Check out the recaps for SOL boys’ basketball teams in action. PW/Sanford photos provided courtesy of Larry Small. Check back for a gallery of photos: https://solsports.zenfolio.com/f716903222
Non-league
NESHAMINY 54, UPPER MERION 51 (OT)
Nate Townsend scored 22 points to lead the Redskins to an overtime win in a thriller that was a roller coaster of emotions for both sides.
“We were up five at the quarter and had it up to 23-12 at one point in the second quarter,” Neshaminy coach Mark Tingle said. “We let them go on a run to finish out the half, and it ended up being a six-point lead at the half (25-19).”
The visiting Vikings trimmed Neshaminy’s lead to one at the end of three quarters, 35-34
“We had a bad third quarter, and it was the same thing in the fourth quarter,” Tingle said. “We were down seven around the two-minute mark. We went on a run.
“It was a back-and-forth battle at the end. We came up with a big steal by Jason Leiva at the end to send it into overtime.”
The Redskins took a lead in overtime, but the Vikings evened the score. Neshaminy regained the lead and this time maintained it to the end.
“They had a chance with three seconds to go the length of the court, but they didn’t get anything out of it – they didn’t get a shot off,” Tingle said. “It was a game of runs, and thankfully, we were on the good side of it.”
Towsend scored nine of his game-high 22 in the opening half. He also had eight rebounds and four assists. Emeer Coombs also finished in double figures with 10 points to go along with six rebounds and three assists. Ryan Meehan added eight points, and Max Currie finished with six.
Although the season is just 11 days old, Monday’s game was the sixth of the season for the Redskins with the seventh on the horizon Tuesday.
“Honestly, we haven’t shot the ball well,” Tingle said. “The Pennsbury game, the (Council Rock) South game – we were in those games but just couldn’t buy a bucket. With the season starting a week early like last year, we’ve only had seven or eight practices.
“It’s good we came away with this win – a win’s a win.
Neshaminy (3-3, 0-2 SOL) will host Harry S Truman on Tuesday.
Upper Merion 9-10-16-11-5 51
Neshaminy 14-11-9-12-8 54
Upper Merion (51) – Smiley 5 1-5 11; McFadden 3 2-2 8; Nguyen 1 0-0 2; Hirshorn 2 1-2 5; Cole 4 2-3 11; David 6 2-4 14; TOTALS 21 8-16 51.
Neshaminy (54) – Emeer Coombs 4 2-3 10; Ryan Meehan 3 2-5 8; Max Currie 3 0-0 6; Guy Horton 2 1-3 5; Logan Gale 1 0-0 3; Nate Townsend 7 8-14 22; TOTALS 20 13-25 54.
3-point goals: UM – Cole; Neshaminy – Gale.
UPPER MORELAND 50, POTTSGROVE 49
The Golden Bears trailed by four at halftime but rallied to outscore the Falcons 29-24 in the second half to eke out the non-league road win.
“We had a really strong third quarter,” UM Coach Dan Heiland said. “I know it was even (15-15), but the guys came out with a little bit of a tempo and pace of play, kind of had a chip on their shoulder.
“We were up eight, but Pottsgrove took a timeout and went on their own run, and they ended up taking the lead back to four points going into the fourth quarter. In the fourth quarter, it was back and forth. We were down six points the majority of the fourth quarter and never could close the gap.”
The UM coach recounts the wild final 90 seconds of the game.
“At 1:20 mark, we picked up fullcourt, we got some turnovers, we got some easy layups,” Heiland said. “We got some tremendous team play of guys sacrificing themselves, diving for loose balls, saving it from going out of bounds.
“Nate Best got a layup, we got a turnover, Colson Campbell saved it from going out of bounds, and hit Brayden Martin for a layup that cut it to two. We picked up pressure, and Brayden Martin intercepted a pass at half court and passed it to Colson Campbell for a transition three that put us up by one point. They came down and got to the foul line, made both to get the lead back.
“We went down the floor, Colson drove baseline, came to a jump stop. Sean Murphy made a great cut, Colson hit him in stride, and he laid it in with about eight seconds left. The clock was running out, and Colson intercepted the inbounds pass, dribbled the ball to half court. The buzzer went off, but the ref said he walked before it did. They put 1.5 seconds back on the clock. We got a deflection on an inbounds, stole the ball and the game was over.”
Campbell’s 13 points led a balanced UM attack. Murphy added eight points, Anthony Carson had seven, and Jimmy Perce had six.
There was no mistaking the significance of Monday’s road win.
“Especially coming off Saturday’s tough loss in a hard-fought game travelling out to Harriton,” Heiland said. “And then Monday travelling out to Pottsgrove. They’re a good team – they’ve got four wins under their belt already.
“It’s a tough environment – their kids played really hard. It was great to see the resilience from our guys, having that fight and never giving up and playing to the last whistle and getting that win.”
Upper Moreland (4-2, 2-0 SOL) will host Springfield Twp on Tuesday.
Upper Moreland 8-13-15-14 50
Pottsgrove 13-12-15-9 49
Upper Moreland (50) – Nate Best 1 0-0 2; Alex Best 3 0-0 9; Colson Campbell 5 1-2 13; Anthony Carson 3 0-0 7; Jimmy Perce 3 0-0 6; Sean Murphy 4 0-0 8; Brayden Martin 1 3-4 5; TOTALS 20 4-6 50.
Pottsgrove (59) – Deymein Doctor 2 3-5 7; Gabriel Rinda 4 2-2 11; Gregory Rosenberger 1 0-0 3; Julius Marshall 3 8-8 16; Bryce Phillips 1 0-0 2; Kamal Curry 4 2-3 10; TOTALS 15 15-18 49.
3-point goals: UM – Alex Best 3, Colson Campbell 2, Anthony Carson; Pottsgrove – Julius Marshall 2, Gabriel Rinda, Gregory Rosenberger.
Sunday, Dec. 10 (Kobe Bryant Classic)
SANFORD SCHOOL (Del.) 59, PLYMOUTH WHITEMARSH 55
The Colonials – behind the sharpshooting of Jaden Colzie and Ben Marsico – rallied from a 32-22 halftime deficit with a 22-point 
third quarter to go into the final frame with a 44-42 advantage over Sanford. Colzie and Marsico accounted for 17 of their team’s 22 points in the quarter.
Sanford responded, outscoring the Colonials 17-11 in the final quarter to earn the win.
Colzie – who had nine points in the third quarter – led the Colonials with 19 points while Mani Sajid added 18 points. Marsico added 11 points – eight in the third quarter. Both Sajid and Marsico had three 3-pointers while Colzie had a pair of 3s.
Plymouth Whitemarsh (2-1, 2-0 SOL) will travel to Hatboro-Horsham on Tuesday.
Sanford School (Del.) 14-18-10-17. 59
Plymouth Whitemarsh 13-9-22-11. 55
Stanford (59) Khareem Hart 2 2-2 6; Marquis Newson 7 2-2 17; Jayden Taylor 6 1-2 13; Jordan Spencer 1 5-6 8; Stephen Conway 6 1-2 13; TOTALS 22 11-14 59.
Plymouth Whitemarsh (55) – Jaden Colzie 7 3-4 19; Ben Marsico 4 0-0 11; Mani Sajid 7 1-1 18; Josh Harris 1 0-0 2; Jah Pendergrass-Sayles 2 0-4 4; TOTALS 21 4-9 55.
3-point goals: Stanford – Marquis Newson, Jordan Spencer; PW – Ben Marsico 3,Mani Sajid 3, Jaden Colzie 2.
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