The much anticipated showdown between Abington Heights and Scranton Prep brought out the fans who packed the gymnasium on Tuesday night in South Abington Township.

Honesdale continued to make itself a factor in Division II, Holy Cross and Mid Valley are getting ready for their yearly clash and Mountain View snapped Susquehanna’s long winning streak and seized first place in Division IV as the season charges forward in the Lackawanna League.

Snow is coming.

Hey, it’s January, it is expected. How it impacts Friday’s schedule remains to be seen, but the big bang over the weekend could really wreak havoc with next week’s games.

 

Here is Friday’s “tentative” schedule

 

Division I
Scranton Prep at Valley View
Division II
Western Wayne at North Pocono
Division III
Holy Cross at Mid Valley
Riverside at Dunmore
Lakeland at Old Forge
Division IV
Susquehanna at Lackawanna Trail
Mountain View at Forest City
Elk Lake at Montrose
Crossovers
Abington Heights at Honesdale
Scranton at Wallenpaupack
West Scranton at Delaware Valley
Blue Ridge at Carbondale Area

 

 

 

---

 

 

 

 

 

INSIDE DIVISION I

 

 

OK, the big game went in favor of Abington Heights. Jack Nealon got off to a fast start and scored 16 points, George Tinsley took over the game in the second half and finished with 27 points and 10 rebounds, then added four assists, four steals and four blocked shots.

 

 

All good

 

BY JOBY FAWCETT / STAFF WRITER

 

Abington Heights’ Jack Nealon.
Jason Farmer / Staff Photographer

S. ABINGTON TWP. — George Tinsley has played plenty of games beneath a bright spotlight.
He’s played district title games at Mohegan Sun Arena, playoff tilts in raucous gymnasiums and a state championship final at Hersheypark Arena.
So, when it came time to respond in the familiar confines of his home gymnasium, filled with energy from a sellout crowd that squeezed into the bleachers, he looked more than comfortable.
Abington Heights’ returning all-state forward showed off the skill set that landed him a scholarship to Binghamton University and it proved too much for rival Scranton Prep. The 6-foot-5 senior scored 27 points, grabbed 10 rebounds and had four assists, four steals and four blocked shots.
His all-around effort led No. 1 Abington Heights to a 68-40 win over the second-ranked Cavaliers on Tuesday night in the much-anticipated first showdown between the two dominant programs in the Lackawanna League Division I.
“I am really happy with the way this team played,” Tinsley said. “We really brought it and we played with a lot of heart. We fed off the energy right from the beginning because of the crowd and that gave us a huge spark.
“Everybody was on tonight and everybody was making plays.”

 

 

 

HIGHLIGHTS

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

ABINGTON HEIGHTS DOMINANCE

Overall Records since 2011-12

 

 

Seasons	Wins	Losses
2011-12	24	6
2012-13	27	3
2013-14	26	2
2014-15	22	4
2015-16	23	3
2016-17	25	4
2017-18	27	3
2018-19	11	2
Totals	185	27

 

 

 

 

STANDINGS

 

• Abington Heights (5-0)

• Scranton Prep (4-1)

• Valley View (4-1)

• Scranton (3-2)

• West Scranton (1-4)

 

 

 

 

 

GAME TO WATCH

 

SCRANTON PREP

AT VALLEY VIEW

FRIDAY, 7:15 PM

 

 

 

 

REMEMBER WHEN

Valley View 54, Scranton Prep 53 – February 2, 2018

 

 

 

Valley View’s Marc Kudrich drills the game winner vs. Scranton Prep (courtesy of Cali Craig)

 

 

 

---

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

INSIDE DIVISION II

 

 

Honesdale has seized the advantage in Division II. Things really started to turn in the favor of the Hornets with a 61-52 win over Delaware Valley. Then, Honesdale defeated its Wayne County rival Wallenpaupack, 56-43, and followed that up with a win over Western Wayne, 58-46.

 

 

Howell’s halftime hoist sparks Honesdale past Wallenpaupack

 

Honesdale’s Colin Rickard.
Jason Farmer / Staff Photographer

BY JOBY FAWCETT / STAFF WRITER

 

PALMYRA TWP. — Will Howell jokingly admitted he didn’t call the bank.
Still, his buzzer-beater at the end of the first half gave Honesdale the lead and energized his teammates.
With seconds ticking away before halftime, Howell launched a deep 3-pointer that hit squarely off the backboard, and circled the rim before whisking through the net.
The momentum carried into a dominant third quarter and sent the Hornets to a 56-43 win over No. 6 Wallenpaupack on Friday night in a Lackawanna Division II boys basketball game.
Honesdale (7-6 overall, 2-2 division) pulled even with Wallenpaupack (8-4, 2-2) for first place. 
“That (shot) gave us a lot of life,” said Howell, who finished as one of four Hornets in double figures, scoring 10 points. “We came out and played defense hard. Our offense got into the plays and made shots and we were able to get a big win.
“They are our rival, so it’s an even more important win.”

 

 

 

HIGHLIGHTS

 

 

 

 

HORNETS’ STING

2017-18 Season

 

Games against Division II
Beat Delaware Valley	61-52
Beat Wallenpaupack	56-43
Beat Western Wayne	58-46

 

 

STANDINGS

 

• Honesdale (3-2)

• Wallenpaupack (3-2)

• Delaware Valley (1-4)

• North Pocono (1-4)

• Western Wayne (0-5)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

---

 

 

 

 

 

 

INSIDE DIVISION III

 

 

Holy Cross and Mid Valley are on their usual collision course and will meet for the first time this season Friday at Mid Valley.

This has turned into the marquee matchup in the Division and District 2 among the small schools in recent seasons. Holy Cross holds the advantage in the series wince the 2012-13 season.

 

 

HOLY CROSS VS. MID VALLEY

SINCE 2012-13 SEASON

 

 

 

2013
2/02/19		Holy Cross	59-56
2/15/19		Mid Valley	56-54
2/16/19		Holy Cross	41-35
2014
1/10/19		Holy Cross	59-56
2/04/19		Holy Cross	68-67
2/17/19		Mid Valley	57-54
2015
1/22/19		Holy Cross	52-48
2/12/19		Mid Valley	51-35
2/14/19		Holy Cross	54-43
2/28/19		Mid Valley	37-33
2016
1/21/19		Holy Cross	42-38
2/11/19		Mid Valley	60-59
2017
1/12/19		Holy Cross	54-41
1/29/19		Mid Valley	58-38
2/02/19		Mid Valley	45-31
2018
1/09/19		Holy Cross	41-38
1/27/19		Holy Cross	53-44
2/01/19		Holy Cross	45-37

 

 

 

COMING SUNDAY

 

Make sure you pick up a copy of The Sunday Times for a feature on Mid Valley’s Brendan Kucharski

 

 

 

 

 

STANDINGS

 

• Holy Cross (4-0)

• Mid Valley (4-1)

• Lakeland (2-2)

• Dunmore (2-2)

• Carbondale Area (2-3)

• Riverside (1-3)

• Old Forge (0-4)

 

 

---

 

 

INSIDE DIVISION IV

 

 

Mountain View got a terrific effort from Mikey Schermerhorn, who scored 23 points in a win over Susquehanna. The Eagles snapped the Sabers winning streak against Division IV opponents that dated back to Jan. 9 against Montrose.

 

Mountain View is now 8-2 in its last 10 games in Division IV.

 

 

 

 

	MIKEY SCHERMERHORN
Opponent	Points
Susquehanna	23
Elk Lake	35
Lackawanna Trail	20
Blue Ridge	21

 

 

STANDINGS

 

• Mountain View (4-0)

• Lackawanna Trail (4-1)

• Susquehanna (3-1)

• Blue Ridge (2-3)

• Forest City (1-3)

• Elk Lake (1-3)

• Montrose (0-4)

 

 

---