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Plymouth Whitemarsh 69, Upper Dublin 57
With its postseason fate still very much up for grabs, Plymouth Whitemarsh shook off a slow start and got past Upper Dublin on Friday night.
“Tonight, to me. was a nice win,” said PW coach Jim Donofrio. “Not because we were at home and we got a win, but the way it was done. We were going to go straight man (to-man defense) the whole game. A minute-and-a-half in, I already had enough of the nonchalance. We just turned up the heat and kept it there the entire rest of the game.
“The precision and the focus were much better even though it became a high number of fouls for both teams. Tonight, for the first time, we were continuing up-tempo defense with 10 team fouls, and it was productive. I look for things that are habits, consistency.”
Luke DiCianno was the hot hand for the Colonials in this one, as he finished with 24 points, including a pair of 3-pointers and a 10-point third quarter that helped break the game wide open.
Taji Hubbard had 11 and Zuri Jerman 10 points for PW as well.
The Colonials, who took a 32-25 lead into halftime, outscored the Cardinals 21-9 in the third quarter and took a 53-34 lead into the final quarter when the Cardinals scored 23 of their points.
“We have to learn to not look at the scoreboard until the whole thing is over, but I am very proud of how hard they played tonight,” Donofrio said.
“The sophomore Zende Hubbard was relentless defensively. Luke DiCianno is starting to figure out the game and how to not just settle for 3s. He is becoming a bull in a China shop, and that’s a lot of good. I’m not worried about Caelin Peters. He knows how to play, and he could have 25 at any moment. He distributed tonight.”
PW (9-11, 7-5 SOL) currently occupies the No. 24 and final position in the District One Class 6A power rankings and needs wins to secure its spot. It plays at Upper Moreland on Tuesday and hosts Hatboro-Horsham in its regular season finale on Thursday.
“I can’t remember the last time we’ve been in this situation, and I don’t even think about it,” Donofrio said. “All the assistant coaches are looking at the ranking stuff changing, and it’s just highly irrelevant. That doesn’t mean we aren’t saying to them, “You have no choice now.’ That’s what I’m saying, but our particular team has no idea how hard they can play, and they’re making me realize how young they are. I’m highly impatient, and I’ve been highly impatient with them the whole season, and ironically, I think that’s the only way to be.
“Maybe you get fortunate and you play your best game when it matters, but I’m not guaranteeing it. I tell them all the time – they just do not play hard enough for me every second. People might be watching us tonight and saying, ‘What are you expecting?’ Well, we don’t want to go home. That’s what I’m expecting, so figure it out.
“Defense can take you places. High level, high energy defense can really take you places. At some point in time, our (tough) schedule has to work in our favor. Some of the teams we’ve played – the kids have to remember what that pace was like and learn from it. I think the kids are starting to believe a little more, hopefully.”
Drew Stover scored 20 points to lead Upper Dublin.
“Zuri Jerman was just terrific on him tonight,” Donofrio said. “Stover had six points through three quarters.
“Of course, we don’t understand how to keep our foot on their throat. We go from a 19-point lead at the end to watching Upper Dublin have the ball in their hands down only 11. That’s the next phase. The phrase I used tonight at the end of the third when one of our guys made a layup and they all smiled was ‘Stop smiling.’ They don’t get it. Basketball games at any level are not over until they’re over.”
Also for UD, Bazel Brady added 10.
The Flying Cardinals (8-11, 3-9 SOL) are at No. 31 and need to win their final three games and hope for help. They host New Hope-Solebury Saturday (6 p.m.) in a nonleague game.
Game Summary is brought to you by
Upper Dublin 14 11 9 23-57
Plymouth Whitemarsh 13 19 21 14-69
Upper Dublin (57) – Jason Williams 1 3-6 5; Bazel Brady 4 1-1 10; Drew Stover 9 2-4 20; Will Mead 2 3-4 7; Amare Johnson 2 0-0 6; Aidan Pullian 1 0-0 2; Lebron Snead 0 2-2 2; Dorsey 0 5-6 5. Totals 19 16-24 57.
Plymouth Whitemarsh (69) – Caelin Peters 1 3-4 5; Luke DiCianno 8 5-7 24; Zuri Jerman 4 2-4 10; Taji Hubbard 4 3-4 11; Jaden Pryce 2 0-2 4; Ray Tomasetti 3 0-0 7; David Harris 2 2-2 6; Jayden Glover 1 0-0 2. Totals 24 15-23 69