The basketball playoffs have arrived in full force. Here’s a look at how the other area boys teams are making out:
Public League: Class AAAA
Frankford: Senior guards Quadire Truesdale (29 points) and Demetrius White (23) combined for 52 of their team’s 74 points in a first-round 74–65 win over visiting Simon Gratz. Truesdale scored 11 of his 29 in the final quarter and added 10 assists, while White converted 8 of his 10 free throw attempts. The win, Frankford’s ninth in its last 10 games, sets up a titanic clash with Division B rival George Washington (18–5) in Wednesday afternoon’s Class AAAA semifinals. The Pioneers and Eagles met on Dec. 22 in the regular season; in that one, Frankford (14–9) held a commanding 38–18 halftime lead before being outscored 45–11 in the second half en route to a 14-point defeat. The rematch will take place at Washington at 3:15 p.m.
Northeast: After a magical week that included a playoff victory over Edison and seeing team manager Glenn Shapley — afflicted with cerebral palsy — score his first seven varsity points, the Vikings’ season came to an end on Monday following an 88–55 loss to defending Class AAAA and Public League champion Martin Luther King (17–6). Northeast was down 18–4 after one and by 25 at halftime, proving to be no match for the high-flying Cougars of Division A. Senior guard and leading scorer Deshan Brown tallied 21 points in his final game in a Northeast uniform. The Vikings finished the season 10–11 overall.
Class AA
Tacony Charter: A few days after playing — and winning — its first-ever playoff basketball game, Tacony Charter fell to host Freire Charter (12–11), 61–44, in a first-round playoff game. The score was knotted at 29 at halftime, but turnovers plagued the Lions after the break, when they managed just 15 points. Senior leading scorer Justin Johnson capped a fine season with 14 points, while sophomore Justin Steers, who could play a major role on next year’s team, added 10. Under first-year head coach Sean Riley, Tacony posted a 13–8 overall record, including an impressive 11–2 mark in Division E.
Catholic League
Father Judge: Following four losses in their last five games, the Crusaders got back on track in their regular-season finale with a 46–40 victory over visiting Cardinal O’Hara. Judge watched the 1975 Catholic League champion team honored before the game (to commemorate the title’s 40th anniversary), and then did itself a huge favor by knocking off the Lions. Junior guard Quincy Reed paced the balanced Crusaders with 10 points. Not only did Judge capture a crucial victory, but the team received help from West Catholic, which knocked off favorite Bonner-Prendie in the two teams’ regular-season finale. As a result, eighth-seeded Judge (14–8) earned the right to host the №9 Friars in a preliminary round playoff contest on Wednesday night at 7, with the winner moving on to face either top-seeded Neumann-Goretti or №2 Roman Catholic. Bonner-Prendie (12–10) knocked off Judge 64–63 in overtime back on Jan. 9.
Archbishop Ryan: With the final spot in the Catholic League playoffs on the line, the Raiders finished their regular season strong with wins over O’Hara and Lansdale Catholic. In Ryan’s 58–47 visiting win over Lansdale, the two-headed scoring monster of junior Austin Chabot (20 points) and rising sophomore guard Izaiah Brockington (10 points) led the way. The win allowed the Raiders (10–12) to claim the 10th spot in the playoffs and earned the right to travel to №7 Archbishop Wood on Wednesday night at 7. Wood (17–5), which had won five straight before losing to Carroll to close out the regular season, boasts senior scoring machine Luke Connaghan (19.2 points per game), among others. Wood defeated Ryan 61–52 on Jan. 12. ••
