The Buckeyes clinched a spot in the championship game on Super Saturday, Feb. 25, against the Saucon Valley Nittany Lions.
On Saturday morning, Feb. 11, the 7-1 Saucon Valley Buckeyes just needed a win to clinch the second spot in the 3/4 Rec Boys championship game. Their opponent, the Bethlehem Canes 3, needed the win themselves to clinch the spot. With the stakes high, the drama was set and the boys did not disappoint.
After the Buckeyes got off to a six point lead, the Canes managed to tie the game before the half. The second half saw more ferocious defense as both teams exchanged the lead a few times. Late in the game, the Canes took a two point lead, but Caleb Grim defined ‘clutch’ to tie up the game and then give the Buckeyes a lead with 8 seconds left. Grim scored 15 of the Buckeyes’ points, hitting his last four shots from the field and hitting three out of four foul shots down the stretch. The Buckeyes would hold on to clinch a spot in the championship game on Super Saturday, Feb. 25, against the Saucon Valley Nittany Lions, who still have a regular season game to play.
The 3/4 Boys Wildcats team also won over a Canes team, 24-12. Andrew Gilbert had his jump shot working, hitting a couple in heavy traffic on his way to six points. Joey Griffith was a monster on the boards again, pulling down 12 rebounds while scoring eight. Tony Salgado scored four. With Luke Stubblefield playing solid at point guard and Nicholas Albanese scoring more points off fast breaks, the Wildcats were just too much for the Canes.
The 5/6 Rec Boys Titans made one final push to make the 5/6 Championship game against the second place Canes 1 team. Ryan Stubblefield led the Titans with 11 points and 10 rebounds as Javier Rodriguez followed with nine rebounds of his own and four points. Colin Griffith had four points at the point guard position, along with nine assists. Josh Torres scored four points with nine rebounds coming off an ankle injury as the Titans knocked off the Canes 25-16 to give them hope of a championship game.
With a spot at the 5/6 Boys Championship there for the taking with a win, the Trojans took the court against the Southern Lehigh Quakers. Any drama, however, was quickly extinguished as the Trojans jumped off to a quick lead and coasted into the half with a 13-0 lead behind a suffocating defense. Ray Matey led the team with eight points as everyone on the roster scored. The Trojans would cruise to a 32-6 win and earned themselves a spot in the championship game Feb. 25 against the Canes 5.
This weekend the 3/4 Boys rec teams wrapped up their regular seasons in the Saucon Valley Middle School Gym. The 5/6 travel girls played Saturday to wrap up their regular season.
For the 5/6 Rec Girls, the Leopards advanced to their championship game, which will be played on Feb. 25.
The 3/4 Boys Travel team played their first playoff game Thursday night at Salisbury. The 5/6 Boys Travel team Thundering Herd got a first round bye in their playoffs and looked to play in the second round Saturday.
