When it came time to try to lock up the Lackawanna League Division 1 boys basketball title, there was no easy path for the Abington Heights boys basketball team.
The Comets had to go on the road and get past their top two challengers in consecutive games, which elevated the team to the status of champion.
Abington Heights clinched no worse than a tie for first Feb. 5 with a 69-58 victory that completed a season sweep of rival Scranton Prep, which won its other 12 divisional games and the District 2 Class 4A title.
With the tie secured, Abington Heights next traveled to third-place Valley View, where it beat the Cougars 61-43 Feb. 9 to assure itself of the outright title.
Abington Heights then completed the 14-0 run through the division with a 70-47 victory over visiting West Scranton Feb. 11.
Abington Heights 70, West Scranton 47
Jordan Shaffer scored 25 points to lead Abington Heights to victory in the regular-season finale.
Shaffer made four 3-pointers in the first half and hit all eight of his free throws in the fourth quarter.
Andrew Kettel and Cooper Manning scored 11 points each.
Abington Heights 61, Valley View 43
Abington Heights placed four scorers in double figures on the way to the clinching victory.
Shaffer scored 13 points while Finn Goldberg added 12, Kettel 11 and Manning 10.
The Comets jumped out to a 12-4 lead and were up 15-9 after one quarter, behind five points by Shaffer.
Abington Heights led 31-20 at halftime and 43-34 after three quarters.
Goldberg went 4-for-4 from the line while scoring six points in the fourth quarter. He was 6-for-7 in the game to help the Comets finish 14-for-17 as a team.
Kettel chipped in five points in the fourth quarter.
Abington Heights did not allow a basket from inside the arc in the second half when Valley View’s points came from five 3-pointers and eight free throws.
Abington Heights 69, Scranton Prep 58
Shaffer helped Abington Heights pull away in the second half when he scored 19 of his game-high 27 points.
The effort followed up Shaffer scoring 35 points in the first meeting with the Cavaliers at Abington Heights in January.
Shaffer made all eight of his free throws in the second half, six of them in the fourth quarter, and finished 12-for-14 from the line. He had 13 points in the fourth quarter as Abington Heights stretched a 48-43 lead.
Kettel scored 11 of his 14 points in a tightly played first half that ended with the Comets on top 33-31.
Brody Martin made three 3-pointers in the first quarter to keep the Cavaliers within 17-15.
Cooper Manning added 11 points for Abington Heights.
Packy Doherty led Scranton Prep with 17 points. Martin added a fourth 3-pointer and scored 16 points. Chicky Skoff had seven of his nine points for the Cavaliers during the fourth quarter.
Scranton Prep was hurt by an off night at the foul line where it made just five of 14 attempts.
