City of Basketball Love

Ray Dunne (@RayDunneBTB)
~~

Not even a minute into the second quarter of Spring-Ford’s 56-36 win over Owen J. Roberts, the Wildcats took a timeout.

The intent was to regroup after a frustrating start, already trailing the Rams 20-8. Instead, it marked the beginning of a takeover for Pat Kovaleski, who personally outscored Owen J. Roberts the rest of the quarter. 

The senior guard exploded for 13 of his game-high 18 points in the second quarter, putting the Rams up 35-17 at halftime, which became even more meaningful as the teams played an even second half. 

Kovaleski’s contributions were largely beyond the arc, shooting 4-of-5 from distance, a welcome sight for the guard who spent all offseason working on his jumper. It’s also a big development for a team that has struggled at times offensively.

“[Kovaleski] was always a guy that would be hesitant to shoot from the outside at times and Pat’s worked on that in the offseason and it showed tonight,” Spring-Ford head coach Chris Talley said. “That opens up those driving lanes which is what he has really excelled at over his career. Pat doesn’t realize how good he can be and that’s a good thing because I think he’s going to just keep getting better every game.”

Typically, the long range shooting portion of the offense comes from the hot hand of senior guards Tyler Scilingo and Michael Fitzgerald, who combined for 14 points on the night.

As for Kovaleski, a 33% shooter from distance to his knowledge, his game is focused on distributing the basketball. The 6-3 guard uses his quickness and size to his advantage against smaller guards.

“I haven’t always been a shooter, I’ve mostly been a drive and kick guy,” Kovaleski said. “By adding the three point shot, I’ve got guys playing out on me more. The closer they are to me, the more I can go right by them. I’m drawing more defenders on me and kicking out to my teammates that can shoot it better than me.”

Fittingly, the performance came in front of Nestor Diaz, a former teammate who occupied that role in years past for Spring-Ford. The 2016 PAC Champion and three year varsity starter was never the lead shooter on the floor with the likes of Matt Gnias, Chucky Drummond, and Harrison Pierce all playing alongside Diaz during his career.

The 2018 graduate of Spring-Ford saw firsthand how Kovaleski adjusted and became a contributor to the team early on in his career and took pleasure in seeing one of his old back-ups put on a show on Thursday night. 

What Diaz saw was somewhat of a reflection of his own growth as a guard at Spring-Ford. From a gun shy youngster to a leader in the matter of three years of varsity playing time. 

“His role started out very similar to mine but as time went on, we both needed to step up and lead the team,” Diaz said. “I expected him to be a large role at some point in his Spring-Ford career. I didn’t know when, but I knew that he would have a pivotal role at some point. In the first open gym that he showed up, I knew that he would be an important part to the team.”

It’s being that level-headed leader that made Diaz so impactful during his time with the Rams and has done wonders for Kovaleski establishing himself as a go-to guy for this team.

While he admits to not being the best shooter on the team, early on in his career there were times when it appeared as if he didn’t want to be the guy to take the shot. Experience and understanding Talley’s system has changed that mindset for the senior.

“His confidence. We brought him up as a sophomore on the varsity team and he got some spot minutes, but you could tell he was, at times, a dear in headlights,” Talley said. “Now, he’s a senior and he’s a captain and he knows this is his team and just seeing him mature from a tenth grader to now being a senior captain has been fun to watch.”

His final statline may only read off two assists on the night, but his presence is commanding alongside junior guard Zack Skrocki. The two are the primary ball handlers at any given time on the floor, working off one another’s ability to slash to the basket.

Skrocki, much like Kovaleski did a year prior, contributed as a sophomore and then found regular starting minutes as a junior. The similar path that the two share has allowed for Skrocki to see Kovaleski’s growth every step of the way.

“He’s really just been the leader of this team,” Skrocki said. “He’s taken over, he’s got a lot of confidence in his game and in his shot right now.”

Despite being a year behind Kovaleski, Skrocki got to the program at the same time as the senior captain. Kovaleski spent his freshman year at La Salle College High School after leaving Spring-Ford in fifth grade for private schooling.

In fact, the only Spring-Ford basketball jersey you would’ve seen Kovaleski in his first year of high school was a reversible, recreational basketball league one. Where, as one might imagine, he flashed signs of domination and helped take a team to a championship game.

Being all those years in private school, could he have imagined being a lead guy at Spring-Ford?

“Probably not,” Kovaleski laughs a little before dropping back into a serious tone. “I’ve put in a lot of work over the last three years and it’s nice to see it pay off.”

Beyond his offensive success from the three point line this game, Kovaleski did struggle to finish a couple of times in the paint. It’s indicative of a bigger problem for the Rams which has hampered their offense’s abilities.

However, this team’s bread and butter is its defense, which is allowing 43 points per game in PAC play thus far and has held back-to-back opponents (Pottsgrove and Owen. J Roberts) to just 36 points.

The focus is pressuring the ball up top and doubling ball handlers before offenses can get set, which is nothing new for this program. Talley has run this defense for years, but the way it has been effective so far has shown more promise than previous groups.

“In years past, we’ve [had guys like] Nigel Cooke that were shutdown, put them on an island type of deal. This team, it’s more of a defensive unit,” said Talley. “We’ve switched it up more this year than we typically do and that’s a credit to these guys because they are able to handle it.”

While he wouldn’t go as far to say that this the best defensive unit he’s ever had, Talley believes the potential is there. As for now, it needs to continue to carry the team as the offense tries to find a consistent rhythm.

On Owen J. Roberts’ side, the loss continues a difficult stretch for the Wildcats. They have lost six in a row since starting 3-2. More importantly, they have lost five consecutive PAC contests, including two to Frontier division foes. At 1-5 in conference play and 1-3 in the Liberty Division, they face an uphill battle to get to the PAC playoffs.

Bill Detweiler’s first year at the helm has shown some promise for the program. Forward Jalen Lucas, who scored ten points on Thursday night, has a decent shot and could develop into a solid scorer. Fellow junior Brody Bolyn finished with 12 points and seven  rebounds in the losing effort and should be a solid presence in the post for the team as the season goes on.

For Spring-Ford, the victory pushes them back to .500 in division play and in decent standing for an eventual PAC playoff push as Talley tried to make his sixth PAC playoff appearance in seven years.

Next up, however, is a battle of the Rams. Spring-Ford will face off against Pennridge on Saturday in the first meeting of the two teams since Sean Yoder led the Rams of Pennridge to a 71-48 win in the district playoffs a season ago.

While the teams certainly are different, Talley believes that will be litmus test for a team standing at 6-5 just one game into the new year.

“That’s going to show us where we’re at currently. Are we a 6-5 team or are we a team that can contend?”