Allen outlasts Dieruff in 2OT
Central Catholic snaps two-game losing streak
Allen’s Nate Ellis has made PPL Center his second home.
The Canaries star won an Eastern Pennsylvania Conference championship in the downtown Allentown arena two years ago as a sophomore, and a District 11 6A crown at 7th and Hamilton streets last year as a junior.
In a Saturday afternoon that turned into Saturday night at PPL Center, Ellis had another memorable game on the biggest stage local boys basketball has to offer.
Ellis scored 30 points to help Allen outlast rival Dieruff, 76-70, in the first game of the Geico ESPN High School Showcase.
While the crowd wasn’t nearly as large for the Canaries and Huskies as it would be later in the night for Central Catholic and Pottsville Nativity — and especially for the national game featuring Sierra Canyon of Chatsworth, California, and Camden, New Jersey — the atmosphere was special for the second meeting between the Allentown public schools.
And this one was important because it counted in the Eastern Pennsylvania Conference standings, and at 13-6 overall and 8-5 in the EPC, the Canaries need every win they can get in order to qualify for the EPC tournament, which is less than two weeks away.
The EPC semifinals are scheduled to be held at PPL Center on Feb. 14 and the finals on Feb. 17.
“Everybody wants to be here … the fans, us,” Ellis said. “We want to get back here so we can attain our goals.”
Ellis didn’t even realize that he moved into second place on Allen’s all-time scoring list Friday night in the Canaries’ loss at Parkland. He passed Wayne Thomas and Talek Williams, and ended the night with 1,475 career points.
His performance against Dieruff put him over 1,500, but it’s titles and not points that Ellis covets; he has won three in his career — two district crowns and a league championship.
“I like winning more than points,” he said.
Winning was not a given against Dieruff, despite the Huskies’ 4-14 overall record coming in.
Coming off a win over Liberty on Friday night and getting to play at PPL Center for the first time, Marlon Randall’s team played inspired basketball and had a 51-46 lead early in the fourth quarter.
The Huskies also fought back after getting behind 59-53 with 3:20 left in
regulation.
Dieruff had a chance to win it at the end of the fourth quarter, but couldn’t get off a shot.
Allen had a chance to end it at the close of the first overtime, but Ellis couldn’t make a long 3.
In the second OT period, Ellis hit a 3-pointer to get things started, and the Canaries never looked back.
Ellis had to pick up his game even more since Allen lost starting guard Eli Vigo to an injury near the end of regulation. He had to be helped off the floor.
Junior Darius Brant was key, with seven of his nine points coming in the extra stanzas. He also collected five of his 10 rebounds in the bonus periods.
Dieruff got 29 points from Daniel Quinones and 20 from Xion Chapman.
“It’s a rivalry game and anything can happen, and Dieruff has been playing great lately,” Allen coach Darnell Braswell said. “When Eli went down, we had to dig deep and we won this game for him. We think he’s going to be fine, but regardless, we’ve just got to keep on moving.”
Allen gets back into a regular situation at Emmaus Tuesday night and needs wins to get into the EPC tournament.
“The way we look at it, we’re defending EPC champs,” Braswell said. “We won it two years ago and they didn’t have a tournament last year. The last time there was a tournament, Allen won it. We want to do everything we can to put our best foot forward to get to earn a berth. Once we get into the dance, anything can happen.”
Braswell was happy to be back at PPL Center and hopes his team can return in a few weeks.
“This feels amazing,” he said. “This is one of my favorite places to coach. I was fortunate enough to coach two games here last year and it’s a great atmosphere for the kids. I am glad Dieruff got to play here and they embraced it and really gave us a run for our money.”
Vikings rebound
After a tough overtime loss at the buzzer at Northampton Friday night, Central Catholic rebounded with a 58-45 win over Pottsville Nativity in a battle of defending PIAA champs.
Junior Nico Pulieri had a team-high 17 points for the Vikings and made three of the team’s seven 3-pointers.
“I always feel at this time of year that when you can see somebody outside the conference, it’s a breath of fresh air to see someone who doesn’t know you as well,” CCHS coach Dennis Csensits said. “Especially after losing in overtime last night, it was good to get right back out there and have an opportunity to compete. We played pretty well in some large stretches today. I was really pleased with how balanced we were offensively against a tough defense. A lot of guys contributed.”
Csensits was pleased his team was given the opportunity to be part of a special night of basketball.
“The kids were smiling and excited and, while everyone wants to win, I think even the Nativity kids were excited to be here as well,” he said. “It’s just a good community event and it would be fantastic if we could do this on a regular basis. When this place was built, this is the kind of thing our community was looking for.”
How did it happen?
Rashid Ghazi, president of the Paragon Marketing Group, which stages the Geico ESPN Showcase, said earlier in the week that PPL Center proved to be the perfect venue for the Sierra Canyon-Camden game, which he called the most anticipated high school matchup of the scholastic basketball season.
How did it wind up in Allentown? “We were looking for a site on the East Coast and we did look at all kinds of venues,” he said. “A high school venue wouldn’t serve the purpose because of the fan demand for tickets. A high school venue wouldn’t have the size and capacity. We did look at NBA venues in New York, New Jersey, and Philadelphia and with those venues, there was a couple of issues.
“When we booked the game, the NBA schedules weren’t out, so we didn’t know when the venues would be available. The second issue was pricing. Those venues tend to run really, really high in terms of expenses and the other issue was timing. We might get one of those venues, but then we might be forced to play midday and not in primetime. Logically, they’re challenging, because those venues hold multiple sports.”
Ghazi added that an NCAA Division I site was out because of NCAA rules prohibiting third-party promoters from renting out those venues.
“Ideally, we look for 7,000 to 12,000set venues in smaller markets that maybe have semi-pro teams playing or they’re a major concert venue,” Ghazi said. “We did research and found PPL Center and learned that you’ve hosted college basketball games there and it’s a relatively new venue. It held the right amount, it was relatively new and it was a driveable distance for many fans, especially since this was a Camden home game.”
Gunnar Fox, the vice president, and general manager for Spectra, which runs PPL Center, remembered that the first time a high school basketball doubleheader was held, it was a big success. That was the 2017 District 11 6A quarterfinals when nearly 8,000 fans attended in what was regarded as the biggest night for scholastic hoops in Valley history.
“We did a have a great night and it was really special,” Fox said of 2017. “We’ve tried to continue to provide those opportunities when we’re able to. That’s what this arena is here for. It’s not just a hockey arena, it’s not just a concert hall. We truly want to do something for everyone and provide opportunities for everyone in the community to enjoy an event here.”