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When Jesse Krasna looks across the court in his team’s SOL opener at Council Rock North on Friday night, the Pennsbury senior is going to see his close friend and former AAU teammate Andrew Stress.
Krasna – whose Falcon squad takes a 58-game SOL winning streak into the game - knows exactly what Stress will be thinking.“We have always had a target on our back and this year even more so because we graduated so many seniors,” the Falcons’ senior guard said. “I remember Andrew telling me, ‘We’re going to get you when you don’t have Dalton.’ The time has come, so we’ll see what happens.”
Dalton, in this case, is all-everything guard Dalton Pepper, the AP’s Pennsylvania Player of the Year last year. The 2009 grad is now playing basketball for nationally-ranked West Virginia. The Falcons, meanwhile, have proven there is life after Dalton Pepper, notching a pair of impressive wins to open the season.
“It’s definitely different,” Krasna said. “My first three years I never really was asked to be a scorer because we had Dalton, so it was more my job to get him the ball.
“Now I have to get shots for myself as well as for other people on my team. It’s a lot more fun because I’m looking for my own offense, and I’m playing more aggressively.”
Krasna’s 26-point effort propelled Pennsbury to a 49-46 win over Simon Gratz in last Friday’s opener, a win that suggested the Falcons are not ready to relinquish their elite status just yet.
“Your expectations remain the same in that you always want to play well and win your games, but your approach is different because you have so many kids who have never been through this,” Pennsbury coach Frank Sciolla said. “The way we look at it is to be patient and teach them.
“Our goal is to be ready to roll Jan. 5. We set that as a date we think we will be able to click. We’ve changed our style of play, and we have a lot of football kids that weren’t with us at all in the offseason. We have to assimilate them into the program, and by then, I think we’ll feel good.
“It’s tough playing North this early because they’re so good. We would have loved to have this game in early January, but it’s here now, and what Derek (Wright) has – he has the kind of expectations that were on us the last several years.”
The Falcons, under Sciolla, have been the standard bearer for the SOL. Fifty-eight straight league wins and an 80-6 record in the league over the last six years speak for themselves.
“You have to have great respect for them – I know I do,” Indians’ coach Derek Wright said. “I have great respect for what coach Sciolla and his assistants do in preparing their guys.
“I have great respect for the program – they value how hard they play, and they value how unselfish they are. They play the right way. I know that’s something a lot of people say, but they do. They take a lot of pride in Pennsbury basketball, which you have to respect.“I told the guys yesterday – that is why you compete in high school sports to be able to compete against programs like that. You want to test the value and togetherness of your program against programs like Pennsbury. We’re grateful to be able to have the rivalry.”
The Indians, who are also 2-0 out of the gate, boast both plenty of size, and the Falcons – whose tallest starter is 6-1 Zak Kumor – hope to offset the Indians’ size advantage with some serious defensive pressure.
“Their strength is inside, and our strength is on the perimeter,” Krasna said. “We have a really fast team, so we’re going to try and get up and down the court fast – speed the game up a little bit.
“Defensively, last year we didn’t press fullcourt that much, but this year, we’re really taking advantage of our speed.”
Controlling the backboards, according to Wright, also will be key for the Indians.
“I think taking care of the ball and rebounding the ball will be most important for both teams,” the Indians’ coach said. “Based on their personnel, I think they’re hoping to pressure us.
“On their end, they’re going to need to rebound a little bit because of our size. I think the way those factors go in the game will be big.”
“We just have to play Council Rock North basketball,” Stress said. “We play together, we play unselfish, we rebound, we defend. It’s nothing more than that.
“We just have to stick to what we practice every day and make sure we execute what we need to execute and shut them down as much as we can.”
The Falcons are led by veteran guards Krasna and Dante Devine, who was the National Conference Player of the Year in football this fall. “When you have Jesse and Dante, you might have the best backcourt in the district,” Sciolla said. “They’re like the classic fire and ice combination.
“You have Devine with that emotional intensity and defensive pressure, and you have Krasna, who has the cool demeanor of a 70s Clint Eastwood movie. They play off each other really well.”
Also elevating his game for the Falcons this season is Kumor, who is averaging 8 points, six rebounds and three steals in two games. Rounding out the starting lineup will be sophomore Kieran Bolger (7 PPG) and junior Jay Jabat.
“Zak Kumor has played great,” Sciolla said. “At 6-1, he has to play center for us, and he battles. He’s very smart, very tough and he’s provided good leadership.”
The Indians – fresh off capturing the Hatter Tip-Off Tournament – are led by a trio of players who earned all-tournament status. Sophomore Arron Goodman (20.5 PPG) was the MVP while junior Charlie Anastasi (13 PPG) and sophomore point guard Aaron Morgan (11 PPG, 3.5 assists) also earned all-tournament status.
Stress - a first team all-league selection who is coming back from an ankle injury – and Tim Filer (6.5 PPG) round out the Indians’ starting lineup.
Wright is comfortable going nine deep on his bench and won’t hesitate to bring John Ramon (8.5 rebounds), Matt McCloskey, Nick Donofry and Ty Bostain into the games.
“We have guys who could probably be starters in a lot of programs, but they have accepted their roles, which we value a lot,” Wright said. “Every role is different, but every role is special. I think that could be the difference between us being good or okay and really having a great season.”
Rock North has the distinction of defeating Pennsbury 48-47 on Dec. 2, 2006, but it was not in league play since the two squads played in different conferences. The Falcons haven’t lost a league game since January 2005 when they fell to Neshaminy.
Stress – who along with Krasna has been a varsity player since he was a freshman – admits this rivalry is something special.
“Since my freshman year, it’s always been the biggest rivalry, the most hyped up game,” Stress said. “Everyone always circles it on their calendar and gets psyched up for it. We’re going to go out and play our hardest. It’s going to be a battle.
“Everyone is talking about it, everyone is excited. I’m anticipating a packed house. I don’t think I’ve ever been any more excited for a game – my senior year, first home game, first league game against Pennsbury, and I have several of my best friends on that team – Jesse Krasna and Zak Kumor. I’m pretty excited.”
Tip-off is scheduled for 7 p.m. at Council Rock North.
“I wish I was playing,” Wright said. “We’re excited. A Friday night home game is why you do all the things you do in the offseason.“It’s not the whole season for us – there’s still a long ways to go, but I’d be lying if I said it was just another game.”
No one, according to Sciolla, will be winning or losing a league title on Friday night, but the game could go a long way toward determining an early-season favorite in the National Conference.
“This is the best the league has been since the 98-99 season in terms of balance,” the Falcons’ coach said. “All we want to do is play well and get that experience and keep building. I wouldn’t normally give this answer. Most years I would say, ‘This is our chance to stake a claim,’ but with this group, we just truly want to get better.”
Just the Facts
Last year’s record: Pennsbury 24-6 SOL National Conference champions, Council Rock North 13-10
2009 record: Pennsbury 2-0, Council Rock North 2-0
Last meeting: January 16, 2009 – Pennsbury 67, Council Rock North 54 (Dalton Pepper scored 36 points)
Last game: Council Rock North 71, Upper Dublin 61 (Arron Goodman 19 pts., 8 rebounds, Charlie Anastasi 15 points; Aaron Morgan 12 points)
Pennsbury 58, Hatboro-Horsham 31 (Dante Devine 12 points, Zak Kumor 8 points, Jesse Krasna 8 points, Kieran Bolger 8 points)
Council Rock North
Projected starters and season averages:
#5 –Aaron Morgan (5-10, Soph., PG) 11 PPG, 3.5 assists
#22 - Arron Goodman (6-4, Soph., F) 20.5 PPG, 9.5 rebounds, 2.5 assists
#24 – Andrew Stress (6-3, Sr., G) 5 PPG
#23 – Charlie Anastasi (6-5, Jr., F) 13 PPG, 4 rebounds
#42 – Tim Filer (6-1, Sr., G) 5.5 PPG 2.5 rebounds
The rest of the Indians:
#10 – John Raymon (6-5, Jr., F) 6.5 PPG 8.5 rebounds
#2 – Matt McCloskey (6-0, Soph., G)
#3 – Liam Kane (5-10, Jr., G)
#4 – Kevin Bogucki (6-1, Jr., G)
#15 – Jordan Chernin (5-10, Soph., G)
#21 – Nick Donofy (6-2, Sr., G)
# 32 – Ty Bostain (6-5, Sr., F)
#40 - Bill McAlister (6-1, Soph., G)
#50 – Hunter Stevens (6-7, Jr., F)
Pennsbury
Projected starters and season averages:
#4 – Jesse Krasna (5-11, Sr., PG) 17.0 PPG, 6 rebounds, 3 assists
#5 – Dante Devine (6-0, Sr., G) 7 PPG, 2.5 assists
#12 – Kieran Bolger (6-0, Soph., G) 7 PPG
#25 – Zak Kumor (6-1, Sr., F) 8 PPG 6 rebounds, 3 steals
#42 – Jay Jabat (6-0, Jr., F)
The rest of the Falcons:
#10 – Ryan Christy (6-0, Soph., F)
#21 – Mike Ciotti (5-7, Sr., G)
#22 – Andrew Long (5-10, Sr., G)
#23 – Chris Liccione (5-9, Sr., G)
#32 – Kris Hassell (6-1, Jr., F)
#33 – Chris Glennie (6-0, Jr., F)
#34 – Zach Sibel (6-0, Jr., F)
#40 – Jimmy Higgins (5-10, Jr., G)
#55 – Dan Ransom (6-8, Soph., C)
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