S. ABINGTON TWP. – Fueled by the intense rivalry, a couple of poor performances from a year ago, and the desire to prove that they are a much better team than their record might indicate, Abington Heights refused to be denied.
Jordan Shaffer scored 35 points, collected 10 rebounds, and blocked four shots to energize a spirited student section and the sold-out gymnasium as the sixth-ranked Comets stormed to a convincing 84-61 win over No. 1 Scranton Prep in a Lackawanna League Division I boys basketball showdown.
Abington Heights seized sole possession of first place in the league standings by improving to 5-0 and 8-5 overall.
“I am not going to sugarcoat it; we saw the rankings, and we knew that we had five losses,” Shaffer said. “We really challenged ourselves with a tough nonleague schedule, knowing that these tough league games were going to be here, and they are going to keep coming until March.
“With that tough early schedule, it makes it so when we come into a game like this, we know that we have been here before, and it allows us to play as we did.”
Abington Heights, which lost both meetings against the Cavaliers by a combined average margin of 24.5 points last season, dominated the game with its size and strength.
Everybody contributed to the triumph. Andrew Kettel, who was inspired by his experience playing at Scranton Prep, had 16 points, four assists, and three steals. He handled the ball and made a couple of nifty passes, one behind the back that his teammates converted into layups, while also shooting 6 for 10 from the field.
“Our team is like brothers,” Kettel said. “Coach JC (Show) did a good job scheduling tough nonleague games to start the season. We feel we are a lot better team than our record. When it was time to tip, we played together, and we played as a team.
“Playing in these games is a dream since we played biddy basketball together. In school today, we believed that we could win, and we all bought in.”
Cooper Manning, a physical inside player who can also handle the ball and shoot, contributed 12 points; Finn Goldberg scored eight points and had five rebounds; Gavin Corwin scored six points and had a highlight-reel reverse layup that brought the crowd to its feet; and Carter Plantz scored four points in the paint.
Chris Begley did a lot of the little things it takes to upset the top-ranked team in the area and the defending Division I champions.
The scrappy guard, who played with a quick motor, had eight rebounds and four steals for the Comets, who controlled the game from the opening quarter.
“We knew what we had to do to get a win over Scranton Prep, which was rated so high against everyone in the area,” Begley said. “What I have learned playing alongside Andrew and Jordan is to be strong in my role. I bought in as a teammate.
“I have been at these games against Scranton Prep since I was a little kid. After last year’s two losses, we had to come into this game with a lot of fire and energy. I am happy that we came out with a win.”
Scranton Prep (8-3 overall, 4-1 in division) tried to stay within striking distance with a 22-point second quarter. However, the Cavaliers misfired on several long-range shots and were limited to only nine points in the third quarter.
Overall, Scranton Prep shot 4 of 19 from beyond the arc and had 15 turnovers.
Packy Doherty, the leading scorer in Division I, had 19 points, which included the 1,000th of his career on a 3-pointer late in the fourth quarter with the outcome long decided.
Abington Heights jumped out to a 20-13 lead in the first quarter. Kettle had seven points, and Shaffer had five.
In the second, Shaffer scored 15 points to stymie Scranton Prep. He made three 3-pointers and delivered seven free throws as Abington Heights outscored the Cavaliers, 28-22.
“We attacked matchups,” Shaffer said. “We felt that we had a size advantage. We were able to attack the paint and attack the boards.”
Abington Heights picked up its defensive intensity and fed the ball into the paint to get to the free-throw line. Goldberg hit three, Manning converted two, and Kettel and Shaffer each had one from the charity stripe as the Comets extended the lead to 66-44.
Shaffer closed out the game with 12 points, and Kettel added four in the fourth quarter to slam the door on an impressive all-around game by the Comets. Abington Heights exceeded its season high for points by five and ran its winning streak to four straight.
“This is awesome,” Shaffer said. “We got embarrassed last year against these guys, and we did not want that to happen again. I don’t ever want to feel that way again. There was great adrenaline. It was great team basketball; that is all that it was.”