City of Basketball Love

Andrew Robinson (@ADRobinson3)
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ABINGTON — Jaida is going to be Jaida.

Anyone who knows Abington junior Jaida Helm will probably have some variation of that line when they start talking about her and the way she can flip from nonchalant to fiery competitor in a split-second. A whirlwind of energy capable of dominant stretches, Helm is at her best when she's channeling her emotions on the basketball court but it's also been an aspect that's gotten her in trouble in the past.

Jaida was Jaida on Wednesday, taking over in the fourth as No. 5 seed Abington buckled No. 12 CB West 62-47 in the District 1 6A girls' second round, securing the Ghosts a PIAA bid and spot in the elite eight on Saturday.

"I knew I had to be dominant in the paint for us to be successful," Helm said. "It was easier than if I was taking outside shots, it kept the defense honest so I felt like getting shots in the paint was key to the win."

Helm recorded a double-double with 21 points and 12 rebounds, recording nine points, seven boards, an assist, a block and a steal in the final eight minutes as Abington broke open a close game with a strong closing statement. She shot 7-of-13 overall and 7-of-8 at the foul line and controlled the glass in the final frame.

"We kept telling her to stay within herself," Ghosts coach Dan Marsh said. "She was trying too hard so we just told her to get back inside, do what you do well and dominate that way and she did, thankfully."

The teams met a few weeks back, with Abington routing West 71-43 on Feb. 5 but Helm - who scored 21 points that afternoon too - noted she and her teammates weren't expecting it to be that easy again. Certainly, the Bucks looked more prepared for Abington's frenetic defense and even led 11-10 after a quarter playing more at their pace than Abington's go-go-go preference.

Of course, it was also Abington's first time being whole in about two weeks with Cire Worley returning off a three-game absence due to injury and the Ghosts having a first round bye. There was some rust to work out, but a three-point play by Helm in the midst of a hot stretch behind the three-point line by Worley and Abril Bowser helped the Ghosts to a 21-point second quarter and 31-22 halftime lead.

"It was hard playing without Cire and it was getting kind of boring just practicing and not having games," Helm said. "The first time we got a lot of easy baskets in transition and I thought they did a really good job of making sure we didn't get that. We had to adjust to them getting back more on defense but I think we did that pretty well."

Helm has been a fixture in Abington's lineup since her freshman season, twice making Honorable Mention All-SOL and averaging 10 and then 14 ppg as a freshman and sophomore respectively. The 5-foot-11 wing, who plays AAU with the Mid-Atlantic Magic for Archbishop Wood coach Mike McDonald, is also a ferocious rebounder, solid passer and a rangy athlete who covers the back end of Abington's full-court defensive sets.

If there's one area where Helm has struggled at times, it's the emotional side of the game. She's such an intense competitor, Helm admits that the last two years she would take herself out of games by losing her cool and has tried her best to work on that aspect.

Tuesday, Helm picked up her third foul in the third quarter and was upset at the call going against her. Instead of letting the frustration boil over, she signaled to the bench for a sub, cooled off and got a talk with Marsh, then came back into the game and started to impose her will.

"She kept communicating they were being physical and I basically told her you need to suck it up and play, no more, just play and she did," Marsh said. "She's working to mature her emotional game so that it doesn't dictate the way that she plays.

"Jaida is Jaida, we're never going to take that away from her but I tell her she walks the line of positive and negative with her emotions and we have to find a way of keeping it on the positive. She did a good job tonight communicating when she was feeling it go negative, which allowed us to get her out, get a rest and get her back in."

For as high-energy as she plays, finding a moment of calm has been the one thing Helm has striven to do more of this season. Whether it's just taking a deep breath after a call that doesn't go her way, listening when her teammates tell her she's fine or even communicating to the bench she needs a quick break, Helm wants to keep herself in position to have the impact she had in Wednesday's fourth quarter.

"It's something I've worked on, making my frustration into a positive instead of a negative," Helm said. "When I let it be a negative, that's when I hurt my team instead of helping them."

West, which can still play its way into states, battled all night behind Jefferson recruit Emily Spratt's 19 points and four steals. Spratt hit a free throw to get the Bucks within 39-35 late in the third, which lit a fire in Helm for the final stretch starting with the Abington wing knocking down two foul shots to make it a six-point lead going to the fourth.

Helm converted three the hard way, getting fouled on a make inside and hitting the freebie with 5:50 left to put Abington up 46-35, then assisted a hoop by Worley to cap a 9-0 Abington run in response  The junior had six more points the rest of the quarter and kept making plays everywhere else to lock her first appearance in the state tournament and a district quarterfinal matchup with No. 4 Pennsbury early Saturday afternoon.

"They started making a run," Helm said of the source of her inspired play. "I knew we needed to go on a run back and finish the game and get onto the next one."

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By Quarter
Abington: 10  |  21  |  10  |  21  ||  62
CB West: 11  |  11  |  13  |  12  ||  47

Scorers
A: Jaida Helm 21, Cire Worley 17, Abril Bowser 13, Piper McGinley 4, Dani Brusha 3, Maya Johnson 2, Lila Stonehouse 2

CBW: Emily Spratt 19, Tai Henkels 11, Alexis Castro 8, Ava Longo 6, Nia Perry 3

~~~

District 1 6A Second Round
1) Plymouth Whitemarsh def. 16) Great Valley, 53-9
9) Haverford def. 8) Downingtown East, 31-29
4) Pennsbury def. 13) Upper Dublin, 36-30
5) Abington def. 12) CB West, 62-47
2) Souderton def. 15) CB South, 43-39

7) Perk Valley def. 10) Neshaminy, 44-32
14) Garnet Valley def. 3) Methacton, 41-36
11) Spring-Ford def. 6) WC Rustin, 48-46

District 1 6A Quarterfinals
Saturday, Feb. 26
1) Plymouth Whitemarsh vs. 9) Haverford (3:30 PM)
4) Pennsbury vs. 5) Abington (12 PM)
2) Souderton vs. 7) Perk Valley (2 PM)
11) Spring-Ford vs. 14) Garnet Valley (TBD)

District 1 6A Playbacks
Saturday, Feb. 26
8) Downingtown East vs. 16) Great Valley (Friday, 6 PM)
12) CB West vs. 13) Upper Dublin (TBD)
10) Neshaminy vs. 15) CB South (TBD)
3) Methacton vs. 6) WC Rustin (TBD)