Abington saw its season end with a loss to Lower Merion in Friday’s District One 6A title game. Photos provided courtesy of Geanine Jamison Photography. Check back for a gallery of photos.
#9 Lower Merion 62, #14 Abington 41
Before the Ghosts knew what hit them, a two-point game had turned into a 15-point deficit.
Lower Merion's scorching shooting and a monster game from the Aces' 6-foot-9 junior Demetrius Lilley spelled an end to Abington's run through the District 1 6A tournament. A 15-of-19 shooting performance that featured a 6-of-8 effort from behind the 3-point line in the first half by the Aces added up to too much for Abington to overcome.
Lilley scored 31 points and his size on defense, plus aggressive pressing by the guards in front of him, also had Abington looking for answers.
"They made shots and we weren't able to convert," Abington coach Charles Grasty said. "The lead blew up to 20 before you knew it. I just thought we came out flat, we didn't have a lot of energy and they did a good job playing a little 1-2-2 press then sitting back into their zone."
With the nature of this year's playoff format, only one team moves on so while the Aces will play in Tuesday's PIAA 6A semifinals, the Ghosts are done.
Although their No. 14 seeding may have looked like an underdog beating the odds, that's not the players and coaches viewed it. Just before the tournament began, Abington forward Oreck Frazier predicted a run for his team, and it was one the Ghosts delivered on.
"When you look at the bigger picture, we were in the final two for the district and final eight when you look at the state tournament, we overcame a lot of obstacles and did what nobody thought we could do," Frazier said. "Technically, we didn't win anything, but I feel like our community gained a lot more confidence in us. We had to face adversity through COVID, we had to fight and battle and even though we didn't come out on top, I'm proud of my guys."
Frazier and Rob Bell were terrific for Abington after a 5-4 start, but that also came at the price of being focal points for Lower Merion's defense. At halftime, the two seniors had one combined point and the Aces took away a lot of the pick-and-roll plays the two had effectively used in the district playoffs.
Abington's nine seniors depart after helping the program reach its fifth district final in seven years. While this one didn't end with a trophy like 2015, 2017, 2018 or 2019, it was still a worthy accomplishment in a difficult year.
“It was a good run, we didn’t look at it like it was this miracle run or anything, we felt we had the talent to compete,” Grasty said. “I had Oreck and Rob since their freshman year and everyone else since their sophomore years. We love all those guys to death, it’s the game of basketball, you win some and lose some but life goes on.”
The Abington seniors - Bell, Frazier, Caleb Baker, Sam McFarlane, Nate Willis, Antoine Ellis, Devin Barnes, Karim Boyd and Aiden Boyles - all got some playing time on Friday night. While most of them didn't play all that much prior to last year, they never missed the playoffs during their time with the program.
Baker led Abington with 12 points and added seven rebounds. Junior Connor Fields also had 12 and will be the lone returning player from Friday’s starting lineup.
"We've been playing basketball together since we were kids," Frazier said. "A few of the guys live down the street from me so we'd always be outside playing together. For it to end like this, it's disappointing but to be with them and play alongside them all these years, it means a lot to me."
In a normal year, the Ghosts would have been able to regroup to try and start a new run in the state playoffs. Instead, they were left to gather their things one last time as a group and try to put a wrap on a season that tested them in ways they never expected.
This team was built differently than the other recent Abington district finalists but Frazier felt that sent a message to the program's younger players and the next few waves yet to enter the program.
"Anybody can do it," Frazier said. "There was a lot of doubt we'd make to the district championship and there was even doubt we'd make the playoffs. My message to the younger guys is go do what we did, overcome that adversity, don't care about what anyone else says. We are all that we need."
The Ghosts connected on 16-of-48 shots from the field (33.3 percent). They were 0-for-13 from beyond the arc. In five playoff games, they connected on 50-of-65 from the foul line (76.9 percent).
Abington (6-4 SOL) closed out its season with a 13-6 record overall after a 5-4 start to the season.
LOWER MERION 19 20 18 5 – 62
ABINGTON 4 13 13 11 – 41
Lower Merion (62) - Demetrius Lilley 13 1-1 31, Sam Davison 6 0-0 13, Sam Brown 5 3-5 15, Zack Wong 1 0-0 3. Totals: 25 4-6 62
Abington (41) Oreck Frazier 3 1-1 7, Rob Bell 2 1-2 5, Connor Fields 3 6-7 12, Caleb Baker 6 0-0 12, Karim Boyd 1 1-2 3, Nate Willis 1 0-0 2. Totals: 16 9-12 41
3-pointers: LM – Lilley 4, Brown 2, Davison, Wong
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