters. PW’s 6-9 junior center has been averaging close to 24 points a game in three district games. Mani Sajid added 13 – 11 in the second half which included three 3-pointers.
Plymouth Whitemarsh coach Jim Donofrio on the district run: “We had some honest conversations individually and collectively with the team. We really weren’t in sync all season. A lot of that – as I’ve said before – when you come in and people on paper say you should be very good, but you’ve had really very little experience at it in terms of game minutes for most of the guys – most of the guys don’t have any idea what it requires as far as how different teams are going to come at you with different stuff.
“The offenses we put in early were to basically get Mani (Sajid) moving with no idea who would perform around him, so this has been a fascinating development and evolving. As I thought about it the other day, most of the great teams that I’ve been fortunate enough to coach – it was kind of known they were going to be good from the start.
“In the preseason, we were talked about being number one or number two and that kind of thing, so you were always kind of in a frontrunner mode. I was always impressed with those teams that came in with seven or eight or nine losses, and through that adversity became much stronger and confident and dangerous at the end of the season. I’ve really not had a whole lot of experience with those kinds of teams, and this team is that. This team has been humbled multiple times. It has had to learn that the game really is about a selflessness, understand your role and just be proud of what you’re doing in smaller increments. Don’t put so much pressure on yourself that you have to make great plays to stand out.
“To go and compete with Bonner but not pull it out, to go against Upper Dublin and people have big expectations, and none of those three were games. Fels was a hard-fought game that we pulled out. We played Neumann-Goretti – we’re not doing ourselves any favors by playing a light schedule. We went out to Tempe, and it was the same thing. We played one of the top teams in Seattle, Washington, that just punched us in the head for the entire first quarter. I give these kids so much credit for just coming back in every day and methodically taking the criticism and the
advice and the stick-to-itiveness to say, ‘Okay, we’re just going to keep figuring it out.’ They love basketball, they’re tightknit. I think they had to understand how serious to take it all and how hard they had to play.
“I love the fact that they’ve figured it out. They’re great kids, and now they’re great competitors.”
–Getting defensive; “Our defense wasn’t even close two months ago to what it is now. A lot of light bulbs have gone on. You look at Neshaminy, Garnet Valley and Lower Merion these last three games. All have had good to great seasons. Lower Merion and Garnet Valley are at the top of the Central League – very unselfish, tough matchup zones. To watch us last Friday night against Garnet Valley, you kind of know in the first two minutes how this could go.
“Tonight was the same thing. In the first two minutes, I can usually tell what this is going to be like in terms of pace. Even tonight and even Friday night, there was a moment I realized we are just defensively playing at another level that I’m not sure any of these teams have seen too much of.
“With two minutes to go in the second quarter tonight, Lower Merion had 14 points. That’s serious defense. This is a team that can drop 70 or 80 points on teams. They’re dangerous with the way they do their style. They have multiple 3-point shooters, and a lot of times, they couldn’t get lift on their shots, so that is next level stuff. Not only are the kids playing harder, they’re playing smarter. They’re following the scouting report where they’re literally locking into the tendencies of every individual player. They’re talking to each other and doing things that remind me now of our best teams. If you’re going to do that, you’re going to be in every game you play.
“It wasn’t there a month ago, it was nowhere near there two months ago. Even fans of ours were saying, ‘Where’s the defense?’ So, they took the criticism, and they evolved.”
–Pereira & Sajid evolve: “Michael Pereira is at the top of the list. Mani (Sajid) only had 13, but every basket was a timely basket. (Sajid scored a huge 3-pointer in the closing seconds of the third quarter to give PW a five-point lead.) That was a big different mentality as well. I was saying to myself all afternoon – we seem to be a team that believes in itself 10 times more than it did even two weeks ago, and because of that, those kind of shots all of a sudden go in. They had not been going in all season. We have not made great timely shots all season. Teams that believe in themselves make big shots, great teams make shots. They stretch leads, and they make shots that kill momentum for other teams, and we literally threw multiple games away this season by not stepping up.
“Mani needed time to figure out exactly who he was. Michael needed time, and so do some of the other guys. You’ve got to go on the floor with an absurd confidence. You do it for your team, and all of a sudden, magical stuff happens.”
–Unsung contributors: “I need to give credit to kids who don’t get their names mentioned too much. We’ve got kids who have played the role of the opponent team in practice for three weeks. The kids who have done a terrific job for us as our scout team are Will Pereira, Justin Probst, Zhaiden Grey, Austin Edwards, Eddie Patruno, Luca Taormina, and Kyle Gallagher. They’re unsung, and they’re a huge piece of this. They ran Neshaminy, Garnet Valley and Lower Merion’s offense and defense to a ‘T’ for the last two weeks, and they’re excited about it. They’re a huge part of this. That’s the fun of it.
“It was a fight for a while to get past the idea that in the offseason they work out, and let’s face it – all kids work out on their individual skills, and they get celebrated in the offseason with the highlight reels of their individual moves, but this is not a video game from PS 5 (PlayStation 5). This is much harder, and I love the fact that they’ve embraced that now, and we still haven’t hit our peak.”
–A special matchup: “PW/Lower Merion – the successes and the pride of those two schools. To go in against what I consider to be one of the best all-time coaches if not the best coach in Pennsylvania in Greg Downer, that guy does magic, and the pride that they play with and the discipline and the heart – that’s why that game sold out in three hours. They opened up the sale to the general public at three o’clock yesterday, and it was sold out at 6 pm. When you hear Lower Merion/PW, the average basketball fan is intrigued by that. The kids get to hear about it
enough, but they got to make their own history.
“When I was 11 years old, my dad was the head of the Ches-Mont League officials, and he was the backup official when PW played Lower Merion on the floor of the Palestra in ’74. This history goes back 50-60 years. We were going at each other a long time. To see that kind of great high school environment – Kobe’s court and just the tradition Lower Merion brings, it’s an impossible challenge going against them. It requires a whole lot of thought and a whole lot of hope, and the kids were brilliant. It’s a great high school basketball environment.”
PW Michael Pereira on his emergence: “It’s important for the big players to step up in big moments, so I think that’s what I’ve been doing, and that’s what I’ll continue to do. You need the confidence, which I guess earlier in the season I didn’t trust myself to play as well as I’m playing right now. That combination of confidence and trust in myself definitely is what’s helping me play as well as I am.”
Next up: Plymouth Whitemarsh (20-7, 7-3 SOL) will face #3 Conestoga in Friday’s District 1 6A title game at St. Joseph’s University (8 pm).
“Conestoga is doing a lot of great things to get to the finals, so we’ve got to go right back to the drawing board and maintain our focus another time and hope for the best,” Donofrio said. “The kids are bought in now.”
Plymouth Whitemarsh 4-15-14-25 58
Lower Merion 12-7-9-22 50
Plymouth Whitemarsh (58) – Jack Hayes 1 3-4 5; Terron Davis 1 0-0 2; Mani Sajid 5 0-0 13; Michael Pereira 11 6-9 28; Buddy Denard 0 6-6 6; Caleb Bridgeman 2 0-0 4; Micah Thompson 0 0-1 0; TOTALS 20 15-20 58.
Lower Merion (50) – Lamont Grier 3 0-0 7; Rashyne Patterson 8 0-0 21; Sam Singletary 4 0-0 10; Gus Wright 2 1-2 6; Carson Kasmer 3 0-1 6; TOTALS 20 1-3 50.
3-point goals: PW – Mani Sajid 3; LM – Rashyne Patterson 5, Sam Singletary 2, Lamont Grier, Gus Wright.
District 1 6A playbacks
#10 SPRING-FORD 53, #11 CHELTENHAM 50
The Panthers found themselves in a 14-5 hole after one quarter and spent the rest of the game playing catchup. They trailed 24-16 at halftime and trimmed that to 40-34 entering the final quarter when they outscored their hosts by three, but it wasn’t enough.
Kamal Mason’s 19 points – 13 in the second half – led the Panthers. Osei Johnson added 14 – nine came in the second half.
Spring-Ford was led by the 16-point effort of Tommy Kelly while Syaire Barnes added 12 and Jordan Marsillio, 10 points.
Next up: Cheltenham (17-10, 9-1 SOL) will travel to #8 Central Bucks East for Friday’s seventh place game.
Cheltenham 5-11-18-16 50
Spring-Ford 14-10-16-13 53
Cheltenham (50) – Chris Harmon 2 0-1 4; Kamal Mason 8 2-3 19; Mark Hill 0 1-2 1; Chris Jones 1 0-0 2; Xavier Willoughby 0 2-2 2; Osei Johnson 6 0-0 14; Salim Kelly 0 2-2 2; Kendall Jackson 3 0-0 6; TOTALS 20 7-10 50.
Spring-Ford (53) – Blake Turner 2 2-2 7; Tommy Kelly 3 10-14 16; Jordan Marsilio 4 2-4 10; Ian Peticca 1 0-0 2; Syaire Barnes 5 1-2 12; Luke Pufko 2 2-2 6; TOTALS 17 17-24 53
3-point goals: C – Osei Johnson 2, Kamal Mason; S-F – Blake Turner, Syaire Barnes.
#4 GARNET VALLEY 76, #8 CENTRAL BUCKS EAST 47
The Jaguars seized control of the game in the first quarter, opening up a 27-7 advantage. They took a 46-20 lead into halftime on their way to the win.
AJ Molnar’s 19 points – which included five 3-pointers – led the Patriots
Jake Sniras led the Jaguars with 26 points while Brady Krautzel added 18, and Grayson Golek had 13.
Next up: Central Bucks East (15-11, 5-5 SOL) will host #11 Cheltenham in Friday’s seventh place game.
Central Bucks East 7-13-12-15 47
Garnet Valley 27-19-20-10 76
Central Bucks East (47) – Shane O’Hara-Jamison 3, Connor Mekanik 2, Graham Smith 6, AJ Molnar 19, Quinn Slack 2, Jackson Lutz 4, Izzy Schwartz 3, Michael Bova 2, Sean Korlesky 3, Ryan Dailey 3.
Garnet Valley (76) – Jake Sniras 26,Brady Krautzel 18, Aidan Anderson 3, Cole Boruk 3, Grayson Golek 13, Nicholas Bosch 3, Nathan Small 2,Luke Faccenda 3, Rohan Bhogadi 1, Braden Quinn 2, Travis Griffith 2.
3-point goals: CBE – AJ Molnar 5, Graham Smith 2, Shane O’Hara Jamison, Sean Korlesky, Ryan Dailey; GV – Jake Sniras 2, Brady Krautzel, Aiden Anderson, Cole Boruk, Grayson Golek, Nicholas Bosch, Luke Faccenda.
#9 PHOENIXVILLE 67, #11 BENSALEM 65
Amir Drummond had a career night.
The Owls’ senior guard scored 49 points – which included ten 3-pointers – and singlehandedly kept his team in the game.
“Tonight Amir had a game of a lifetime,” Bensalem coach Ron Morris said. “Scoring 49 points with 10 threes is what special players do.
“Amir has been a player who has bought in and sacrificed for our program for three years. He deserves all the recognition this year. Forty-nine points is a school record so that makes it even more special. Having a player like Amir and our guys buying in makes what we do worth it.”
The Owls found themselves on the short end of 16-9 score after one quarter and trailed 33-22 at halftime. They still found themselves on the short end of a 51-42 score heading into the final quarter whey the staged a tenacious rally before falling by two points.
Key player: Amir Drummond scored a school record 49 points, which included 10 3-pointers and a 7-for-8 effort at the foul line.
Bensalem coach Ron Morris: “We had a great season. This group is as resilient as they come. We had many great moments this season. Unfortunately, we never want it to come to an end. Watching the growth of our players is great.
“Christian Lee playing on a stress fracture is what Bensalem is about. Jahmir Chatman is an undersized baller – defends and rebounds like a big guy. We had two baseball players Trevor Morris and Mikey Kramer play this year which was great. Aidan Mayfield who dominated the football field in the fall and defended like he did and getting buckets was great.
“We have many players who have sacrificed for the better of our team each year. And again, Amir did what all league players do. We had many players contribute tonight across the board not in the scoring column. Our staff is very proud of this group. They’re as resilient as they come. The future is promising.
The season: Bensalem closed out its season with a 16-11 record overall. The Owls captured the SOL Freedom Division title with an 8-2 record.
Bensalem 19-13-10-23 65
Phoenixville 16-17-18-16 67
Bensalem (65) – Jahmir Chatman 3 1-1 7; Aidan Mayfield 3 0-0 6; Amir Drummond 18 7-8 49; Chris Kelly. 1 1-3 3; TOTALS 25 5-11 65.
Phoenixville (67) – Try Lear 3 3-4 10; Stephen Yurick 3 0-0 7; Keron Booth 6 10-17 22; Leo Jehoash 1 0-0 3; Jacoby Smith 2 1-4 5; Deacon Baratta 8 4-5 20; TOTALS 23 18-30 67.
3-point goals: B – Amir Drummond 10; P – Trey Lear, Stephen Yurick, Leo Jehoash.
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