Dock Mennonite closes strong to win Tim Ehst Holiday Tournament
TOWAMENCIN >> Dock Mennonite Academy just needed to relax.
A seven-point halftime lead over Souderton shrunk to two after three quarters and was completely gone after an Indians basket opened the fourth quarter.
The Pioneers never fell behind in the fourth quarter and they never panicked.
After the game was tied at 34, 36 and 38 with less than six minutes remaining, Dock took over. The hosts rattled off a 15-3 run over five minutes and won the Tim Ehst Holiday Tournament final, 53-44, Wednesday night at Dock Mennonite Academy.
“We just had to slow the tempo down,” Dock senior Nate Lapp said. “A lot of us were getting ramped up because of the energy and they were coming back. We just needed to calm down and slow the pace down and run our stuff.
“Coach called a timeout and said, ‘Keep guarding and keep playing hard.’ That’s what we did and we ended up going on that 15-3 run.”
Lane Bergey scored Dock’s first six points of the fourth quarter, putting the Pioneers (9-1) ahead 36-34, 38-36 and 40-38. Lapp extended the lead when he stole the ball at half-court and raced to a layup. He had another drive to the basket for two points before grabbing a defense rebound and getting his team out quickly, resulting in a Tony Martin layup and 46-38 advantage.
“We sat down and did really well on defense,” Martin said of the game-winning stretch. “We pushed it out a lot, got great transition. We all were working as a team.”
Souderton’s Aiden Maue hit a corner three to make it 46-41 with 2:20 to go, but Lapp immediately responded with a three-point play to get the difference back to eight. Martin and AJ Washington added layups to make it 53-41 with less than a minute left in the game.
“We didn’t make shots,” Souderton coach Okoteh Sackitey said. “It was a tough night shooting for us. Shots that usually fall didn’t. That’s kind of what it was.”
Levi John helped the Indians (3-6) erase their seven-point halftime deficit and get within two going into the fourth quarter. He scored five of his team-high 17 points and grabbed four of his game-high 13 rebounds in the third.
“I like that (John) is aggressive and confident,” Sackitey, who was proud of his team’s defensive effort in the third quarter, said. “I’m really proud of him and the way he played. I talked to him before the game and let him know I liked our matchup. He fully delivered, can’t ask for anything more from Levi. I’m really proud of him. He’s the unsung hero of this team. He’s a big-time glue guy, helps us out doing the little things that don’t always show up in the box score – sealing his man off, setting a good screen, making good passes. His passing ability is slept on. Rebounding, defending, blocks – he does it all and I’m very grateful that Levi John is on this team.”
Jared Zimmerman also scored five points for Souderton in the third quarter to trim the 28-21 deficit to 34-32.
Lapp, who went over 1,000 points in his career Tuesday, helped the Pioneers to a fast start Wednesday. He scored 10 of his game-high 19 points in the first quarter. He scored or assisted on 20 of Dock’s first 22 points in the game.
“(The fast start) means everything,” Lapp said. “It’s how you set the tone for the game. When you get off to a good start, you just keep it rolling into the next quarters.
“I’m just an aggressive player. I take what the defense gives me. If they’re going to leave me open, I’m going to shoot. If they’re going to let me drive it, I’m going to drive it. When they step up, I’m going to dish it. I just do whatever the defense gives me.”
Bergey and Vaughn Martin each hit a pair of first-half threes to help Dock build a 28-21 lead at the break.
ALL-TOURNAMENT TEAM
Dock Mennonite’s Tony Martin, Souderton’s Nate Hemsing and James Blair, Dobbins’ Saleem Hudson and Owen J. Roberts’ Jack Cashman were selected to the Time Ehst Holiday Tournament All-Tournament team.
Dock’s Lapp was named the Most Valuable Player.
“Basketball is a team game,” Lapp said. “You can’t go 1-on-5 and win a game. It’s a team game. I’m happy that I got the MVP, but a lot of players on our team also should have an MVP as well.”
Dock Mennonite Academy 53, Souderton 44
Souderton 12 9 11 12 – 44
Dock Mennonite Academy 13 15 6 19 – 53
S: Nathan Hemsing 0 1-2 1, Jared Zimmerman 3 0-0 7, Trey Bui 0 0-0 0, Clinton Kikonjo 0 0-0 0, Nolan Watkins 2 0-0 5, James Blair 3 0-0 6, Chanse Salone 1 0-0 3, Aiden Maue 2 0-0 5, Joey Childs 0 0-0 0, Levi John 6 2-3 17. Total 17 3-5 44.
D: Nate Lapp 7 3-3 19, Hoyt Bultje 1 0-0 2, Zach Neff 0 0-0 0, Lane Bergey 4 2-3 12, Vaughn Martin 2 0-0 6, AJ Washington 1 0-0 2, Ethan Parr 1 0-0 2, Tony Martin 5 0-0 10. Total 21 5-6 53.
3-point goals: S: Chanse Salone, Levi John 3, Jared Zimmerman, Nolan Watkins, Aiden Maue. D: Nate Lapp 2, Vaughn Martin 2, Lane Bergey 2.
