Johnson’s inside presence carries Bonner & Prendergast past Academy Park

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SHARON HILL >> In their third game in four days, trailing after a sluggish opening quarter, Bonner & Prendergast senior guard Christian Lane could’ve looked for excuses. He and his fellow Friars could’ve sought an out, against a well-rested and game Academy Park side on its home court.

Instead, they just decided to look for Ajiri Johnson in the paint … again and again and again.

The Nigerian-born center scored 23 points to go with 17 boards as Bonner & Prendie continued its unbeaten start with a 64-46 nonleague win Monday night.

That result came on the heels of Sunday’s domination of Simon Gratz, itself less than 48 hours removed from a long ride Friday to beat Beaver Falls on a last-second Tymir Cooper 3-pointer.

So when AP, in its first game in nine days, hit the Friars for the night’s first five points and led 13-8 after one stanza, Bonner & Prendie didn’t opt for the ready-made cop-out.

“I told the kids, we could always use it as an excuse if you want to,” coach Jack Concannon said. “We played yesterday, Friday. I said, good teams don’t make excuses.”

“Coach says, ‘are we tough enough? And are we smart enough playing in someone else’s gym?,’” Lane said. “We go by that motto to be strong and play well together.”

That’s part and parcel of the gauntlet Concannon has laid before his Friars. They lack a nonleague home game prior to the Jan. 3 curtain-raiser in the Catholic League, Concannon hoping the nonconference slate will hone his team for the challenges ahead.

Monday’s outing, then, fits as yet another installment in that voyage. And the remedy for a dour start meant finding the 6-foot-8 Johnson, who enjoyed a half-foot height advantage over the tallest Knight. In need of a second-quarter spark, Johnson obliged with 11 points. He added 17 rebounds, part of a 41-27 edge in that category for Bonner (5-0).

Johnson’s points in the second period stemmed from a concerted effort to feed the big man to deploy his raw yet obvious post instincts. As the game wore on, the missed shot became as good a generator of offense as any with Johnson on the glass, but spurring Johnson’s early offense shifted the game.

“We just try to get him the ball as much as possible because we know he has a height advantage,” Lane said. “When we get into our halfcourt playing time, we try to get him the ball and post him up. If we can’t get him the ball, we do on-ball screens to try to get it to him penetrating.”

“I give them great credit,” Johnson said of his veteran backcourt. “Every point I have, I divide them to them because they give me the ball all the time. When I get two points, half of the points go to them because they can recognize me down low and get me the ball and they trust me with it.”

On a night when fellow forward Dylan Higgins was less effective — 4-for-10 shooting for eight points but a typically dogged rebounding effort of 14 — Johnson’s scoring was particularly massive. He rattled off seven straight points in the middle of the second as the lead volleyed between the teams. And his bucket, off a feed from Cooper, two minutes into the third quarter put Bonner ahead for good at 31-30, spawning a 10-2 run that established a comfortable cushion.

Lane added 19 points (on just nine field-goal attempts) while Cooper, a transfer from Parkway Center City, poured in 12.

Academy Park meanwhile drew its early advantage from beyond the arc, with Nick Simmons and Marq Greenwood each canning three triples in the first half, Greenwood with one to beat the first-quarter buzzer. AP shot 6-for-13 from distance in the first, but the well dried up, Simmons’ two second-half makes on the way to a team-high 17 points representing the only connections on 11 attempts.

“I don’t want to say we live by the 3s, because we want to start getting the bigs the ball more,” Simmons said. “But it’s a pretty big key.”

It’s also a work in progress for a team that counts Simmons as the only significant returnee from last year’s PIAA qualifiers, playing for a first-year coach in Frank Wolf. Where AP (1-2) was once renowned for its full-court pressure, it now seems more comfortable in a leisurely, halfcourt game. The Knights are also incorporating a spate of underclassmen, particularly in the lane, where sophomore Shermik Lofton contributed nine points and eight rebounds. Greenwood finished with 13 points.

Despite positive spells from Lofton and Davoughnte Brown (six points, three blocks), AP had no answer for Johnson, who grabbed nine rebounds in the fourth quarter alone, ensuring no comeback materialized.

“I know I have the advantage offensively,” Johnson said. “I know they’re going to jump for everything. So I take my time, my teammates trust me with the ball and I end up finishing. That’s what I want to do, get the ball and finish.”

In other nonleague action:

Haverford School 78, Tacony Academy 46 >> Nine players scored, including four in double figures, as the Fords cruised to their fifth win.

Haverford scored 31 points in the opening quarter and led at halftime, 48-21. Kharon Randolph dropped in 14 points, while Gavin Burke netted 13 and Jameer Nelson Jr. added 12. Christian Ray contributed 10 points for the Fords (5-1).

Council Rock North 41, Glen Mills 31 >> James Walker scored 13 points, but the Battlin’ Bulls (2-3) were doubled up after halftime, 26-13, in a home setback.

In the Bicentennial League:

Christian Academy 48, Calvary Baptist 43 >> The Crusaders jumped ahead in the second quarter using a 15-6 run. They were able to hold on despite being outscored after halftime, 25-21.

Leading the way for TCA was Jalen Sherrill, who poured in a game-high 15 points. Nahom Kenna followed with 14 points for the Crusaders, who survived a 2-for-10 performance from the free-throw line.

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Matthew De George

Matthew De George
Matthew De George is the Asst. Sports Editor and the lead Union writer for The Daily Times.

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