To view action photos of the Neshaminy/Girard College and PW/CB South games, visit the photo gallery at the following link: http://photos.suburbanonesports.com/
By Scott HuffPLYMOUTH MEETING – Two of the elite teams in the Suburban One League will battle each other in the final of the Rock The Rim Classic as tournament host Plymouth Whitemarsh (1-0)– the defending PIAA Quad-A State Champions - will play Neshaminy (1-0).
Both the Colonials and the Redskins looked impressive in the opening round of the classic with effortless victories. PW was on cruise control as the Colonials rolled to a 78-40 victory over Central Bucks South (0-1), while Neshaminy completely dismantled Girard College (0-1) – 67-25.
“We have a very confident bunch of players who think they are going to win every game,” said Plymouth Whitemarsh head coach Jim Donofrio. “It is a group that is very talented and very athletic. All of the players on this team believe they can play.
“Right now, this is a team that is designed around Jaylen Bond (committed to Pittsburgh University) and Sam Pygatt,” added Donofrio of his senior captains. “Sam is a dynamic player at this level, and Jaylen already looks like he was at Pitt.”Pygatt missed the game due to a slight tear in his left knee. He will wear a special brace and should be ready to play for the Colonials when they open the SOL American Conference schedule next Friday.
Bond – who rocked the rim with five thundering dunks – scored a game-high 31 points and looked like a man among boys off both the offensive and defensive backboards.
“It was a nice win for us,” said Bond who collected 17 rebounds and had three blocked shots. “We need to continue to play together, and we should be fine.”
Neshaminy came into the season highly touted, and the Skins did not disappoint in their win over Girard College. The Redskins led 32-5 at halftime.
“This was good to get this game in and get rid of the first game jitters,” said Neshaminy head coach Jerry Devine. “I thought defensively we did a very nice job and forced tempo. And we got a chance to run the floor.
“The one thing that I didn’t want to happen was for us to fall into bad habits,” added Devine. “We
made some mistakes tonight, but we are going to learn from them.”
made some mistakes tonight, but we are going to learn from them.”Redskin junior Ryan Arcidiacono – the highly-regarded Villanova recruit – was terrific in the open floor and finished with a game-high 19-point scoring effort.
“We wanted to come out and execute our offense,” said Arcidiacono. “We have very high expectations for this team, and playing good teams is what we get excited most about.”
That good team is next on the schedule for Neshaminy in the classic finals.
“Plymouth Whitemarsh has a good team, and we have a good team,” said Arcidiacono. “We hope that we can come out with a win.”
“We have to turn around after this game and play a team that is very hungry for a win,” said Donofrio. “We have to play smart basketball if we want to beat a team as good as Neshaminy.”
Both Plymouth Whitemarsh and Neshaminy easily passed to the tournament final with the wins over CBS and Girard College.
The Saturday night test will be much more difficult.
Suburban One League National Conference ticker … William Tennent (1-0) opened its season with a 46-35 victory over Upper Perkiomen (0-1). The Panthers had three double-digit scorers in Jack Rauchut (15), Cole Weber (12), and Shakat Kofa (10) . . .Council Rock South (1-0) opened its season with a 46-41 victory over Academy Park (0-1). Pat Silverthorn led the Golden Hawks with 13 points, while Justin Thomas had 12 points and 12 rebounds for the winners . . . Harry S Truman (1-0) opened it season with a 72-46 victory over Morrisville (0-1). The Tigers were led in scoring by Merdic Green with 24 points; while Mike McGuire (12) and Dequan Ashley (10) each scored in double figures . . . Pennsbury (0-1) opened its season with a 78-68 loss to Simon Gratz (1-0). The Falcons were led in scoring by Kiernan Bolger who scored a game-high 34 points . . . Bensalem (0-1) opened its season with a 43-42 loss to Archbishop Ryan.
Suburban One League Continental Conference ticker . . . Central Bucks West (1-0) opened its season with a 51-40 win over Hazelton. The Bucks outscored Hazelton 14-5 in the fourth period to secure the win. Kevin Sweet led CBW with 14 points . . . Pennridge (1-0) opened its season with an easy 64-26 victory over New-Hope Solebury (0-1). The Rams – who led 37-14 at halftime – were led in scoring by guard Tim Abruzzo with 16 points . . . Hatboro-Horsham (1-0) opened its season with a 42-33 victory over Lansdale Catholic (0-1). The Hatters lone double-digit scorer was Travis Bryan who scored a team-high 10 points . . . Souderton (0-1) opened its season with a 67-52 loss to Holy Ghost Prep (1-0). The Indians had a pair of double figure scorers in Mark Wonderling (12) and Greg Mendrzycki (10) . . . Quakertown (0-1) opened its season with a 70-40 loss to Southern Lehigh (1-0). The Panthers were led in scoring by Corey Jorgensen who scored a game-high 23 points.
Suburban One League American Conference ticker . . . Upper Dublin (1-0) opened its season with a 56-50 victory over Perkiomen Valley. The Flying Cardinals were led in scoring by John DeCamara with 21 points, while Khalil Owens added 14 points . . . Cheltenham (1-0) opened its season with a 54-33 victory over Central (0-1). The Panthers led 26-9 at the half and were led in scoring by Nafis Walker with 13 points . . . Wissahickon (0-1) opened its season with a 44-41 loss to Ridley (1-0). The Trojans led 23-13 at intermission, but could not hold on to the lead. Kyle Garrett led Wissy in scoring with 15 points . . .Upper Moreland (0-1) fell to Bishop McDevitt (1-0) 59-56. The Golden Bears featured three double-figure scorers in Joe Green (15), Matt Kohn (14), and Dave Driscoll (10) . . . Upper Merion (0-1) suffered a 65-46 loss to Strath Haven. The Vikings led 29-25 at the half, but could not hold on to the lead. The leading scorer for Upper Merion was Pat Stringfield with nine points.
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