Reading 63 CD East 51

The Reading High Red Knights captured their 19th district title today by beating the Panthers of CD East this afternoon at the Giant Center in Hershey, PA. Here are my thoughts on today's game:

1. We really didn't play great on the offensive end today but defensively we came through with a championship performance. Hats off as it was a total team effort. Coming into the game I really thought we would have to limit their three guards and not only did we limit them we really shot them down as Amani Glenn was 1 for 11 from the field, Demond Bates was 4 for 11 from the field and John Breeden was 2 for 11 from the field. So their big three shot 7 for 33 for 21 percent.
2. To me the MVP of the game was Nelson Leon. He set the tempo in hitting a couple of three's to start the game and played his usual outstanding defense and the other's seem to feed off his great defensive play.
3. What is really scary about our squad is that we played about our B- game on offense and still beat CD East by 12.
4. Jermaine Jackson did fall hard on his back and with a week to rest hopefully he can be ready for the first round of the State tournament on Saturday. While not having an outstanding he still had a great game in getting 12 points and 10 boards and while earlier this week talking the talk he also walked the walk.
5. Hats off to all of our loyal fans who made their presence felt today and made it like a home game for us. Also memo to all the naysayers throughout District III and especially in the Harrisburg area what more do you want this team to do before you give us some damn respect.
6. Memo to the Giant Center if you want even bigger crowds how about lowering your concession prices. I'm not asking for $1 hot dogs or anything but when get chicken tenders and a small coke and it costs $11 something is wrong with this picture. Its not like the people attending the game our folks with 6 figure salaries.
7. Also great to see Marcus Dawkins return to action with him seeing big minutes I really expect us to play suffocating defense like we did today.
8. I wanted to say congrats to CD East for getting this far. Coach Leib is a class act and his program is definitely on the right track.
9. It was great to see Coach Reyes celebrating with the players and seeing him happy. Also classy move in the post game interview on WEEU giving credit to his assistants as well.
10. As we look ahead we will play the Indians of Souderton High school who entered the District I tournament as the 20th seed. In their last couple games they have only played six players so its definitely a team we have to make run the full court and just wear down.
11. For those of you who are reading my blog on pennlive.com if you want to view a video of the pics I sent please visit my blog at www.redknighthoops.blogspot.com

Reading 61 Elizabethtown 38

The Reading Red Knights clinched a berth in the District III Championship game with a 61-38 win over the Elizabethtown Bears tonight at the Giant Center in Hershey. The following are my thoughts on tonight's win:

1. Another great defensive effort tonight as we outrebounded Etown 27-20 and held them to 27% from the field and they only made 9 field goals for the game. The biggest improvement in the postseason is our play at the defensive end of the court. We are averaging giving up 44 ppg in the district playoffs.
2. Jordan Burdine has been the MVP of the district playoffs as he had another stellar game tonight with 20 points and four treys. So far in the districts he has scored a total of 56 points for an average of almost 19 points per game.
3. Nelson Leon had another great game defensively and chipped in 7 points and 6 boards. Lately he also seems to be more aggressive on offense.
4. It was really good to see us for the first time in the district playoffs come out and play well from the start and run our offense very smoothly and efficiently.
5. Trenity Burdine only had 4 points tonight but I thought he was much more active tonight than he was on Saturday and if his shot wasnt falling he still tried to contribute in other ways.
6. As we look ahead to Saturday's championship game, it should be stated that from the start of the season these two teams have played the best ball over the whole season so both squads definitely deserve to be here.
7. When I look at CD East I think their are two things that play in our favor. One, they our a small team on the whole and Jermaine could have his way inside as he has at least three or four inchees on any defender he will see. The second thing is while they are a disciplined team they are not a great shooting team, so if they score 44 points again on Saturday they will have a very tough time beating us. I will be looking at some film on them and have a scouting report on CD East up on my blog on either Wednesday or Thursday.

Etown Preview

The semifinal round of the District playoffs brings in a team many didnt expect to get this far in the Elizabethtown Bears. From scouting them I really believe this is a team who all year long has snuck up on a lot of teams and has really taken advantage of teams looking past them. I will give a rundown of the key players for the Bears:

12 Jordan Hallman 6' SR G: Star running back for football team and probably best athelete on the team. Ran for 1100 yards on the football field with 13 TD's and has averaged 10 ppg in the postseason. Decent outside shooter who can make the 3 if left open. Good defensive player probably will guard Macho as he is the fastest player on squad.

22 Kyle McNeal 6'2 JR F: Another player from league champion football squad. Has averaged 10 ppg in the postseason, but that is deceiving in that he had 19 in their pigtail game but hasnt been in double figures the last two games. McNeal isnt a great offensive player but makes the most out of his talent by being a great hustle player and will eat up the garbage from offensive rebounds.

25 Quinn Cozzens 6'2 JR G: One of the better offensive players on the team as he has averaged 14 ppg in the postseason and averaged 13 ppg in league play this year. Best scoring threat from the perimeter.

23 Chad Styer 6"2 JR F: Has also averaged 14 ppg in the postseason. Had a huge game Saturday with 21 points. Another player who can knock down the open shot and is someone who we cant give open looks to.

50 Nate Koach 6'4 SR F: Plays the center spot as he is the biggest player on the team. Averaging 11 ppg in the playoffs. Played wide receiver on the football team and is not slight of body but by no means strong. I really think this is a player who we can bring Cook into the game to wear down as the game goes on, because you have got to expect Koach to play almost all of the game. Getting him in foul trouble could be huge.

21 Nate McCurdy 5'10 JR G: Has averaged 3 ppg in two playoff games. First guy off the bench for the Bears. Not a great offensive threat but will be aggressive when he gets the ball and take it to the hole.

31 Bradley Garber 6'1 SO F: Son of former Phillies pitcher Gene Garber. Played in first round game and came off the bench for 7 points. Will see action if anyone in the front court gets into foul trouble. Probably most physical player on the team and could see action also if Cook gets more minutes.

Etown has some good ballhandlers but will be put to the test against our pressure defense. If they dont make shots they have no chance to win. I really think that Etown could come into the game as just happy to be their. I think it will take them some time to get used to playing in a big arena which is something they havent done.

Keys to the game

1. Macho must push the ball up the court and really be aggressive. Their is no one on the Etown roster who can match up with him speed wise. I really think he could have a huge game Tuesday night.

2. Run, run, and run some more: After studying some tape Etown will run when they get the chance but also is comfortable playing half court ball. But you have got to expect them to really try to make it a half court affair.

3. Get Jermaine going early: If we can get Jermaine some looks early in the game I really can see him going for 20 points and 10 boards. Etown simply has no answer for him at either end.

Prediction:

Reading 75

Etown 49

Reading 61 York 47

The Reading Red Knights advanced to the District III semifinals with a victory over the York Bearcats by the score of 61-47 at the Giant Center in Hershey, PA. Here are my thoughts on the game:

1. In the first quarter I really thought our intensity was not at the level it should be at. We have got to realize that no one we play is going to give us their best shot and we really need to get back to playing solid basketball for four quarters.
2. The MVP of today's game for me was Demrick Cook. After we were getting killed on the boards he came into the game controlled the paint, banged some bodies, and was a defensive force today. He only had 2 points but grabbed 17 rebounds and dished out 6 assists. I never knew he had such talent to throw a nice lead pass on the fast break but he did so twice and hit the player in stride.
3. Jordan Burdine continued his great play against York as he had 25 points and 6 rebounds. I really think why he has played so well against the Bearcats is because they dont have guards who can matchup to him height wise and he could get any shot he wanted to.
4. We really shot poorly today as we went 36% from the field, but that is the sign of how well we have played defensively and how talented we are that we can only shoot 36% and still win by 14 against a decent team.
5. I heard numerous fans from Harrisburg say that we were lucky since York missed so many layups but you have to give credit to some of that on the defensive effort by the Red Knights.
6. With today's win we will advance to play Elizabethtown. I fully expect us to win this game but the Bears record is a little deceiving. They are 16-10 on the season but only three of those losses have come after the New Year. But with that being said their best wins on the whole season are their two wins in the postseason.
7. I know the officiating was not top notch today but I really hope we refrain from bashing today's crew from the Lancaster-Lebanon League since they were doing their job with a heavy heart as they lost one of their own in veteran L-L official Tim Bartholomew passed away after the Hershey-Boiling Springs game on Thursday night. It had to be tough for these three men especially one of the officials today was on site when Tim collapsed after the game.
8. I just wanted to talk about Tim for a quick second. I got the chance to work with Mr. Bartholomew a few years ago at the Zinn's Park summer league and he always had time to talk to anyone was a basketball fan and took his job very seriously but did it because he liked kids and enjoyed officiating and not for a paycheck. I did go back and look at the tape from our last district championship and Tim was one of the officials in that game. I guess the best compliment I can give is that when you saw him officiating one of your games you knew you had one less thing to worry about.
9. I will be back tommorrow with my preview on the ETown game.

Reading 64 Carlisle 49

The Reading Red Knights were victorious tonight by a score of 64-49 in their first round district game against the Thundering Herd of Carlisle at Wilson High School. Here are my thoughts on the game:

1. Great to see us come out strong from the get go and I really thought we played our best half of basketball in the postseason tonight in the first half. It was great to see us back in attack mode.
2. Jermaine Jackson continued his outstanding play in the postseason with 21 points and 15 boards. I did thing when we had our rough third period we really got away from getting him touches.
3. As a team we didnt shoot the ball well as we only shot 39% from the field but I thought we ran our offense pretty effectively. But on the defensive end I thought we played pretty well. Held Carlisle to only 36% from the field and gave up very few easy baskets. Also a huge stat in tonight's game was how we really limited them to one shot and done with us holding a 45-21 rebounding advantage.
4. Nelson Leon had a nice game tonight in that he looked for his shot, played good defense, and grabbed 3 boards.
5. Great game tonight by Demrick Cook who only had two points but was a force on the glass and did a great job defensively.
6. I think the biggest advantage we got from the extra day of rest is that it let Macho heal his ankle up and after looking careless at the start of the game he really played well.
7. Looking ahead to Saturday's game, I think it is a team who we have film on and we have played already so we should not have problems getting adjusted to them. Youve got to think that York will make some adjustments, but with their style of play I dont think their is much their going to change. It also should help us that we have already played in a big arena and York has not.

Reading 72 Daniel Boone 54

The Reading Red Knights captured the Berks County Championship tonight at the Sovereign Center by a score of 72-54 in front of a crowd of almost 5,000. Here are my thoughts on tonight's game:

1. Jermaine Jackson continued his strong tournament play with a career high 27 points and 12 rebounds. He picked a great night to go for a career high. It was evident early he took the bull by the horns and put the others on his back and was not going to be denied. I think he was easily the tournament MVP. For the three games of the tournament he finished with a total of 64 points and 30 rebounds. Props to Jermaine for after the game really going out of his way to acknowledge the fans.
2. Jordan Burdine had a tough night from the field in shooting 1 for 12, but he never let his cold shooting get to him. He still drove to the basket and got to the foul line. Also should be noted he did a decent job of running the point when Macho was in foul trouble.
3. After getting into foul trouble in the first half Macho had a really nice second half with 14 second half points. He did tweak his ankle again tonight, but in the postgame celebration he did seem to be fine. Hopefully, he will get treatment this week and be ready to go on Wednesday.
4. I thought we played really well on the defensive end of the court tonight as Boone only shot 21 for 61 for 34% from the field. Also it did help that Boone was an anemic 1 for 8 from three point range. Credit should go out to Nelson Leon for doing a great job of defending Jeff Sowers to four points and only one field goal.
5. Credit also goes out to Coach Reyes and his whole coaching staff for having the team ready to play and not letting them panic when Boone kept trying to make a run to get back in the game.
6. Daniel Boone should be proud of the way they played tonight. I thought the most impressive thing was that they never changed the way they played and battled. I think they could make some noise in a really tough AAA bracket.
7. The big test for this team is getting over the hangover from tonight's win and getting back to business and focusing on Carlisle. I think it really helps playing against a team who beat us last year so I dont think we will look past Carlisle.
8. You have got to love the irony in a year after we were forced to play a game against a 12 seed Carlisle in their back yard, that this year we will face Carlisle and that they will have to travel 75 miles to play the game while we will travel a whopping three miles to play the game.
9. For those who read my blog on Pennlive if you go to www.redknighthoops.blogspot.com I have incorporated a movie with the pictures I took from the game I hope you all enjoy it.

Daniel Boone Preview

Friday's Berks County Title game promises to be a game that promises to be a game that will be exciting as it pits the two highest scoring teams in Berks county.

Boone is probably the only team from the county who can throw three double figure scorers on the court against Reading. But after watching them in three games they are a team who has some big flaws. For one, they are a terrible defensive team. They have given up a lot of points to some bad offensive teams as they gave up 58 to a bad Warwick team, 70 to Twin Valley, and 57 to Ephrata. So I expect this game to be easily played in the 70's. The other thing that I see with Boone is that they will go on scoring droughts from time to time and when they do this we have to make them pay when this happens. I think the one thing going for them is that they did get some confidence from that they played well against us in the last game. But you can only take that so far and I think that point is a big rallying point for Reading to come show that we are a much better team than the last game.

Keys to the game:
1. Get out to a lead early and make them play at an even faster tempo than they are used to.
2. Control the boards. This is a team the last time we played that killed us on the glass. Because if you limit them to outside shots they simply have no chance.
3. Get Jermaine Jackson off early. Because if he gets going early it will also open it up even more for Jordan Burdine. Quite simply there is no one on the Boone roster who can guard Jordan.

Prediction:

Reading 94
Daniel Boone 62

My other random thoughts on this week:

• After looking around at the other league's postseason tournaments, it is clear that Berks County Championship has the best facility to play the game at by far. Just look at where all the rest of the leagues play their title games. Lancaster-Lebanon league is playing theirs at Manheim Township high school, York played their's at York College, and the Mid Penn is playing their championship game at Cumberland Valley. So I think we all should be thankful that we have such a wonderful facility to play our league title game at.
• Memo to the BCIAA why is Jack Carl officiating playoff games? Who does he have pictures of? Im not one to just bash officials but I thought postseason assignments are on merit not on how many years you have officiated. After he blew that call in the Muhlenberg/SV game Carl should have been taken off any more county playoff games.
• Why was last night's game started at 6:00, but Monday's first game started at 6:30. I know there are festivities at halftime but lets start the games at 630 and 8. Its not like their are a ton of people who want to get home by 9:30.

Reading 79 Muhlenberg 58

The Reading High Red Knights earned a trip to the county championship game on Friday night with a 79-58 win over the Muhlenberg Muhls tonight at the Sovereign Center. Here are my thoughts on the game:

1. Offensively tonight I thought we ran our offense much better tonight. We got shots in the rhythm of the offense and were an amazing 7/12 for 58% from three point land. But also did a good job of not just settling for the outside shot.
2. Jermaine Jackson had a great game tonight with 18 points and 7 boards. It is really good to see him play in an aggressive way and really set the tempo for the rest of his teammates. I think if he has another double double you would have to consider him as tournament MVP.
3. Jordan Burdine also had a great game with 28 points and five three pointers. It was good to see Jordan not just settle for the outside jumper tonight as he attacked the basket. When he attacks the basket he is just a complete ballplayer.
4. I was a little miffed at the defensive gameplan which called for a zone most of the night. I just thought attacking Zeller like we did in the first game was more of the way to go. But Im not complaining we got the win.
5. The one distressing thing for this week is the amount of easy baskets we have given up. We are really going to need to shore that up and do it quickly.
6. Macho played tonight but I dont think he looked like he was at full strength. We really need him to get back healthy and attack the basket more. He still played a great game but I thought tonight we did miss his offense as he only had four points.
7. I was glad to see Daniel Boone win tonight for two reasons. First, I think the tempo they play at will really come in handy for us as we will be in a comfort playing the uptempo system the Blazers like to play. Second, I think the players on this squad really want to show that the last game was a fluke against Daniel Boone and really lay a pounding on them and their is no better place for it to happen than in the championship game.

Reading 69 Wyomissing 47

The Reading High Red Knights won their opening game of the postseason with a hard fought 69-47 against the Wyomissing Spartans tonight at Wilson High School. Here are my thoughts on the game:

1. The six day layoff really showed tonight. At times we seemed to be a step slow and at other times seemed a tad off our game. The game was much closer than the score would say. But we are going to need to improve if we want to win some hardware this year.
2. I thought on offense we ran our offense pretty well and we were unselfish and moved the ball around and got good looks at the basket.
3. Huge game tonight by Jermaine Jackson with 19 points and 11 boards. When Jermaine gets a double double we are almost unbeatable. We got him touches early and like I have hammered home this year get the big man involved early and he will come through.
4. Jordan Burdine has 15 points on a relatively poor shooting night as he went 4 for 14 from the field, but was effective getting to the line 10 times. When he attacks the basket and doesnt just shoot the outside jumper he is unstoppable.
5. It was good to see that when we were flat tonight that our senior leaders stepped to the forfront and got the team out of the doldrums. If you want to be a great team come playoff time you are going to need your seniors to play like seniors and they definitely did tonight.
6. Macho turned an ankle in the second quarter and left the game but returned after halftime and seemed to be at about 85-90%. Hopefully he will be able to go at close to full go on Wednesday.
7. I have to give props to Wyomissing tonight they gave us their best and played very well and definitely earned my respect as they had a solid game plan, were well coached, and didnt come into the game in awe of us like some other county teams have. Good luck Wyomissing in districts.
8. With Muhlenberg on Wednesday this is a matchup that definitely will favor us as they like to play fast. I expect a much better performace on Wednesday night.