The Abington Senior High School boys’ basketball team defeated Cheltenham High School 72-61 in a Suburban One League crossover matchup on Friday, January 5.
Abington senior Jeremiah Lee finished with a team-high 18 points and added nine rebounds and six steals. Senior forward Kamari Brashear scored 16 points and grabbed eight rebounds, and junior Paul Glants added 12 points and four assists, City of Basketball Love reported.
Cheltenham seniors Nile Tinsley and Kevin Addison scored 14 and 13 points, respectively.
“Experience is the biggest thing,” Abington’s first-year coach Dan Marsh said. “They’ve been in those situations before and a lot of these kids haven’t even though we have a senior-laden team. They bring that leadership and composure that we needed.”
Marsh coached the Galloping Ghosts’ girls’ basketball team for 18 years before moving over to the boys’ side.
Cheltenham entered the game at No. 7 and Abington entered at No. 8 in the District 1-6A power rankings. Last year, the Ghosts fell in the second round of the state playoffs as a No. 20 seed. They made a run to the district quarters and state playoffs as the No. 23 seed in 2022.
Prior to the game, both teams came together to watch the girls’ team play each other at Cheltenham.
“The two programs decided to attend the game together to show their communities the importance of coming together despite competing against one another. Athletic Director Charles Grasty (Abington) and Athletic Director Patrick Fleury (Cheltenham) worked together to make this possible for the students. At halftime, the teams took a group photo to drive home that these great young men are more than just opponents,” Suburban One reported.
In related news, this year marks the 50th anniversary of Abington’s PIAA Class A (then the big schools) state championship. They took second in 1975.
Both teams were coached by Abington teacher Jim Wilkinson (pictured above and far left below), who from 1968 – 1990 guided the Ghosts to an 434-162 record, including six Suburban One championships, two District One championships and the state title in 1974. His squads made twelve appearances in the state playoffs.
He was inducted into the Montgomery County Coaches Hall of Fame in 2019.
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Photos: Facebook, The Reporter, Suburban One