By Todd Thorpe
EAST NORRITON - A year ago, Upper Moreland made history reaching the PIAA Class 5A semifinals, capping a season with the first three state playoff wins in school history.
That set the bar, and this year’s squad surprised quite a few by matching the bar with three more state wins, an upset of a Philadelphia Catholic League powerhouse Neumann Goretti in the quarterfinals and another trip to the final four.
Unfortunately, for the Golden Bears, that run ended in the same place as a year ago. Bonner-Prendergast avenged a state quarterfinal loss to UM 12 months ago with a dominant 54-28 win at Norristown High School Tuesday night.
While these UM players, namely seniors Nate Best and Larry Hughes, wrapped up the most successful careers of anyone in school history, by no means do they plan on this being the end of the run.
“Just understanding that this is the new standard,” Best said. “This is the new bar. Like, last year wasn’t a fluke. This year’s not a fluke. This is the new standard of Upper Moreland basketball, and this is what we’re trying to reach every season.
“I’m very excited to see how (the younger players) develop, like Jose (Hernandez), Cannon (Campbell), they’re all really good players. So, definitely excited to see them reach this again. This isn’t the last time we’re going to be here, or this program, is going to be here.”
And the players who will attempt to carry on that legacy know that the next step is clearing the semifinal hurdle.
“Yeah, this year seemed like something special,” said Campbell, just a sophomore. “It was really great, us getting back here, but eventually, we have to get over this hump. … (The seniors), they’re really great players.
No one has ever done this before and they’ve set the new standard for this program every year.”
Best battled to the end, scoring a team-high 10 points on a brutal offensive night for the Bears, who struggled, shooting just 10-for-37 from the field. And when coach Dan Heiland removed his senior point guard late in the fourth quarter, his coaches and teammates showed him the respect he’s earned.
“Obviously, we didn’t want to lose,” Best said. “We wanted to make it all the way, but we still had a great season, made another state run, made it to the semifinal back here.
“They were telling me to keep my head up, that they love me. My teammates, I love those guys. They’re not just teammates to me.”
This team will not be one the school, or especially their coach, will ever forget.
“I think last year, you know the group, we got to the same point, and I wouldn't say that it was surprising,” Heiland said. “I think it was one of those things, and I think similar this year where we got that first round win, and we kind of dominated the round this year against Southern Lehigh, I think that just kind of gave confidence to our group, and we, kind of, showed and told ourselves that when we play a certain style of basketball, we can compete with the best of them.
“And I think our guys just continued to carry that confidence and that play into the next couple of games, and we were able to beat Penncrest, another very good team, and then take down Neumann on Friday, which is one of the best teams in the state. So we're playing on a little bit of a high. I think Bonner came out tonight, kind of deflated us a little bit.
“But I mean, I just feel honored to be a part of it. It's a ton of credit to my seniors, especially Larry and Nate, who were a part of it last year as juniors. And kind of, in my opinion, I think these last few weeks of district playoffs and state playoffs have been some of both of their best games that they've played in their careers.
“So, we won for the first time in our school history in the states. So, we have six state wins in back-to-back years (combined). We made it to the final four both years. So, again, a lot of people give credit to coaches, but it really is the players that have to go out and execute. And I think for the most part, the guys that were out on the floor, believed and they trusted it, and they did the best that they could. And that's all we can ask for. That's all I can ask for as a head coach. So I am very proud of those guys.”
The Game
Getting off to a quick start was imperative for UM coming off a monster win over perennial state champion Neumann-Goretti on Friday, and it did just that. Kyle Moore had a pair of 3-pointers and at one point the Bears led 9-5.
“Yeah, my shots, whenever I get it, I like to shoot whenever I’m open,” said Moore, a junior who finished with eight points. “And when I hit a couple in the first, we looked to keep it going and keep the pressure on them. But their defense was nice. The plan that we needed was to get the ball in transition and get quick buckets.”
But Bonner-Prendergast and Philadelphia Catholic League Player of the Year Korey Francis, closed the quarter with five straight points.
And after sophomore Jose Hernandez gave UM its final lead of the game early in the second quarter, the Friars went on a 14-2 run to make it a 26-14 game at halftime. They started the third quarter with nine straight points to put the game away.
“He’s a really great player,” said Campbell, who drew a lot of early defensive duties on Francis in the first half, only to pick up his third foul midway through the second quarter. “It’s really hard to defend him. He can go both ways, his left is just as good as his right. He also has a good 3-point shot, a pull-up mid-range shot. So, you’ve just got to be disciplined - and then he gets you into foul trouble.”
Francis finished with 25 points, 19 in the first half.
“You know, that’s a good team over there,” Heiland said. “They have a bunch of talent. We knew it wasn’t going to be easy.
“I think the first quarter we played at the pace we wanted to, and then I think in the second quarter, we never felt like we really settled into the game. They did a really good job defensively on us. We got shots early.
I thought we had opportunities in the lane to score, and we just didn't finish, and we didn't seem to make the winning plays that we typically did that got us to this point, enough throughout the game, which led to some transition points for them.”
While Bonner-Prendergast (23-6) will play for the 5A state title in Hershey Friday night against District Three champion West York, Upper Moreland finished its season with a 22-10 record, and another playoff run for the history books.
“We'll share something back with them at school,” Heiland said. “It's tough coming off a tough loss like that. There are no words you can really say that kind of ease it. I just told them how much I appreciate them, just sticking with me, sticking with us.
“I think you saw our fan base tonight. We have an incredible community. And that's what I think helps us rally in these types of games and these types of environments. So, just shout out to the fan base for all the support on this incredible run.”
Upper Moreland 9 5 8 6 - 28
Bonner-Prendergast 10 16 15 13 - 54
Upper Moreland (28)
Nate Best 3 2-2 10; Larry Hughes 0 1-2 1; Cannon Campbell 2 0-0 4; Jose Hernandez 1 0-0 2; Kyle Moore 3 0-0 8; Darrius Whetstone 1 1-1 3. Totals 10 4-5 28.
Bonner-Prendergast (54)
Aydin Scott 2 2-2 6; DaShaun Holden 4 1-1 10; Jakeem Carroll 2 0-0 4; Kam Jackson 3 2-2 8; Korey Francis 9 6-7 25; Masen Price 1 1-2 3. Totals 21 12-14 54,
3-point goals: UM-Best 2, K. Moore 2; BP-Francis, Holden
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