Jarrad Saffren recaps Thursday’s games featuring SOL boys’ basketball teams. CR North/CB West photos provided courtesy of John Gleeson. Check back for a gallery of photos.
By Jarrad Saffren
Ten Suburban One League boys’ basketball teams played non-league games on Thursday night. Three games featured an SOL team against another SOL team, though from different conferences. Non-league play continues through the weekend, but league play begins next week.
Thursday’s results and recaps are below.
Non-League
Souderton 36, Phoenixville 35
With only seconds remaining in regulation, and Souderton up 34-33, Dom Natale grabbed an offensive rebound and scored, putting the Indians up by three. After a Phoenixville basket, and a Souderton missed free throw, Phoenixville got the ball back down one. Souderton’s Stephen Luchansky guarded Phoenixville’s best shooter, KJ Quinn, who dribbled up and hoisted a prayer from well beyond the three-point line.
It bounced off the rim and hit the hardwood. Phoenixville got the rebound and – with the final seconds ticking away and not enough time to kick the ball back out – scored a two-pointer that affected the final score but not the end result.
“He’s been lock down for us defensively these first four games,” said Souderton coach Tim Brown of Luchansky. “We expected him to be that. He’s worked his butt off to get where he is this offseason. He’s an energy guy. He’s all heart. He guarded the other team’s best guy all summer. And he’s held every guy under 10 so far.”
After playing on junior varsity as a freshman and sophomore, Luchansky was a practice player for Souderton last year, as a junior.
“He was such a good kid that we told him he can stay and be a practice player,” Brown said. “But then he had one of the most amazing offseason rises we’ve ever seen. He hit the gym hard, bulked up. He was a little kid. His outside shot is much better. He can handle pressure, too. He’s been playing point guard, even though it’s not his position.”
Trevor Watts and Kavi Ramchandani led Souderton in scoring for the third time in four games, dropping 13 and nine, respectively.
“Trevor is a workhorse. He makes it a nightmare for other teams banging down low and getting after offensive boards. He’s gritty and a grinder,” Brown said. “Kavi is just seeing open shots and taking them, which is good to see because sometimes he’d shy away from that. He was on JV last year. He was doing what he’s doing on varsity now.”
Ramchandani is turning into the varsity scorer Souderton needed after Mike Bealer’s graduation last spring.
“The way he’s been draining the three, looking to score, he’s doing what Bealer did last year,” Brown said. “You can’t replace Bealer. But Kavi is doing a good job.”
Antonio Rodriguez added six points for Souderton. He also “crashed the boards and brought energy,” Brown said.
Souderton has won three straight games since dropping its season opener last Friday night. The Indians (3-1, 0-0 SOL) play CB South on Tuesday night at seven.
Phoenixville (35) – Jenkins 13, Brown 8, Quinn 5, Clark 4, Danna 3, Hamilton 2.
Souderton (36) – Trevor Watts 13, Kavi Ramcandani 9, Antonio Rodriguez 6, Koffel 3, Stephen Luchansky 3, Dom Natale 2.
Wissahickon 76, Bensalem 56
Wissahickon scored 46 points and committed 17 turnovers in its season opener on Tuesday night, which the Trojans still won. They scored 30 more points and committed five fewer turnovers in their second game on Thursday night, which Wissahickon also won. Win while growing as a team – that is the goal early in the season.
“The kids played really well. We had some games in the fall and summer where we really put up some points. We’ve had some practices where we clicked too. You never know if that’s going to convert to the season,” said Wissahickon coach Kyle Wilson. “But tonight was one of those nights where everything clicked and they knocked down shots. These kids like to share the ball and make the extra pass.”
Zach Reiner especially likes to share the ball and make the extra pass. He only had eight points on Thursday, far below his average, but he put up 10 assists and 14 rebounds.
“He’s that kid that doesn’t look to the box score to see what he scores. He wants to see that W,” Wilson said. “For other guys, I always say you should be excited to be on the floor with him because if you cut and move, he’ll find you. Guys love to play with someone who doesn’t care if he scores.”
Wissahickon shot 73 percent in the paint (19-of-26), 55 percent from the field (31-of-56) and 45 percent from three-point range (10-of-22), accumulating 23 assists. Seth Compas (16), Max Rapoport (14), Eddie Fortescue (12), Donovan Oliphant (9) and Cole Hirsch (9) all scored at least nine points for the Trojans.
“It was a balance of inside and out. When Bensalem took away penetration or post, we’d knock the shot down. When they trapped, we swung the ball to the other side,” Wilson said. “Everything they threw at us, the kids made the right choice.”
Ward Roberts led Bensalem with 15 points. Kris Shields added 12.
Wissahickon (2-0, 0-0 SOL) plays CB East on Friday night at seven. Bensalem (1-2, 0-0 SOL) hosts Pennsbury on Tuesday night at seven.
Wissahickon 20-16-22-18 76
Bensalem 7-15-16-18 56
Bensalem (56) – Taco Douglas 2, Ward Robers 15, Keith Parrish 8, James Leible 9, Isaiah Murray 2, Gonzalez 2, Kris Shields 12, Nick Fossile 6.
Wissahickon (76) – Seth Compas 16, Max Rapoport 14, Eddie Fortescue 12, Donovan Oliphant 9, Cole Hirsch 9, Zach Reiner 8, Maurice Willis 6, Carmen Ostroski 2.
Neshaminy 50, William Tennent 41
Neshaminy improved to 2-0 in a slow-paced game that it controlled, building a 30-20 halftime lead and holding it through the second half.
“I’ll take it because 2-0 is 2-0,” said Neshaminy coach Mark Tingle. “We played well. We just gave up too many offensive rebounds, which gave them kick-out shots, which kept them in the game.”
Chris Arcidiacono continued his torrid start to the season, dropping 24 points, after scoring 32 in Neshaminy’s season opener on Saturday. On Thursday, Arch shot 11-of-14 from the foul line and drilled three three-pointers. His backcourt mate and best friend, Anthony Papeo, scored 11 points, shooting 5-of-8 from the line and sinking two threes. Papeo took the pressure off Arcidiacono by making shots when Arch handled the ball, and by handling the ball himself.
“Arch and Papeo played real well,” said Neshaminy coach Mark Tingle. “Both can run point, shoot, penetrate, kick out and vice versa. They’ve been playing together their whole lives and they feed off each other.”
Greg Deluca complemented Arch and Papeo with eight points. “He’s our sixth man and he came in fresh and was able to score,” Tingle said.
Four William Tennent players—Markeith Baxter (10), Kip Mooney (9), Michael Mulville (9) and Pat McCauley (8)—scored at least eight points.
Neshaminy (2-0, 0-0 SOL) plays Holy Ghost Prep on Saturday night at seven. Tennent (1-2, 0-0 SOL) battles CB West on Tuesday night at seven.
Neshaminy 10-20-7-13 50
William Tennent 7-13-10-11 41
Neshaminy (50) – Logan Williamson 1, Chris Arcidiacono 24, Anthony Papeo 11, Danny Bodine 3, Greg Deluca 8, Charles Dominick 3.
William Tennent (41) – Patrick McCauley 8, Michael Mulville 9, Markieth Baxter 10, Kip Mooney 9, Dave West 2, Cosenza 3.
Central Bucks West 56, Council Rock North 53 (OT)
Council Rock North led by eight in the fourth quarter, but CB West mounted a comeback by crashing the offensive boards and scoring second chance points. Collin MacAdams did a lot of the work for the Bucks, posting 17 points and 14 rebounds. MacAdams also made the free throw that sent the game to overtime.
“We didn’t shoot well but what won the game was offensive rebounding,” said CB West coach Adam Sherman. “We really were able to win the glass, which put us in a good position.”
“We probably had eight offensive rebounds in the fourth, and we needed them. We weren’t making free throws,” Sherman added. “We went to the line 27 times and shot under 50 percent.”
Mika Munari “hit a couple clutch threes and defended real well,” Sherman said. Jack Mulhearn scored in double figures for West, and Jake Reichwein and Shane McCusker both had eight.
“We have to get better defensively and are still trying to find our rhythm offensively,” Sherman said. “But to get a win, we’re excited about it.”
Senior Matt McAlister led CR North with a career-high 28 points. “He kept us in it with big shots all game,” said North coach Jesse Krasna.
“It was a great high school basketball game. West really hurt us on the backboard,” Krasna added. “Our guys battled and followed our game plan to a tee.”
CB West (1-1, 0-0 SOL) plays Methacton on Saturday at 1:30. CR North (0-2, 0-0 SOL) battles Upper Dublin on Saturday night at 7:30.
Harry S. Truman 61, Interboro 39
Harry S. Truman improved to 3-0 behind another strong performance by Jeff Nixon, who led the Tigers with 16 points. He has led Truman in scoring in all three games, scoring 57 points overall, an average of 19 per game.
Cameron Culver and Carter Kelley both added eight points for Truman. Culver buried two threes.
Truman (3-0, 0-0 SOL) plays CR North on Tuesday night at seven.
Father Judge 61, Central Bucks South 52
CB South’s Nate Robinson scored 28 points, but it wasn’t quite enough. Three Father Judge players scored in double figures, as the Crusaders led for most of the game. The Titans cut their deficit to two with three minutes left in the fourth, but they turned the ball over on their next two possessions. Father Judge responded with a three each time.
“We were never able to get it back down. They can shoot the ball well. They also did a good job getting to the painted area. They have guys who can get to the hoop. We need to do a better job moving within our offense. It might have been closer if we had done that,” said CB South coach Jason Campbell. “We had some looks that didn’t go in. It was a physical game.”
Brady Prezelski, Jack Johns and Alex Dietz played well on defense for the Titans.
“Alex Dietz came off the bench and gave us a nice lift,” Campbell said. “He took a charge and was all over hustling. That gave us a lift in the fourth.”
CB South (2-1, 0-0 SOL) hosts Souderton on Tuesday night at seven.
Central Bucks South (52) – Brady Prezelski 2, Nate Robinson 28, Jack Johns 8, Alex Dietz 6, Markk Kannengieszer 2, Tommy Kuypers 3.
Father Judge (61) – Quarry 18, Riley 12, McHugh 9, Chie 3, Dooley 19.
Archbishop Ryan 59, Pennsbury 37
Pennsbury fell to 1-2 with this loss. The Falcons have a 19-point loss, a 24-point win and now a 22-point loss. They are young and learning.
Pennsbury (1-2, 0-0 SOL) plays Coatesville on Saturday at noon.
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