City of Basketball Love

Josh Verlin (@jmverlin)
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Four seasons ago, Haverford High School hit the lowest of lows. Now, a program that hasn’t won a league title in a half-century is off to a promising start, and playing with an entirely new confidence level.

“We just want to do something that hasn’t been done in a while,” junior John Seidman said. “Do something to show that we’re building, and the program’s on the rise.”

Yes, it’s early in the season, with nearly two months before even the earliest playoff rounds begin, with more than 15 regular-season games still left on the ledger. But even being in the conversation is relatively rare territory for Haverford, a longtime Central League member which hasn’t had a ton of success on the hardwood, playing in a league with a few programs that have seen quite a bit of it over the years.

Haverford’s the next township over from Lower Merion, certainly the league’s most recognizable name thanks to Kobe Bryant, but Penncrest, Garnet Valley, Conestoga, Ridley, and Strath Haven have all made their runs into the 14-school league’s Final Four since the league instituted a playoff a little more than a decade ago.

The Fords bottomed out in 2016-17, going 0-16 in league play and 2-20 overall just three years after they’d last qualified for the state tournament. But instead of entering a doldrums, Haverford rebuilt.
They won eight games the next year, then went 12-9 last season, including an 8-8 mark in the Central League. That was good enough to tie with Radnor for fifth place in the Central, two games back of Garnet Valley for the final spot in the league’s playoffs.

Once again, it looks like Haverford has taken another step forward. 

With a 41-31 win over Conestoga on Friday, the Fords improved to 4-0 this season, including 2-0 in the Central League. And those two wins weren’t just any wins –– they were over ‘Stoga and Lower Merion, two of the four teams that finished above them in the standings last year. Penncrest and Garnet Valley were the others.

“It kind of shows that we can hang with anybody,” Seidman said, “and really shows that we’re elite in the league.”

“We feel that we can try and contend,” Keith Hinrichs said. “There’s no doubt.”

Making sure not to get ahead of himself, the Fords’ ninth-year head coach added: “Are we there yet? No.”

Seidman, a second-year starter and third-year varsity contributor, is undoubtedly the engine at the center of the Fords’ machine. A 6-foot-3 wing guard, Seidman is a jack-of-all trades type, from running point to leading the team in scoring, rebounding, and distributing.

His value was clear in the win over Conestoga: with Seidman in early foul trouble and on the bench for much of the first half, the Pioneers went into halftime with a four-point lead on the road. But Seidman was able to stay on the floor for the whole second half, scoring 13 of his game-high 15 points after the break as the Fords outscored their guests 26-12 in the second half. 

Seidman makes a living off hustle plays, running down his own missed shots multiple times and leaving defenders flat-footed while he’d chase down offensive boards and flick them up for easy put-backs. He’s got great awareness around the rim and a good ability to get through with or without the ball in his hands, making him tough to slow down.

“He’s a competitive kid, he’s very competitive,” Heinrichs said. “I think it comes from having a brother at home, that being competitive with your brother, and he’s just a kid that loves basketball. And when you love basketball that much and work on your game and play basketball that much, you kinda just get better all the time, I think.”

“John’s been a great leader for us, whether he’s scoring a lot or facilitating, playing solid defense, he’s always able to impact the game,” senior forward Adam Stuck said. “Nights like tonight where he’s able to just take the ball and take over the game for a couple minutes at a time really helps. And the way he leads the team as well, by example, shows us how to keep our composure when it gets tough.”

Stuck, who poured in 10 points off the bench in the win over Conestoga, is one of 11 different players that Heinrichs deploys on a regular basis. It’s a mix of ages that contribute, from seniors like Stuck, Sean Reynolds and Saleem Dwight all the way down to freshmen; Seidman’s younger brother Alex “Googie” Seidman is a sharpshooting reserve who Heinrichs isn’t afraid to throw out early or late in competitive games.

The depth is a key reason the Fords are a staunch defensive team, with Heinrichs able to rotate in bodies to keep his team fresh.

“It’s hard, I have guys that I think sometimes I need to get them some more minutes and I don’t,” Heinrichs said. “It’s hard. But practice is so competitive, and their defense is so good...that’s the most important thing, and I think our defense has been pretty solid these past couple games.

The depth paid off in the win over Conestoga, as seven different players hit a shot. Whether it was short-corner jumper specialist Connor Kaufmann, a senior who knocked down a couple 14-footers, or sophomore guard Allen Cieslak, who bombs away from deep, or Stuck, or junior forward Hunter Kraiza, who hit a key third-quarter 3-pointer in the win over Conestoga. 

“I think the biggest thing is just everybody be ready to make a play,” Heinrichs said. “They all can shoot, we’ve got a couple guys on our bench, a couple guys that start, that all can make 3s, and they’ve got to be ready when their number’s called.”

The Fords will continue their Central League schedule with games at Upper Darby (Dec. 17) and at home against Ridley (Dec. 20) before hosting a holiday tournament; after the new year, it’s all league play (with one home game against Pennridge) for the remainder of the regular season. They play both Garnet Valley and Penncrest at home in the first 10 days of January, with return dates at Lower Merion (Jan. 24) and Garnet Valley (Feb. 6) later on in the season. 

Even though they’re off to a great start, the Fords know they still have a lot of big opportunities ahead to show just how dangerous they are. As for making history, that’ll come with time.

“IWe can’t settle for just those two wins, we’ve got Ridley and Upper Darby coming up soon, Garnet Valley, three more 6A games that we’ve got to win,” Stuck said. “These wins are behind us, and we’ve got to focus on what’s coming up next.”