Check out Saturday’s SOL boys basketball results. To view photos of the Abington/Norristown game, please visit the Photo Gallery.
By Scott Huff
Cheltenham – Defend the basketball – protect the basketball – shoot the basketball.
In the battle of the unbeaten in the Philly Six High School Classic – Coaches vs. Cancer Tournament, it was Abington (4-0) that was better able to do all three in an impressive 18-2 run against Norristown (3-1) in the first half of a 66-52 Ghost victory. The 9-9 deadlock became a 27-11 Abington advantage in a six-minute window of the game that began at the end of the first period and concluded midway through the second period.
“I thought we defended very well during that stretch, and we were very careful with the basketball,” smiled Abington head coach Charles Grasty. “That run was huge for us – and it was totally unexpected against a team that is as talented and deep as Norristown.
“Our bread and butter is to speed the game up, but Norristown also likes to play that way,” added Grasty. “But for that one stretch, we were able to do a lot of good things.”
“We weren’t able to respond to what they do during that stretch,” said Norristown head coach Michael Evans. “We seemed to be just a step behind them, and they handled our pressure very well. They cause a lot of matchup problems.”
The biggest matchup problems for the Eagles came against both electric Ghost guards – Jiere Morrisey and Anthony Durham. Morrisey scored a career-high 18 points on 8-of-11 shooting from the field, while Durham collected 16 points and dished out eight assists.
“Coach talked about how we had to handle their pressure, and when we play hard, we can do almost anything,” said Morrisey. “Playing a team like Norristown shows us where we are against the best teams around. We just want to go on the floor and win.”
“I was proud of the way that we played today against a good team,” said Durham. “Our game plan was to attack the basket – go right at their big guys.”
The first period was played evenly as the Ghosts snatched a 13-11 lead, but the lead swelled to 31-18 by the close of the first half. Norristown outscored Abington 20-17 in the third period, and the lead was shrunk to just 46-38 late in the third period.
“We got back in the game, but we couldn’t get over the hump,” said Evans. “We needed to come out ready to play right from the beginning of the game, and we didn’t do that.
“We have to remember that this is a single game – played in December – against an excellent basketball team,” added Evans. “There are a lot of good things that we can learn from this game.”
The Eagles were led in scoring by guards Curt Lever and BJ Gordon who each scored 12 points, while guard Luke Kelley scored in double figures with 10 points. Lever scored all of his points on four 3-point field goals.
“This was a nice win, but now we get Council Rock North (3-0) in a league game on Tuesday,” said Grasty. “Council Rock North has established itself as a great program, and it is always tough to play at their gym. We will have to play well if we want to come away with a win.”
The Ghosts will once again have to defend the basketball – protect the basketball – and shoot the basketball.
Abington Ghosts 13 18 17 18 - 66
Norristown Eagles 11 7 20 14 - 52
Abington: Jiere Morrisey 18; Anthony Durham 16; Matt Penecale 9; Michael Griffin 8; Jordan Simmons 6; Mark Bond 6; Anthony Lee 3. Total – 66.
Norristown: BJ Gordon 12; Curt Lever 12; Luke Kelley 10; Daquan Holcomb 7; Marquis Bryant 5; Josh Johnson 4; Jahbri Hargrove 2. Total – 52.
In other games…
UPPER MORELAND 59, MONSIGNOR BONNER
The Golden Bears found themselves staring at a 17-13 deficit at the end of one quarter. They still trailed by four at the intermission (26-22) but erased that deficit with a 14-5 third quarter tear and iced the win with a 23-10 fourth quarter scoring explosion.
Senior Matt Kohn led a balanced Golden Bear attack with 17 points while sophomore James Martin added 13 and junior Kevin McFall scored 11 points. Tommy Robinson (eight points), Mark Williams (six points) and Damian LaRosa (four points) closed out the scoring.
The Golden Bears evened their overall record at 2-2 (0-1 SOL).
QUAKERTOWN 49, SAUCON VALLEY 44
Brett Wolf, who scored a team high 14 points, was on of three players in double figures in the Panthers’ non-league win on Saturday. Mark Repsher (13 points) and John Smith (10 points) also scored in double digits. Jake Perrine (six points), Justin Klee (four points) and Griffin Schmidt (two points) rounded out the scoring. The Panthers evened their early season record at 2-2.
PLYMOUTH WHITEMARSH 55, ARCHBISHOP WOOD 53
Anthony McKie turned in a stellar 33-point effort to lead the Colonials to the tightly contested win over the Vikings on Saturday at Cheltenham as part of the Coaches vs. Cancer Classic. Chase Rodgers added eight points, Michael Reddick scored six points, Dee Bennett contributed five points while Andrew Mitchell and DJ Minetola both scored two points.
The Colonials, who are 2-1 on the season, led 12-11 at the end of one quarter but found themselves on the short end of a 19-16 halftime score. They outscored the Vikings 11-6 in the third quarter on their way to the win.
GLEN MILLS 73, CHELTENHAM 65 (OT)
The Panthers trailed 22-15 at halftime in Saturday’s Coaches vs. Cancer Classic on their home court. An impressive 22-11 third quarter scoring explosion put the Panthers on top 37-33, but Glen Mills rallied to knot the score, thanks to a 24-20 fourth quarter. Glen Mills outscored Cheltenham 16-8 in OT.
Junior guard Aaron McGlawn turned in a dazzling 31-point performance to lead the Panthers while Aaron Burton added 14. Guy Henderson (nine points), John Howard (six points) and Shakur Jackson (five points) closed out the scoring for the Panthers, who saw their record drop to 2-3.
- Log in to post comments
