On a basketball team with its share of star quality players, Matt McCloskey and Hunter Stevens could easily get lost in the shuffle.
They could, but they certainly don’t.
McCloskey, the starting two guard for Council Rock North, is the Indians’ defensive stopper while Stevens – who measures in at 6-7 – provides matchup problems for opponents in the paint. Both have been unsung heroes in Rock North’s perfect 5-0 start in SOL play (9-1 overall).
“Honestly, everybody is chipping in a little bit,” coach Derek Wright said, going on to laud the contributions of McCloskey. “Even though Matt is probably our fifth scorer in terms of average, he has been guarding the other team’s best offensive player every game, and we have played some really good teams with some really talented people. He’s done a great job.
“He’s very consistent on the defensive end, and offensively, if you forget about him, he can hurt you. He’s somebody that really has not been given some of the attention he deserves in terms of what he has given us.”
Stevens, meanwhile, has put up modest numbers off the bench for the Indians, but according to Wright, he is a player that understands and fills his role.
“He has been great,” the Indians’ coach said. “At 6-7, he’s long and athletic. He really gives us something different when he comes into the game, which is what you want from your bench people.
“He’s doing a great job rebounding the ball, disrupting things offensively for the other teams, and when we’ve gotten him the ball, he has been pretty efficient. He really fit into his role nicely.”
Last season, McCloskey quietly contributed off the bench for the Indians. This year he is averaging seven points and two assists a game, but defense is his forte.
“That’s what we pride ourselves on – the halfcourt defense,” he said. “I’ve always loved defense ever since I was little. They always put me on kids and told me, ‘Don’t let them touch the ball.’ I love it.”
Both McCloskey and Hunter are program players.
“I’ve been playing basketball since I was a young kid, so being part of this team with coach Wright and all the other players I’ve known since I was younger and being as successful as we are this season – it’s been a great time,” Hunter said.
While McCloskey and Hunter have quietly contributed, some of their teammates have been putting up big numbers. Arron Goodman is averaging 20 points and eight rebounds while point guard Aaron Morgan is averaging 13 points and five assists.
Throw in John Raymon’s 10 points and eight rebounds and Charlie Anastasi’s eight points and eight rebounds a contest, and it’s easy to understand why the Indians have been successful. But this team’s success is about more than just the numbers its players are putting up each game.
This team, according to the Stevens, shares a special camaraderie.
“Last year, we started off rocky, but then we came together as a team and played a lot better,” he said. “This year even more so – in the offseason, we played in a summer league and did really well. During the offseason, we did workouts, we went to camps, and it really helped us come together and bond as a team.”
“It’s great to be a part of it,” McCloskey added. “Obviously, we’re winning a lot of games, but we’re having a lot of fun too.
“We’re staying focused on every game, and it’s just fun to be a part of.”
Bensalem has been the Indians’ focus since defeating neighboring Council Rock South on Wednesday night. The Owls enter Friday night’s showdown against the Indians with an identical 5-0 mark in SOL play (9-2 overall).
“Honestly, I think we should be undefeated,” Bensalem senior Calvin Brown said. “We lost to (Archbishop) Ryan and Holy Ghost. I thought those were two games we should have won.
“If I don’t foul out at Ghost, I think we have a good chance of winning that game, and our Ryan game – that was our first game of the season, and I don’t think we played our best.”
The Redskins are just a week removed from a thrilling win over previously undefeated Neshaminy. While the win may have shocked many in the basketball community, Bensalem’s players insist they were not in that number.
“Like we do every year – we had high expectations for ourselves,” senior Alex Agyedu said. “We knew we could play with Neshaminy and Council Rock North.
“We knew they were going to get most of the attention, and we kind of wanted to play under the radar, but we knew we could play with them.”
The Owls’ days of playing under the radar officially ended with their win over the Redskins, and the Indians are prepared for a tough test.
“What’s most important is that we remember what our identity is and what we have to do well first,” Wright said. “We always rely on our defensive rebounding first, and I think Bensalem is a team – if you don’t defend and rebound well, they will take advantage of it.
“With their size, they present a challenge for us inside. They’ll probably be as tough a match for us inside as we have seen this year. We’ll certainly have to win that war in the paint.”
To win that war in the paint, the Indians will count on Stevens as well as Raymon and Anastasi, who both are listed at 6-6, to counter Bensalem’s towering middles – Calvin Brown (6-8) and Chris McMullin (6-5). The duo combines for 17 points, 15 rebounds and three blocks.
“The key to our success has mostly been our big guys – Calvin, Chris and Dovanta (Newkirk) have been playing well for us,” Agyedu said. “Basically, we’re getting it in to the big guys and letting them do what they do.
“At 6-8 and 6-6, they’re guys who can jump out of the building. That’s basically been the key to our success. If teams try and stop the inside game, we have shooters – Leo Vincent and Austin (Nyekan). Me – I just drive and slash and do what I do.”
Vincent averages 10 points and three assists while Agyedu averages nine points and five rebounds.
Coach John Mullin is hoping his team’s height will work to its advantage defensively against a talented Rock North squad.
“Teams have to double down that don’t have the size, and that opens up the arc for their other kids, and they can shoot the ball well,” the Owls’ coach said. “Hopefully, we won’t have to do as much of that, and we can guard the arc.”
According to McCloskey, the Indians’ game plan is simple.
“We have to stop their big guys,” the Indians’ junior guard said. “They have a kid that can shoot three’s, and we have to shut him down. We have to contain them. We can’t let them score at will. We have to make everything hard for them.”
While defense will unquestionably be key on both sides, rebounding will also be a factor in determining a winner.
“Height is definitely the big difference between the teams in the league,” Brown said. “Whoever wins the boards and gets the most shots will have a pretty good chance of winning the game.
“We’re both defensive teams. We’ll see what happens.
If the Owls needed a wake-up call, they got one on Tuesday when they escaped with a 46-44 win over Abington.
“Going into that Abington game, we thought we should win by a significant amount of points to a team that’s not highly ranked in our league,” Brown said. “Not getting a win like that put us back in our place.”
Mullin credited the leadership of Brown and Agyedu for their role in his team’s success.
“Chris McMullin has been doing a very good job on the boards,” the Owls’ coach said. “We were down in a couple of games, and our bench has done a nice job. It’s been a team oriented effort.
“We had some ups and downs. We lost a kid we were counting on, but kids have stepped up.”
One of those players who has stepped up is Newkirk – the Owls’ 6-3 forward.
“Devonta, in my view, is the ‘x’ factor,” Mullin said. “People don’t really know about him. He’s a football kid, and he’s really getting his basketball legs. He’s exciting, to say the least.”
It’s just one more weapon for an Owls team that has come together quite nicely so far this season.
“I think we’re trusting each other,” Brown said. “We know what each other can do offensively, and we rely on each other to do it. I think we mesh really well together.”
Don’t expect the Indians to take the Owls lightly. They haven’t forgotten last year’s thrilling 46-45 win over Bensalem in a district playoff game that sent the Owls home for the season.
“It’s definitely going to be one of our toughest games of the season,” Stevens said. “We have been playing some good competition like Neumann-Goretti and Montrose Christian to help us prepare.
“We just have to play how we can play and stick together.”
“We know everyone is out for us,” McCloskey added. “They want us to lose, but we’re all about staying focused, taking it game by game, not overlooking any team, doing what we have to do and playing our basketball.
“Bensalem has won some big games. They’re a really good team. We can’t take any team lightly.”
Tip-off at Council Rock North is at 7 p.m.
Just the Facts
This year’s record: Council Rock North 5-0 (9-1 overall), Bensalem 5-0 SOL (9-2 overall)
Last year’s record: Council Rock North 22-6, Bensalem 15-10
Last meeting: March 2, 2010 – Council Rock North 46, Bensalem 45
Last game: Council Rock North 66, Council Rock South 50 (Arron Goodman – 23 points; Aaron Morgan – 14 points; Charlie Anastasi – 10 points)
Bensalem 46, Abington 44 (Leo Vincent – 12 points; Calvin Williams – 11 points)
Council Rock North
Projected starters and season averages
#2 – Matt McCloskey (6-1, Jr., Guard) 7 PPG, 2 assists
#5 – Aaron Morgan (5-10, Jr., Guard) 13 PPG, 5 assists, 3 rebounds
#10 – John Raymon (6-6, Sr., Forward) 10 PPG, 8 rebounds, 2 assists
#22- Arron Goodman (6-4, Jr., Guard/Forward) 20 PPG, 8 rebounds, 2 assists
#23-Charlie Anastasi (6-6, Sr., Forward) 8 PPG, 8 rebounds, 3 assists
The rest of the Indians:
#3 – Liam Kane (5-0, Sr., Guard)
#4 – Kevin Bogucki (6-1, Sr., Guard)
#12 – Owen Rice (5-8, Jr., Guard)
#21 – Alex Corry (6-0, Jr., Guard)
#24 – Alex Jordan (6-2, Soph., Guard/Forward)
#32 – Sam Ryan (6-3, Jr., Forward)
#42 – Jordan Chernin (6-0, Sr., Guard) 2 PPG, 2 rebounds
#50 – Hunter Stevens (6-7, Sr., Forward) 2 PPG, 2 rebounds
Bensalem
Projected starters
#3 – Austin Nyekan (5-11, Soph., Guard)
#10 – Leo Vincent (5-10, Soph., Guard) 10 points, 3 assists
#21 – Alex Agyedu (6-1, Sr., Forward) 9 points, 5 rebounds
#24 – Chris McMullin (6-5, Sr., Forward) 7 points, 7 rebounds
#32 – Calvin Brown (6-8, Sr., Center) 10 points, 8 rebounds, 3 blocks
The rest of the Owls:
#4 – Feriz Saade (5-11, Sr., Guard)
#11 – Julian Hyden (6-0, Jr., Guard)
#20 – Dovanta Newkirk (6-3, Jr., Forward)
#23 – Quancine Wilson (6-2, Sr., Forward)
#24 – Chris McMullin (6-5, Sr., Forward)
#30 – Terrence Snetter (5-9, Jr., Guard)
#33 – Kyle Kirgan (5-11, Soph., Guard)
#40 – Chris Averona (5-9, Jr., Guard)
#44 – Deion Jones (5-8, Soph., Guard)
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