By Tom Robinson, NEPAElite.com
MANHEIM – The NEPA Elite boys season ended on a winning note Sunday afternoon when the 17U Zimmerman team won its final game in The Hoop Group Summer Jam Fest at Spooky Nook Sports.
All six boys teams were in action, combining to go 2-4 with the losses coming by an average of four points.
A recap of the final day:
NEPA Elite 17U Zimmerman
Tyler Riegel scored 13 points as NEPA Elite defeated Spartan Pride, 48-35, in a 17U Gold Division losers’ bracket game.
The game was delayed early in the first half, with NEPA Elite leading 8-2, because of a scoreboard outage. When the game resumed, NEPA Elite remained in front the rest of the way, leading by as many as 10 in the first half and 16 in the second half.
The NEPA Elite team, based out of the Shamokin and Pottsville areas, was added for July events. It went 2-1 at Spooky Nook.
Brian Britton added 10 points, Joey Hile 9 and Isaac Thomas 8 while keeping NEPA Elite in control on the boards.
NEPA Elite widened its lead with 10 straight points early in the second half for a 28-15 lead. Dallas George scored four straight points with two free throws, then a steal that he took the length of the floor.
Spartan Pride got back within 36-29 before a late 12-3 run by NEPA Elite broke the game open.
Reigel is from Mifflinburg, Britton is from Southern Columbia, Hile from Shamokin, Thomas from Blue Mountain and George from Eastern Lebanon County (ELCO).
NEPA Elite 17U Coyle
Global Squad beat the buzzer on a putback to force overtime where it defeated NEPA Elite, 63-60, in a 17U Platinum 2 Division losers’ bracket game.
NEPA Elite had won five straight to begin a week that featured five consecutive days of basketball in two events in different states. After going 4-0 in Atlantic City, NEPA Elite won its opener at Spooky Nook, then lost the final two games of the season by five and three points.
Daniel Santaniello went 7-for-12 from the floor and 4-for-8 from the line while scoring a team-high 18 points in the loss.
Oliver Almonte scored 13 points, grabbed 8 rebounds and made 3 steals.
Mason Fedor and Connor Cranage added seven points each. Fedor also had 10 rebounds, 5 assists and 2 steals. Cranage and Mikey Cumbo grabbed five rebounds each.
Global Squad ran off 11 straight points for an 11-4 lead.
NEPA Elite answered with a 16-3 run to a 20-14 lead. Almonte scored six points in the run while Santaniello and Cranage each added five points, including a three-point play.
After NEPA Elite built the lead as high as 39-27 early in the second half, Global Squad rallied. There were six lead changes and five ties, including four changes and three ties during the final 2:10 of regulation and the untimed Elam Ending. In the Elam Ending, the first team to score five points in overtime wins.
NEPA Elite had carried the lead for 24:27, beginning with a Cranage tip-in on a fastbreak off a Fedor steal and drive.
Santaniello is from Scranton Prep, Almonte from Scranton, Fedor from Abington Heights, Cranage from Blue Ridge and Cumbo from Dallas.
NEPA Elite 17U Frank
Chris Ward Basketball downed NEPA Elite, 53-50, in a Gold 4 Division losers’ bracket game.
NEPA Elite went 0-3 on the weekend with losses coming by four, two and three points.
NEPA Elite 16U Tillery
NEPA Elite finished up with a victory after losing its first two games of the Summer Jam Fest.
It defeated Global Squad Showcase, 53-47, in a 16U Platinum 3 Division game early Sunday morning.
NEPA Elite 15U Dempsey
NEPA Elite’s championship pursuit came to an end in a 57-54 loss to Team Final Red EYBL in a 15U Platinum 1 Division semifinal.
It had won twice Saturday to reach the final four of the 16-team bracket.
Jordan Shaffer went 7-for-11 on 3-point attempts while scoring 23 points in the loss.
Brayden Rose had a double-double of 13 points and 10 rebounds.
Nate Aviles and Ayden Agapito each scored eight points while contributing on the boards. Aviles grabbed six rebounds. Agapito had five rebounds and three assists.
Brody Martin dished out three assists.
Rose, Shaffer and Aviles hit early 3-pointers for a 9-4 lead.
Team Final Red recovered quickly and led most of the rest of the half in a game that featured nine lead changes.
NEPA Elite’s last lead came when Agapito scored off an Aviles assist to make it 46-45 with 7:29 left.
NEPA Elite had one last possession to try to tie the game with seven seconds left.
With fouls to give, Team Final Red fouled twice. NEPA Elite then missed a last-shot attempt off an in-bounds play with six-tenths of a second remaining.
NEPA Elite 15U Kingery
Dragon Army defeated NEPA Elite, 53-46, in a 15U Gold Division losers’ bracket game played at York College.
The other late-season addition from the Shamokin and Pottsville areas went 1-2 on the weekend.
Cam Tirado scored 18 points in the loss.
Mason Kingery, who had six assists, and Kaden Tillison scored eight points each.
Colin Stein grabbed nine rebounds.
Tirado is from Cedar Crest, Kingery from Central Columbia, Tillison from ELCO and Stein from Shamokin.