Defense credited in Tornados' rise

After 16 straight losing boys' basketball seasons, Pennsauken Tech has made terrific strides and has already earned a spot in the NJSIAA South Jersey Group 2 tournament.

The Tornados have won five straight to lift their record to 10-5 under second-year coach Jim Morton, who credits defense and team play for the turnaround.

"They're a great group of quality kids who have bought into working hard on defense," he said. "The kids are buckling down defensively."

Tech, which has impressive wins over Cherry Hill West, Clearview and West Deptford, has allowed an average of just 45.3 points per game.

The Tornados have an exemption from the Olympic Conference this season and are playing an independent schedule.

Offensively, Tech has been running at every opportunity.

"Our goal," Morton said, "is to score 50 percent of our points on fastbreaks."

Tyshon Birch, a 6-foot-2 senior point guard, and 6-2 junior forward Shaliek Johnson (10 rebounds per game) have each averaged 10 points per game. Junior guard Darius Lofland (8 ppg.) and Myron Crisdon have also been key contributors. Crisdon, a highly athletic 6-2 senior guard, has missed most of the season because of an injury and a personal matter, but Morton is hopeful he will be available for the stretch run.

Eagles soaring. Recent wins over Camden Catholic, Camden and Bishop Eustace have propelled Paul VI to a 9-7 record and a Non-Public South A playoff berth.

Not bad for a team that started the season 1-4.

Juniors Will Campbell, who has added a deadly outside shot to his repertoire this season and is averaging 21.9 points per game, Mike Stafford and Jonathan Grimes have led Paul VI, whose other starters are junior Greg Smith and freshman Nick Moore.

"The kids continue to work hard in practice, and Campbell, Stafford and Grimes really understand their roles and have stepped up," said Tony Devlin, Paul VI's first-year coach. "And the guys coming off the bench have helped, too. It's been a total team effort."

Added Devlin: "We struggled in the beginning because they were learning a new system, but they hung in there and we're getting results."

That's a rap. As the team warms up before a home game, Cherry Hill West is greeted by a specially created rap song that includes the names of all the players and an upbeat, lively tempo.

The song, which was approved by athletic director Ira Kosloff, is the creation of Kyle Down, a senior at the school.

The song's "D to the A" reference is a tribute to Dave (D) Allen (A), West's head coach. Down said his favorite line in the song is, "Now let me tell you something," which, he said, is a phrase that Allen repeatedly uses in teaching and coaching.

Singing the song's chorus are Down and fellow seniors Erik Thorn, David Hays, Matt Osorio and Andrew Still.

Down said he has no aspirations to get into the music business.

"Not really. I was just messing around with it," he said. "And the players all liked it; they all thought it was funny."

On Tuesday, the song was played before a home game for the first time this year. Apparently inspired, West held a slight lead over top-ranked Shawnee until midway through the second quarter before the Renegades took control in the second half and won, 54-32.

Playoff cutoff. Teams with at least a .500 record at Saturday's cutoff date will qualify for the single-elimination NJSIAA tournament. Numerous South Jersey teams are on the bubble and the results this week will determine if they qualify.

Massaquoi shines. Kai Massaquoi, a 6-2 senior swingman from Haddon Heights, is starting to draw interest from colleges such as Rowan and Arcadia.

"The recruiting has just started to pick up," Heights coach Butch McLean said.

In a recent three-game stretch, Massaquoi scored 30, 30 and 39 points against Sterling, Delsea and Woodbury, respectively. He also had a 41-point performance against Paulsboro. Massaquoi had been averaging 26 points per game before being held to 12 and six points by Collingswood and Williamstown, respectively, last week.

An all-conference wide receiver in football, the speedy Massaquoi has scored most of his points this season in transition, but he has also been a dependable three-point shooter and has a knack for drawing fouls.

"He has great instincts and a great ability to hang in the air and control himself," McLean said. "He gets to the foul line constantly."

Heights (7-7) needs to win two of three games this week - it faces Haddonfield, West Deptford and Gateway - to earn a Group 2 playoff berth.

Et cetera. Vineland, which is battling Atlantic City for the Cape-Atlantic American I title, is 11-4 overall and one of South Jersey's most pleasant surprises. The Fighting Clan, coming off six straight losing seasons, have a shot at their first 20-win campaign since 1986. . . . After saying he wouldn't play basketball because he wanted to prepare for the football season at Iowa, Willingboro senior Dezman Moses recently joined the team and has made a big impact. His presence will make the Chimeras a factor in the Central Jersey Group 3 playoffs. . . . Led by Tyron Johnson, Millville has won five of its last six, including victories over Vineland and Absegami, to even its record at 8-8 and move into contention for a Group 4 playoff spot. . . . Collingswood senior forward Pierre Robinson has missed about two weeks with a head injury but should return to the lineup tomorrow at Haddon Township. . . . Brandon Fredhoff, a senior guard who was one of Gateway's top scorers (12.3 ppg.) is out indefinitely with a hip injury. . . . When St. Joseph scored a stunning 48-47 win over Wildwood Catholic on Thursday, it avenged an early-season 72-43 defeat. . . . Speaking of turnarounds, Sacred Heart's 52-39 conquest of Cape May Tech on Thursday avenged an early-season 64-48 defeat. After starting the season 0-12, Sacred Heart has won two of its last three games.