Friday’s SOL slate featured a pair of big upsets. Check out all of the results.
By Jarrad Saffren
The Suburban One League boys’ basketball season is in full swing. League play is now a week old and most teams are settling into a Tuesday/Friday schedule for SOL games. Twenty SOL teams played league rivals Friday night. Eight teams took care of business. But two upsets shocked everybody. One was especially historic.
SOL American
Upper Merion 61, Norristown 43
Upper Merion coach Jason Quenzer wrote it on the wall of the locker room before the game. “1993.” The last time Upper Merion beat Norristown.
That year, the Vikings beat the Eagles in the district championship game.
“That was the Brad Scioli team,” said Quenzer, referring to the star of the 1992-93 Vikings, who went on to play football at Penn State and in the NFL for the Indianapolis Colts.
Quenzer was seven-year-old when those Vikings rallied from a 17-point deficit to beat their rival.
“I’m a Neshaminy guy so I was unaffiliated with the program. I was also probably just getting a basketball in my hand for the first time,” Quenzer said. 
The 29-year-old coach was still aware of the history, and how much Friday night’s long-overdue win meant to the program.
“You talk about big yeah that was awesome,” said Quenzer. “It’s just been a really, really long time since we had a big win.”
“In the three years that I’ve been here, we never had a win where we could look at like, ‘That was awesome.’”
Now they do. And after it was over, a few UM players erased the “1993” and scribbled “2015” on the locker room wall.
Despite the historical significance of the win, Quenzer was not completely stunned. He maybe, sort of saw it coming.
“The past few years we played them pretty tight. We also played them in the summer tough but never came out on top,” said Quenzer. “We knew we were always capable of it.”
The Vikings were led by a balanced scoring attack, featuring three players in double figures and five who scored at least eight points. Matt Faw led the team with 16, followed by Aidan Newell and Ethan Miller with 12 each. Isaiah Graham-Mobley and Andrew Persaud chipped in with eight apiece. Chris Carita added five for the Vikings, who opened up a 14-5 lead after one quarter but saw that lead trimmed to 26-22 by halftime. It was a still a four-point game heading into the final quarter (42-38) when the Vikings closed out the game with a 19-5 tear.
Quenzer said the win is a building block for a burgeoning program.
“Guys stepped up. We were composed,” he said. “The last few years there was never that, ‘Yo let’s be decisive and go out and do what we do.’ We have that feeling this year. These guys believe in one another.”
The coach reverted to coach-speak once he came down a little from cloud 11.
“We should leave that game feeling excited,” Quenzer said. “But I also want to be even-keeled. Okay that’s what we’re capable of but who’s next on the schedule?”
Wissahickon is next for Upper Merion (2-2, 1-2 SOL), on Tuesday at 7 p.m. Norristown (3-4, 2-1 SOL) plays Cheltenham on the same night and time.
Norristown 5-17-16-5 43
Upper Merion14-12-16-19 61
Norristown: Darryl Carr 14, Amir Carter 14, Desmond Gorski 9, Reggie Collins 1, Tyrique Lyons 4, Greenwood 1.
Upper Merion: Aiden Newell 12, Isaiah Graham-Mobley 10, Ethan Miller 12, Chris Carita 5, Matt Faw 16, Andrew Persaud 8.
Upper Moreland 54, Upper Dublin 41
Upper Dublin jumped out to a 12-2 lead at the end of the first quarter.
“Upper Dublin did a really good job early,” said Upper Moreland coach Matt Heiland. “They sagged off. They played a sagging man. We didn’t shoot well.”
Heiland gathered his players in a huddle on the sideline.
“I told the guys to relax. We’re fine. We’re okay,” Heiland said.
Damian Washington sat for most of the first quarter with two fouls. He came back in early in the second and drained a three. Then he hit another from seven-feet beyond the three-point line. The Golden Bears trimmed their deficit to 21-18 by halftime.
“I said at halftime, ‘That’s probably the worst half of ball we’ve played and we’re down three. We’ll be okay,’” said Heiland.
Casey Decker sparked the Golden Bears after halftime. The football quarterback made four threes and scored 14 points in all. His third trey put the Golden Bears up for good.
“It was like, ‘Boom.’ Everyone in the gym went crazy,” Heiland said. “It’s great to have a guy who doesn’t normally score double digit points score 14. He also rebounded well. His legs are finally back from football. He’s in basketball shape and ready to go.”
Decker is normally a defensive stopper and verbal leader who “knows his role on the team,” said Heiland. But Friday night, the Golden Bears “needed a spark” offensively.
The role of defensive stopper went to two other Bears, Mike Lyons and Shane Stone. Lyons entered in the third and teamed up with Stone to form a bigger lineup.
“We played man and stifled them,” said Heiland. “That allowed us to take the lead.” Stone added 10 points, the third most on UM behind Decker and Washington, who had 12.
Brendan O’Donnell, Ryan Coyle, and Lyons all had four. Brett Brossman added six. UM made 10 threes. Washington and Decker combined for eight of them.
“Coach Adelman said to me after the game, ‘You guys shot really well,’” said Heiland. “I didn’t even think we shot the ball well, but then I looked at the sheet and we had 10 threes.”
Jimmy Gallagher led Upper Dublin with 12 points. Will Derr added 10, John Barrett stroked nine, and Ryan Stover and Zair Jones each had four.
Last year, Heiland’s team went 7-16 overall and 3-11 in the SOL American. Things have changed.
“I’ve been a part of Upper Moreland basketball since 2000 when I played,” the Golden Bears’ coach said. “Then I was a volunteer coach, then the JV coach, and then the head coach. I can’t remember the last time we beat Wissahickon and Upper Dublin in one week.”
“We are 5-2. Guys believe. We have a chip on our shoulder. I like that.”
Upper Moreland (5-2, 2-1 SOL) will try to stay hot against Springfield Tuesday night. Upper Dublin (1-5, 0-3 SOL) hosts Plymouth Whitemarsh on the same day and time.
Upper Moreland 2-16-21-15 54
Upper Dublin 12-9-14-6 41
Upper Dublin: John Barrett 9, Will Derr 10, Jimmy Gallagher 12, Zair Jones 4, Ryan Stover 4.
Upper Moreland: Brendan O’Donnell 4, Damian Washington 12, Ryan Coyle 4, Casey Decker 14, Brett Brossman 6, Mike Lyons 4, Shane Stone 10.
Plymouth Whitemarsh 65, Wissahickon 50
The Colonials raced to a 20-10 lead after one quarter and extended that to 40-18 by halftime. PW took that 22-point lead into the final quarter (55-32) when the Trojans closed it out with a 17-10 burst.
Xzavier Malone and Grady Minick led a balanced PW attack with 13 points each. Davon Burrell and Mike Lotito each added nine on a night that saw nine Colonials find their way into the scoring column.
Max Rapoport had a big night for the Trojans, leading all scorers with 19 points. Alex Tappen added eight while Marquese Johnson and Zach Reiner both scorer six points.
The Colonials (5-0, 3-0 SOL) play Upper Dublin Tuesday at 7 p.m. Wissahickon (3-4, 1-2 SOL) buses to Upper Merion for a 7 p.m. start.
Plymouth Whitemarsh 20-20-15-10 65
Wissahickon 10-8-15-17 50
Plymouth Whitemarsh: Grady Minick 13, Oakley Spencer 3, Xzavier Malone 13, Kevin Ashenfelter 3, Matt Walker 5, Ahmin Williams 4, Cheo Houston 4, Ahmad Williams 2, Davon Burrell 9, Mike Lotito 9
Wissahickon: Max Rapoport 19, Alex Tappen 8, Marlyn Johnson 6, Zach Reiner 6, Marquese Wilson 5, Zach Gelman 3, Shane Ford 3.
Cheltenham 59, Springfield 39
The Panthers kept pace with the Colonials atop the SOL American. Both teams are 3-0 in the league and winning in dominant fashion.
Cheltenham also beat Upper Dublin by 24.
The Panthers (5-0, 3-0 SOL) host Norristown Tuesday at 7 p.m. Springfield (1-5, 0-3 SOL) goes to Upper Moreland to play the Golden Bears.
SOL National
Harry S. Truman 35, Council Rock North 33
There is a clear hierarchy at the top of the SOL National. Abington, Pennsbury, and Council Rock North have won the last seven league titles. They finished first, second, and third last season.
The Truman Tigers want to crash the party. On Friday night, they did.
“We need to show Suburban One that we are somebody to be talked about,” said Truman coach Byron Conover. “It’s been Abington, Pennsbury and CR North. We want a seat at that table.”
Truman did not look like it deserved a seat after Wednesday’s 13-point loss to Upper Moreland.
“We got embarrassed,” said Conover. “I challenged the guys at Thursday night’s practice. I’ve been at Truman for more than 10 years. That was the most intense, physical practice we’ve had.”
“Dudes were ready to come to blows. But you know, we needed that.”
For most of Thursday’s practice, Conover conducted a three-on-three drill where he encouraged younger guys to challenge upperclassmen.
“The next thing I knew my sophomore point guard was challenging a senior. They were ready to go to blows,” Conover said. “Then one of my juniors challenged two of the starters, saying that he’s better than them – that they are not getting the job done. He said he should be in the starting lineup. That set the tone.”
Tigers players were fighting for their spots, knowing the “next man up” might take it. The intense practice paid off. Truman’s defense gave up 41 fewer points than it did against UM.
“You play the way you practice. You practice lethargic in this league and you’re gonna get embarrassed,” said Conover. “We knew CR North was piping mad coming off a loss to Pennsbury the other night.”
“We respect their program. We know they are a quality team. That’s a playoff team. We beat a playoff team.”
Truman had not beaten North in four years.
“I told my guys after the game, ‘I’m so proud of the way you responded,’” Conover said.
Truman won with a man-to-man defense and a man on a mission.
“We had our nose to the ball. Straight up man. Nothing complicated,” said the Tigers’ coach said. “Our perimeter D was middle school-like against Upper Moreland. It was terrible. We can’t expect James Clowney and Maurice Jackson, our two bigs, to bail us out every time.”
Jackson was the man on the mission. He scored 17 points, grabbed seven boards, and blocked three shots.
“He set the tone,” said Conover.
Danell Snelling added seven points, but no other Tigers player scored more than five points. Kelechi Ogboona, the Tigers’ leading scorer, had five. Clowney, ZJ Jackson and Justin Fant added two each.
Only four North players scored. Riley Thompson led the Indians with 14 points. Matt McAlister was second with nine points on three threes. Will Desautelle added eight and Tyler Nowmos scored two.
Truman (3-3, 2-1 SOL) goes to Pennsbury Tuesday night to play the Falcons. CR North (3-2, 1-2 SOL) travels to Spring-Ford Saturday for a 7:30 p.m. start.
Harry S. Truman 8-11-7-9 35
Council Rock North 9-10-9-5 33
Council Rock North: Matt McAlister 9, Will Desautelle 8, Riley Thompson 14, Tyler Nowmos 2.
Harry S Truman: Maurice Jackson 17, Kelechi Ogboona 5, James Clowney 2, Justin Fant 2, ZJ Jackson 2, Danell Snelling 7.
William Tennent 46, Neshaminy 36
Encouraging signs. Tennent saw a lot of them Friday night on its home floor.
Sixth man George Alston provided a spark off the bench. Sophomore guard Pat McCauley carried the scoring load by fixing his shot. And center John Ryan played more minutes than he had all season.
The second quarter was a one-on-one game between Alston and 6-foot-6 Neshaminy forward Billy Warren. Alston scored all seven Tennent points, and Warren dropped all nine Neshaminy points. Neshaminy led by two at halftime (18-16).
In the third quarter, Tennent switched from a 2-1-2 zone to a 1-3-1, collapsing two defenders on Warren, limiting his touches, and holding him to two points after the break.
While Warren was erased, McCauley made his mark, draining three threes from straightaway, the last two from way beyond the three-point line. The third three put Tennent up 29-28. The Panthers never trailed again.
McCauley was not happy with the way he was shooting at halftime. So he asked Tennent’s resident guru, assistant coach Ray Horn, for advice.
“He told me to put more arc on the ball,” said McCauley.
The student listened. In the second half, his three threes and six free throws were all rainbows.
“Pat’s been solid,” said Tennent coach Robert Mulville. “For a sophomore he’s doing a real good job of knowing what his role is. We tell him, ‘You’re our shooter. So get your feet set, be patient when you get it, and if you miss, just shoot again.’”
McCauley had 15 points after halftime and 17 overall.
In the fourth, Ryan scored four points to put the game out of reach. He had nine overall and played three quarters, the most he has all season. Ryan is still going through physical therapy to repair a herniated disc he suffered during Tennent’s football season.
“We are a different team when he’s in there,” said Mulville.
Sophomore point guard Anthony Woodard added five points for Tennent, including a key three-point play in the final minutes.
Warren led Neshaminy with 11 points. Frances Robles dropped nine and Eric Rotteveel and Zach Tredway each had six.
The win was Tennent’s second straight after starting the season 0-5. Alston believes it can be a springboard.
“I think we are going to have a lot of momentum coming into Tuesday,” said Alston. “We are just going to have to get that win.”
Tennent (2-5, 1-2 SOL) plays CR South Tuesday at 7 p.m. Neshaminy (0-4, 0-3 SOL) hosts CR North.
William Tennent 9-7-15-15 46
Neshaminy 9-9-10-8 36
SOL Continental
Hatboro-Horsham 28, Central Bucks East 25
Hatboro-Horsham coach Ed Enoch said it best.
“It was not a pretty basketball game,” said Enoch. “Both teams didn’t shoot the ball great. Every shot was on a premium. Long possessions.”
Enoch did credit the defenses.
“Both teams played very, very hard defensively,” he said. “Give credit to them. They played a really good defensive basketball game. They took us out of what we wanted to do and we missed some shots we normally make.”
The coach also said that these games are common in the SOL Continental.
“When you play in our league, a lot of games are like this. Low scoring, defensive-minded, value every possession, and steal it at the end,” said Enoch.
Hatboro-Horsham will take it. The Hatters (4-2, 3-0 SOL) bus to Quakertown Tuesday for a 7 p.m. start. CB East (4-2, 1-2 SOL) plays at Central Bucks South on the same night and time.
North Penn 77, Quakertown 69
North Penn had lost three of four. The Knights’ captains, guards Matt Pickford and JJ Melchior, were particularly dismayed about their last loss, a 49-44 slog Tuesday against CB East.
“They didn’t feel we played with a tremendous amount of energy at East,” said North Penn coach John Conrad.
On Wednesday afternoon at practice, Pickford and Melchior stood up in front of their teammates.
“They talked about how it’s too short of a season not to play with max effort every night,” Conrad said.
The other Knights players responded.
“They played with a lot of energy tonight,” said Conrad. “They played hard all the way through.”
Melchior paced the Knights with 24 points, including five threes. Noah Kwortnik had 12, Derek Heiserman had 10, and Pickford and Reece Udinski chipped in nine each.
“JJ shot exceptionally well. He played well all around. He didn’t just shoot well,” said Conrad. “I keep telling him if he rebounds and takes care of basketball, everything else will come.”
Griffin Schmidt, JR Grimmage, and Charles Ervin led Quakertown, combining for 57, Schmidt with 27, Grimmage with 20, Ervin with 10.
The Panthers scored 29 points in the fourth quarter, cutting a 17-point deficit to eight when the final buzzer sounded.
“That’s way too many points,” said Conrad. “They kept playing. They played all the way through.”
North Penn (3-3, 1-2 SOL) welcomes Central Bucks West Tuesday at 7 p.m. Quakertown (1-5, 0-3 SOL) battles Hatboro-Horsham on the same night and time.
North Penn 18-19-19-21 77
Quakertown 17-10-13-29 69
North Penn: Justin Cueto 5, Matt Pickford 9, Lance Lindsay-Ford 4, Ricky Johns 2, Reece Udinski 9, JJ Melchior 24 Derek Heiserman 10, Noah Kwortnik 12.
Quakertown: Ty Harrison 2, JR Grimmage 20, Branden Lewis 5, Nick Drosnock 2, Wynder 3, Charles Ervin 10, Griffin Schmidt 27.
Pennridge 61, Central Bucks South 46
Pennridge rode a balanced attack and bounced back from its first loss of the season Tuesday night.
The Rams trailed by one at halftime (26-25) but outscored CB South by 16 in the second half, opening up a 42-35 lead after three quarter and then outscoring the Titans 19-11 in the fourth quarter.
Dan Long paced the Rams with 18 points, as usual getting to the line a lot, shooting 8-of-9 from the stripe. Marksman Ryan Kinky posted 12 points on four treys.
Devon Balmer and Stephen Lowry had nine and eight, respectively, while Kyle Yoder and Ryan Cuthbert each scored six.
Pennridge made seven threes as a team.
Tim Waddington was the only the Titans player in double figures, scoring 11. Alex Karras added nine, Ryan Joerger posted seven, Chris Hones scored six, and Tom Doyle had five.
Pennridge (5-1, 2-1 SOL) plays Souderton Tuesday night. CB South (3-4, 1-2 SOL) battles CB East on the same night and time.
Pennridge 10-15-17-19 61
Central Bucks South 11-15-9-11 46
Central Bucks South: Alex Karras 9, Nate Robinson 4, Tommy Doyle 5, Dan Tecce 2, Nate Johnston 2, Ryan Joerger 7, Tim Waddington 11, Chris Hones 6.
Pennridge: Devon Balmer 9, Dan Long 18, Stephen Lowry 8, Ryan Kinky 12, Kyle Yoder 6, Ryan Cuthbert 6, Max Wagner 2.
Central Bucks West 71, Souderton 59
Cal Reichwein’s double-double propelled the Bucks to their third straight win to open league play.
Reichwein had 17 points and 10 rebounds, helping CB West overcome a 26-point effort by Souderton’s Tracy Simsick.
Luke Irons also scored 17 for the Bucks, and Erich Hohlenleitner added 12. Bill Power added nine points and five rebounds, and Jake Reichwein was next in line with eight.
No other player on Souderton scored more than seven points. Mike Bealer had the seven-count. Ty Salone pitched in six.
The Bucks opened up 13-8 lead after one quarter and took a 34-29 advantage into halftime. The Indians pulled to within 47-44 after three quarters, but the Bucks closed it out with a 24-13 tear.
CB West (5-1, 3-0 SOL) goes to North Penn Tuesday for a 7 p.m. start. Souderton (3-4, 1-2 SOL) plays Pennridge.
Central Bucks West 13-21-13-24 71
Souderton 8-21-15-13 57
Central Bucks West: Luke Irons 17, Cal Reichwein 17, Bill Power 9, Erich Hohlenleitner 12, Connor Lynch 5, Jake Reichwein 8, Collin MacAdams 3.
Souderton: Mike Bealer 7, Ty Salone 6, Connor Cartwright 2, David Brush 5, Tracy Simsick 26, Ian Beardsley 3, Noah Horas 2, Connor Lemon 4, Austin Eberhart 4.
About the Author
