Upper Dublin captured its second District 1 5A title in as many years with its 47-44 win over Penncrest. Photos provided courtesy of Greg Lindsay & Michael Rice Photography. Check back for a gallery of photos. CLICK HERE to go directly to Suburban One Sports' BOYS' BASKETBALL GALLERIES.
District 1 5A title game
#4 UPPER DUBLIN 47, #2 PENNCREST 44
Kobe Bazemore can dazzle with his ballhandling skills and moves to the basket.
But on a night when Penncrest was without its top offensive and defensive weapon (6-7 Mikey Mita due to an injury), it was on the defensive end where Upper Dublin’s senior point guard effectively set the tone early.
“Defense has always been my staple,” Bazemore said. “Kobe Bazemore is always known for defense, so I came out tonight doing what I know best, locking in – no fouls. I just had to play aggressive all night. I was gonna win on defense.”
And win he did in a first quarter that saw the Lions slow the game down to a pace that was not to Bazemore’s or the Cardinals’ liking.
“We scouted them pretty heavy, and we knew four corners was coming,” UD coach Derek Brooks said. “I didn’t think it was going to be right away for that long extended period of time, but we knew it was coming, and we had a plan for it.
“I was not very happy with how we executed it. We missed some steals. But it’s hard to guard four corners – that’s why you run it, and Kobe - just to be able to initiate turnovers on his own – that’s like a cheat code to be able to do that against four corners, so that was huge.”
Bazemore led the Cards’ defense with five steals, and it was his aggressive play in the first quarter that allowed UD to turn an early 5-2 deficit into a 12-7 lead when Bazemore – for the second time in the quarter – turned a steal into a basket. This one on an offensive rebound of his own miss.
“I just had to play my game,” Bazemore said. “I was thinking about this game all week. They gave me all the way from Saturday (UD’s semifinal win over Holy Ghost) to Thursday, and I was like, ‘I have to get it done.’ I knew I was going to play way harder than I’ve ever played before.”
The Cardinals – led by Justin Ragsdale’s six points– took that five-point lead into halftime, 25-20.
In the third quarter, the Cardinals led 29-23 after Noah Cohen found Brandon Altman for an easy bucket three minutes into the quarter, but the Lions rallied to knot the score 31-31 after a Connor Cahill 3.
With five seconds remaining in the quarter, Bazemore broke a 35-35 tie when he buried a pair at the foul line, and it was apparent the Lions – playing for their injured teammate - weren’t going away.
“We came out here, and we knew they lost a guy,” Ragsdale said of Mita. “We knew it was an emotional game for them. They wanted to come out and win for their guy, and we wanted to come out harder and play our game.”
The fourth quarter was a riveting battle between two teams simply refusing to lose. The Lions led by one after a three-point play by Cahill to open the quarter, and the Cards regained a lead (40-39) when Bazemore found a cutting Ragsdale for a three-point play.
Penncrest responded, twice taking a two-point lead, but Jackson gave the Cards a lead they would not lose, 45-44, when – on a cut - he scored and completed the three-point play with 3:20 remaining.
On the Lions’ ensuing possession, Ragsdale delivered a huge block in the paint.
“I feel like it was just heart in the fourth quarter,” Ragsdale said. “We had to play to the last whistle.
“We knew they like to play slow. Our whole game plan was to speed them up, play our game – fast-paced. They had us right where they wanted us – a low-scoring game, so we just needed to lock in and execute.”
The game was far from over after Jackson’s three-point play, but neither team would score a field goal the rest of the way.
After Bazemore sank one of two at the foul line to give the Cards a 46-44 lead with 31.8 seconds remaining, Jackson delivered his second clutch play of the quarter – this one on the defensive end – when he delivered a huge block with 15 seconds remaining.
“I think they were trying to do a flare, and it was a fake handoff,” Jackson said. “Justin’s man went to the corner, and I just wanted to help. Once I saw him go up, I just went up and got it.
“I’m athletic enough, so I think I can go get it, and it was just a lot of room. It felt great and thank God Kobe got the ball and started turning it up.”
Bazemore was fouled and buried one of two to put the Cards on top 47-44. A desperation three at the buzzer by the Lions fell short, and the celebration began for the Cardinals, who won their second District 1 5A title in as many years.
“This one was way sweeter,” Bazemore said. “We were doubted from the beginning, but we came back and we did it.
“It was electric, man. We couldn’t stretch it out. It was tight all game. Hearts racing, but it’s just a great feeling.”
“It feels amazing,” Ragsdale said. “Back-to-back - it just feels amazing. They had great fans, we had great fans. It was just a great game, it really was.
“We worked very hard for it,” Jackson said. “People doubted us, but we won the SOL (Tournament) and districts.”
Key players: Justin Ragsdale led a balanced Cardinal attack with 12 points while Kobe Bazemore (11 points) and Horace Jackson (10 points) also finished in double figures. Brandon Altman added seven points.
For the Lions, Connor Cahill had 17 points and Sean Benson, 14 points.
Unsung heroes: Seniors Brandon Altman and Noah Cohen are veterans of many wars with the Cardinals during their years with the program, and while their names might not find their way into the headlines as often as some of their teammates, they have been key pieces of Upper Dublin’s success story.
For Cohen, who was sidelined with a broken arm during last year’s run to a district title, Thursday’s win was especially sweet.
“Unbelievable,” he said. “I’m very grateful that I got this opportunity to be back. Coach told me last year when we were in the tunnel, ‘We’re going to get you one next year. We’re going to be back and we’ll get the win,’ and he kept his promise.
“I was just so grateful we got this opportunity to play in front of so many people for the championship. We should take this feeling and use it to strive to get to the next level and go on a deep run in states.”
The duo combined for 12 important points in Thursday’s win.
“This means a lot,” Altman said. “Obviously, we’ve been building this for the past four years – me, Noah and Kobe. Last year we won it, but this felt even better because we didn’t have all the seniors from last year, and we proved we could do it without them.”
It was not always smooth sailing for the Cards, but when it mattered most, they delivered.
“It was a little rocky at the start of the season – coach said our body language was really bad, but we all bought in,” Altman said. “Even when we were down tonight, we were all clapping, our heads were up. We knew we were going to win. It felt great.”
Both players tipped their caps to a Penncrest team that was without Mikey Mita, who averaged a double-double.
“We really feel for them,” Cohen said. “They are a heck of a team, and they played a heck of a game. They should be very proud.
“We just had to keep our composure, keep our energy and not let that affect us. I think they played a spectacular game, and all the credit to them.”
“They didn’t really miss at all tonight,” Altman said. “They were knocking down all their shots. We just knew we had to weather the storm and keep up the body language – staying positive, and eventually, we were going to pull away – which we didn’t really do, but we won at the end.”
Upper Dublin coach Derek Brooks:
--The game: “It was a stressful game, but I think that PW game from three weeks ago (a 46-43 win) really gave us confidence in a moment like this - like ‘We have done this. We can do this’ - find a way.
“We really executed offensively very well down the stretch, so I’m happy with that. Our guys made some great passes, finishes at the rim, and we made just enough free throws to pull it out. Every time they punched, we punched back. We just happened to have the lead when time ran out.”
--Big blocks: They (Ragsdale and Jackson) have the athleticism to do that. And for them to put themselves in position to not foul, go up like that - it’s huge, huge plays. Those two aren’t afraid of the moment, and they have a year left. They have two district titles, three SOL titles, so they’re not afraid, fortunately, and we’ve been lucky to have everybody in big games like this.”
--Lions play for Mita: “I give them a ton of credit. They fought their butts off for three straight games now. I don’t know what they shot from 3, but it had to be like 60 percent. You just tip your cap.
“Going into the game, we had them at a percentage that we felt pretty comfortable with. Without Mita, it was in the high 20s, so it’s like all right – not that we were going to give them open looks, but credit to them, they’re in a college gym, and that’s an adjustment sometimes. I’m proud that we were able to weather that storm with them coming back and still fighting.”
Up next: Upper Dublin will face District 3’s sixth place team, Spring Grove, in Friday’s opening round of the PIAA 5A State Tournament.
Penncrest 9-11-15-9 44
Upper Dublin 12-13-12-10 47
Penncrest (44) – Will Stanton 3 0-0 7; Sean Benson 5 1-1 14; Orion Kolleh 3 0-0 6; Connor Cahill 5 4-5 17; TOTALS 16 5-6 44
Upper Dublin (47) – Kobe Bazemore 3 4-6 11; Brandon Altman 3 0-0 7; Noah Cohen 2 0-0 5; Horace Jackson 4 2-5 10; Justin Ragsdale 4 4-5 12;Luke Caron 1 0-0 2; TOTALS 17 10-16 47.
3-point goals: P – Sean Benson 3, Connor Cahill 3, Will Stanton; UD – Kobe Bazemore, Brandon Altman, Noah Cohen.
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