City of Basketball Love

By Owen McCue (@Owen_McCue)
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The bracket for the Pioneer Athletic Conference Final Six on the boys side looks awfully familiar with five of the same six teams as last season. The event begins Wednesday night with rematches of last season’s opener at 6 p.m. and 7:30 p.m. at Perkiomen Valley High School

Liberty Division champion Spring-Ford, the reigning champion, and Frontier Division champion Phoenixville await Wednesday’s winner on Friday night. 

Here’s a quick breakdown of the teams matchups:

1) Spring-Ford (17-5, 9-1 Liberty)
The Rams were the runaway favorites last season. While still looking like the top dog in the league, their margin for error is definitely slimmer this season without some of the experienced depth they had a year ago. However, with senior 6-2 guard E.J. Campbell and junior 6-4 guard Jacob Nguyen the Rams typically have the two best players on the floor. Junior 6-4 wing Tommy Kelly is also back from last season’s league title team. Spring-Ford has missed the presence of 6-4 forward Matt Zollers, out recently with a broken foot. Sophomore 6-5 forward Oben Mokonchu has emerged as a presence inside with junior Jordan Marsilio and senior Jake Dellangelo two of the others who have stepped up.

2) Phoenixville (16-6, 9-1 Frontier)
This is Phoenxville’s highest seed in the tournament since the league went to two divisions in 2016-17, winning the Frontier Division for the first time. The Phantoms have had some talented teams over the years, but they haven’t reached the league title game since winning the PAC in 2007. Senior 6-5 point forward Max Lebisky is the offensive centerpiece, blending more scoring with his passing ability this season. He has PAC playoff experience from two seasons ago but junior 6-5 wing Deacon Baratta, sophomore guard Dawson Brown, senior 6-6 forward Aidan McClintock, senior guard Christian Cervino and the rest of the Phantoms will get their first postseason experience in the semifinals.

4) Methacton (16-6, 8-2 Liberty) vs. 5) Perkiomen Valley (18-4, 7-3 Liberty), 6 PM
The Warriors’ sent a shockwave through the league with a 71-49  thumping of reigning champ Spring-Ford, the Rams’ lone league loss. Senior 6-3 wing/forward Alex Hermann has a unique game. Junior guard Sal Iemmello has picked up his scoring load as a junior. Sophomore guard Christian Matos has emerged as one of the league’s top scorers in his first varsity season. Senior 6-0 guard Anthony Daddazio and 6-3 wing Emmanuel Rodriguez and sophomores Mason Conrad and Wes Robinson make up most of the rest of the rotation, which is trying to lead the Warriors back to the league title game after their run of dominance ended at PV’s hands last season.

The Vikings are spearheaded by the senior duo of guard Julian Sadler and 6-4 wing Kyle Shawaluk. Sadler is one of the area’s most lethal scorers and has had some clutch moments for PV since his sophomore years. Senior 6-4 forward Josh Tagert provides some size and junior 6-2 guard Jakob Harken can give the team a third scoring option. Senior guard Ryan Murphy adds some shooting and depth and junior guard Anthony Rodriguez likes to cause chaos on the floor.

Sadler hit a last-second shot to down the Warriors in last year’s playoff game, though Hermann nearly put in a full court pass at the buzzer that would have put the Christian Laettner play to shame. The two teams split the regular season meetings with the Warriors grabbing a 59-47 win on Dec. 15 and the Vikings getting them back with a 67-53 win Jan. 17. Don’t expect this one to be decided by double digits as it should be another barn burner like last year.

3) Pottstown (15-6, 8-2 Frontier) vs. 6) Norristown, 7:30 PM (12-10, 4-6 Liberty)
Pottstown broke a 10-year absence in the league’s postseason tournament last season and gave eventual league champion Spring-Ford a semifinal scare after an opening round win over Norristown. The Trojans have a lot of the firepower back from that squad in senior guards Sadeeq Jackson and Abdul Jackson, who can both light up the scoreboard in different ways. Senior 6-2 guard Jurell Young can get hot as well. Senior 6-2 forwards Dillon Mayes and Nahzier Booker are both football players who give a somewhat small Trojans team size, athleticism and a physical edge.

Norristown counters with a terrific backcourt of its own in seniors Myon Kirlew and Jayden Byrd. First-year head coach Chris Podsobinski has also got big contributions from senior guards Miles Daniels and Rashon Giddens and senior forward Kevin Bonds throughout the season. The Eagles have reached all but one PAC Final Six since joining the league in 2016-17, but they’re still looking for their first run to the title game.

This was another terrific game last postseason with Norristown nearly coming back from 20 points down in the third quarter before Pottstown pulled out a 65-61 win. The Trojans came back from a nine-point halftime deficit for a 72-69 when the two squads met in the final game of the regular season Feb. 2. That one is still fresh in both their minds heading into Wednesday’s rematch.

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First Round
Wed., Feb. 6
4) Methacton vs. 5) Perkiomen Valley, 6 PM
3) Pottstown vs. 6) Norristown, 7:30 PM

Semifinals
Fri., Feb. 8
1) Spring-Ford vs. TBD
2) Phoenixville vs. TBD

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Championship
Tues., Feb. 13