By Scott Huff
The teams in the Suburban One League are entrenched in a battle for conference championships as the season marches on during the month of January.
SOL National Conference
Harry S Truman (4-7, 1-5) had a three-game winning streak halted by conference leading Pennsbury, 67-46.
Tiger coach Al Munford is in his first year of coaching at Truman; however, Munford had five years of head coaching experience at Chichester before accepting the job at HST.
“I have had to play around some with the personnel on this team,” said Munford – a 1993 Truman grad. “A new coach and new players getting to know each other. We have been struggling to gain an identity, but we have come together recently.
“We have to work on getting a chemistry,” added Munford – an Algebra teacher at Truman. “We needed to change the culture of the basketball program.”
The Tigers, after beginning the season with a single win in their first seven games, rattled off three wins before the setback to Pennsbury. Truman bested Lansdale Catholic [53-49], West Chester East [57-47], and Abington [56-54].
“Once we started winning some games - the kids in school, and the people in the community began to give the players some positive comments,” said Munford. “And the kids really began to believe in the system as a result.
“We want to defend, rebound, and run in transition,” continued the coach. “This is a team sport, and we have played a lot of players.”
That list of Tigers include seniors Keith Jones, Mike Schmidt, Rakeem Boyd, and Brandon Davis. The junior class includes Eddie Valtentine, Ramiesh Roberts, Phil Griffin, Josh Williams, and Qunicy Palmer.
“We believe that we have enough talent to play with anyone,” said Munford. “And even with the loss to Pennsbury, we can continue to build our program.”
Pennsbury (7-2, 5-0) remained on top if the conference standings with the win over Truman and a victory over Abington [67-44].
The Falcons had dropped their last two games to fantastic opposition.
PHS lost to both St. Patricks (N.J.) and Martin Luther King (Calif.) in the prestigious Beach Ball Classic in Myrtle Beach (S.C.). The Falcons had won the first two games of the classic against Fayette County (Ga.) and Arlington Day (Fla.).
Bensalem (10-2, 4-1) remains on the heels of Pennsbury in the conference standings.
The Owls outscored Neshaminy 14-11 in the final period to topple the Redskins in a conference contest, 45-44. The leading scorers for Bensalem were Rob Schreiber with 14 points and Nick Christian with 13 markers.
Council Rock North (7-4, 4-1) also remains in the hunt in the conference standings.
The Indians – after a non-conference win over Conrad Weiser [51-35] – needed overtime to defeat Abington, 54-52. Rock North received double figure scoring from Arron Goodman (17), Andrew Stress (10), and Ty Bostain (10).
Council Rock South (6-3, 3-2) is on a four-game win streak that included wins last week over North Penn [57-55] and a conference win in double-overtime against William Tennent [57-53].
The Golden Hawks were led in victory over WT with a balanced attack that featured the scoring of John Thomas (16), Cody Nowlin (16), and Tom Boyd (12). Boyd scored 21 points in the win over North Penn.
Neshaminy (6-5, 4-2) split a pair of conference games last week as the Skins bested William Tennent [64-44] – which extended their win streak to three games - and lost to Bensalem, 45-44.
The Redskins were led in scoring against Tennent by Steve Warhola and Ryan Arcidialno who scored 13 points each.
Abington (4-8, 1-5) has now dropped four games in a row including close conference games to Truman [56-54] and in overtime to Council Rock North [54-52].
The Ghosts were led in scoring in both games by the duo of Jaymes Miller and Ken Johnson.
William Tennent (1-10, 0-6) has now dropped six straight contests including conferences losses to Neshaminy [64-44] and Council Rock South [57-53].
In the double overtime loss to Rock South, the Panthers were led in scoring by Jeff Pio with 12 points and Billy Smith with 10 markers.
SOL Continental Conference
Souderton coach Perry Engard reached a milestone last week as the Indians (7-5, 3-2) defeated both Upper Dublin [60-45] and Pennridge [65-37].
Engard, who is in his seventh year as head coach of the Big Red, now owns over 100 victories.
“This really isn’t about me, but the kids in the program,” said Engard. “We have character kids that go to Souderton, and we have developed a chemistry that has made the program successful.
“My assistant coaches – Mike Stadnycki and Larry Hill – have been very loyal and have put in a lot of time,” added Engard. “Basketball has become a year round sport, and I think the time we put in during the off-season (summer) with leagues and camps has been very valuable to us.
“And our players put the team first at all times,” continued Engard. “And when you can play together – 40 games or so over the summer and during the season – you buy into the system and become successful.”
One of those players that has flourished under Engard at Souderton is senior Jimmy Connolly. Connolly – who is just 13 points shy of 1000 points for his career – is showcasing his talents for college scouts.
There are a number of Division One schools looking at Jimmy (American University, Lehigh & St. Francis), and a number of Division Two schools (Philadelphia University, West Chester University, and Kutztown University).
“His game has gone up a notch since his sophomore year,” added Engard – Connolly played at LaSalle High School as a freshman. “He has started to attack the basket more on offense and has really turned up his defense.”
Connolly is going to have to be at the top of his game if the Big Red is going to compete for a conference championship this season.
Souderton currently trails all three Central Bucks schools in the conference standings behind West (5-0), East (4-1) and South (4-1).
“We play a quality non-league schedule, and that should help us down the road,” said Engard in reference to contests with Friends Central, Norristown, and Lower Merion. “The conference is very competitive, but we should be able to compete with anyone.”
Central Bucks West (10-1, 5-0) earned sole possession of first place in the conference with a thrilling 57-51 overtime victory over Central Bucks East.
The Bucks – who also defeated North Penn [49-41] in conference play last week – were led to victory by the scoring and rebounding of Joe Dilullo and Rellis Reichwein.
Central Bucks East (7-2, 4-1) opened the season with seven straight wins, but the Patriots have now lost their last two.
East had a chance to defeat West at a packed Buck gym last week in regulation before falling in overtime, 57-51. The Patriots were led in both scoring and rebounding by Chris Harmon.
Central Bucks South (9-2, 4-1) kept pace with Central Bucks West with a conference victory last week.
The Titans were led to their 62-54 win over North Penn by a 26-point performance by Will Barrett. Ryan Clark added 14 points for the winners.
Quakertown (6-5, 2-3) split a pair of conference games last week as the Panthers lost to North Penn [62-47] and defeated Hatboro-Horsham [66-62].
In the victory over the Hatters, Q-town was led by Brett Roseboro who scored a team-high 16 points. Dalton Nice (14) and Kenny Gula also scored in twin digits for the Panthers.
North Penn (5-7, 1-5) continues to find its way under new coach Ron Hassler as the Knights split their pair of conference games last week.
The Knights – who were led by the trio of Matt Possanza, Max Resnick, and Derek Brooks – defeated Quakertown [62-47] and lost to Central Bucks South [62-54].
Hatboro-Horsham (4-7, 1-4) defeated Upper Moreland [54-52] in overtime last week in non-league action and fell to Quakertown [66-62] in conference play.
Mike Marvin led the Hatters in scoring in the Q-town loss with 20 points, while guard Eric Daley chipped in with 12 markers.
Pennridge (1-9, 0-4) dropped its ninth straight game last week in a 65-39 loss to Souderton.
Pete Roberts and Ryan Connellan scored in double figures for the Rams with 16 and 10 points respectively.
SOL American Conference
Upper Merion (3-9, 2-4) lost is first seven games of the season, but in that stretch was a tough 53-48 loss in overtime to Interboro and a 58-54 loss to Cheltenham.
In the last five games, the Vikings have surged to win three of those games – against Upper Moreland [53-45], Perkiomen Valley [67-58], and Springfield [52-35].
“We have had some close losses against some good teams,” said Upper Merion coach Jonathan Groom. “This program was pretty much at the bottom when I got here, and our goal is to take some small steps toward the top.
“We want to be competitive with the teams in the middle of the (SOL American Conference) standings,” added Groom. “And lately we have been playing some pretty good basketball.”
The most recent losses were to Coatesville [56-48] and the Wissahickon [79-59]. In the Wissy loss, UMHS led 21-8 after the first period.
“We had a great first period, and an awful final three periods in that game,” said Groom. “We just have to put that game behind us.”
The Vikings have relied on a trio of players in their recent turnaround – senior Tim Gallagher, junior Fran Rafferty, and sophomore Dexter Bridge.
“Tim is one of the captains on the team and is a real leader,” said Groom. “He is the player that the kids look to on and off the court.
“Fran is a very talented kid that has a huge up side,” added Groom. “Once he learns the game a little better, he is going to be an excellent players.
“Dexter has had to makes some major adjustments in playing the point for us,” continued Groom of his 6-foot, 2-inch guard. “He handles the ball very well, and point guard is where he will most likely play on the college level.”
Norristown (9-2, 6-0) took care of some big business as the Eagles have soared to the top of the conference standings.
N-town toppled Plymouth-Whitemarsh 45-41 in a showdown of conference unbeaten teams and followed with 54-40 win over Upper Dublin. Khalif Wyatt scored a game-high 30 points in the win over the Flying Cardinals.
Cheltenham (6-5, 5-1) was bumped out of first place last week when the Panthers were defeated by Plymouth-Whitemarsh, 65-57.
CHS – which defeated Wissahickon [57-54] last week – was led in the PW loss by a 20-point performance by Rob Mansel. Naseer-Khalid added 16 points for the Panthers.
Plymouth-Whitemarsh (9-3, 5-1) had its hands full with conference games against Norristown [45-41 loss] and Cheltenham [65-57 win].
The Colonials were led in scoring and rebounding in both games by 6-foot, 9-inch junior C.J. Aiken with a 16-point outing versus Norristown and a 17-point effort against Cheltenham.
Wissahickon (6-6, 2-4)split its pair of conference games last week.
The Trojans fell to Cheltenham [57-54] to open the week but rallied to defeat Upper Merion [79-59] to close the week. Wissy was led to the UM win by Tom Sweeney who scored a team-high 24 points.
Upper Dublin (3-9, 2-3) lost a pair of games last week – to Souderton [60-45] in a non-league game – and to Norristown [54-40] in a conference game.
The Flying Cardinals were led in scoring by James Newman and Jamil Brown in both setbacks.
Upper Moreland (4-6, 1-4) won its first conference game last week with a 51-49 victory over Springfield.
The Bears – who lost to Hatboro-Horsham [54-52] in overtime last week – were led in scoring by Dmitri Miller (16) and Carlos Lewis (10) in the win over the Spartans.
Springfield (1-10, 0-6) is still in search of its first conference win.
The Spartans – who were led in scoring by Kyron Greene and Malcom Hill – dropped a pair of games last week. Springfield lost to both Upper Merion [52-35] and to Upper Moreland [51-49].
SuburbanOneSports.com’s Super Seven
1. Pennsbury Falcons (7-2)
2. Norristown Eagles (9-2)
3. Central Bucks West Bucks (10-1)
4. Central Bucks South Titans (9-2)
5. Bensalem Owls (10-1)
6. Plymouth-Whitemarsh Colonials (9-3)
7. Central Bucks East Patriots (7-2)
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