In what has already been a challenging season for schedule makers, the winter weather of Northeast Pennsylvania has done its part to fill an already jam packed calendar.

With a little bit of luck, this week’s boys schedule won’t get wiped out and the league can continue in what has developed into an entertaining albeit abbreviated season.

Just some housekeeping as we move forward.

 

POSTPONEMENTS

 

TUESDAY

Division II

Western Wayne at Honesdale — PPD to WEDNESDAY

Division IV

10-Elk Lake at Forest City — PPD to WEDNESDAY

Montrose at Blue Ridge — PPD to WEDNESDAY

 

 

BUCKS PAUSED

 

Dunmore is on pause until Friday, Feb. 19 due to a COVID-19 situation.

 

FEBRUARY 10

Dunmore boys basketball shut down because of COVID-19 case

The Dunmore boys basketball team is shut down because of a COVID-19 situation within the program.

The school announced Feb. 10 that the Bucks will be out of action until at least Feb. 19, after they complete the quarantine and three practices.

 

CLICK HERE FOR STORY

 

Games postponed

• Mid Valley at Dunmore
• Lakeland at Dunmore
• Dunmore at Blue Ridge (crossover)
• Dunmore at Western Wayne (nonleague)
• Carbondale Area at Dunmore

 

Games ahead

• Feb. 19: Dunmore at Riverside
• Feb. 21: Holy Cross at Dunmore
• Feb. 23: Dunmore at Holy Cross
• Feb. 25: Old Forge at Dunmore
• Feb 27: Dunmore at Mid Valley

 

What this means is the Bucks have some games to make up in Division III. To think that can be done before the start of the District 2 playoffs would be a stretch. However, because Dunmore got itself in a good spot in the standings, it’s going to make for some difficult decisions. Before things get ahead if themselves, though, let’s see what happens when the Bucks return. Once they do, they will have a pair of games against Division III leader Holy Cross that will go a long way in determining how important the missed games will be in the big picture. Remember, games not played due to COVID-19 are recorded as no contests.

 

 

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In Memorium

JULIUS J. PREZELSKI

 

 

Legendary high school basketball coach Julius Prezelski dies

Julius Prezelski achieved greatness with a smile.

An admired and beloved high school boys basketball coach who had an indelible legacy and once held the title as the state’s all-time leader in career wins, died Thursday afternoon. He was 94.

“Everybody knew him and he would say hi to anyone he saw in town,” former player and assistant coach Lou Zefran said. “Even those who were upset with him about maybe playing time or how the game went, he would always handle things diplomatically. All of the coaches respected him and how he handled his teams’ successes through the years.

“I will miss him.”

 

CLICK HERE TO READ ENTIRE STORY

 

 

 

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DIVISION I

 

Scranton is the hottest team in the Lackawanna League.

Last week, the Knights defeated Abington Heights and Scranton Prep, the two perennial Division I champions since 2013, and have won five straight overall to catapult to 7-2 overall.

 

JASON SHIELDS

Last week

• Scored 25 points in a win over Western Wayne
• Scored all 12 of his points in the second half in a win over Abington Heights
• Scored 19 points on 5-for-5 shooting from field and 7-for-7 from free throw line

 

 

SCRANTON STREAK

Scranton 51, Scranton Prep 45
Scranton 47, Abington Heights 37
Scranton 48, Western Wayne 27
Scranton 62, Scranton Prep 58
Scranton 67, West Scranton 62

 

STANDINGS

	League		Overall
Division I	W	L	W	L
Abington Heights	8	1	8	1
Scranton	7	2	7	2
Scranton Prep	5	4	6	4
Valley View	5	4	5	4
West Scranton	2	6	2	6

 

NOTES

• Abington Heights, which has won the last three championships, still holds a one-game lead over the Knights with four to play.
• Abington Heights, Scranton, Scranton Prep and Valley View are all still alive for the Division I title.
• If Scranton defeats Valley View and Abington Heights defeats Delaware Valley on Tuesday, the Cougars are eliminated.

 

SCHEDULE

TUESDAY

Division I

West Scranton at 7-Scranton Prep

• Scranton Prep needs a win to keep its division-title hopes alive

 

6-Valley View at 1-Scranton

• Scranton defeated the Cougars, 54-44, as John Rose scored 17 points

 

Crossovers

Delaware Valley at 2-Abington Heights

• Delaware Valley has lost nine straight to the Comets with its last win coming in 2012

 

FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 19

Division I

Abington Heights at Scranton Prep

• Abington Heights has won six straight in the series, including a 48-40 win on Jan. 30

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West Scranton at Scranton

• Scranton defeated the Invaders to start its winning streak

 

Crossovers

Wallenpaupack at Valley View

 

 

 

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DIVISION II

 

 

North Pocono and Delaware Valley split their home-and-home series. By the way, that was a pretty cool scheduling quirk and did provide some evidence that beating a team twice in a row is a difficult challenge.

 

 

FEBRUARY 11

North Pocono 61, Delaware Valley 52

At North Pocono, Ryan Ruddy scored nine points in the third quarter as the second-ranked Trojans pulled ahead of No. 9 Delaware Valley for a Division II win.

Zach Walsh had 16 points for North Pocono and Damarco Maglio had 15.

Mike Leonardo had 15 points for Delaware Valley and Chris Cruz had 13.

 

FEBRUARY 13

Delaware Valley 63, North Pocono 60

At Delaware Valley, Mike Leonardo scored 22 points to lead the ninth-ranked Warriors to a Division II win in overtime.

Chris Cruz had 13 points for Delaware Valley and Mark Cavallaro had 12.

Ryan Ruddy scored 22 points for No. 2 North Pocono and Zach Walsh had 10.

 

STANDINGS

	League		Overall
Division II	W	L	W	L
North Pocono	8	2	11	2
Delaware Valley	5	3	7	6
Wallenpaupack	2	6	3	6
Honesdale	1	6	1	6
Western Wayne	0	9	0	10

 

 

NOTES

• North Pocono has three games to play. Its opponents’ combined record is 7-20. The last time North Pocono won a Lackawanna division championship came in 2001.
• Delaware Valley has five games remaining in the division. Its opponents’ combined record is 19-25 with games against Abington Heights and Scranton ahead.

 

 

SCHEDULE

TUESDAY

Crossover

Delaware Valley at 2-Abington Heights

 

WEDNESDAY

Division II

Western Wayne at Honesdale

 

FRIDAY

Division II

Honesdale at North Pocono

• North Pocono defeated the Hornets, 68-35, as Ryan Ruddy scored 19 points in the first meeting

 

Western Wayne at Delaware Valley

Crossovers

Wallenpaupack at Valley View

 

 

 

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DIVISION III

 

With Dunmore on pause all eyes are focused on tonight’s Mid Valley at Holy Cross showdown. It has been well documented how intense this rivalry has gotten through the years.

 

HOLY CROSS AND MID VALLEY SINCE 2013

Holy Cross 16 wins; Mid Valley 8 wins

2021
Holy Cross 52, Mid Valley 50

2020
Holy Cross 51, Mid Valley 40
Holy Cross 50, Mid Valley 30

2019
Holy Cross 40, Mid Valley 35
Mid Valley 48, Holy Cross 45

2018
Holy Cross 45, Mid Valley 37
Holy Cross 53, Mid Valley 44
Holy Cross 41, Mid Valley 38

2017
Mid Valley 45, Holy Cross 31
Mid Valley 58, Holy Cross 38
Holy Cross 54, Mid Valley 41

2016
Mid Valley 60, Holy Cross 59
Holy Cross 42, Mid Valley 38

2015
Mid Valley 37, Holy Cross 33
Holy Cross 54, Mid Valley 43
Mid Valley 51, Holy Cross 35
Holy Cross 52, Mid Valley 48

2014
Mid Valley 57, Holy Cross 54
Holy Cross 68, Mid Valley 67
Holy Cross 59, Mid Valley 56

2013
Holy Cross 41, Mid Valley 35
Mid Valley 56, Holy Cross 54, 2 OT
Holy Cross 59, Mid Valley 56
Holy Cross 56, Mid Valley 51

 

 

CARDIAC KIDS

 

Riverside certainly has had a dramatic season.

On Feb. 5, Michael Rickert drilled a 3-pointer with 6 seconds remaining to lift the Vikings to a 43-41 win over Mid Valley.

Last week, Brandon Reed hit a game-winning shot at the buzzer to defeat Holy Cross and scored 10 points in overtime to rally the Vikings past Elk Lake in overtime.

Frankie Antoniacci hit a game-winner with 1.9 second remaining to defeat rival Old Forge. It was the second breathtaking win for the Vikings over the Blue Devils this season, having posted a 60-59 win on overtime earlier.

 

 

HEARTBREAK KIDS

 

As much as Riverside has enjoyed the better part of late-game fantastic finishes, Old Forge has been on the receiving end of some heartbreaking losses.

The Blue Devils started the season with back-to-back losses to Holy Cross and Riverside in overtime.

Then, they were on the receiving end of Antoniacci’s game-winning shot.

Old Forge is 3-5 this season with its losses coming by an average of 4.6 points against teams with a combined record of 25-6.

 

 

STANDINGS

	League		Overall
Division III	W	L	W	L
Holy Cross	6	1	7	1
Riverside	5	1	11	2
Dunmore	3	1	4	3
Mid Valley	5	2	7	3
Old Forge	3	5	3	5
Lakeland	1	5	1	5
Carbondale Area	0	8	0	10

 

 

SCHEDULE

TUESDAY

Division III

8-Mid Valley at 4-Holy Cross

5-Riverside at Lakeland

 

WEDNESDAY

Division III

Lakeland at 5-Riverside

 

FRIDAY

Division III

Holy Cross at Lakeland

Old Forge at Mid Valley

 

 

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DIVISION IV

 

 

Elk Lake is in a very good position to capture its first division crown since 2017.

The Warriors posted impressive wins last week in the division and took Division III power Riverside to overtime. The Warriors, who have four juniors in the starting lineup, are winning their Division IV games by an average of 24.0 points.

Elk Lake has also won 10 straight in Division IV

2021

Elk Lake 61, Montrose 40
Elk Lake 56, Mountain View 26
Elk Lake 61, Lackawanna Trail 55
Elk Lake 57, Susquehanna 36
Elk Lake 59, Blue Ridge 37
Elk Lake 53, Forest City 15
Elk Lake 73, Mountain View 43

2020

Elk Lake 60, Blue Ridge 58
Elk Lake 66, Montrose 46
Elk Lake 76, Forest City 27

 

STANDINGS

	League		Overall
Division IV	W	L	W	L
Elk Lake	7	0	7	2
Susquehanna	6	2	6	3
Blue Ridge	5	2	5	4
Montrose	3	5	3	5
Forest City	2	6	2	6
Mountain View	2	6	2	6
Lackawanna Trail	2	6	2	7

 

 

SCHEDULE

TUESDAY

Division IV

Susquehanna at Lackawanna Trail

 

WEDNESDAY

Division IV

10-Elk Lake at Forest City

Montrose at Blue Ridge

 

FRIDAY

Division IV

Blue Ridge at Elk Lake

Lackawanna Trail at Forest City

Mountain View at Susquehanna

 

 

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