Tuesday night’s Council Rock North/Harry S. Truman game is an SOL Featured Game, sponsored by the Rock North Booster Club. Check back for a complete game story.
Council Rock North had itself a dream season last year.
The Indians rolled through the SOL National Conference without a loss and advanced to the District One AAAA title game before seeing their season end in the PIAA Class AAAA’s Elite Eight. The Indians wrote their names in the school’s record books, losing just three times in 30 games.
But that was then, and this is now.
“Last season is last season,” senior Aaron Morgan said. “We have to move on from that. It was a good season, the most fun I ever had in my life. I loved all those guys, but the reality is we have to move on.”
The ‘moving on’ has not been without some bumps along the way. The Indians dropped three of their first four games this season, a stretch that included losses to Constitution, Boys Latin and Abington.
“It happens – you lose some and you win some,” Morgan said. “We had to move on from it because every game is a different game. You have to come back stronger the next game.”
“It’s always going to be tough when you lose because no one is going to be happy regardless,” senior Matt McCloskey added. “You have to find out what is wrong and (stop) pointing fingers, and once we started winning and we started clicking as a team, people fell into their roles and found out what they needed to do for us to win.
“I think in the beginning of the year we were trying to find that. We have a lot of kids who didn’t play last year, and they had to adapt to the system. Once we did that, we started to get wins, and hopefully that will carry throughout the season.”
The Indians have won three straight since their 1-3 start.
“For some of our returning guys, they put a little extra pressure on themselves and at the same time, they also needed to focus in on what was most important – which isn’t necessarily the expectations and the wins and losses but just getting better as a team,” coach Derek Wright said. “In a day and age where you want instant gratification in everything – for a teenager to be able to grasp the idea that’s it’s going to be a different process and it’s going to take time is difficult, but I’m glad we scheduled the way we did early in the season.
“We got a good test of where we were with some really tough non-league games. I think it made us aware we have a lot of road to go to get better.”
Perhaps the most difficult loss to swallow was the loss to Abington that brought an end to the Indians’ 35-game winning streak.
“Although we knew that would be a very tough game, it was still disappointing to come out with a loss,” Wright said. “We had to deal with some adversity as a team, not just on the floor but off the floor.
“I really like how our captains responded – Aaron Morgan and Matt McCloskey responded well. I think they’ve modeled what we want to see in our leaders in practice and in the locker room.”
The senior captains say they are following in the footsteps of some outstanding leaders.
“Last year we had leaders like Charlie (Anastasi) on the team, and that was a big help to me because he was more like my role model, and he showed me the right things to do,” Morgan said. “He was always the one that kept everything in perspective – play same way all the time, don’t try to be something you’re not. We’re going to try and bring that same kind of mentality this year.
“Charlie helped me become a better leader, and I’ve tried to use that this year to help everyone else see how successful we can be.”
“Coming up through the system, we had leaders before us,” McCloskey added. “They set a good example, and I think we just stepped into that, but it was strange because we always had someone ahead of us.”
While Anastasi is no longer there to provide a steadying force and keep everyone on an even keel, John Raymon is no longer around to bang in the paint, and there are others who contributed as well. But under the leadership of Morgan and McCloskey, this year’s squad is developing its own identity.
“Last year was unique in that it was the culmination of a season that a lot of players were looking forward to,” Wright said. “So many of those guys knew each other for so long and had played together for so long, and I think early on in the season we were very much ahead of most teams, and that’s the reason we got off to such a really good start.
“This year we knew would be different just because we knew we were going to have a different mix of guys and a lot of teams would be gunning for us, and there would be a little different style of play than what we were able to do last year.
“Although our expectations are still the same as last year, the process has been different, and the good thing is I think our guys are heading in the right direction.”
Several varsity newcomers have stepped into prominent roles.
“Alex Jordan and Kyle McCloskey have really started to feel comfortable in their roles,” Wright said of his junior forwards. “Alex Corry has been great off the bench for us, really giving us some toughness that we needed, and Arron Goodman has put up some really big numbers in the past few games.”
Goodman is coming off an MVP performance in the Athletes Helping Athletes Tournament the Indians won last week on their home court. Sophomore Rip Engel, a recent addition to the roster, has also made significant contributions.
“He’s done a real nice job fitting in, and our captains have really accepted him, and our team is noticing that the quicker he fits in, the better we can be,” Wright said of Engel.
While the varsity newcomers are finding their niches, Matt McCloskey is just happy to be back in the lineup after being sidelined during the Indians’ magical playoff run last season with a torn labrum in his left shoulder. He underwent surgery on March 7 and did not get the green light to return to action until six full months of rehab.
“The most frustrating part is I’m really not going to be fine for a year or two as far as getting my full range of motion back, but all I have to be right now is good enough to play the rest of the season because it’s my last year,” McCloskey said.
Both senior captains believe the Indians have the potential to succeed this season.
“We have all the pieces this year, and we could be just as good as last year, if not better,” Morgan said. “It’s all about coming together.
“Last year we were a family. We just wanted to win – everybody wanted to win. We didn’t care about personal accolades or stats. We just wanted to gets W’s every time we went out on the court.
“That’s what we have to work to get better at this year. We had a rough little stretch where we lost three games, but we bounced back and won three in a row. It’s just trusting each other. Once you trust each other, then you’re a family and then you know what to expect out of each other. I think we’re getting it.”
The Indians will face Truman on Tuesday night in a game that is the first of three straight home games.
“Those will be huge games for us,” McCloskey said. “We’re expected to win at home, and if we can win at home, we’re solidifying our run at the title in our conference.
“Our loss to Abington put a damper on that, and people were questioning us. I think it will give us some momentum if we can get three big home wins. It will get us back in the hunt.”
And for now, that’s good enough for an Indian squad with decidedly high expectations.
Just the Facts:
This year’s record: Council Rock North 1-1 SOL (4-3 overall), Harry S. Truman 0-2 SOL (3-5 overall)
Last year’s record: Council Rock North 27-3 (14-0 SOL National Conference champions), Harry S. Truman 8-14 (4-10 SOL)
Last meeting: Feb. 3, 2011 – Council Rock North 67, Harry S. Truman 41 (CR North: Charlie Anastasi – 14 points, Arron Goodman – 13 points, Aaron Morgan – 10 points; Harry S. Truman: Shaun Miller – 15 points)
Last game: Council Rock North 64, Cheltenham 53 (Arron Goodman – 22 points, 15 rebounds, Athletes Helping Athletes Tournament MVP; Aaron Morgan – 20 points); Harry S. Truman 44, Lansdale Catholic 39 (Merdic Green – 18 points, 11 rebounds; Mike Mintah – 7 points, 6 rebounds, 6 steals)
Council Rock North
Projected starters:
#2 – Matt McCloskey (6-1, Sr., Guard)
#5 – Aaron Morgan (5-11, Sr., Guard)
#22 – Arron Goodman (6-4, Sr., Guard/Forward)
#24 – Alex Jordan (6-3, Jr., Guard/Forward)
#32 – Kyle McCloskey (6-6, Jr. Guard/Forward)
The rest of the Indians:
#4 – Josh McWilliams (5-9, Soph., Guard)
#10 – Alex Corry (6-1, Sr., Guard/Forward)
#12 – Ross Wilson (5-10, Soph., Guard)
#14 – Brandon Knotts (5-10, Jr., Guard)
#15 – Chris Rowland (5-11, Soph., Guard)
#21 – Owen Rice (5-8, Sr., Guard)
#23 – Jason Cavell (5-8, Sr., Guard)
#31 – Rip Engel (5-10, Soph., Guard)
#40 – Ryan Baker (6-1, Jr., Forward)
#50 – Tyler Madison (6-4, Soph., Forward)
Harry S. Truman
#1 – Daiquan Ashley (5-8, Sr., Point Guard)
#3 – Larry Winton (6-0, Sr., Guard)
#4 – Pat Stone (5-10, Soph., Guard)
#10 – Brandon Amparo (6-0, Jr., Guard)
#11 – Tyrice Harris (6-0, Sr., Guard)
#12 – Merdic Green (6-3, Jr., Guard)
#15 – Tyrone Roberts (5-8, Sr., Guard)
#22 – Robert Becton (6-4, Sr., Forward)
#25 – Kenny Osborne (6-4, Sr., Forward)
#32 – Mike Mintah (6-4, Sr., Forward/Guard)
#33 – Daniel Harris (6-6, Sr.)
#34 – Lamont Waters (5-8, Sr., Guard)
#52 – Sharif Clinton (6-6, Jr., Center)
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