By Scott Huff
The long and winding road through the PIAA District One playoffs has been completed and a foursome of Quad-A teams from the Suburban One League will compete for the coveted state championship.
The Facts and Only the Facts
Norristown won the district title with a 52-49 win over Penn Wood in the district final played at Villanova University. The Eagles (22-5) will ‘host’ Elizabethtown (24-5) at Wissahickon High School on Saturday at 2:30 p.m.
Pennsbury lost to Conestoga 54-52 in a ‘seeding’ game and was awarded the #4 seed from District One. The Falcons (22-5) will meet North Catholic (17-8) in a first round state contest to be played at Council Rock South High School on Saturday at 1 p.m.
Plymouth Whitemash also lost its ‘seeding’ game to Chester, 65-59, and was given the #6 seed from District One. The Colonials (22-5) will play at St. Joseph’s Prep in Philadelphia and will meet Southern Philadelphia (16-11) in a 1 p.m. tip-off.
Central Bucks South will begin its first state basketball journey as the #8 seed after the Titans lost in overtime to Lower Merion, 56-53. CB South will meet Roman Catholic on Saturday at 2:30 p.m. The game will be played at Archbishop Ryan High School in Philadelphia.
Coaches Corner
Jason Campbell is the head coach at Central Bucks South High School.
His Titans are the SOL Continental Conference champions and earned a berth in the state playoffs with District One playoff wins over Avon Grove (68-52) and Glen Mills (51-44).
However, South lost its next three games in the district playoffs. The Titans lost 56-37 to Pennsbury and followed with a pair of tough losses to both Chester (59-52) and Lower Merion (56-53).
“Our guys are really disappointed with the outcomes of the last couple of games,” said Campbell. “But it really doesn’t take away from what we have done so far this year as a team.
“All the teams in the state tournament begin with a clean slate,” added Campbell. “We proved that we could play with both Chester and Lower Merion, and those programs are among the best in the tournament.
“We have to stay mentally tough and control situations we can control,” continued Campbell. “We have a strong group of senior leaders, and we have to be ready to play the next game.”
And that next game will be against a Roman Catholic team that finished as the best team in District 12 and features a pair of Division One players in Maalik Wayns and Rakeem Brookins.
Jim Donofrio is the head coach at Plymouth Whitemarsh High School.
His Colonials gained a berth in the state tournament with district playoff wins over Methacton (69-55) and Neshaminy (63-47).
District One title hopes ended with a 43-34 loss to Conestoga, but PW bounced back with a 51-46 overtime win over Lower Merion. The 65-59 loss to Chester closed the playoff books.
“When you make the state playoffs, the year becomes a marathon,” said Donofrio. “It is both a mental test as well as a physical test. You have to get the players energized – you don’t want them to get tired of playing basketball.
“As a coach you almost become a psychologist and a motivator,” added Donofrio. “It can be a real challenge to get teams to bounce back from tough losses.
“I still remember that back in 1997, when we won the state title, I remember thinking that we were only two teams in the state that still needed to have practice,” continued Donofrio. “And that was a neat feeling.”
This week Plymouth Whitemarsh will prepare to play a Southern Philadelphia team that finished as the second place finisher in District 12. The Rams lost in the finals to Roman Catholic, 60-48, and are led by both Shaquille Gaskins and Deshon Minnis.
Frank Sciolla is the head coach at Pennsbury High School.
His Falcons earned their state playoff wings with a pair of blowout wins in the first two rounds of District One play. Pennsbury routed both Council Rock South (76-45) and Owen J Roberts (70-48).
The Falcons advanced to the district semifinal round with a convincing 56-37 victory over CB South, but Pennsbury was jettisoned from district title hopes with a 60-53 loss to Norristown. The Falcons closed the district playoff run with a 54-52 loss to Conestoga.
“We lost to a couple of teams in Norristown and Conestoga that really have an understanding of what we do,” said Sciola. “And both of them are very good basketball teams. I think we are going to bounce back in good shape.
“If we don’t improve the way we have been playing defensively, we could cash our chips in early,” added Sciola. “We also need to get something inside offensively, if we are going to be respected. We have to execute.
“North Catholic is as talented as any team in the Catholic League with four Division One players,” continued Sciola. “They are a lot more athletic than we are, and we are going to have to make them play at our pace.”
North Catholic is the # 3 seed from District 12 and features the D-1 quartet of Rakeem Christmas, Woody Redding, Jack O’Neill and Mike Terry.
Michael Evans is the head coach at Norristown Area High School.
His Eagles opened District One play with a 65-55 win over Spring-Ford and earned a berth in the state tournament with a 62-41 win over West Chester Rustin.
Norristown then ‘upset’ - in consecutive games - the likes of Chester (61-59), Pennsbury (60-53) and Penn Wood (52-49) to earn the District One title.
“This has been a team all year that has worked hard, and then worked harder,” said Evans. “They believe in each other, they have a great chemistry with each other, and they just like each other.
“We beat three great programs in Chester, Pennsbury, and Penn Wood to win a district title,” added Evans. “That is something to be proud of, and something that can never be taken away from them.
“We wanted to win a league title and a district title, and we did both of those,” continued Evans. “There is one very big goal left.”
Norristown will meet Elizabethtown in the first round of the state tournament. The Bears finished as the seventh place finisher in District Three.
SuburbanOneSports.Com PIAA State Dream Team
Just for fun – if the rosters of Norristown, Pennsbury, Plymouth Whitemarsh and Central Bucks South could be merged into one roster – this would be one fantastic basketball team.
Introducing the starting lineup for Team SOL –
At guard – a senior – 6-foot, 3-inches – from Norristown High School – Khalif Wyatt.
At guard – a senior – 6-foot, 5 inches – from Pennsbury High School – Dalton Pepper.
At point guard – a senior – 5-foot, 11-inches – from Pennsbury High School – Eddie DiRugeris.
At forward – a senior – 6-foot, 9-inches – from Central Bucks South High School – Will Barrett.
At forward – a junior – 6-foot, 9 inches – from Plymouth Whitemarsh High School – C. J. Aiken.
The bench players would be –
From Norristown – Lorenzo Christmas and James Ramsey.
From Pennsbury – Jesse Krasna.
From Plymouth Whitemarsh – Jaylen Bond and Whis Grant.
From Central Bucks South – Mike Doty and Mike Pincus.
SuburbanOneSports.Com Great Eight
1. Norristown Eagles (22-5)
2. Pennsbury Falcons (22-5)
3. Plymouth Whitemarsh Colonials (22-5)
4. Central Bucks South Titans (21-6)
5. Central Bucks West Bucks (20-7)
6. Bensalem Owls (18-7)
7. Neshaminy Redskins (16-10)
8. Souderton Indians (15-10)
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