Bonner-Prendie shut down by Shanahan

MARPLE >> As Doug Costin shuffled to the bench with five minutes to play Tuesday night and a win securely in hand, the Bishop Shanahan center had plenty of time to ponder just how comprehensive a performance his Eagles had fashioned.

Shanahan throttled Bonner-Prendergast, 62-39, in the final of the Marple Newtown Holiday Tournament, thoroughly dominating every aspect of the affair from start to finish.

By the time Costin took his final walk to the sidelines, the damage was prolific: 13 points, 14 rebounds, a team-high four assists in orchestrating a devastating high-low offense and the kind of defensive post presence that completely unseated any plan of attack Bonner could’ve entered with.

It was one thing that Shanahan (6-3) used its 2-1-2 press and 2-3 zone to deny Bonner-Prendergast entry to the lane and force them into chucking 3-pointers. That part of the plan wasn’t ideologically hard to decipher.

“We wanted to force them to shoot 3s,” said Jordan Ambrose, who led Shanahan with 15 points en route to tournament MVP honors. “We wanted to give them tough shots, and we needed to box out. And we did that. We held them to one shot, and that’s what we needed to do.”

The degree to which the Eagles executed their offense was clinical. They shot more than 50 percent from the field (25-for-46). They were 6-for-12 from 3-point land, Ambrose knocking down both of his looks. They got contributions from the perimeter (Andrew Dolan’s 10 points) and the lane (eight points from Thomas Ford, plus five steals and three blocks by Kevin Dodds).

But perhaps more remarkable was how ill at ease Shanahan made the Friars (6-3) with the ball in their hands. They forced 20 Bonner-Prendie turnovers, 15 of them on steals. The Eagles coaxed the Friars into firing 23 of their 50 field-goal attempts from beyond the arc. Ten Friars hoisted up a 3-pointer. And Bonner got to the line for a mere four attempts.

In just about every conceivable facet of the game, Shanahan dominated.

“It gives us more of an advantage to go out on the break and give us some easy shots,” Costin said of the turnovers caused. “It was a momentum-changer. If we get those chances to break out, we want to do that. We were patient and we didn’t make those mistakes.”

“We just started out slow,” Bonner forward John Hargraves said. “We had to come with more energy at the beginning of the game, which we didn’t do. And I guess some of us just underestimated the team. As Bonner, as who were are, we can’t underestimate teams. We have to come 100 percent every game, which we didn’t do.”

The shift was amazingly swift. Dylan Higgins, who finished with a game-high eight points, hit his final basket with just under three minutes left in the first half to help Bonner close down a double-digit deficit and cut the score to 21-19.

Within 11 minutes as the fourth quarter dawned, Shanahan’s edge was 45-29 and coach Jack Concannon was signaling to the youngsters on his bench to spell his misfiring starters. Part of the pendulum swing was precipitated by Ambrose, who contributed four points on a 10-3 spurt to end the half, sending the Eagles to the break, up 31-22.

“That was huge because it gave us momentum going into the second half,” Ambrose said. “We were able to come out and get the shots we wanted and force them into bad shots.”

Five quick points from Christian Lane after the break winnowed the lead to a manageable six at 33-27, but Shanahan finished the frame on a 12-2 run.

By the next time a Friar other than Lane, who scored all seven of their third-quarter points, registered a point, the game was out of reach at 53-32.

All of the Friars’ usual outlets of offense were dormant. Ryan Germany was held scoreless. Keith Washington attempted just one 2-point shot in finishing with three points. Hargraves missed his only field-goal attempt and, due in part of first-half foul trouble, was shut out on the day. Only two Mike Perretta triples in the second quarter kept Bonner as close as they were, completely divorced from any semblance of a rhythm.

“I think we rushed a little bit, seeing how much we were down,” Hargraves said. “I guess instead of trying to slow it down and play at our pace, we played at their pace, speeding it up, taking unnecessary shots.”

Also at the Marple Newtown Tournament:

Phoenixville 57, Marple Newtown 54 >> Marcus Weathers scored a team-high 18 points to help the Tigers tie the game at several junctures in the fourth quarter, but the Tigers couldn’t get over the hump.

Mike May drained a pair of 3-pointers for eight points for Marple (1-9).