Delco boys basketball Super 7, Jan. 1
The busy week of holiday tournaments brought coal in the stockings of many of Delco’s top teams. Six of the seven squads in last week’s Super 7 endured tournament losses this week, leaving one change in the rankings and plenty more questions asked of than answered by the group. The Super 7 appears in Sunday’s paper alongside the notebook on changes in the coaching staff at Marple Newtown, and you can also find full stat leaders here. (Records through Jan. 1)
1. Archbishop Carroll (9-1) Last Week: No. 1
After destroying competition in Trenton, the Patriots’ unbeaten run was stunted by St. Benedicts of New Jersey in a one-point affair at the Jameer/Pete Nelson Classic. There are many worse losses to have on your record. The correlation between that loss marking Ryan Daly’s third-lowest point tally of the season (14) is surely no coincidence. With Colin Daly’s shooting touch having gone cold (no double-figures games in the last six), it’s worth asking how the Patriots plan to win games if Ryan Daly isn’t scoring in the 20s.
2. Ridley (9-0) Last Week: No. 2
The Green Raiders kept rolling past Cardinal O’Hara and Interboro in decisive fashion. The blowouts allowed more players to get involved and ease the workload on the regular seven-man rotation. Ridley gets a test this week with Lower Merion coming to town for a key clash of Central League elites.
3. Episcopal Academy (9-4) Last Week: No. 3
It’s easy to cast fatigue on a team that only runs seven or eight players deep and loses two games in as many days by one possession each. But the Churchmen insist that’s not an issue. So what was? Late-game execution, which is one of the discreet areas that a team wants to test via its nonleague slate. If the lessons learned in the final seconds against Downingtown West or in squandering a lead to Martin Luther King this week can impart some skills that prevent a recurrence in the Inter-Ac, then it will have been well worth it for Craig Conlin’s squad.
4. Chester (2-5) Last Week: No. 4
Even for the difficulty of the Clippers’ schedule, their recent three-game slide has endangered its position in the rankings. The problems is, who would supplant them? Penn Wood has been stop-start this season. Ditto Academy Park, who would’ve headed into the New Year with a more sparkling record has they beaten Malvern Prep at the Juenger Classic. And the former resident of the seventh spot, Bonner-Prendergast, was manhandled by Bishop Shanahan this week. So until further notice, this is the Clippers’ spot, but that doesn’t mean things are bright and sunny. A quick use of the transitive property: Chester lost by four points to J.P. McCaskey, which got routed by 20 points last week by Lower Merion, which was taken to overtime by two-win Haverford.
5. Penn Wood (4-3) Last Week: No. 5
Vincent Smalls scored a career-best 19 points in the loss to St. George’s Wednesday in the Nelson Classic. At a team-leading 13.3 points per game, he seems to be emerging as the Patriots’ go-to offensive threat. Anointing one guy to take charge of that passel of backcourt scorers is an important development for Penn Wood to define roles in a talented group.
6. Academy Park (5-4) Last Week: No. 6
Take away a cold start against Malvern Prep and the Knights could be on a four-game winning streak. Their one-point loss to Downingtown West is another near-miss. It’s tempting to play the ‘what if’ game with Academy Park. Sure, it could be 9-1 – if it didn’t start poorly against Malvern; if it had Jawan Collins, DeAndray Covert and company not on the gridiron in the opener against Strath Haven; if it got some breaks against D-West. But in the Del Val League that offers few off nights, the ‘what ifs’ can be swept away if – and this one counts – Academy Park doesn’t get to that 12- to 14-win range.
7. Strath Haven (9-2) Last Week: NR
Time to buy in on the Panthers, especially after they beat Conestoga and Great Valley back-to-back. The win over Penncrest is a quality one, though they were deprived bonus points by facing Harriton in the final of the Great Valley tournament. They’ll get points for Academy Park’s wins, and they should be able to push the win total in the smaller division of the Central League (they have two games left against Marple Newtown and Radnor, plus one each vs. Harriton and Springfield.) The Panthers could find themselves as either the third or fourth (if Ridley trips up) team in the Central League playoffs.
Dropped out: Bonner-Prendergast
Honorable Mention: Garnet Valley (7-2, the Jags are winners of five straight, and thanks to Mike Brown’s back-loaded scheduling, they’ll have games ahead to shape their destiny); Penncrest (6-4, surviving a stretch of seven of the first eight on the road is admirable, though the Lions would look much better if not for that second-half collapse against Cheltenham); Chichester (7-3, with six straight wins and the explosive duo of Eric Montanez and Derrick Welles, the Eagles could be a Del Val sleeper, especially if the big boys in the league don’t get it together); Bonner-Prendergast (6-3, the Friars no-show against Bishop Shanahan was surprising and disappointing); Radnor (7-3, another of the small-division teams with Penncrest, the Raiders will sacrifice bonus points for a higher win total, which means they take their fate in their hands); Delco Christian (5-3, healthy again, the Knights will rue a one-point loss to Northeast, but topping Bristol is a good harbinger for Bicentennial success).
