While Central Bucks East (17-2) is having a campaign for the ages, CB South (9-10) struggled out of the gate, with just a single triumph in its first 10 pairings.
The second half of the season, however, has told a far different story of these Titans, who posted victories against six straight Suburban One League (SOL) Patriot Division foes including 15th-ranked Pennsbury and No. 18 Neshaminy.
CB South got a late start. Head coach Lou Ditri had been an assistant in the program since the school opened but wasn’t hired until last fall. And that set the Titans back on a few fronts including its schedule against non-league opponents.
South needed four more games to fill its slate and as fate would have it, only powerhouse teams in the region had openings left in their campaigns.
That left the Titans facing Inter-AC rivals Malvern Prep and Episcopal Academy, Del-Val adversary Penn Wood and Pioneer Athletic Conference (PAC) foe Spring-Ford, which sits atop the PIAA District One 6A rankings.
Penn Wood is in second place in the Del-Val conference and South tipped off the current campaign against PAC rivals Perkiomen Valley and Pope John Paul II, which is hovering near the top of the 4A bracket.
What’s more, Malvern Prep is second only to Penn Charter in the Inter-AC. And of course, all four opponents insisted that CB South face their teams on their own turf.
While the scores were close vs. Perk Valley and Pope John, the Titans lost by double digits in those other games.
Fast forward to this year and South is 7-2 in 2023.
The Titans started to turn their season around even before the Christmas break, winning 57-48 Dec. 16 at CB West and notching a 62-59 triumph over previously unbeaten North Penn, which currently sits in second place in the Colonial conference.
Leading the Knights by a point at halftime of a Dec. 20 matchup, visiting CB South fell behind by a dozen after North Penn posted 24 points in the third quarter. South responded, however, with 6-5 senior forward Tyler Meinel notching eight of his 14 points in the final frame and classmate Chris Granito canning a pair of 3-pointers to lead his team in scoring with 18.
Trailing CB East last Friday late in the second period of another SOL Colonial road pairing, Meinel electrified Titans fans with a steal in the defensive zone, and an end-to-end run, capped off with a roaring dunk.
Meinel canned a 3-pointer in the third period (and another in overtime) and treys were posted by Flynn Carroll and Kyle Klein along with third-period buckets by Dalton Van Zanten, Dylan Valentine and Chris Granito, who had two, giving South a 40-39 edge heading into the fourth quarter.
Tied at 49-all after the regulation, the Patriots, however, pulled away in overtime on a 3-pointer by Justin DiRoberto and a basket by Jake Cummiskey and East sealed a 61-57 triumph at the foul line.
“Both games we played against them were similar,” explained Ditri. “We blew a lead against them at our place and they won by three (points). We came back on them at their place and they won by four in overtime.”
CB South won the battle on the glass in both matchups though it was much closer this time. In the first dual, the Titans outrebounded East, 37-18. This time, South recorded only a 32-27 edge.
In the first period, one in which the Patriots posted a 17-13 scoring advantage on the strength of five 3-pointers including a pair by their leading scorer in this game, Kyle Berndt.
While the Titans held an advantage on the offensive glass in that initial frame, they just couldn’t get some of those rebounds into the basket, making just six of their first 15 shots.
“We had our opportunities; we missed a lot of shots in that first period,” admitted Ditri. “We missed a couple easier ones – a couple bunnies or layups.
“If we could have made a few more of those shots ...
If only.
While CB South is 9-4 in the SOL, the Titans are just 2-4 in the Colonial Division. However, three of their four losses were by a combined nine points.
“In our division, all the teams are closely matched so there’s usually not a blowout in the league,” explained Ditri. “The five schools in our conference, we’re all evenly matched – everybody knows each other. So that familiarity makes some of these games closer than some people would think.
“Once you get into our division, they’re all well coached, all the players know each other and that’s why we get these battles like we had on Friday night.”
South did lose by double digits in an early season matchup at Souderton but took the rematch 61-49 Jan. 24 in their own gym.
The Titans are now ranked 27th in a 6A bracket where only the top 24 teams earn berths in District One. If South is to make it back to the postseason, it may need to win out from here.
And the two games left are all facing Colonial division rivals. The Titans have battles looming with North Penn (Feb. 3) and Pennridge (Feb. 7).
The good news is both skirmishes are set for South’s home court.
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