Jarrad Saffren recaps all of Friday’s SOL boys basketball action. CB South/CB West photos provided courtesy of Lisa Henderson. Check back for a gallery of action Photos.
By Jarrad Saffren
Twenty Suburban One League boys basketball teams played league games Friday night.
Read about all 10 games below.
SOL National
Council Rock South 56, Harry S. Truman 30
Council Rock South ended a three-game losing streak. It also won its first game without senior swingman Kevin Newbert, who suffered a high ankle sprain on January 12.
“It was a must win,” South guard Alex Nordenholt said.
“We just know we gotta keep playing,” South forward Ryan McNamee said. “Coach keeps saying, ‘The sun will set.’ We are just going through a rough time. We played through it tonight.”
“It definitely gives us confidence to win without Kevin. He’s such a big part of our team,” South forward Ryan Boyd said. “Different guys have to step up. We are still adjusting without him.”
“No one’s going to feel sorry for you. Everyone goes through this at some point. You just gotta get through it. Guys have to step up,” CR South coach Derek Wright said. “I hope the guys understand that confidence ebbs and flows. Even when you’re not feeling confident, you can still play well. Tonight in the first quarter, we weren’t scoring. We weren’t getting stops. But we played through it.”
South won the second quarter 14-0. Then it won the third quarter 15-3. Truman settled for threes against South’s zone defense. The Tigers missed 16 straight three-point attempts in the middle quarters.
“They definitely had an off night. We knew they weren’t that good of a shooting team,” Nordenholt said. “They like to drive.”
“We used our length, talked a lot, boxed out well,” McNamee said. “We did our jobs.”
“We are long,” Boyd said. “So it’s hard to get into the paint on us.”
Nordenholt scored 11 points in the second quarter, leading a 14-0 run that broke the game’s only tie and put South up for good.
“I’m always in attack mode,” Nordenholt said.
Nordenholt (18), McNamee (14) and Boyd (10) scored in double figures for South. Austin Thomas added seven.
Danell Snelling led Truman with 13 points. The Tigers are 2-6 since starting 5-1.
“We are young,” Truman coach Byron Conover said. “We have to learn how to win these league games on the road. A lot of my guys haven’t even been to these gyms before.”
CR South (10-5, 5-3 SOL) hosts CB South Saturday at four. Truman (7-7, 2-4 SOL) plays Pottstown on the same day and time.
Council Rock South 12-14-15-15 56
Harry S. Truman 12-0-3-15 30
Council Rock North 50, Bensalem 49
Council Rock North won for the third time in four games. The Indians are 6-11 after starting 3-10.
All three wins came by five points or less. This one was the closest. Drew Burton hit a jumper with 25 seconds left to put CR North up for good.
“In close games, guys are stepping up. We are making winning plays in timely spots,” North coach Jesse Krasna said. “It’s been different guys, too.”
North trailed by five in the fourth Friday night. Noah Ehlin drove and kicked it out to Eric Levine, who sank a three. Then Levine stole the ball and laid it in, tying the game. Tyler Shields “also hit a big three in the fourth,” Krasna said.
“Tyler has really stepped up,” Krasna said. “He’s very skilled. He’s really good with the ball. He’s a good shooter and makes big shots at big times. He also gets the ball to teammates and does a great job defending good guards.”
Four North players—Shields (11), Ehlin (11), James Kosyla (11) and Burton (10)—scored in double figures.
“We haven’t had a 20-point scorer all season, which is pretty unique,” Krasna said. “The last couple games, we had a lot of balance with multiple guys in double digits. That’s how it has to be.”
Kosyla, North’s center, has been playing the best basketball of his career.
“James was a consistent presence Friday night. He’s really, really playing well. His confidence is growing offensively,” Krasna said. “He’s always been a good passer out of the post. Now he’s making good moves, attacking the basket and getting to the foul line. When you have an inside presence like that, you get more open threes and more penetration from drivers. He’s a guy the offense has to run through.”
Richard Dean led Bensalem with 14 points. Ward Roberts added 11. Brian Quarterman had eight.
North (6-11, 3-5 SOL) battles Abington Tuesday night at seven. Bensalem (7-8, 2-6 SOL) takes on Holy Ghost Prep Saturday night at seven.
Council Rock North 11-14-12-13 50
Bensalem 9-16-9-15 49
Council Rock North (50) – Eric Levine 4, Drew Burton 10, James Kosyla 11, Tyler Shields 11, Noah Ehlin 11, Matt McAllister 3.
Bensalem (49) – Nadir Smith 4, Richard Dean 14, Keith Parrish 6, Ward Roberts 11, Isaiah Murray 2, Kris Shields 4, Brian Quarterman 8.
Abington 71, Neshaminy 44
Abington rolled to yet another SOL National win on its Senior Night.
Twelve Ghosts players scored, as coach Charles Grasty continued his tradition of playing everybody for extended minutes on Senior Night.
Starting point guard Robert Young led Abington with 12 points. Eric Dixon and Joe O’Brien added 10 each. Eric Dougherty had nine.
Senior Gary Massey netted eight points. Seniors Jonah Canada and Bobby Scholly also scored.
O’Brien, Young, Dougherty and Massey, all seniors, filled the box score. O’Brien also had seven rebounds, five steals and four blocks. Young also had seven assists and no turnovers. He shot 4-of-6 from three-point range.
Dougherty also had six boards and two assists. Massey had three rebounds and a steal.
Young’s 12 points were a season-high. Dougherty’s nine were a career-high.
Abington led by four after one quarter (15-1) but pulled away in the second quarter, winning it 22-8.
Abington has won seven straight games.
The Ghosts (14-3, 8-0 SOL) play CR North Tuesday night at seven. Neshaminy (5-9, 2-6 SOL) plays Avon Grove Monday night at 6:45.
Abington 15-22-17-17 71
Neshaminy 11-8-13-12 44
Abington (71) – Eric Dixon 10, Robbie Heath 5, Joseph O’Brien 10, Lucas Monroe 5, Robert Young 12, Eric Dougherty 9, Darius Brown 2, Bryan Coman 3, Gary Massey 8, Jonah Canada 3, Howie Burrell 2, Bobby Scholly 2
SOL Continental
Central Bucks South 52, Central Bucks West 44
CB South won its third straight game and continued to creep back into the District One Class 6A playoff picture.
The Titans were 29th in the first 6A rankings, which came out Monday. Twenty-four teams make the 6A field.
“We feel we have a shot at the playoffs,” South coach Jason Campbell said. “We were talking about this tonight. The players saw us at the 29th spot. They came together and weren’t happy with where they are at. We realized our backs are up against the wall. If we turn things around, it will have to be now.”
CB South has turned things around, at least for now. It played another strong game against a good team Friday night.
“We played really well,” Campbell said.
The Titans trailed by six in the second quarter. Then Nate Johnston scored nine straight points.
“We went from down six to up three,” Campbell said. “Nate had a big second quarter. He’s had a couple good scoring games. And he’s good in our zones. He has a lot of athleticism. He’s hard to guard when he gets his confidence going.”
CB South’s big scorers, Nate Robinson and Alex Karras, scored 12 and 11, respectively. South’s Dan Tecce played great defense.
“He did a great job on both their point guards,” Campbell said. “He played full court almost the whole game. We were pretty stingy defensively tonight.”
The Bucks were without Jake Reichwein (injury).
CB South (6-9, 4-4 SOL) plays CR South Saturday at four. Central Bucks West (9-7, 5-3 SOL) plays Central Bucks East Tuesday night at seven.
Pennridge 58, Central Bucks East 53 (OT)
Pennridge led for almost the entire game. But CB East took a two-point lead with 1:30 left in the fourth quarter.
“I thought, ‘Oh boy we did all this work and I’m going have to talk to the kids about how we lost another game like this,’” Pennridge coach Dean Behrens said.
Pennridge did manage to tie the game. But CB East had the ball with 40 seconds to go. The Patriots held the ball for all 40 seconds.
“They didn’t even get a great shot off,” Behrens said.
In overtime, Tyrese Lewis-Eutsey hit a jumper to put Pennridge up two. Then he dunked the ball to put the Rams up four.
“That sealed the deal,” Behrens said. “I was really proud of the boys. They were aggressive from the tip tonight. It was a tough spot. (Leading scorer) Sean Yoder is hurt. We played hard Tuesday night without Sean. But CB South played extremely well.”
Yoder’s supporting cast stepped up in his place Friday night. Ryan Kinky dropped 20 points.
“Kinky had his best game of the season. He’s been down on how he’s played. He practices with such intensity and effort,” Behrens said. “He was real down about how he played against CB South. He was quiet at practice Wednesday. Today he was in attack mode. And he hit some outside shots.”
Lewis-Eutsey scored 12 points. Jon Post had 10.
Ryan Warner played point for Pennridge, in place of Yoder.
“Tyrese Lewis-Eutsey and Ryan Warner really stepped up,” Behrens said. “Warner did a magnificent job handling defensive pressure. AJ Demarco did a nice job as well tonight. We are piecing it together without Sean. CB East likes to slow it down. We played uptempo.”
Behrens was pleased with his team’s effort overall.
“We’re pleased to get back to 8-8. Our team has really fought,” he said. “We lost four straight. Then we won a big one last Saturday against CR South. Then we lost a tough one against CB South. I don’t think anyone expected us to win tonight on the road.”
Yoder is day-to-day.
“I’m not sure when he’ll return. He didn’t break the ankle. He tweaked it twice in the CR South game. By Monday it blew up. It was black and blue,” Behrens said. “I said, ‘You gotta get an X-Ray.’ I would like to see him get back Tuesday. We won’t put him in harm’s way. He has to keep seeing the trainer and putting it in lots of buckets of ice.”
Matt Pattyson led CB East with 18 points. Elijah Seger had 10.
Pennridge (8-8, 3-5 SOL) battles Souderton Tuesday night at seven. CB East (10-7, 5-3 SOL) plays New Foundations Charter Saturday at one.
Pennridge 17-15-10-7-9 58
Central Bucks East 16-12-11-11-3 53
Pennridge (58) – Kyle Yoder 7, Ryan Cuthbert 5, Jon Post 10, Ryan Kinky 20, AJ Demarco 3, Ryan Warner 2, Tyrese Lewis-Eutsey 12.
Central Bucks East (53) – Matt Pattyson 18, Cooper Fink 6, Elijah Seger 10, Collin Stein 6, Matt Ernst 3, Kyle Cassidy 6, Ryan Plack 4.
North Penn 56, William Tennent 43
North Penn improved to 12-4 overall and 7-1 in SOL Continental play. The Knights are alone in first place.
“We played well in the first and third. Not as well in the second and fourth,” North Penn coach John Conrad said. “But well enough. Reece Udinski played well. Derek Heiserman gave great minutes off the bench.”
Udinski's 16 points led the Knights, and Heiserman scored 12 points. David Giuliani also finished in double figures with 13.
A pair of Udinski three-pointers sparked the Knights' 20-11 first quarter lead. They took a 28-20 advantage into halftime. The Knights outscored their visitors 28-23 in the second half. Udinski buried 7-of-8 foul shots in the fourth quarter.
For the Panthers, Dave West led the way with 15 points on five three-pointers – two in the first quarter and three more in the third. Pat McCauley added 11 points.
North Penn suffered its first and only Continental loss last Friday night. It has played well since.
“I thought we rebounded well since the East loss,” Conrad said. “We were excellent in that area tonight.”
North Penn (12-4, 7-1 SOL) plays Boyertown Saturday at four. William Tennent (3-11, 0-7 SOL) takes on CB South Tuesday night at seven.
William Tennent 11-9-11-12 43
North Penn 20-8-16-12 56
William Tennent (43) – Pat McCauley 11, Brendan Carter 2, Markeith Baxter 5, Jorge Soto 3, Kip Mooney 1, Dave West 15, David Gaassanova 6.
North Penn (56) – Lance Ford 2, Nate O'Donnell 5, AJ Mitchell 2, Chris Coleman 4, Reece Udinski 16, David Giulliani 13, Derek Heiserman 12, Noah Kwortnik 2.
SOL American
Quakertown 47, Hatboro-Horsham 46
Hatboro-Horsham beat Quakertown by 28 in the first meeting between these teams. But Quakertown controlled this game.
The Panthers led after every quarter. The Hatters only made it close because Quakertown missed seven free throws in the fourth.
“We made it tougher than it had to be,” Quakertown coach Kevin Keeler said. “We fought them for four quarters. Considering (H-H center) Clifton Moore is 6-foot-10 and our biggest guy is 6-2, it was a great effort.”
Quakertown led by five or less for the whole fourth, and by one for the last 16 seconds. But Hatboro-Horsham never took the lead.
Ryan Howard led Quakertown with 22 points, including six threes.
“It was Ryan Howard’s best game of the year. He’s been due for that,” Keeler said. “Against a team like this, you have to drive and kick because they control the inside.”
Quakertown’s JR Grimmage added 10 points. He scored six of them in the fourth.
Moore and Jay Davis led Hatboro-Horsham with 18 and 17 points, respectively.
Quakertown is now 4-11 overall and 3-5 in SOL American play. The Panthers have won two straight games.
“It’s a team win but I still think we can play better,” Keeler said. “Just take it one game at a time. Cheltenham is next and they are a great team.”
The Panthers play the Panthers Tuesday night at seven. Hatboro-Horsham (8-7, 6-4 SOL) hosts Wissahickon on the same night and time.
Quakertown 9-13-14-11 47
Hatboro-Horsham 8-12-12-14 46
Quakertown (47) – Ryan Howard 22, Jashua Rodriguez 2, Nick Drosnock 6, Dakota Suchanec 4, Kevin Juszynski 3, JR Grimmage 10.
Hatboro-Horsham (46) – Chris Edwards 5, Colin Kennedy 2, Clifton Moore 18, Jay Davis 17, Ryan Black 4.
Wissahickon 59, Upper Dublin 28
Wissahickon coach Kyle Wilson wanted his team to play a four-quarter game.
“We played solid teams recently. We had PW down 17-5 and 21-10 early. Then we had that one bad quarter,” Wilson said. “I said, ‘Tonight, the goal was to play four solid quarters.’ The guys were mentally focused throughout.”
Wissahickon won the first quarter 15-10, the second 14-2, the third 10-7 and the fourth 20-9. The Trojans did what their coach wanted them to do.
“We played extremely well,” Wilson said. “It was one of the better games we played.”
Shane Ford led Wissahickon with 17 points and seven rebounds.
“Shane Ford shot well,” Wilson said.
Max Rapoport added 11.
“We got great play out of Max Rapoport defensively and offensively,” Wilson said. “And Zach Gelman did a great job getting the ball in people’s hands where they like to shoot.”
Michael Ryan led Upper Dublin with 11 points.
Wissahickon (9-7, 6-3 SOL) plays Hatboro-Horsham Tuesday night at seven. Upper Dublin (1-13, 1-7 SOL) takes on Plymouth Whitemarsh on the same night and time.
Wissahickon 15-14-10-20 59
Upper Dublin 10-2-7-9 28
Wissahickon (59) – Shane Ford 17, Max Rapoport 11, Phil James 5, Eddie Fortescue 5, Zach Gelman 5, Chaz Owens 4, Marlyn Johnson 4, Anthony Lawrence 2, Matt Graeff 2, Alex Tappen 2, Zach Reiner 2.
Upper Dublin (28) – rio Besachio 4, Ryan Besachio 2, Quinten Derr 1, Jalen Heim 2, Brian McCarry 3, Michael Ryan 11, Nyjee Scott 1, Cory Stover 3, Corby Watkins 1.
Plymouth Whitemarsh 80, Springfield-Montco 40
Plymouth Whitemarsh and Springfield-Montco played for the second time in six days. PW won the first meeting 80-23.
“It’s odd to play each other twice in a week. And when the first game is 80-23, you wonder where the kids heads will be,” PW coach Jim Donofrio said. “But we had a good start.”
PW led 25-7 after one and did not sweat the rest of the night.
“They cut it to 16 early in the third,” Donofrio said. “But we were relentless and doing what we’re supposed to do, playing the way we’re capable of.”
Ahmin and Ahmad Williams both scored 18 points for PW. Matt Walker had 17, including five threes.
“The Williams twins and Walker really lit it up,” Donofrio said. “It was nice to see Matt Walker. He was a spot shooter off the bench last year. I hoped he’d have a breakout year this year and he’s doing that.”
Three Springfield-Montco players—Ryan Daley (11), Quentin Johnson (11) and Mike Goodson (11)—scored in double figures.
PW (14-2, 9-0 SOL) plays Upper Dublin Tuesday night at seven. Springfield-Montco (1-14, 0-10 SOL) takes on AIM Academy Monday night at 5:30.
Plymouth Whitemarsh 25-19-20-16 80
Springfield-Montco 7-17-13-3 40
Plymouth Whitemarsh (80) – Ish Horn 4, Kevin Tilghman 6, Naheem McLeod 6, Matt Walker 17, Ahmin Williams 18, Cheo Houston 8, Ahmad Williams 18, Matt Kodish 2, Jason Paul 1.
Springfield-Montco (40) – Ryan Daley 11, Pauls 3, Perry 2, Quentin Johnson 11, Corrado 2, Mike Goodson 11.
Cheltenham 53, Upper Moreland 24
Cheltenham again won with defense, building a 24-7 lead at halftime, and giving up 10 points or less in all four quarters.
“This is the same team that beat us last year with no subtraction (of players),” Cheltenham coach John Timms said. “I think because this team beat us last year, these two games (against UM) have probably been our best complete games from beginning to end, and I think it was the fact that we know this team can beat us. We came out and buckled down and played defense.”
Trevonn Pitts led Cheltenham with 17 points and 12 rebounds. Ahmad Bickley and Tim Spencer had nine and seven points, respectively.
Upper Moreland’s seven first half points came from the free throw line. The Golden Bears made four field goals in the game, two threes and two twos.
“The defense tonight, I’ve never witnessed a team holding another team to zero field goals in a half. We really swarmed the ball tonight and really defended well,” Timms said. “Now I think we’re peaking on the defensive side of the ball at the right time. I think we’re starting to get it together on the defensive side at the right time.”
Cheltenham (13-3, 8-1 SOL) battles Quakertown Tuesday night at seven. Upper Moreland (8-8, 3-6 SOL) plays Springfield-Montco on the same night and time.
Cheltenham 14-10-22-7 53
Upper Moreland 1-6-10-7 24
Cheltenham (53) – Trevonn Pitts 17, Ahmad Bickley 9, Jack Clark 6, Jordan Paris 3, Tim Spencer 7, Tom Myarick 2, Naim McCall 2, Rodney Carson 5, Travis Coleman 2.
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