Burke, CB West surge past North Penn in 2nd half

DOYLESTOWN >> With the help of sophomore Maddie Burke, the Central Bucks West girls basketball team cruised past Suburban One League Continental Conference foe North Penn High School 53-40 Friday night.

Burke finished with a game-high 24 points along with eight rebounds — also a game high.

“I felt pretty good and it’s always great to get the team win under our belt,” Burke said. “Our goal was to keep shooting and win the game.”

North Penn (4-4, 0-2 SOL Continental) was hanging with the Bucks (3-1, 2-0) as the Knights had a 21-18 lead at halftime.

Central Bucks West coach Terry Rakowsky had a strong message to his team in the locker room during halftime.

“We talked about having the right kids taking the right shots in the right situations,” Rakowsky said. “We have a couple kids that can really score and we have to give them the ball.

“We are a growth in progress,” added Rakowsky. “This may be only one game, but Maddie had a really good game but what I really liked about her was her rebounding. She usually plays from the outside but she dominated the inside today.”

Bri Hewlett led  North Penn with 14 points while Jenny Hulmes led the Knights with seven rebounds.

North Penn coach Maggie deMarteleire was thrilled with the way her Knights performed on the road.

“Burke made a very high percentage of their shots especially from her three-point range,” deMarteleire said. “Unfortunately for us we had shots going halfway down and popping out.

“I was pleased with my kids effort,” said deMarteleire. “All we have to do is shoot better.”

The loss was the fourth straight for the Knights. They start the 2018 portion of the season on January 2 at William Tennent Jan. 2.

The Bucks head to Hampton, Virginia for the Boo William Christmas Classic and open the tournament against I.C. Norcom (Va.) Thursday.