The Elizabethtown story

Here is the Elizabethtown story, written by Chris McCarthy, managing editor of the Elizabethtown Chronicle. His blog on E-town sports can be accessed through our web site, www.chronicleledgernewsgroup.com.

On Tuesday night, Section Two runner-up Elizabethtown will take on
Section Four champion Columbia in the first round of the
Lancaster-Lebanon League playoffs at 7 p.m. at Conestoga Valley.

Here’s a look at how the Bears got there and what to expect from their starters and top reserves.

The Road to the Playoffs:
Playoffs weren’t a certainty for the Bears for the majority of the
season, thanks to a slow start. E-town started 2-1 before getting to
Section One crossover games. In its fourth game of the year, the Bears dropped a close game to J.P. McCaskey, which began a six-game losing streak for E-town. During that streak, the Bears lost games by 6, 2, 3, and 1. Certainly all games they could have won. After the losing skid, they dropped to 2-7 overall and just 1-5 in league play.
But then E-town figured out how to win the close games.
E-town won 12 of its next 14 games, including ending the season with eight straight wins and along the way went from a team that couldn’t play from behind in the fourth quarter, to a squad that believed it had the ability to come back from any deficit at any time. Of those 12 wins to end the season, E-town needed every single one of them in order to make it to the postseason.
And now they enter the L-L playoffs with 14 wins – 10 more than they had last season with this same roster – and arguably one of the hottest teams in the league.
E-town’s Starters
PG – Jordan Hallman, senior, 6’0”
Hallman has gotten better with every game E-town has played this
season and has worked his way into the starting five. He sees the floor well and doesn’t make a lot of mistakes, which is exactly what you want from your point guard. Hallman has the quickness to beat a defender off the dribble and take the ball hard to the basket, getting to the free throw line. He also does a good job of finding open teammates when he drives. He’s an above average deep shooting threat and will sink treys if you leave him open.



On defense, Hallman’s quick feet and even quicker hands make him a
menace to opponents. If the ball hits the ground, not many players will get to it before Hallman. His ability to create turnovers and efficient run that fast breaks off of them are a major reason for E-town’s current success.
LIKELY MATCHUP: G Colby Tuell.

SG – Chad Styer, junior, 6’2”
Styer might be the best shooter on this Elizabethtown team. He hits
his free throws at about 80 percent from the line and can be deadly
from behind the arc when he is on (his 17 three’s this year are among the best in the section). He also has a knack for coming up big when E-town needs him the most. If the Bears need a big basket, or a big 3-Pointer, don’t be surprised to see them go to Styer. He can score from anywhere on the floor and has the size to get some points in the paint as well. If the Bears are going to score with Columbia, Styer will need to have a good night.
LIKELY MATCHUP: G Adam Pittman.


SF – Quinn Cozzens, junior, 6’2”
Cozzens and Styer play a lot like each other. Both can hit the three
(Cozzens has 15 this year) and both are smart scorers. Cozzens can do it all – grab rebounds, dish out assists, come up with steals, and
score. He is probably the best all around player on the team and they
usually go as he goes. If he goes off and plays well in all facets,
E-town will be right in the game. If his scoring is off, Cozzens will
find other ways to contribute, whether it be crashing the boards hard or setting up his teammates for open looks.
LIKELY MATCHUP: G Mike Seibert.


PF – Kyle McNeil, junior, 6’2”
The first thing I noticed about McNeil is that he plays much bigger
than 6’2”. He can jump with anyone and has the strength to bang bodies with bigger players in the paint. McNeil is a solid scorer, very
capable of putting up double-digit points but he brings a scrappiness
to the low post that makes E-town a very good rebounding team,
especially when it comes to hitting the offensive glass.
LIKELY MATCHUP: F Yahya McIntyre.


C – Nate Koach, senior, 6’4”
Koach is, along with Cozzens, the top scorer on the team. He’s
averaging around 13 points per game and gives the Bears a formidable low post presence. Koach is an excellent free throw shooter, which has been a key for E-town because he gets to the line a lot. And late in the fourth quarter, teams won’t just hack the Center and put him on the line. But if they do, Koach will make them pay by sinking free throws. He can score with either hand and takes the ball up hard everytime he gets it.
On defense, he is one of E-town’s best shot blockers and will clean up a lot of missed shots. But what Koach and McNeil’s biggest strength might be is their ability to set screens inside for the outside shooters. These two do an excellent job of running the offense and giving Styer, Cozzens and Hallman open looks from behind the arc. And when those three are open, they are going to make shots.
Combine that outside threat with the inside scoring ability of Koach
and McNeil and you see why the Bears have won eight in a row.
LIKELY MATCHUP: F Ryan Hess.

Key Reserves:
G – Mike O’Shea, senior, 5’11”; G – Nate McCurdy, senior, 5’10”’; F –
Brad Garber, sophomore, 6’1”.
These are E-town’s top three players off of the bench. O’Shea will
give Hallman a break at the point when needed and does a great job
running the offense. Having two skilled point guards that know the
offense inside and out is a luxury for E-town.
McCurdy is a solid player who gives the Bears another scorer. He’s
capable of giving the Bears good minutes from the bench.
Garber is a quick, scrappy inside post player who won’t be
intimitdated by the playoff atmosphere.

What E-town needs to do to win:
First things first, the Bears need to find a way to lock down
Columbia’s dynamic duo of guards Adam Pittman and Mike Seibert, who are the Tide’s top scorers. That task will fall to Hallman, Styer and Cozzens. Inside, E-town needs to capitalize on its height advantage. McNeil and Koach have the advantage inside on Ryan Hess (6’2”) and Yahya McIntyre (6’1”), but they’ve got to keep attacking them.

But probably the most important part of the game falls squarely on the shoulders of the guards. One of Columbia’s biggest strengths is its defense. It’s the defense that sets up the transition game and that’s why Columbia averages more than 70 points per game. Hallman, Styer and Cozzens and O’Shea and McCurdy when they are in the game, will need to take care of the basketball, and be smart. The Bears can run with the Tide, though, which is more than you can say for most teams in the L-L League.
If you ask each and every E-town player what they need to do to win,
they will all say the same thing. “Run the offense.” That’s it. Run the
plays, stay focused and don’t try and do to much. Let the offense run
itself. It won’t be easy by any stretch. Columbia is definitely one of
the better teams the Bears have played alll season and they’ll give
E-town all it can handle. The Bears can’t afford to have one single bad quarter, or they will lose. They need to play basketball at a playoff level beginning right now if they want to move on in the league playoffs.