Maloney has set winning standard at Sun Valley
ASTON >> Just two years ago, the bar for success at Sun Valley was measured in District 1 tournament appearances.
In 2015-16, Steve Maloney’s team went through a stretch of four wins in six games late in the season. The result was inclusion in the old Class AAA tournament, a loss to Octorara and an 8-15 record. It was progress, albeit with limits.
Two years later, Sun Valley has turned that record around and then some, to 19-7. And instead of a spot in districts, the reward is the program’s first states berth in 28 years.
Sun Valley will have a long ride to savor the experience, the fifth seed from District 1 trekking out to West York High School Friday night at eight to take on District 3 third seed Northeastern at 8.
“It feels great, honestly,” senior point guard Shahir Brown-Morris said. “Just knowing that we work so hard and every coach is here early, we get extra work in. We’ve earned it, and that’s why we’ve gotten so far.”
Maloney has forged a unique ethos at Sun Valley. The Vanguards play a rotation of six, Brown-Morris the only senior. They’re not particularly tall, with Lance Stone representing, as Marvin Freeman put it, “our 5-10 center.”
But they’ve gotten the job done. Freeman and Isaac Kennon provide outside shooting and scoring, alongside Vinny DeAngelo, a freshman on that districts team who passed the 1,000-point mark in his last outing. And Brown-Morris is Maloney’s “glue guy” who keeps everyone on the same page.
“It’s been great,” Kennon said. “As a team, we all work together, work hard and support each other in everything we do. As a team, we’re all supportive of each other no matter who’s doing well.”
“We’ve got to play hard-nosed, just because we’re all brothers here,” Brown-Morris said. “We just go hard.”
Northeastern (26-3) fell to William Penn in overtime in the District 3 semis before topping Lower Dauphin. The Bobcats are led by the high-powered guard duo of Fred Mulbah and Antonio Rizzuto.
But Sun Valley is in a position to enjoy the ride, not just because they know how this year’s success raises the standard.
“I think it’s going to be a lot of competition,” Kennon said. “We’re ready for whoever comes at us. I think it’s going to be very intense. … It’s crazy. Just to be juniors and we’re doing this as a team, me, Vinny and Marvin are all coming back next year. We want to do the same thing and even better next year.”
Also in the Class 5A tournament Friday:
1-1 Penncrest vs. 3-10 Shippensburg, at Interboro, 7:30
The Lions (25-3) were tripped at this hurdle last year, off the emotional high of a comeback win in the District 1 final. This year’s districts triumph was considerably less dramatic — a 50-29 pasting of Bishop Shanahan. While still looking to Tyler Norwood as its sparkplug offensively, this team is more balanced. Norwood’s 28 points nearly outscored Shanahan in the district final, but he didn’t need to tally more than half of the Lions’ points in the postseason as he did last year. Penncrest never trailed in districts, winning by an average of 19.3 points per game.
The offense for Shippensburg (18-10) runs through Carter Van Scyoc, a 1,000-point scorer and the school’s all-time passing yards leader as a quarterback.
12-2 Martin Luther King vs. 1-4 Chester, South Phila. H.S., 7:30
The Clippers (18-8) were on a roll with 13 straight wins to start 2017, but that has cooled significantly with a 4-3 stretch and two straight losses to enter the tournament. Chester scored 11 total points in the fourth quarters against Shanahan in the semis and Wissahickon in the third-place game. Point guard Michael Smith was hampered by illness in both games.
With Smith healthy, they’ll face a fast-paced game against the Cougars (18-10), the Public League runner-up. William McNair, a 6-9 center, and guards Denelle Holly and Ricardo Montereiro will provide a stern test.
12-1 Bonner & Prendergast vs. 3-9 New Oxford, Jefferson University, 7:30
The Friars are making their first PIAA tournament appearance, having rebounded from a last-second loss in the Catholic League final to handle Martin Luther King in overtime of the District 12 final. Bonner and its trio of Division I players — Isaiah Wong, Rider commit Ajiri Johnson and Tariq Ingraham, who picked up offers from Temple and Drexel last week — have compiled a 22-4 record. The Friars are 11-3 in games decided by 10 points or fewer and 18-1 when they hit 60 points.
New Oxford has only crossed 60 points nine times. The Colonials (20-8) are streaking, needing two wins in playbacks to get to states, then adding a win in the ninth-place game. The backcourt duo of Deriq Brown and John Wessel lead the way.
1-3 Wissahickon vs. 12-3 Archbishop Carroll, Bensalem, 8
The Patriots (18-7) get a break with Wissahickon starting guard Eddie Fortescue out after two technical fouls in the win over Chester. The Trojans come out of districts strong, having bested Chester and posing the biggest threat to Penncrest in a four-point semifinal loss. But they are extremely dependent on the 3-point shooting of Max Rapoport. If they are misfiring from beyond the arc, it’ll be a long day.
Carroll holds the edge in the lane via forward Keyon Butler, who’s averaging 14.7 ppg. It’ll have the best player on the floor in AJ Hoggard running the point. And if the Patriots can generate offense in the paint, they can opt for a defensive posture on the perimeter to mute Wissahickon’s shooters.
In Class 6A Saturday:
12-1 Lincoln vs. 1-8 Upper Darby, South Phila. H.S., 5
It’s rare for this game to not include the Catholic League champions, but the Rail Splitters (21-6) changed the narrative by upending Roman Catholic, 86-76, in the city final. Led by Khalif Meares, the Public League B Division Player of the Year, Lincoln plays an up-tempo game and is 17-1 when scoring 70 points or more.
The Royals (17-10) enter on a three-game losing streak via the magic of PIAA seeding. Including the Central League semifinals, UD has one win in five postseason contests. Yet the Royals are playing loose, trying to maximize the follow-up to a six-win campaign last year.
“It means a lot, especially to me playing last year and not having such a great year,” said leading scorer Magd Abdelwahab. “I think that we’ve got guys that are a better fit for us this year than last year, and I think that makes the biggest difference. I think our focus is way different. I think everything is better this year, so it means a lot to us.”
In Class 2A Saturday:
1-1 Delco Christian vs. 12-2 Constitution, at C.R. South, 5:30
The schedule offers no cupcake to the District 1 champion with perennial power Constitution. The Generals (16-11) have some impressive wins, including Carroll, Lincoln and MLK, plus Math, Civics & Sciences, avenged by MCS in the District 12 final. Those two teams have squared off in PIAA eastern finals each of the last three years, Constitution advancing last year. Damon Wall leads the Generals along with Carroll transfer Jahmir Marable-Williams.
Delco Christian (17-9), in states for the fourth time in five years, has won nine of the, including a 44-40 decision over Dock Mennonite in the district final. Tyler Penley has scored in double figures in each of his last 13 games.
