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By Scott Huff
Christmas came early for the Norristown Eagles.Lorenzo Christmas scored a career-high 19 points as Norristown soared to a 62-39 Suburban One League American Conference game over host Wissahickon.
The unbeaten Eagles (5-0, 5-0) remained on top of the conference standings, while the Trojans (2-5, 1-3) suffered their fourth consecutive loss.
“No question that this was the best game that (Christmas) ever played on the varsity level,” said Norristown head coach Michael Evans. “Last year he didn’t get a whole lot of (varsity) time, but tonight he played very well.”
“We were well prepared for what they were going to do,” said Christmas, a senior swing player who can play both guard and forward in the fluent Eagle offense. “I just try to work hard in practice, and my shot fell tonight.”
Wissahickon head coach Kyle Wilson was not too surprised by the performance of Christmas.
“Norristown is deep with talent,” said Wilson. “Other than Chester, there is no team in the entire district that has the floor experience that Norristown has.”
And part of that seasoned Eagle experience comes from seniors Khalif Wyatt and James Ramsey. Wyatt and Ramsey, along with junior point guard Sheldon Mayer, all started for a Norristown team that went 32-2 a season ago and lost in the PIAA state final game against Chester.
Wyatt – who has committed to Temple University next season – played a brilliant floor game and scored 14 points. Ramsey scored a quiet 11 points, while Mayer ran the offense and scored just three points.
“We wanted to play good defense,” said Wyatt who collected four steals and seven assists. “We wanted to pressure them all over the floor.”
Wissahickon hung around in the first quarter and trailed Norristown by a 16-12 count. Tom Sweeney – the Trojans 6-foot, 7-inch center – scored five of his team-high 13 points in the period.Norristown took control of the game during a two-minute stretch at the outset of the second period. The Eagles went on a 10-0 run highlighted by a pair of baskets by Wyatt and a pair of hoops by junior Tom Smith that gave NAHS a 26-14 lead.
The Eagles ‘held’ the ball for the final 2:34 of the second period to get a final shot, and that patience resulted in a Christmas basket to give N-town a 28-16 lead.
“We wanted to get them out of their zone,” said Evans. “And I thought we did a great job of running the offense and not forcing a bad shot.”
If the second period didn’t seal the Trojan fate – the third period did as Norristown outscored Wissy by an 18-7 margin to secure a 46-23 lead. Christmas scored eight points during the period as the Eagles outscored the Trojans 10-2 in the waning moments of the frame.
“Our goal was to stay close in the game and hope to
be in the game in the fourth quarter,” said Wilson. “We want to continue to grow, and when you play a talented team like Norristown, you are going to grow.
“I’m pleased with the effort we gave tonight,” continued Wilson. “The wins will come if we continue to give the effort we gave tonight.”
Norristown has now won 29 consecutive ‘regular’ season games. The Eagles have a huge encounter Saturday night (12/20) when Norristown takes on Imhoptep Charter (5-1). The only loss for Imhoptep came against Chester (56-39) in its second game of the season.
“That game is going to be a challenge for our team,” said Evans. “We’re going to have to play well.”
Maybe Christmas – along with Wyatt, Ramsey, and Mayer - will continue to spread the holiday cheer.
Norristown 16 12 18 16 - 62
Wissahickon 12 4 7 16 - 39
Norristown (62) – Gardner 2 1-4 5; Wyatt 4 4-4 14; Christmas 9 1-3 19; Ramsey 4 2-2 11; Smith 2 4-4 8; Mayer 1 1-2 3; Davis 0 2-2 2. Totals 22 15-21 62.
3-point goals - Wyatt (2); Ramsey.
Wissahickon (39) – McClure 3 0-0 8; Hammond 1 0-0 2; Sweeney 4 5-8 13; Bundy 2 0-0 5; Beckett 1 3-4 5; Reed 3 0-0 6; Kibler 0 0-1 0. Totals 14 8-13 39.
3-point goals – McClure (2); Bundy.
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