Mid-Penn Keystone Boys Weekly Recap By: David Bray Jr: Jan. 28, 2024
Written by: Dell Jackson on January 28, 2024
Mid-Penn Keystone Boys Weekly Recap
By: David Bray Jr
What an exciting week for basketball as there was a game almost every day this week including a heavyweight battle between the top two teams in the division. Let’s take a look back at each team’s week and what’s ahead for them.
Mechanicsburg – 14-3 Overall, 10-1 Division
Welcome back to the top spot Mechanicsburg, as they won both of their games this week with a 11 point, 58-47 victory against Red Land and a 2 point, 51-49 victory versus Hershey. Mechanicsburg had a very tough schedule this week against 2 teams that have made their claim this year as dominant teams, however they weren’t too tough to tame for Mechanicsburg, with both games being on the road. Against Red Land, Chance Yanoski was the leading scorer, having 21 points, followed by Josh Smith with 14 points. Justin Bardo, who wowed the audience with a 3/4th court heave to end the first quarter, ended with 10 points on the night. With the stifling defense of Red Land, they were able to break through after being deadlocked in a game that wasn’t separated by more than 8 points until the end. Mechanicsburg then faced Hershey in a battle for first, with both teams going into the game tied at 9-1. One man stepped up to the occasion in the second half as Josh Smith scored all 17 points for Mechanicsburg. Smith ended with 34 points and a showing that will be remembered. Chance Yanoski had 15 points including 13 first half points. Mechanicsburg didn’t have much or any scoring outside of Smith, Yanoski, and Bardo, who had 2 points, but they were too much to handle as Calvin Cavada sealed the game with a charge in the final seconds of the fourth. Mechanicsburg faces Mifflin County at home on Tuesday for their rematch. Mechanicsburg will take on Lower Dauphin at home on Wednesday and face Palmyra on the road on Friday.
Hershey – 14-2 Overall, 9-2 Division
Hershey moves to the second spot in the division after their 2 point loss to Mechanicsburg in a 51-49 thriller, however they did take 2 victories this week, beating Lower Dauphin by 14 in a 69-55 victory and beating Conrad Weiser in a 69-43 victory. Against Lower Dauphin, it was a tight game in the beginning, with Lower Dauphin within striking distance at the half, but it was the spark off the bench being James Campbell who led Hershey to victory with 16 points. Isaiah Danner, who posed a huge paint presence had 15 points and Cameron Sweeney had 11 points, despite being in foul trouble for most of the game. Hershey jumped out to a big lead early against Conrad Weiser and didn’t look back as they took a 26 point victory at home. Isaiah Danner had a career high of 27 points on the night as he was too tough to contain for Conrad Weiser. Alex Murray had 10 points off the bench and Eamon Callahan had 7 points. Hershey had their biggest challenge on Friday against Mechanicsburg, with Josh Smith and Chance Yanoski having big nights themselves. Hershey had very spread out scoring, with all players contributing, keeping them in the game. Cameron Sweeney led scoring with 8 points, however he fouled out early in the fourth which stopped his scoring for the night. Derek Guzman had 7 points despite battling a lingering ankle injury he sustained in the first quarter. Hershey has another tough game against Red Land on Tuesday. Hershey has their revenge game versus Cedar Cliff at home on Thursday and will have their senior night on Friday against Mifflin County.
Red Land – 12-5 Overall, 8-3 Division
Red Land, despite maintaining their third position, has been sneakily behind the leading two, keeping up with them. Red Land lost against Mechanicsburg by 11 in a 58-47 loss and beat Milton Hershey by 3, 55-52 in an instant classic. Red Land had a tough game against Mechanicsburg this week, with Colton Rose leading scoring with 14 points. Elijah Espinosa had 12 points and Tyler Kerlin had 11 points. While Anderson French was held scoreless, the Patriots kept within reach of Mechanicsburg throughout all four quarters, however it wasn’t enough as the lead came right out of reach in the fourth. In the away game against Milton Hershey, Elijah Espinosa played one of his best games, having 20 points and playing a key role in their victory. Anderson French had 10 points as their paint presence proved to be a big reason for success in their victory. Colton Rose had 8 points and Red Land moved into a new week right behind the second place team of Hershey. Red Land has the chance to move into a position to 2nd place as they take on Hershey at home on Tuesday. Red Land goes on the road to take on Elizabethtown on Thursday. On Friday, Red Land takes on Cedar Cliff with the hope to improve their record and put a significant presence in the division.
Lower Dauphin – 9-7 Overall, 6-5 Division
Lower Dauphin split even this week, losing at home against Hershey by 14 in a 69-55 loss and beating Mifflin County on the road by 8 in a 61-53 victory. Lower Dauphin had a tough battle against their crosstown rival, Hershey. Although they did get a loss, there were a lot of positives to take away. The Falcons were down by 15 entering the fourth, where Hofsass, who led the team with 28 points, helped the team claw back to an 8 point deficit, but there wasn’t enough time to continue climbing back. Nick Fry had 10 points and Nico DeFrank had 9 points, who played a key role but was in foul trouble early and eventually fouled out. Against Mifflin County, Nico DeFrank got his chance to shine with 20 points. Nick Fry had 14 points and Brady Hofsass had 12 points. After being down by 12 points in the first quarter, Lower Dauphin was able to battle back, with a few DeFrank threes closing the gap and giving the Falcons life. Lower Dauphin in both games proved that they don’t quit and the size of the deficit doesn’t reflect their effort levels. Lower Dauphin has a busy week ahead of them, starting with a home game versus Palmyra on Tuesday, on the road versus Mechanicsburg on Wednesday, on the road against Milton Hershey on Friday, and ending their week at Middletown on Saturday.
Cedar Cliff – 7-9 Overall, 5-5 Division
Cedar Cliff is beginning to close the gap between themselves and Lower Dauphin as they win out this weekend, beating Mifflin County by 10 in a 59-49 win and beating Palmyra by 6 in a 43-37 victory. When Cedar Cliff needed him most, Sam Grube provided his season and career high in points on senior night with a 36 point performance against Mifflin County which not only is the best for him, but is the most points scored by a player in the entirety of the Keystone Division. Mo Ahmed had 6 points followed by 7 other scorers with under 5 point performances. Against Palmyra, although they only had 43 points, their defense held strong, limiting Palmyra to under 40 points. Sam Grube led scoring with 13 points followed by Alex Kohr with 9 points, who had 3 three-pointers in the first quarter. Cedar Cliff can be a solid team within the division, but all the right pieces need to click for them, and by breaking their 4 game losing streak and turning it into a 2 game win streak is a step in the right direction. Cedar Cliff will take on Milton Hershey at home on Tuesday followed by their make-up game against Hershey on Thursday. Cedar Cliff will face Red Land on the road for their rivalry game rematch after Red Land took a slim victory against them last game.
Palmyra – 4-13 Overall, 2-8 Division
Palmyra split even in their divisional games this week, beating Milton Hershey by 9 in a 46-37 win and lost to Cedar Cliff in a 6 point loss, 43-37. Palmyra lost their non-divisional game against Pottsville in a 15 point, 50-35 loss. Against Milton Hershey, although with some shooting that was under 40% for both teams, Tyler Burgess was able to find some success with 15 points. Burgess found a way to penetrate the lane and find ways to score with 6 ‘6 Abdou Diene in the middle. Braydon Bown had 11 points including a few threes that were well needed for a Cougar team that had trouble from the perimeter. Against Cedar Cliff, Hunter Mayer led scoring with 10 points, followed by Hank Roesch and Tyler Burgess who both had 8 points. Palmyra limited Cedar Cliff to only 43 points and a high-caliber player like Sam Grube to only 13, but with only scoring 37, their offensive output wasn’t enough. On Saturday, Palmyra took on Pottsville and with it being a tied game going into the half, Palmyra was led by Tyler Burgess who had 15 points. Hank Roesch had 10 points for the Cougars but with only scoring 35 points, it was difficult to keep up with Pottsville. Palmyra will take on Lower Dauphin on Tuesday and Mechanicsburg on Friday.
Mifflin County – 7-11 Overall, 2-9 Division
Mifflin County finally snapped their 8 game losing streak after beating Altoona by 13 in a 53-40 win. Mifflin County did lose both of their divisional matchups with a 10 point, 59-49 point loss to Cedar Cliff and an 8 point, 61-53 loss to Lower Dauphin. Against Cedar Cliff, Mifflin County was led by Jayden Bilger with 15 points with Jaylen Bowersox providing a huge spark off the bench with 14 points. Tagg Silfies had 12 points in one of his better point scoring performances of the season. With all of the big scoring outputs, it wasn’t enough to stop Sam Grube from scoring 36 on the night. Mifflin County then took on Lower Dauphin, with Jayden Bilger posting a 20 point performance. Jack Curry had 4 three pointers and 12 points, but DeFrank and Lower Dauphin were too tough for the Huskies to keep up with. Jack Curry led Mifflin County in their victory against Altoona with 14 points. Tagg Silfies had 12 points followed by Jayden Bilger with 9 points. Mifflin County, having trouble winning in the division, has a chance to cover some ground in the division with an away game against Mechanicsburg on Tuesday and an away game against Mifflin County on Friday.
Milton Hershey – 1-13 Overall, 0-9 Division
Milton Hershey dropped all 4 games this week, losing to Palmyra by 9 in a 47-38 loss, losing to Cedar Crest by 35 in a 60-25 loss, losing to Red Land by 3 in a 55-52 thriller, and losing to William Penn by 20 in a 70-50 loss. Against Palmyra, both teams had a poor shooting performance, however their efforts were cut short being limited to only 38 points. Abdou Diene led scoring with 11 points followed by Dylan Crawford with 10 points. Against Cedar Crest, Milton Hershey stayed within 2 in the first quarter of the game, however they only scored 2 points in the second quarter and the lead only grew for Cedar Crest. Mohamed Koroma led scoring with 6 points for the Spartans. In an instant classic, Red Land sparred against Milton Hershey who were up by 15 at the beginning of the fourth quarter, however with Jason Burney scoring 11 points in the final 2 minutes of the game, the lead was quickly shortened to 3 but they unfortunately ran out of time. Burney ended the game with 15 points followed by Mohamed Koroma with 14 points. In their final game of the week against William Penn, Burney again led scoring with 13 points, followed by Abdou Diene with 10 points. This team has a lot of potential with a roster led by senior Jason Burney, but they have had great seasons so far with freshman Abdou Diene and Dylan Crawford. Milton Hershey has a busy week with an away game at Cedar Cliff on Tuesday, at home against Central Dauphin East on Wednesday, at home against Lower Dauphin on Friday, and at home against Lebanon on Saturday.
Games of the Week
Hershey @ Red Land 1/30
Lower Dauphin @ Mechanicsburg 1/31
Cedar Cliff @ Hershey 2/1
Cedar Cliff @ Red Land 2/2
Lower Dauphin @ Middletown 2/3
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