Goal-oriented Sun Valley one win from title

Sun Valley coach Steve Maloney and his players weren’t happy when they left the court against West Chester East on Jan. 5.

After leading for long stretches, they let the game slip away in double-overtime, their third loss in four games after an 8-0 start.

But if the disappointment of that night doesn’t add any fuel to the fire of Saturday’s rematch in the District 1 Class 5A final, it’s only because the Vanguards don’t lack for motivation.

“I think it helped us,” Maloney said Friday. “We were able to see where we made mistakes before. We were up five or seven the whole game, made some mistakes on our end, both offensively and defensively, and they capitalized on it.”

The top-seeded Vikings (21-5) and No. 6 Sun Valley (18-7) square off at 2 p.m. at Temple. For both teams, reaching the Liacouras Center was among the primary season goals. Sun Valley’s path has included what fifth-year coach Maloney calls a “chip on their shoulders” stemming from his first team going 4-17.

Sun Valley has already gained redemption on the road to its second consecutive states berth. The Vanguards were handled at Unionville, 59-48, in the regular-season finale, costing a spot in the Ches-Mont playoffs. But 16 days later, they jumped all over the third-seeded Indians in a 60-46 win.

Though they missed the league tournament, the physical and mental rest proved beneficial. So has Vinny DeAngelo taking his play to another level. DeAngelo has four 30-point games in his last seven outings, two in the postseason. He’s scored 92 points in the three wins, including 27 on 12-for-12 shooting in the semifinal shellacking of Pottsgrove.

“After the Phoenixville game (in the first round), the confidence grew,” Maloney said. “And it definitely grew after getting revenge on Unionville. And now we’re sitting 3-0 in a district title game against a team that we played that’s been the No. 1 team in the district arguably the whole year.”

The previous meeting eases the preparation. Sun Valley knows the zone defenses the Vikings deploy, using the length of 6-9 forward Andrew Carr. It understands the threat posed by physical guard Tym Richardson and point guard Gibby Trowery.

DeAngelo and his fellow seniors set the tone psychologically, too. With Isaac Kennon and Marvin Freeman, the Vanguards have three scorers capable of generating varied offense. Freeman and DeAngelo played in districts as freshmen, and all three were key pieces in last year’s states berth.

One win from their goal of a district title, the celebrations Wednesday were muted, in favor of the business-like mindset that has propelled them.

“I think we’re very goal-oriented this year, having four seniors that have been around,” Maloney said. “First goal was to win the Ches-Mont; we shared it. Second goal was to reach Temple. So I think Wednesday night winning that game, it was just the next obstacle in our way to getting to our goal. And now we’re here.”