Shanahan tops Downingtown East to open 2-game division lead
DOWNINGTOWN >> Looking in the rearview mirror isn’t encouraged much in athletics, but the Bishop Shanahan boys’ basketball team is using what happened a year ago to fuel its aspirations this winter.
And so far it is working like a charm.
The Eagles knocked off another top Ches-Mont National contender on Tuesday, pulling away to dispatch visiting Downingtown East, 57-43, to open a two-game division lead over the Cougars and defending champion Coatesville.
“We felt we left a lot on the table last season, so we are just trying to redeem ourselves along the way,” said Shanahan head coach Ken Doyle.
“Last season ended short for us,” echoed senior forward Kevin Dodds. “We were disappointed we lost in the Ches-Mont Championship, and then we lost in the district semifinals. That kind of lit a fire in our belly, and we want to make sure this isn’t going to be the same as last year.”
It’s impossible to be better than 6-0, which is where the Eagles find themselves. And at 9-1 overall, Shanahan is the No. 2 ranked team in the most recent District 1 Class 5A power rankings.
“We made the playoffs last season, so we want to do that again,” Doyle said. “And then if the opportunity allows, we want to go after the division (title) — but that will come down the road.”
With Dodds leading the way, the Eagles got off to a scorching start, scoring on its first seven possessions of the game. Downingtown East (4-2, 7-5) battled back but then Dodds keyed a second half run that ended it.
“We couldn’t get that big defensive stop when we needed it,” said East head coach John Goodman. “And we missed some shots we normally make. And when you are playing an opponent who is scoring it like (Shanahan is), you have to capitalize.”
A 6-foot-7 lefty, Dodds scored nine points in the opening five minutes — including an open court steal and dunk — to power the Eagles’ to a 15-4 start. Shanahan cooled off considerably for the rest of the half, but never trailed and took a 26-20 lead into the break.
“I thought we got a little sloppy and laid back in the second quarter, after coming off the fast start,” Doyle explained. “We got very relaxed on offense and had eight first half turnovers, which is uncharacteristic for us.”
The Cougars’ Malik Slay hit a 3-pointer to slice the lead to 34-31 early in the second quarter, but Dodds immediately countered with a baseline fade-away — was fouled and hit the free throw — and then buried a 3-pointer on the next possession.
“If (Dodds) is shooting it well, he’s tough to guard,” Goodman said.
“Kevin’s been huge for us all season,” Doyle added. “He has a very high basketball IQ, and a constant motor. He never stops moving, and he’s relentless, so we can always turn to him from time to time when we need something. He’s really become the standout leader we need.”
Dodds started what wound up being a 14-1 Shanahan rally that put the Eagles in front 48-32 in the opening minutes of the fourth quarter.
“I knew we would respond after the start,” Goodman said. “We cut it to three in third quarter and then we had a few bad possessions. (Shanahan) is very efficient on offense, so four bad possessions in a row and all of the sudden we found ourselves down 12 very quickly.”
Dodds and frontcourt mate Tom Ford were a dynamic duo, scoring 19 and 15 points, respectively. They accounted for all of Shanahan’s 3-point makes, and defensively they helped limit East’s Andrew King to five points.
“They’ve played together on and off since sixth grade and through four years of high school,” Doyle pointed out. “They have great continuity with each other.
“They are very skilled big men with athleticism, and we’ve been able to utilize that, spread them out and most of the time the guys guarding them can’t handle them, so they have to put guards on them, which allows us to do different things.”
The Eagles’ active three-quarter court press wound up forcing 16 turnovers, which figured heavily into Shanahan’s start and second half surge.
“That second quarter almost killed us, and if we didn’t bounce back like we did, we would have lost this game,” Dodds said.
“At halftime, we got ourselves back together and started playing like we did at the start.”
Slay scored 11 of his team-high 18 points in the second half, but nobody else had more than nine for the Cougars.
Bishop Shanahan 57, Downingtown East 43
DOWNINGTOWN EAST: Slay 6 3-8 18, Hernandez 2 2-2 7, Robertson 1 0-0 2, Riley 0 2-2 2, Kalim 4 0-0 9, King 2 1-2 5. Totals 15 8-14 43.
BISHOP SHANAHAN: O’Malley 2 2-2 6, Chenard 2 1-2 5, DiBeneditto 2 0-0 4, Dodds 8 1-1 19, Ibarguen 0 0-1 0, Angelo 4 0-0 8, Ford 6 2-3 15. Totals 6 2-3 15.
Downingtown East 9 11 12 11 — 43
Bishop Shanahan 17 9 16 15 — 57
3-point goals: Slay 3, Hernandez, Kalim, Dodds 2, Ford.
