City of Basketball Love

Andrew Robinson (@ADrobinson3)
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FORT WASHINGTON — For the rare occasions where one Tiffan isn’t enough, Spring-Ford girls basketball has two.

Rams senior Katie Tiffan drew the big defensive assignment at the start of Saturday’s District 1 Class 6A quarterfinal at Upper Dublin, guarding Cardinals senior Amy Ngo. When foul trouble prompted a change in the assignment, only the first name changed as junior Christina Tiffan took her sister’s place.

The sisters did the job on both ends, and No. 6 Spring-Ford survived a rally by the No. 3 Cardinals to win 44-39 and advance to the district’s final four.

“Our team’s really talented this year,” Katie Tiffan said. “We want to finish our season strong, and that starts with defense, having energy on offense, playing together and having fun with it.”

Katie Tiffan, who has committed to Lynn University, has carved out a role as an ace defender with the Rams this season. While Spring-Ford doesn’t have a ton of size, she does give versatility at 5-foot-11 with ability to guard inside or on the perimeter.

Christina, or Tina as everyone in the program calls her, is a couple inches shorter than her sister but no less tenacious defensively. Both of them knew that not only was Ngo a good shooter who also would take lanes to the basket, but she’s the fulcrum of Upper Dublin’s offense.

So, whether it was Katie for three-plus quarters or Christina down the stretch, neither Tiffan gave up much airspace.

“The main focus was keeping her in front of us,” Katie said. “If we went over the screen, she can shoot outside but she can also drive, so we really had to keep her in front to not let her drive to the rim or take a wide-open 3.”

Ngo finished with a game-high 16, but the Holy Family recruit didn’t have many easy looks among them.

“Katie was doing a really good job,” Christina said. “When I took over, I was told to pressure and started face-guarding her, so my job was basically not letting her touch the ball. I wasn’t really helping on defense because I knew their offense would run around her.”

Ngo got off to a good start, scoring eight first-quarter points and assisting on three other baskets as the Cardinals jumped out to a 17-8 lead. Christina Tiffan said the plan didn’t change defensively or offensively, and the Rams knew if they stayed calm, stops and scores would come.

Spring-Ford did make a couple tweaks in the second quarter, collapsing in whenever any Cardinals player tried to get into the lane, and it led to five Upper Dublin turnovers. That, combined with some aggressive offensive rebounding by Kareena Preuss, helped the Rams take a lead.

Katie Tiffan capped a strong second quarter with a late 3-pointer assisted by her sister to take a 26-21 lead to the half.

“We talk a lot about defense,” Christina Tiffan said. “As long as our pressure on defense is strong and we start getting steals, it brings up the energy and intensity. If we get steals, our offense will come.”

The third quarter didn’t play out much better for the host Cardinals. Upper Dublin scored seven combined points in the second and third, with all of them coming from the free-throw line.

“The start couldn’t have been any better," UD coach Morgan Funsten said. “I liked the shots we were getting today, but unfortunately they weren’t dropping in the second and third quarters. I thought we gave up on a couple possessions defensively in the second quarter that got us. It was compounding mistakes we made on the offensive end by not getting back or not boxing out, and it’s something we’ve got to get better at.”

A basket by Katie Tiffan off a Mac Pettinelli assist in the latter stages of the third sent Spring-Ford into the final frame with a 33-24 lead. Both sisters had to come up with key plays over the final eight minutes to maintain that lead as UD quickly came back to life offensively.

Freshman Tamia Clark, who had been shut out for three quarters, sank a wing trey 49 seconds into the quarter to get the crowd back into it and kick off a back-and-forth closing act. Katie Tiffan answered that score with a hoop, the first two of her eight fourth-quarter points to close a team-high 15-point outing.

“Everyone on the floor is really talented,” Katie Tiffan said. “They can all do multiple things. None of us are really big, but we can all shoot from any spot on the court and we’re all confident to make a play.”

Clark scored the first nine points of the fourth for Upper Dublin, the last two on a put-back that cut the lead to 36-33 with 4:43 to play after Christina Tiffan had split a pair of free throws on the other end. The Rams went back to a Tiffan on the ensuing possession — this time it was Katie making a tough finish off an Anna Azzara pass for a three-point play the hard way, extending the edge to 39-33.

Ngo sank a 3 to halve the lead again, and after UD got a stop Clark put one up from long range. The shot rolled about halfway down and popped out with two minutes left, Azzara grabbing the miss and hitting Christina Tiffan up the court for a layup and five-point lead.

“To be in a one-possession game with a chance to tie on a shot that went in and out, there’s a lot of positives to be taken out of it,” Funsten said. “We know we’re not done playing yet. We’re disappointed, Spring-Ford is one of the top teams in the state but I think we’re right there.”

Brighid Brady hit a 3 as a last-gasp push for UD, but with the Cardinals needing to foul, Katie Tiffan stepped up and hit two free throws in response. The Tiffans closed the game out at the line, albeit in an unusual manner.

Katie got fouled again with 10.9 left, making her first but missing the second, only for Christina to grab the offensive board and immediately get fouled. She missed both, but this time Katie grabbed the rebound off the second and Spring-Ford was able to run the last nine seconds out.

Spring-Ford will travel to No. 2 Conestoga in Wednesday’s semifinals as it chases a third District 1-6A title game appearance in the last four years.

“We’re just going to keep the same energy up, whether it’s on the bench or the court,” Katie Tiffan said.

Despite just having surgery on her injured right knee Friday, UD sophomore Megan Ngo was parked behind the Cardinals bench in support. When the game ended, Azzara and Pettinelli — who played with Amy Ngo on the same Comets GUAA team — went right over to give the sophomore hugs.

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By Quarter

Spring-Ford: 8 | 18 | 7 | 11 || 44

Upper Dublin: 17 | 4 | 3 | 15 || 39

Scoring

Spring-Ford: Katie Tiffan 15, Anna Azzara 11, Kareena Preuss 8, Aaliyah Solliday 4, Mac Pettinelli 3, Christina Tiffan 3

Upper Dublin: Amy Ngo 16, Tamia Clark 9, Brighid Brady 8, Bridget DiMartile 3, Nora Brady 3