Both Keystone College basketball teams have managed to shake off slow starts in non-league play to post winning records in their season as United East Conference members.
MEN’S BASKETBALL
Keystone won its last three games of January and headed into its Feb. 7 game with an 8-5 United East record and 8-13 overall mark.
The Giants opened the season by losing their first six games under new coach Andrew Kettel.
Jack Anderson leads the way for the team, averaging 19.9 points, 4.0 rebounds and 2.0 assists per game. He has hit a team-high 55 shots from 3-point range while connecting at 38.2 percent from long distance.
Clarks Summit University is 4-11 in the United East and 5-18 overall.
After going 3-7 in January, the Defenders defeated Notre Dame of Maryland 77-71 Feb. 3, then took the University of Valley Forge into overtime in an 84-81 loss Feb. 6.
Clarks Summit put five scorers in double figures in the win over Notre Dame.
Hunter Plantz from Abington Heights scored 12 points without missing a shot, going 4-for-4 from the floor and the line, while also supplying six rebounds, three assists and two blocked shots before fouling out.
The Defenders went 29-for-34 from the line in the overtime loss. Ashton West was 13-for-15 while scoring 23 points and Plantz was 7-for-8 while adding 15 points and six rebounds.
West leads the team with 13.2 points per game.
Plantz shoots a team-best 51 percent from the floor and is hitting 72.7 percent from the line while ranking second on the team with 9.3 points and leading with 6.3 rebounds.
WOMEN’S BASKETBALL
Keystone went 5-5 in January, including a four-game winning streak, all in the United East Jan. 20-27.
The Giants are 8-7 in the conference and 10-12 overall.
They beat Cedar Crest (70-59) and Clarks Summit (73-47) before back-to-back wins over Rosemont (69-43 and 83-44).
Keystone the6n opened February with a 69-61 win over Wilson, which was 10-4 in the United East going in.
Anyah Ortiz had 25 points, seven rebounds and three steals against Wilson. Bry Hicks added 14 points and 11 rebounds.
Riley Berry was named United East Defensive Player of the Week Jan. 29. She averaged 11.7 points, 8.3 rebounds and 3.7 steals in a 3-0 stretch that included the Clarks Summit game and two Rosemont games. Berry had a season-high 11 rebounds in the first Rosemont game.
Hicks came off the bench against Clarks Summit to lead four scorers in double figures with 22 points, eight rebounds, three steals and two blocked shots.
Victoria Hearn led Clarks Summit with 11 points, eight rebounds and three steals.
Clarks Summit is 1-13 and 2-18.
The Defenders picked up their only United East win with a 50-43 victory at Valley Forge, but have since lost five more in a row.
Serene Calderon had 11 points and 13 rebounds in the win while Keilani Araniva scored a team-high 15 points and Kylee Miller contributed eight points, 19 rebounds and three blocked shots.
WRESTLING
Keystone has lost four straight duals, the three most recent in January, to fall to 3-10 on the season going into Feb. 7 match against the University of Scranton.
After finishing last out of 17 teams in the Will Abele Invitational at Ursinus College, the Giants had a better performance Feb. 4, placing fifth of nine teams in the Rennie Rodarmel Invitational at Lycoming College.
C.J. Riccobono was second at 175 pounds. Derrick DeMann and Nero Bono were third at 184 and 197. Rocco Arduini (285) and Malachi Jones (133) were fourth.