More memories to be made in the next few weeks
For more than two months, all of the focus in a high school boys basketball season is on the league. The first goal of every team that begins practice in mid-November is to win the league. But the funny thing about Lehigh Valley-area boys basketball is that the most vivid memories any season provides is often not in the course of what happens over the first 10 weeks of a season, but what happens over 10 days of districts.
The six District 11 boys basketball tournaments begin this weekend and what happens between this weekend and next weekend is likely to provide some of the memories that will define the 2023-24 season. Whether it’s a stunning upset, a spectacular individual performance or a buzzer-beater for a win, what happens at this time of year seems to resonate much longer than what happened in December or January:
Here are 11 memories of special District 11 games that stand out for someone who has been at a lot of tournament games since the early 1980s:
March 8, 1986: While Allentown Central Catholic would go on to win its second state title in three years in 1986, Emmaus had its own special moment. The Green Hornets got 21 points from 6-foot-7 center Matt Roberts and rallied from a 12-point deficit to beat Dieruff 54-44 at Stabler Arena for its first, and still only, district title. March 6, 1987: Tom Kresge scored 42 points, including the game-winning basket with a second left, to lead Lehighton to a 64-62 win over defending champion Allentown Central Catholic in the District 11 3A final at Stabler Arena. The win was the 16th straight for Lehighton. Kresge would finish his career with 2,234 points and play college ball at Lafayette.
March 7, 1987: One night after Kresge’s game-winner against ACCHS, Liberty got its own game-winning basket at the buzzer at Stabler Area from Mike Delgrosso to give the Hurricanes a 57-56 win over favored Allen. It capped a remarkable tournament run by the Hurricanes who won three games by a combined five points. It was Liberty’s first district gold since 1961.
Feb. 28, 1992: In one of the most memorable games in District 11 playoff history, Easton’s L.J. Bennett sparks two comebacks and helps the Red Rovers outlast Nazareth 92-87 in double overtime in a Class 4A quarterfinal at Rockne Hall. First, Bennett scores eight points in the final 52 seconds of the fourth quarter to help the Red Rovers erase a 74-64 deficit with 1:04 left and force overtime. Then with Nazareth leading 83-79 in the first overtime, Bennett scores four of his 29 points to force a second extra session. Kevin Fitzpatrick led Easton with 30 points.
March 6, 1993: Freedom’s Luis Oritz hit two late free throws and the Patriots stunned Eastern Pennsylvania Conference champion Whitehall 37-36 in a 4A quarterfinal at Dieruff. The Zephyrs had their season, which included a holiday tournament title at the “Slam Dunk to the Beach” in Rehoboth Beach, Delaware, come to an abrupt end thanks in part to a sprained ankle that kept star player Pete Lisicky out of action.
March 1, 1997: In one of the longest district championship games ever, Jerry Lloyd’s 3-pointer with a second left in the fifth overtime gave Whitehall a 58-56 win over Parkland in the Class 4A title
game at Lafayette. Lloyd finished with a game-high 25 points.
March 1, 2000: Dieruff ’s Anthony Ross scored 39 points to lead his team to a 63-54 District 11 4A semifinal win over Pottsville. The Huskies would lose to Adam Lane and Tim Massaquoi and Parkland in the district finals, but would bounce back to upset state-ranked Harrisburg in the PIAA tournament. Ross finished his career with 1,419 points and was The Morning Call’s player of the year. Feb. 23, 2002: In another quarterfinal at Dieruff, Emmaus’ Adam Kaunitz hit a 3-point shot from the corner with 1.2 seconds left and the Green Hornets stunned unbeaten Parkland 46-53 in overtime. The Trojans had become the first area team since Allentown High in 1957 to start a season with a 25-0 record. March 2, 2002: Allen’s Ray Barbosa, now the coach at Executive Education and the winner of seven straight district titles as a coach, scored 43 points and became his school’s all-time leading scorer in a thrilling district final. He tied the game on a 3-pointer with 3.8 seconds left in the first overtime and then hit a bank shot for the game-winner in the second overtime as Allen beat Aaron Gray and Emmaus 71-69 and completed a miraculous comeback after starting the season 5-12.
March 5, 2011: Jalen Cannon scored 22 points and grabbed 20 rebounds and the Canaries held Liberty star Darrun Hilliard to six points in a 45-35 win for the District 11 4A championship. Liberty had beaten Allen twice in the regular season, both at the buzzer. Both Cannon and Hilliard would go on to stellar collegiate careers and professional careers. March 1, 2017: In one of the biggest nights in local basketball history, the District 11 6A semifinals are held at Allentown’s PPL Center on a night when several of the area’s best stars and 1,000-point scorers — Sam Iorio, Talek Williams, Tyrese Martin, David and Matt Kachelries and more — were on the same court. Pocono Mountain West beat Emmaus 79-76 and Parkland knocked off No. 1 seed and Eastern Pennsylvania Conference champ Allen 62-58 but the most memorable number was the stunning crowd of 7,630 paid that showed up to see the games.
The schedule
CLASS 6A BOYS
Byes: No. 1 Parkland (20-5), No. 2 Emmaus (19-6) Quarterfinals, Saturday
No. 3 Liberty (18-6) vs. No. 6 Nazareth (12-11), 4 p.m. at Easton
No. 4 Northampton (14-9) vs. No. 5 Stroudsburg (13-9), 4 p.m. at Allen
Semifinals, Feb. 28
Parkland vs. Northampton/ Stroudsburg winner, time and site to be announced
Emmaus vs. Liberty/Nazareth winner, time and site to be announced Championship/consolation, March 2
Matchups, times, sites to be determined
CLASS 5A BOYS
Byes: No. 1 Pocono Mountain West (20-4), No. 2 Whitehall (15-8), No. 3 East Stroudsburg North (12-10)
Quarterfinals, Friday
No. 4 Pocono Mountain East (10-12) vs. No. 5 Bangor (12-11), 7:30 p.m. at Pleasant Valley
Semifinals, Feb. 27
Pocono Mountain West vs. PM East/Bangor winner, time and location TBA.
Whitehall vs. East Stroudsburg North, time and location TBA.
Championship, March 2
Teams, time and site to be determined.
CLASS 4A BOYS Quarterfinals, Friday
No. 1 Blue Mountain (21-3) vs. No. 8 Wilson Area (12-10), 8 p.m. at Pottsville’s Martz Hall
No. 2 Allentown Central Catholic (17-6) vs. No. 7 Tamaqua (11-11), 7:30 p.m. at Allen
No. 3 Pottsville (17-7) vs. No. 6 Lehighton (14-8), 5 p.m. at Blue Mountain
No. 4 North Schuylkill (16-8) vs. No. 5 Northwestern Lehigh (16-8), 6:30 p.m. at Pottsville’s Martz Hall
Semifinals, Feb. 27
Blue Mountain/Wilson winner vs. North Schuylkill/Northwestern winner, time and site TBA. ACCHS /Tamaqua winner vs. Pottsville/Lehighton winner, time and site TBA.
Championship/consolation, March 1
Matchups, times, sites to be determined.
BOYS CLASS 3A Quarterfinals, Saturday
No. 1 Executive Education (18-4) vs. No. 8 Catasauqua (9-13), 2:30 p.m. at Easton
No. 2 Notre Dame-Green Pond (22-2) vs. No. 7 MaST Community Charter (13-9), 1 p.m. at Easton
No. 3 Palmerton (15-9) vs. No. 6 Panther Valley (13-9), 2:30 p.m. at Allen
No. 4 Saucon Valley (16-8) vs. No. 5 Salisbury (14-9), 1 p.m. at Allen
Semifinals, Feb. 28
Executive/Catasauqua winner vs. Saucon Valley/Salisbury winner, time and site TBA. NDGP/MaST Charter winner vs. Palmerton/Panther Valley winner, time and site TBA. Championship/consolation, March 2
Matchups, times, sites to be determined.
CLASS 2A BOYS Quarterfinals, Saturday
No. 1 Mahanoy Area (24-0) vs. No. 8 Williams Valley (11-11), 4 p.m. at Pottsville’s Martz Hall No. 2 Schuylkill Haven (19-4) vs. No. 7 Nativity BVM (13-10), 2:30 p.m. at Pottsville’s Martz Hall No. 3 Lincoln (19-3) vs. No. 6 Marian Catholic (13-9), 1 p.m. at Northern Lehigh
No. 4 Tri-Valley (17-5) vs. No. 5 Minersville (15-7), 2:30 p.m. at Blue Mountain
Semifinals, Feb. 28
Mahanoy/Williams Valley winner vs. Tri-Valley/Minersville winner at site and time TBA. Schuylkill Haven/Nativity BVM winner vs. Lincoln/Marian Catholic winner at site and time TBA. Championship/consolation, March 2
Matchups, times and sites to be determined.
CLASS 1A BOYS
Byes: No. 1 Notre Dame-East Stroudsburg (15-6), No. 2 Bethlehem Christian (16-6) Quarterfinals, Friday
No. 3 MMI Prep (13-9) vs. No. 6 Weatherly (2-20), 7 p.m. at MMI Prep
No. 4 Susquehanna Community (11-11) vs. No. 5 Forest City (4-18), 7 p.m. at Susquehanna Community
Semifinals, Feb. 27
Notre Dame-ES vs. Susquehanna/Forest City winner, time and site TBA.
Bethlehem Christian vs. MMI Prep/Weatherly winner, time and site TBA. Championship/consolation, March 1
Matchups, sites and times to be announced.