Sun Valley Spring League Notebook: Thursday May 6

Penncrest guard Saahir Lee led all scorers with 25, leading the Lions past Penn Wood in overtime.

Night number two in week one of Sun Valley's spring league didn't disappoint, with defending Central League Champ and district semi finalist Garnet Valley joining the mix. Here's a notebook from Thursday night.

Lee leads Penncrest past Penn Wood

In what was the night's closest contest, Penncrest edged out a Penn Wood team that displayed a much improved performance on both ends of the floor. Thanks to rising senior guard Saahir Lee's 25 point performance, Penncrest pulled out an overtime win by a final of 40-38. A three year starter for the Lions, the left handed guard got off to a much faster start last night; scoring nine points in the first half. Despite Lee's fast start the Lions struggled to match the Patriots' physicality on the boards and were cold from three, enabling the Patriots to go back and forth between a 2-3 and 1-3-1 zone. In the second half, Lee once again got the Lions offense going with three straight buckets but the Patriots continued to take advantage on the glass, with rising junior big man Mehki Shillingsford finishing with 10 points, eight of them off of put backs.

Late in the second half, the Patriots went back to their 1-3-1 and were getting good rotation out of it looking to trap Lee as hard as they could. The third team all-delco guard responded by protecting the basketball and making the right reads by reversing the ball to the other side of the floor and eventually getting it back for a catch and shoot opportunity or to display his aggressiveness by splitting the trap and getting to the rim finishing through contact twice down the stretch. In the final minute, it appeared that the Patriots had a win secure but as they did in their first game they could not convert at the charity stripe missing four free throws in the final minute, giving Penncrest one last possession for Lee to hit a game-tying three at the buzzer.

In the brief overtime period, the Patriots attempted to face guard Lee who still got touches and found his way to the basket, getting to the free throw line twice to help the Lions pull out the win.

Defense helps Sun Valley drain Marple

If you enjoy watching good team defense, Sun Valley's 44-35 win over Marple Newtown was one to watch. The Vanguards who have a solid core of rising juniors did most of the little things well in this one. Chris Kwadeah, who was coming off of a 21 point performance on Tuesday led the Vanguards once again with 18, breaking down defenders to get to the rim and being able to get by and finish with either hand also including two acrobatic finishes in this one. Rising sophomore guard Noah Griffin also chipped in with 10 for Sun Valley. Griffin displayed showed some aggressiveness early with the ball in his hands but what was more pleasing to watch was how he played off the ball, taking advantage of flex cuts for layups and being ready to attack closeouts on his catches.

The Tigers were a little shorthanded in this one and struggled to take care of the basketball against the Sun Valley defense, turning the ball over four straight possesions late in the first half which led to Sun Valley closing the half on a 9-0 run. In the second half the Tigers offense began to get a few open looks from beyond the arc early in their possesions but weren't hitting them, allowing the Vanguards to get out in transition off of defensive rebounds. At one point in the second half Marple suffered from a seven minute scoring drought thanks in part to Sun Valley closing out and running shooters off the line, as well as being extremely active jumping to the ball and continuing to force turnovers. Down the stretch Marple cut it to five at one point as they at last began to once again find the bottom of the basket through the dribble drive, but the Vanguards defense stayed connected and got stops down the stretch to wrap this one up.

Garnet Valley's reload begins with toughness

Coming off of their first Central League championship and district final four appearance, the Jaguars have already begun their reloading process. A team known for their three point shooting, the Jags started off their spring league work by displaying toughness in both games they played by beating Chester Charter 45-22 and Chichester 42-28. Returning for the Jags were rising senior forward Ryan Wooten and rising junior guard Logan McKee, who did a solid job of leading a team that featured several rising freshman. Rising junior guard Max Koehler Is currently out due to injury In both games, McKee's touch from downtown helped propel the offense, while Wooten served as the glue on the defensive end in both games, and chipped in offensively the second game finishing with 11. The Jaguars offense also did a good job of getting layups through basket cuts. While it may take the younger kids time to learn the system, they all showed good signs that they know how to play.

In the second game against Chichester the Jaguars toughness stood out among other things, as this contest was a tale of two different teams. While they did foul at a high rate in the first half, the Jaguars toughness was being showcased as they beat Chichester to nearly every loose ball and out rebounded them on both ends, getting multiple second chances on the offensive end that compromised for a third of their nine trips to the free throw line. As the Jaguars continue to progress throughout the spring I will be watching to see how the incoming freshmen learn and start to grow in Coach Mike Brown's system.

In the first half the Eagles generated a few turnovers out of their pressure but after three possessions the Jaguars didn't panic and figured it out beating them down the court with Hail Mary passes that turned into layups. What hampered the Eagles aside from getting beat on the glass and in the overall hustle department, was their difficulty to find any offense in the half court. There were many times that the Eagles lacked ball and body movement, suffocating spacing and causing dead ball turnovers. The Eagles guards also second guessed themselves several times and missed scoring opportunities as well as chances to kick out and keep the offense going. The Eagles guards and wings will have to improve their decision making as well as consistently play with the toughness they showed at times against Penn Wood on Tuesday night. Their offense will also need to develop more ball and body movement with a purpose, as needed in any spread or open system to work.

One bright spot for the Eagles however was rising junior guard Ahkir Keyes who led the Eagles with 11 points. Keyes started to show a more consistent stroke from three, and got to the free throw line twice going four for four.