Abington shows improvement in loss to LM

The Abington High School boys’ basketball team, which lost to Lower Merion in the District 1-6A tournament by 32 points last month, gave the Aces a close battle in the first half of Sunday’s PIAA 6A state tournament contest at Bensalem High School.

The Ghosts got out to an early 7-3 lead and at halftime were trailing Lower Merion by only four points (25-21).

But the District 1-6A champs gradually pulled away for a 6350 win, ending Abington’s season.

Abington head coach Charles Grasty was asked what was the difference between Sunday’s relatively close contest and the Ghosts’ two earlier meetings with the Aces (which included a 62-41 loss to Lower Merion in the District 1 6A championship final last year).

“Confidence,” replied Grasty. “Our kids trusted the hard work that they put in. Lower Merion is a good team, but so are we. We try to instill confidence in our players by preparing them and putting them in position to make plays. Our kids see the ball go through the basket and they get confidence.”

Abington, which finished eighth in the District 1-6A tournament, ended its season with a 17-12 record.

“I’m super proud of this group,” said Grasty. “I’m not one for moral victories, but this team buckled down this season, put in a lot of hard work. They left a decent legacy. In the end, they have our program going in the right direction. They gave everything that they had. I’m disappointed the season ended — I wanted to be around this team a little longer.”

Leading scorers for the Ghosts Sunday were senior Connor Fields (11 points), senior Derrius Lucas (11) and sophomore Jeremiah Lee (10).

The Ghosts got out to an early 7-3 lead in the first quarter, but a couple of treys by Lower Merion’s Sam Brown put the Aces in the lead for good. The Ghosts hung close to Lower Merion in the second quarter, thanks in part to three baskets by Fields, and the half ended with Abington trailing 25-21.

Early in the third quarter, Lee hit a trey to cut Lower Merion’s lead to 27-24, but then the Aces went on a 13-5 run to take a 40-29 lead. The Aces’ Demetrius Lilley and Jayden Shippen led the scoring run, each scoring twice underneath.

Lilley, a 6-foot-9 Penn Statebound senior standout, led all scorers with 18 points.

Grasty said, “In the third quarter, we missed some rotations, and Lower Merion is a good shooting team. The big kid (Lilley) got loose and converted a few