Over in Egg Harbor New Jersey, the other half of the Delaware Valley Greek basketball league launched with two varsity games-Holy Trinity and St. Demetrios of Upper Darby. They ended up splitting the victories.
Egg Harbor, NJ – In their opener, the defending champs looked to pick up right where they left off last season, using their speed advantage to run the floor, creating a number of fast break points and opportunities. Holy Trinity jumped out to a 12-4 lead midway through the second quarter, but give a lot of credit to the St. Demetrios girls who battled (especially down low) in what was a very entertaining and hard fought battle for the boards. In the end those fast break points proved to be the difference, as Holy Trinity pulled away to a victory in the opening game of their title defense. Holy Trinity has a bye coming up this week, while St. D’s will look to rebound in their home opener next weekend against St. Lukes Broomall.
Girls – Holy Trinity 33, St. Demetrios 22
In the second game of the day, the boys from St. Demetrios made a huge opening day statement in traveling down to Egg Harbor and knocking off the defending runners-up with a decisive 39-25 victory. Led by lock-down defending and some aggressive attacking offense around the rim, the boys from Upper Darby showcased the benefits of playing together for years, blowing open a 20 point lead in the third quarter before Holy Trinity could mount a mini-comeback to make the game respectable. The young boys from down the shore did all they could to keep the St. D’s boys in check, only being down by 6 at halftime, but in the end experience triumphed over youth on the day. St. Demetrios will look to ride their momentum next weekend at home against St. Lukes, while the road does not get any easier for Holy Trinity, as they also travel to St. Demetrios to take on Annunciation of Elkins Park in a rematch of the last two boy’s championship games.
Boys – St. Demetrios 39, Holy Trinity 25