Sun Valley holds on to beat Unionville, reach Class 5A semis

EAST MARLBOROUGH >> The Sun Valley lead over Unionville, which was 11 points at halftime, had been cut down to one. 

The large Unionville crowd was making the bleachers shake, and a lesser team would not have been excused it it succumbed to the pressure.

But Sun Valley has proven this season that it is far from a “lesser team.”

Vinny DeAngelo took a feed from Dom Valente and buried a three, for three of his game high 34 points, in a stellar performance that also included five rebounds and four assists, as the Vanguards held on and defeated the Indians, 60-46, Saturday night in the quarterfinal round of the District 1 Class 5A playoffs.

The win puts Sun Valley (17-7) into Wednesday night’s semifinal against Pottsgrove at Norristown High School at 5:30 p.m. The win also puts Sun Valley into the PIAA Class 5A playoffs for the second year in a row. Unionville will travel to Holy Ghost Prep in the playback round Wednesday at 7 p.m. A win there would secure a state berth, while a loss would end Unionville’s season.

“We knew they were a good team and that they were going to make a run,” DeAngelo said. “The crowd was loud but we held together and we have been playing together for a long time, and that helped us. And getting out to a big lead in the first quarter was big too. Two weeks ago we came here and scored just four points in the whole first quarter. It was huge to get out early and it forced them to take some bad shots. Shots they normally do not take. It was a wild crowd but we hung together and came out with a win.”

Unionville (17-9) shot just four for 19 from the field in the first half and trailed, 25-14, at the break. But the Indians came out on fire in the third, controlling the offensive glass and getting put-back baskets. Bo Furey-Bastian started things with a long trey. Furey-Bastian led the Indians with 18 points and was the only offensive threat for Unionville all night. He then stripped Valente and drove in for a layup and suddenly it was a 26-23 Sun Valley lead, and the place was on fire.

Deangelo scored in tight to give the Vanguards some breathing room, but Wyatt Hockenberry buried a three from the top of the key and it was a 29-28 Sun Valley advantage. But DeAngelo was not to be denied. He drove the lane and scored in tight and then hit a jumper after a  Unionville miss. Isaac Kennon, who scored 11 points to go along with eight tough rebounds, scored in the lane and Sun Valley had weathered the storm and led 40-28 after three quarters, outscoring Unionville 15-14 in the period.

“Having Isaac and Vinny on the floor is like having two coaches,” Sun Valley coach Steve Maloney said. “I have had Vinny for four years and Isaac for two and they are just so smart on the floor. We knew Unionville was a good team. They kicked our butts here two weeks ago and that sort of woke us up. We talked at halftime that a run was coming and we came through it well. I am so proud of these guys right now.”

Unionville cut the Sun Valley lead to 42-30 after Furey-Bastian scored on a driving layup. But Unionville stayed cold from the field, shooting just 18 for 55, and Sun Valley iced the game by going on a 6-0 run early in the fourth. 

Unionville coach Chris Cowles talked about the cold shooting after the loss.

“We got behind early and took some shots we don’t normally take,” Cowles said. “Those shots may not have been taken if we were not so far behind early and we started to press a little bit.”

Note >> Sun Valley was 22 of 25 from the free throw line.

Sun Valley 60, Unionville 46

SUN VALLEY (60): DeAngelo 8 15-16 34, Kennon 4 3-3 11, Freeman 2 3-4 8, Valente 2 0-0 6, Stone 0 1-2 1, Fisher 0 0-0 0. Totals 16 22-25 60.

UNIONVILLE (46): Furey-Bastian 8 1-2 18, Shanahan 0 1-4 1, Ash 1 0-0 2, Lenkaitis 6 0-0 13, Hockenberry 3 5-5 12, Pasarello 0 0-2 0, Rafferty 0 0-0 0.Totals 18 7-13 46.

Sun Valley 14 11 15 20 – 60
Unionville 5 9 14 18 – 46

3-point goals: DeAngelo 2, Valente 2, Freeman, Furey-Bastian, Hockenberry, Lenkaitis.