City of Basketball Love

Matt Chandik (@MChandik26)
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NEWTOWN SQUARE — Devon Hill had already announced that this was his time, but if there was any doubt about it, it went away in an instant.

Valley Forge Military Academy nursed a one-point lead with 90 seconds to go in its PIAA Class AAA tournament opener against Parkway Center City, and Hill found himself with the ball in the corner and an open 3-point look.

He wasn’t afraid to take it, either, and he looked ready to let it fly. Then, Hill spied a much smaller guard on the block, put the ball on the ground and overpowered his man to get to the hoop for a layup.

Ballgame. Those two points gave the Trojans a little breathing room, and shortly thereafter, VFMA was celebrating its 67-61 win over the Bulldogs.

The Trojans (21-4) will take on the winner of Saturday’s Mid-Valley vs. Southern Columbia matchup on Tuesday.

“It’s definitely a maturity thing,” said Hill of his decision to pass up on the corner 3. “As I grow, I realized I got bigger and I realized that certain guards aren’t as big as me. Instead of taking a 3, I realized I could take it to the basket and use my physical ability. I did it and it worked.

“It’s really wild to win a state game. The school is behind us. We’ve had a lot of support from the school, our parents, our friends. We’re bringing everybody together and I couldn’t ask for a better team to be in states with.”

VFMA’s maturity and poise in the big situations was also evident with Arion Lewis’ play. The junior guard struggled to get open for shots from the field, so he decided to put his head down and get to the hoop. It paid off in spades when he cashed in on 14 of his 15 free-throw attempts, including a perfect 4-for-4 in the final quarter.

He also kept his composure when fans coming for the Penncrest-Hershey game arrived early and started rooting for the Bulldogs.

“I thought I could get to the basket because they weren't that big inside,” Lewis said. “I wish I would have finished better, but I’ll take it. This shows our toughness, especially with how we fought through. The fans started cheering for the other team and I kind of liked it a little bit. (In the next round), we’ve got to play better defense.”

The win almost didn’t happen, though, thanks in large part to a small guard who tortured VFMA all game.

Jemal Sheppard, generously listed at 5-8, was the best player on the court. The Parkway senior capped his standout career with an incredible night, scoring 29 points to go with seven rebounds, six assists and five steals. Sheppard gave the Bulldogs their last lead when he swiped a pass, passed the ball up court and got it back for a layup.

Parkway couldn’t quite hold on, but it didn’t change the fact that Sheppard was dominant.

“I wasn’t sure what I had, but I just wanted to do anything to get this win,” Sheppard said. “They were rebounding well when our big men got in foul trouble. They had a lot of offensive rebounds and we turned it over too much. We stick with it, though. Everyone played their hardest and we gave it all we got.”

The Bulldogs received an 11-point, five-assist night from Javon Ellis and a pair of 3-pointers from Taalib Mackie, but it was Sheppard’s show.

VFMA had more of a balanced look offensively. Hill, a Trojan rookie after transferring in from Delco Christian, was the catalyst with 23 points and five rebounds and Lewis had 19 points, seven boards and three assists.

Marius Ntwari (13 rebounds) and Will Colleran (10) each collected double-digit rebounds, and Myles Bunyon tacked on seven points and three steals.

Hill cited the military tradition as a major reason for his arrival at VFMA, but it didn’t take long before he and his teammates establish a winning tradition on the court.

“Coach Francis Bowe reached out to me and said, ‘I heard you’re coming to Valley Forge. We’d love to have you come out for our team,’” Hill recalled. “I said, ‘definitely. I’ll definitely come out.’ Once I got to school, I joined the team and we just blew up. I came here, and it was just family.”

That family is one step closer to a state title.

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CLASS 3A
FIRST ROUND
Friday, March 10
Neumann-Goretti 71, York Catholic 48
Wilkes-Barre Holy Redeemer 64, World Communications Charter 42
Lancaster Mennonite 93, Philadelphia West Catholic 72
Hughesville 66, Notre Dame-Green Pond 56
Valley Forge Military Academy 67, Parkway Center City 61
Southern Columbia-Mid Valley, ppd
Delaware Valley Charter 63, Loyalsock Twp. 39
Camp Hill Trinity 75, Strawberry Mansion 47
Central Cambria 90, Columbia 76
Riverside 50, Pittsburgh Westinghouse 39
Shady Side Academy 48, Fairview 47
Cardinal Wuerl North Catholic 68, Bellwood-Antis 51
Erie First Christian 57, Karns City 48
Washington 52, Richland 45
Lincoln Park Charter 70, Juniata 39
Greenville 47, Seton-LaSalle 41

FIRST ROUND
Saturday, March 11
Southern Columbia (4-2, 15-10) vs. Mid Valley (2-2, 23-3) at Shamokin HS, 1

SECOND ROUND
Tuesday, March 14
Sites and times, TBA
Neumann-Goretti (12-1, 20-7) vs. Wilkes-Barre Holy Redeemer (2-1, 18-8)
Lancaster Mennonite (3-2, 24-4) vs. Hughesville (4-1, 17-9)
Valley Forge Military Academy (1-1, 25-4) vs. Southern Columbia-Mid Valley winner
Delaware Valley Charter (12-2, 21-7) vs. Camp Hill Trinity (3-1, 23-3)
Central Cambria (6-1, 21-6) vs. or Riverside (7-5, 17-8)
Shady Side Academy (7-4, 19-7) vs. Cardinal Wuerl North Catholic (7-1, 22-5)
Erie First Christian (10-3, 17-9) vs. Washington (7-3, 21-5)
Lincoln Park Charter (7-2, 22-5) vs. Greenville (10-1, 24-2)