TOWAMENCIN – In a game where North Penn’s energetic offense dominated, their defense was the biggest key to their success in their 55-26 win over Central Bucks West.

“[From a defensive perspective,] we just want to make things as difficult as possible for other teams, whether it’s us playing in zones or getting physical in man. I challenged my bigs today to win the battle every time, and that doesn’t necessarily mean getting the rebound every time,  but win in terms of making the other team work harder than they normally would for a rebound,” head coach Cordell Lord said.

The Knights switched in and out of a 1-3-1 and a 3-2 zone throughout the whole game, holding CB West to just 26 points, a season-low for them. 

“Coach Cordell said from the start our game plan was to switch in and out of defenses and our defense was impeccable tonight, we played our hearts out and won the rebound war,” power forward Wyatt Martin added. “As a sparkplug for our team, it’s vital that I come into the game and make instant plays. I told the guys to pass me the rock and I would make plays.”

It was Martin’s liveliness that pulled the Knights away in the middle of the game, highlighted by his run with a block followed by two consecutive layups late in the third quarter.

“We love Wyatt’s energy and tenacity that he brings off the bench. He comes in and just makes things happen, he rebounds, and he’s just really strong, so he makes his way into the paint and finds a way to always get the ball in his hands. He just brings a certain kind of energy,” Lord said.

After two Aidan Atkinson free throws 25 seconds into the first quarter, North Penn wouldn’t trail for the rest of the game.

“I thought the guys started the game off great, executing well. We were really frustrated after Wednesday’s tough loss, and we came in here [on Thursday] and I just told them the energy has to stay high, we can’t fall down and get frustrated,” Lord said. “It’s not about how hard you fall it is how you get back up. We came out here and did a great job executing, offensively and defensively.”

After CB West tied it up at 8 with two minutes left in the first quarter, North Penn took a 17-0 run deep into the second quarter, and West was only able to put up 5 leaving the score at halftime 28-13 Knights.

Switching into a man defense, North Penn carried their offensive energy into the second half with an 11-3 run in the third quarter powered by Atkinson and Martin. 

“Once the momentum shifted our way, we did a really good job of forcing them into some tough shots and we created a lot of second-chance opportunities, our bigs did a fantastic job,” Lord said.

The momentum was definitely shifted their way, with the Knights putting up another 14 points in the fourth quarter through five different players, as opposed to CB West’s 5.

“One of the things we talk about with the guys is finding ways to create extra shots, whether that’s turnovers on the defensive end or offensive rebounds,” Lord said.

North Penn (3-4, 1-0) will play Central Bucks South at home on 12/17, and Central Bucks West (3-3, 0-1) will play Central Bucks South at home on 12/20.

North Penn (55): Godhania 17; Hammond 11; Martin 10; Atkinson 8; Wood 5; Ward 4.

Central Bucks West (26): Kulesa 12; Rubenstein 5; Meyers 4; Pelligranni 3; Bass 2.