The Reporter (Lansdale, PA)

State title dreams set in motion

Area teams open PIAA play Saturday

- By Kev Hunter khunter@thereporte­ronline.com

Five area boys basketball teams will try to live out their dreams of a state title, as PIAA Tournament play opens on Saturday.

Plymouth Whitemarsh, Archbishop Wood, Central Bucks East and North Penn will all be competing in the 6A Tournament while Dock goes at it in Class 2A.

Teams will be vying for a spot in the second round on Wednesday, with the quarterfin­als set for March 18 followed by the semis on March 21 and the state championsh­ip on March 25 (24th for 3A). 1-1 PLYMOUTH WHITEMARSH VS. 3-6 CHAMBERSBU­RG >> The Colonials (24-4) have a home contest to get things going, taking on the Trojans (15-11) at 4 p.m.

Chambersbu­rg has been powered by Jacob Bassham, a versatile scorer who can hit timely threes and also make his presence felt defensivel­y.

The Colonials are riding the high of a District 1 title, with Jaden Colzie, Chase Coleman and Qudire Bennett all coming off tremendous performanc­es in the title game win over SpringFord.

The winner of this contest moves on to face Archbishop Wood or Central Bucks East. 12-3 ARCHBISHOP WOOD VS. 1-5 CENTRAL BUCKS EAST >> The Vikings take on the Patriots at 4:30 p.m. at Archbishop Ryan High.

The Vikings (16-8) have a bevy of weapons to go to, including Milan Dean, Jalil Bethea, Carey Maxey and Eric Gardner. Wood can battle inside and also get hot from deep — the Vikings hit a dozen 3-pointers in their previous contest against Olney.

Wood will look to shake off the rust of a 10-day layoff.

The Patriots (22-4) have been a tremendous shooting team and look to come out hot: Joey Giordano and Jake Cummiskey have hit several clutch shots down the stretch.

The winner gets either PW or Chambersbu­rg in the next round.

12-2 CENTRAL VS. 1-8 NORTH PENN >> The Knights open with a first-round contest at West Philadelph­ia High at 3 p.m.

A balanced NP squad (188) that includes the likes of Ahmaar Godhania, Norman Gee, Ryan Zeltt, Ryan Deininger and Corey Meade will look to create open shots and regain the momentum it had for much of the season.

The Lancers (16-11) have three players 6-feet-4 or taller, including the 6-5 senior power forward, Erik Borgia.

The winner advances to face Scranton or Coatesvill­e. 1-1 DOCK VS. 3-2 ANTIETAM >> The Pioneers host their 2A states opener at 6 p.m. Saturday.

Dock (23-2) enters PIAA play as the District 1 Champ, led by Nate Lapp. Lapp has been hot from three-point range while Tony Martin has also been displaying a nice shooting touch.

Antietam (13-11) narrowly missed out on District Three title glory, but senior Jovan Hollis continues to be a force.

The winner moves on to face either Tri-Valley or Sankofa Freedom.

 ?? MIKE CABREY — MEDIANEWS GROUP ?? Plymouth Whitemarsh’s Chase Coleman looks to drive against Lower Merion during their District 1-6A semifinal on Feb. 28.
MIKE CABREY — MEDIANEWS GROUP Plymouth Whitemarsh’s Chase Coleman looks to drive against Lower Merion during their District 1-6A semifinal on Feb. 28.
 ?? MIKE CABREY — MEDIANEWS GROUP ?? Dock Mennonite’s Nathan Lapp goes up for a shot against Church Farm School during the Bicentenni­al Athletic League Tournament final on Feb. 18.
MIKE CABREY — MEDIANEWS GROUP Dock Mennonite’s Nathan Lapp goes up for a shot against Church Farm School during the Bicentenni­al Athletic League Tournament final on Feb. 18.

Newspapers in English

Newspapers from United States