Central Bucks West wins SOL Tournament title
BENSALEM >> If you showed up at Bensalem High School’s gymnasium Monday night without checking the schedule, you would never believe the game was between the best two teams that the Suburban One League has to offer.
In the SOL Tournament championship game, neither Central Bucks West or Abington played its best basketball, but when the game was tight in the fourth quarter, it was the Bucks who made more plays and came away with the win, 39-34.
“We worked really hard in the offseason,” West’s Erich Hohenleitner said. “I guess all of our work paid off. It feels great.”
West entered the fourth trailing by five and started the quarter on a 7-0 run over the first 3:41 to take a 31-29 lead. All six Bucks who scored in the game scored in the final period and the team went a combined 9-for-10 from the free-throw line to secure the win.
“We are all starting seniors so we’ve all been there before,” Hohenleitner said. “We just keep working on it and try to stay composed and get a good shot, even when the shots aren’t falling like today. Jump shots weren’t falling, so we wanted to drive on them and get them in foul trouble and try to get to the free-throw line and get some type of rhythm going.”
“(CB West) just executed,” Abington coach Charles Grasty said. “They took their time, played at their pace, made some shots. They were able to jump out on us and when they get a lead on you, you have to make the right plays every time and we didn’t. We’ll learn.”
The Bucks were able to win despite an offense that made just 12 field goals – three each quarter – because of their defense. They held Abington to quarters of seven, seven, 15 and five and just 11 made field goals.
“We got a lot of open looks,” West coach Adam Sherman said. “We just for some reason couldn’t put the ball in the basket. I thought the guys showed a lot of grit. They defended really well to make up for their lack of shooting.
“We just had to weather the storm and find a run at the right time. Fortunately we did.”
It was Hohenleitner who kept the Bucks in the game in the third quarter. Hohenleitner was the only CB West player to score in the third – tallying seven points compared to Abington’s 15 – and he kept his side within five heading into the final frame.
“I didn’t expect it to go that way,” he said. “I got a couple drives in the beginning, it felt good. I hit a couple of jump shots. It was open, I hit it. I didn’t really think too much of it. I just wanted to keep playing my game and the shots just kept falling. It felt good to know that because they weren’t falling (earlier). It helped the team continue and keep a good stride going.”
Hohenleitner led West in scoring with 15 points. Billy Power and Jake Reichwein each added seven.
Eric Dixon led the Ghosts, the defending tournament champions, in scoring with 13 points. Robbie Heath added 11 and Joe O’Brien six.
The Bucks spent much of the first half playing without starter Cal Reichwein. Reichwein picked up two fouls in the first 64 seconds of the game and a third in the middle of the second quarter.
Abington is the sixth seed in the District One AAAA playoffs and opens up at home Friday against No. 27 Upper Dublin. CB West, the seventh seed, will host No. 26 Downingtown East.
