2/12/19
Who: No. 2 seed Emmaus (19-4) vs No. 6 seed Allen (14-8), Eastern Pennsylvania Conference Semifinals
When: Thursday 6 p.m./Parkland High School
Head-to-Head: Emmaus won 71-66 at ‘The Hive’ on January 18
How they got here: Emmaus defeated CCHS 58-42 in quarterfinals; Allen defeated PM East 63-59
Tickets: $6 adults, $3 students
What’s on the line: A berth in the championship game on Saturday at 7 p.m. at Easton Area Middle School vs the winner of No.1 Bethlehem Catholic/No. 4 Nazareth
Coaches: Emmaus – Steve Yoder (11th season); Allen – Doug Snyder (22nd season)
Coverage: Twitter (@Emmaussports); Facebook (Emmaus Boys Basketball)
Probable starters: Emmaus – Sr. Zach Sabol (18.5 ppg, 15 rpg, 1st Team EPC) , Sr. Bryce Diehl (10.7 ppg., 4.3 rpg), Sr. Mark Swedberg (14 ppg, 3rd Team EPC), Sr. Ethan Parvel (9.1 ppg), Sr. Devon Boyko (1.9 ppg) or Sr. Cam Brooks (4.2). Reserves – Soph. Danny Bohman (3.8 ppg), Sr. Josh Moyer (1.6)
Allen – Jr. Aquelle Adderly, Fr. Nate Ellis, Sr. Alexis Adames, Soph. Emmanuel Ozuna, Jr. Quinton Stewart, Jr. Xavier Jones, Soph. Melkia Copeland, Sr. Allen Young
Coach Steve Yoder – “We’re going to have our hands full. We know Allen will be ready to play and we’re expecting a highly-entertaining game. They’re an athletic team and they’ve played 20-plus games now so they aren’t so young anymore. There role players are playing better and they’re similar to us with having three or four scoring options. “
“[As the higher seed] I don’t feel any pressure to win and I’m sure the kids don’t either. It’s high school basketball. We just have to go out and be the best version of us and we’ll be fine.”
Emmaus history in EPC Tournament:
2016-17: No.1 seed – lost to East Stroudsburg North 52-49
2015-16: No. 5 seed – defeated Stroudsburg 53-43 ; lost to Parkland 44-36
2014-15: No.5 seed – lost to Allen 53-41