Looking ahead: E-town vs. Cedar Crest
Tomorrow night at Central Dauphin, the Bears will look to keep their season going as they take on 18-5 Cedar Crest in the first round of the District Three Class AAAA playoffs. E-town, the 13th seed in the district, is definitely the underdog tomorrow night, as many people are picking the Falcons (the 4th seed) to advance pretty deep into these playoffs.
Here's a little bit about how Cedar Crest got to this point and what to expect from them tomorrow night.
The Falcons got off to an unbelievable start, winning their first 11 games before losing back-to-back games to McCaskey (understandably) and Warwick (surprisingly). They got back on track, though, with a 64-58 win over E-town on Jan. 9 and won their next five games in a row. But two losses in their final three games forced Cedar Crest to miss the L-L Playoffs, as they finished third in Section One, behind McCaskey and Hempfield. And then, last Thursday, they got THUMPED by Red Land (the 7 seed in these district playoffs), losing by 24. So After starting 11-0, Crest is just 7-4 in its last 11 games, including losing three of its last four.
By my calculations, Cedar Crest averages 61.8 points per game and allows just 52.3.
Their top three scorers are Kyle McConnell, Chris Keith and Mark Manno. McConnell is the team's best player. He's a 1,000 point scorer and averaged 15.8 points per game this year, second best in Section One. Keith and Manno are also among the top 10 scorers in Section One.
Keith averages better than 14 per game and was second in Section One in free throw percentage (88) and 3-pointers made (27). He's a sharp shooter, and the Bears must keep a hand in his face at all times.
Manno averages 10.8 per game.
All in all, E-town matches up with Cedar Crest size-wise, and there aren't many (if any) teams faster than the Bears out there, so it's going to come down to execution and who wants it more. By no means is E-town overmatched here, despite the rankings and what most newspaper people have been writing. The Bears have to play defense the way they did against Gettysburg. Hound McConnell and company all night, get them frustrated and force them to get out of their offensive game plan.
Cedar Crest also plays pretty physical, so expect some contact inside, but that's nothing the Bears can't handle. E-town's starters have to try and stay out of foul trouble for the Bears to be in it in the fourth quarter.
I have a sneaking suspicion that Cedar Crest is looking past E-town a little bit here, and head to a potential matchup with Red Lion on Saturday. If that's the case, watch for E-town to jump out to an early lead. The key will be if they can sustain it.
Expect an intense, physical basketball game between two L-L rivals.
Should be fun to watch.
Here's a little bit about how Cedar Crest got to this point and what to expect from them tomorrow night.
The Falcons got off to an unbelievable start, winning their first 11 games before losing back-to-back games to McCaskey (understandably) and Warwick (surprisingly). They got back on track, though, with a 64-58 win over E-town on Jan. 9 and won their next five games in a row. But two losses in their final three games forced Cedar Crest to miss the L-L Playoffs, as they finished third in Section One, behind McCaskey and Hempfield. And then, last Thursday, they got THUMPED by Red Land (the 7 seed in these district playoffs), losing by 24. So After starting 11-0, Crest is just 7-4 in its last 11 games, including losing three of its last four.
By my calculations, Cedar Crest averages 61.8 points per game and allows just 52.3.
Their top three scorers are Kyle McConnell, Chris Keith and Mark Manno. McConnell is the team's best player. He's a 1,000 point scorer and averaged 15.8 points per game this year, second best in Section One. Keith and Manno are also among the top 10 scorers in Section One.
Keith averages better than 14 per game and was second in Section One in free throw percentage (88) and 3-pointers made (27). He's a sharp shooter, and the Bears must keep a hand in his face at all times.
Manno averages 10.8 per game.
All in all, E-town matches up with Cedar Crest size-wise, and there aren't many (if any) teams faster than the Bears out there, so it's going to come down to execution and who wants it more. By no means is E-town overmatched here, despite the rankings and what most newspaper people have been writing. The Bears have to play defense the way they did against Gettysburg. Hound McConnell and company all night, get them frustrated and force them to get out of their offensive game plan.
Cedar Crest also plays pretty physical, so expect some contact inside, but that's nothing the Bears can't handle. E-town's starters have to try and stay out of foul trouble for the Bears to be in it in the fourth quarter.
I have a sneaking suspicion that Cedar Crest is looking past E-town a little bit here, and head to a potential matchup with Red Lion on Saturday. If that's the case, watch for E-town to jump out to an early lead. The key will be if they can sustain it.
Expect an intense, physical basketball game between two L-L rivals.
Should be fun to watch.
Labels: boys baskeball
posted by Chris McCarthy at
8:44 PM
2 Comments:
Your a dope! All Crest has heard is how they are going to lose to Etown. They are focused on mission #1 - beating your Bears... AGAIN!
And as far as looking ahead to Red Lion... Anyone who knows anything about District 3 basketball knows that Mechanicsburg will be advancing; not Red Lion.
Thank, anonymous, but it looks like I'm not a dope after all. I said to expect E-town to jump out to an early lead (they opened the game on a 9-0 run) and to expect an intense, physical game (which we can all agree it was).
Also, they aren't my Bears. I just cover them. That's all. And, I never said E-town was going to beat Cedar Crest (read the post again), I simply said to expect a close, intense game and that is what it certainly was.
Hats off to Crest on a great season, though. Oh, and nice pick on Mechanicsburg, kudos.
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