Thursday night at McCaskey for the first of two straight at home, Conestoga Valley visited for another divisional crossover game. The CV school district borders on the city so a lot of the kids know each other and you know what they say about familiarity breeding contempt. There was a good crowd in attendance and they were into it all night, the atmosphere reminded me of days of yore. JPM reached the season's midpoint with a 52-33 win but it was a much tougher game than that score would indicate. We led by four after one quarter and by twelve at the half, CV battled back to within four entering the last period but JPM outscored CV by fifteen in the final quarter to put the game away. Hasan Williams led the Good Guys with 19, Jared Kumah had 15 with support underneath from Jonathan Byrd (9), Elias Garcia (4), J'Nai Ayala-Hunter (3) and John Stewart (2). It was an important win that helped to wash away a little of the bad aftertaste from the game in Lebanon. On Saturday we were back on the floor for a non-league game, Central Dauphin East visited from suburban Harrisburg. CDE has become a regular non-league opponent in recent years, this marks the sixth consecutive season we have met them (the first two meetings were in showcase events at Reading High, the last four have been the traditional home-and-home arrangement). The JPM JV started the night with a three-point victory which snapped a five-game losing streak, the varsity game required overtime before the issue was decided. A three-point halftime lead dissolved into a six-point deficit entering the last quarter, the club battled back to tie and would have won it in regulation if not for a last-second shot missed at the horn. In the extra period JPM outscored CDE 13-7 and pulled out a very tough 58-52 decision. Three players hit double-figures, Hasan Williams led with 20, Jared Kumah had 14 and Grady Bachman added ten key points in a reserve role. Jonathan Byrd scored seven points, De'Shaun McFadden had five and John Stewart rounded out the book with a field goal. The club's record stands at 5-6 overall and 3-3 within the league with a big week looming on the horizon, four games (Tuesday, Wednesday, Friday, Saturday) with three of them on the road. There was snow in the forecast for Sunday, it arrived in late afternoon. It was supposed to change to rain overnight into Monday and be done by daybreak, grand news for me since I'll be on the road first thing in the AM. Take care, thanks for reading.
