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By Scott Huff
Newtown – The public address announcer boldly announced the starting lineup prior to the Council Rock North – Harry S Truman game played on Thursday night.And the Senior Night lineup for Rock North was a bit different as the host Indians (17-1, 11-0) tamed the Tigers (7-11, 4-7) in a Suburban One League National Conference game – 67-41.
‘Starting for Council Rock North – a senior – 5-foot, 10-inch guard - # 3 – Liam Kane.’
‘Also starting for Council Rock North – a senior – 6-foot, 1-inch guard - # 4 – Kevin Bogucki.’
‘Also starting for Council Rock North – a senior – 6-foot, 6-inch forward - # 10 – John Raymon.’
‘Also starting for Council Rock North – a senior – 6-foot guard – # 42 -Jordan Chernin.’
‘And also starting for Council Rock North – a senior – 6-foot, 6-inch forward – # 23 - Charlie Anastasi.’
The sixth Indian senior – 6-foot, 7-inch center Hunter Stevens – was the first player off the bench for Rock North.
Both Raymon and Anastasi have been in the Rock North starting lineup for most of this successful season. But for Kane, Bogucki, and Chernin, the rare start was indeed a rewarding one for the seniors.
“We were just coming out here with the idea of getting a win for the team,” said Bogucki, who scored five points in the first period and finished the game with seven. “We practiced as a group yesterday for the first time, and we felt confident that we could do well.”
And the spanking new starting five got the Indians off to a strong start.
Three minutes into the game, Rock North snagged a 10-2 lead. Both Kane and Bogucki were hustling all over the floor, diving for loose balls, and playing aggressive defense against the athletic Tigers.
“We wanted to go out early and play well,” said Chernin who scored the second Indian basket of the game and finished with two points. “We felt very comfortable on the floor at the beginning of the game.”
With the first quarter coming to a close, Truman had rallied back to 19-14 on the strength of some long-range scoring by Shaun Miller.
Three of the original starting five for the Indians exited – and the threesome of Aaron Morgan, Arron Goodman, and Matt McCloskey rejoined Anastasi and Raymon on the floor.
“We always make Senior Night a night to start the seniors to show them how much they are appreciated by the program,” said Council Rock North head coach Derek Wright. “We have some very good basketball players on our bench. They just happen to be on a team that has some very talented basketball players on the floor.
“Kevin is a talented little ballplayer that we had in our rotation more in the beginning of the season,” continued Wright in reference to Bogucki. “And Jordan (Chernin) is a great teammate. You can always trust him to give his best effort.
“I was very happy with the way that the starting group played,” added Wright. “Truman made some tough shots and put themselves back into the game.”
The first period closed with a 21-17 Rock North lead. And ironically, Truman made its best run of the game after CR North inserted its season-long starters.
Truman knotted the score at 25-25 with 3:07 left in the second period on a three-point basket by Daveed Ransome. And the Tigers took their first lead – 27-26 - with 1:24 left in the half on a pair of free throws by Merdic Green.
Miller – who scored 12 of his team-high 15 points in the first half – would give the Tigers the advantage with 23 seconds left in the half when he connected on a pair of free throws.
The 29-28 lead would be the final lead of the game for Truman.
“Our scouting report said that Miller has been their best scorer the last few games,” said Wright. “He hurt us in the first half, but I think that Charlie (Anastasi) did a great job of playing defense against him in the second half.”
In fact, it was the Rock-solid North defensive effort in the third period that broke the game open. The Indians held the Tigers to just three third period points and led 46-32 by the close of the quarter.
“You have to give Truman credit, they played us physical and guarded the paint hard,” said Wright. “They really didn’t allow us to get into any flow during the course of the game.
“(Truman head coach) Allen Munford has done a tremendous job with that team,” added Wright. “They continue to show a lot of improvement.”
CR North continued to stretch its lead in the fourth period.
Anastasi would finish with 14 points, 17 rebounds, four blocked shots, and four assists. Goodman added 13 points to go along with 10 boards, while Morgan scored in twin digits for the Indians with 10 points.
As the game was winding down to a close, the Senior Night starting five slowly regained their spots on the floor.
And with 42 seconds left in the game, Wright gave the five seniors an emotional curtain call for a career well done.
“It was a great feeling going out that way,” said Chernin. “There is no better way to end your high school career than to play with a great team like this.”
Truman 17 12 3 9 * 41
CR North 21 10 15 21 * 67
Truman: Shaun Miller 15; Daveed Ransome 3; Mike McGuire 5; Dan Harris 5; Merdic Green 4; Dequan Ashley 2; Lamont Waters 6; Mike Mintah 1. Total – 41.
Council Rock North: Charlie Anastasi 14; Hunter Stevens 6; Sam Ryan 2; John Raymon 8; Aaron Morgan 10; Arron Goodman 13; Jordan Chernin 2; Kevin Bogucki 7. Total - 67.
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