Abington Heights guard and Scranton commit Will Marion
Abington Heights proved why its one of the top Class 5A teams in Pennsylvania on Tuesday night. The Comets blew out Berks Catholic 74-47 at Lloyd Wolf Gymnasium. Both teams entered the highly anticipated matchup with undefeated records. "We were looking forward to it a ton. It really was gonna show us where we stood outside of our area," Will Marion told SV Sports' Paul Roberts. The 6'1 senior guard jammed ten points into the first quarter. The University of Scranton commit finished with 18 points. Ryan Nealon, a 6'2 senior, dropped a game-high 24 points. He connected six times from beyond the arc. Abington Heights shot a blistering 12-of-22 from long range. The (18-0) Comets hit eight triples in the first half. They led 16-2 just two and a-half minutes into the game. The (18-1) Saints trailed 50-21 at halftime. They had been allowing a mere 46 points per game. Longtime head coach Snip Esterly (810 wins) was without star sophomore Kingston McKoy. He suffered a fractured tibia on January 23rd against Reading. Abington Heights got 17 points from 6'3 junior Robby Lucas and 6'3 sophomore Jordan Shaffer added eleven. "Our guards can post up if they have a mismatch and our bigs can shoot the three," said Marion. The Comets won their 14th District 2 championship last year. They reached the PIAA-5A quarterfinals before falling to Imhotep Charter 65-38. Four starters are back this season for Abington Heights. "The chemistry is awesome. We've been playing with each other since we were little kids...We're all very close and it correlates on the court," noted Marion. They're putting up 70 points a night while allowing just 43. The Comets are led by legendary coach Ken Bianchi. He has 886 wins over 49 years, including the past 28 seasons at Abington Heights. "Our coaches are awesome. They're always confident in us. They have our backs and they prepare us very well for every game," remarked Marion.