City of Basketball Love

Matt Chandik (@mchandik26)
--

There isn’t a more passionate basketball community in the state of Pennsylvania than the fine folks in Chester, but sometimes, that passion manifests itself in a less-than-positive way.

If the number in the loss column keeps changing, you can bet that the Clipper faithful will have plenty to say. So when Chester started the season 1-5, Brian Randolph III heard it all.

“Everyone was saying that this was the worst Chester High team,” Randolph III offered, “but I already knew in my mind that we were going to make our run and turn it up a notch.”

Thursday night, the Clippers rolled over Glen Mills, 65-39, to claim their 13th consecutive win. Chester hasn’t lost since the calendar flipped to 2018, its last false step coming Dec. 30 in a 57-48 to defending District One Class 5A champion. Those 13 wins have come by an average of 17.4 points per game, and in their eight Del Val wins, that margin increases to 23.5 points per game.

So the Clippers have that going for them, which is nice. They’ve made that 1-5 start a distant memory on the strength of their defense and their transition offense, both of which made life miserable for the Battlin’ Bulls. After precipitously clinging to a one-point lead after a first quarter where the teams combined to shoot 9-for-31 from the field, it was gas pedal time for Chester.

They turned to the trait that’s made them famous for so long. A swarming defense led to easy buckets for the Clippers, but it also helped frustrate Glen Mills. The Bulls scored 13 second-half points, less than Chester scored in both the third (15) and fourth (16) on their own. Glen Mills connected on two of 17 second-half 3-point attempts, and when they got the ball through Chester’s trap, the Bulls struggled to handle the ball over to the tune of 20 turnovers.

All in a night’s work for Chester.

“We just want to come out and play as much good defense as possible,” Chester coach Keith Taylor said. “Get our hands on the ball and we try to get them to play the right way, play hard each and every play. That’s all we’re trying to do.”

When he finally took over the reins of the Chester program, Taylor made it abundantly clear that he felt that the Clippers had lost their defensive identity in recent years. It took some time, but there’s little doubt that Chester is back on the right path toward restoring its reputation as a team that will guard you to the parking lot. Just don’t start thinking that it’s a finished product.

“We’re getting there. We’re not there yet and it’s still a work in progress,” Taylor said. “They’re still making a lot of mistakes. It doesn’t look like it to the folks sitting in the stands, but to me and my coaching staff, it’s clear that we still have a lot of work to do.”

“That’s just the Chester legacy,” said point guard Michael Smith, who netted 15 points to lead the charge for the Clippers. “Defense first, offense second. Your defense creates your offense, so that’s how we play.”

“We really take pride in defense as a team because we know it leads to easy buckets,” Randolph III added. “Defense wins championships, and there’s not a day that goes by that our coach doesn’t say that. When we play defense, by the third and fourth quarter, the other team’s tired. When we’re at the foul line, they’re on their knees and we’re standing because we’re not tired. It’s really a good feeling because I know we’re in the lead and we’re going to win the game.”

Randolph joined Smith in double figures by adding 13 points to go with five assists, while Timothy Johnston and Javan Graham each added seven points. Tarik Bey led the Bulls with a game-high 18 points, including 10 in the second quarter as he kept dissecting the Clippers’ trap from right in the middle. Shyheem Bacon tacked on seven points for Glen Mills.

When the Clippers play with such focus on defense and transition, they’re a formidable foe, one that nobody will want to see in the playoffs. Depending on the day, they’re usually slotted in the No. 3 or No. 4 spots in the projected brackets, and with the way they’re playing, a deep postseason run might go from a wish to a strong possibility. If Chester can get teams caught in its transition game, it usually means a long night for its opponents.

“A lot of teams get tired in the third and fourth quarter when you keep pushing it at them,” Smith said. “Sometimes, it’s good because you get easy fast-break buckets and it gets your team up. Sometimes it’s bad because you get tired fast and you don’t want to get back on defense.

They’re getting better at that, and it’s evidenced by the baker’s dozen of consecutive wins. As for the naysayers that were so vocal early in the season?

“Yeah, they all love us now,” Randolph said with a big smile.

Go figure.