Ofure Odiale, Bulldogs, block Tigers’ gallant bid to crack Berks semis
By Matt Gaffney — MikeDragoSports.com correspondent
If Monday’s quarterfinal matchup between fourth-seeded Fleetwood and fifth-seeded Wilson was any indication, the upcoming chapter of Berks playoff basketball is going to be a thrill ride.
Ofure Odiale’s block of a Nate Herb shot in the final seconds preserved a 54-53 victory and sent the Bulldogs (17-6) onto the semifinals Wednesday against Reading High at Santander Arena at 7:30.
In a back-and-forth game with countless lead changes the Bulldogs took their final lead on an Odiale putback with 23.9 seconds left.
“If he wants to be, Ofure is the best big man around here,” said Wilson coach Matt Coldren. “We want him to force the issue a little more instead of letting the game come to him. He made some big plays for us tonight, some big boards and putbacks, and a couple of blocks including the big one at the end.
“That’s a good team,” Coldren said of the Berks III champion Tigers. “I was impressed with them on film, but I was even more impressed in person. They play together and they made big shots all night long. Sometimes the team that plays the better game doesn’t always win, but we did enough to be successful. I told our guys I would rather win ugly than lose looking good.”
While Odiale, who finished with 10 points and 10 rebounds, made the two key plays to seal the victory it was Madyx Gruber who anchored the Bulldogs’ victory.
The sharp-shooting sophomore went for a career-high 26 points, including 6-of-10 from 3-point range and a half-court buzzer-beater at the half.
The Tigers had no answer for Gruber as he torched their zone defense time and time again with his long-range bombs.
With leading-scorer Aidan Melograna being held to three points, the Bulldogs needed someone to pick up the scoring slack.
That someone was Gruber.
“I just felt it tonight,” said Gruber, who had never scored 20 points in a varsity game before. “As soon as I hit that first shot from the corner, I knew it was my game.”
“We knew Madyx was going to be a good player as a freshman,” Coldren said. “We moved him from off guard to point guard out of necessity. He struggled earlier in the season but now he’s doing some really nice things for us.”
Fleetwood (20-3) played a gutsy, tough game and had Wilson on the ropes multiple times but just couldn’t get the knockout punch it needed. The Tigers led by two at halftime and by five entering the fourth quarter.
The trio of All-Berks senior Jake Karnish, junior guard Aiden Soumas, and junior guard Nate Herb combined for 46 of Fleetwood’s 53 points.
It took pretty much the entire lineup to slow down Karnish, a versatile 6-2 forward who came into the game leading the league in scoring at 22.3 per game. Gruber, Cleveland Harding, Seamus Breslin and Cam Jones all took turns guarding the Kings College recruit. He still managed to finish with 18 despite being the focus of the Bulldogs’ attention.
On the possessions Wilson was able to limit Karnish, it was Soumas (16 points) and Herb (12) who stepped up with determined drives to the basket to keep the Tigers’ upset hopes alive.
Soumas brought the Fleetwood crowd to its feet with a buzzer-beating 3-pointer at the third-quarter horn that made it 44-39. For a moment it felt like it was going to be the Tigers’ night, but the Bulldogs had other plans.
Wilson amped up the defensive intensity in the fourth quarter as it held Fleetwood to nine.
Despite the loss, Fleetwood coach Terry Sitler was pleased with his team’s effort.
“The basketball gods weren’t on our side today,” said Sitler. “I could not be more proud of my team. I played six guys and they left everything out on the floor. They’re exhausted. It’s why we missed a couple of shots towards the end, they were getting tired.
“You have to give Matt (Coldren) and his team credit. They persevered. It was a fun basketball game to watch but I’m just glad people realize Fleetwood has a basketball team now that can play with just about anybody.”
For Fleetwood, Sitler said his team will now focus on the District 3 playoffs, which it will enter as the No. 2 seed in Class 4A.
“We have an awesome seed and all home games until the district championship,” he said. “Tonight was a learning tool for the district playoffs. The team realizes the best part of our season is coming up.”
The Bulldogs have a scant 48 hours to prepare for archrival Reading High, which has beaten them twice this season. Coldren was succinct in his outlook if his team is to win.
“We have to play better than we did tonight,” he said.
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Final | |
| Wilson | 17 | 13 | 9 | 15 | 54 |
| Fleetwood | 17 | 15 | 12 | 9 | 53 |
| Bulldogs (17-6) | FG | FT | 3’s | A | R | Points |
| Melograna | 1-9 | 0-0 | 1-7 | 1 | 2 | 3 |
| Harding | 2-5 | 4-6 | 1-2 | 0 | 3 | 9 |
| Gruber | 10-14 | 0-0 | 6-10 | 1 | 3 | 26 |
| Odiale | 4-8 | 2-5 | 0-0 | 0 | 10 | 10 |
| Breslin | 1-3 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0 | 5 | 2 |
| Jones | 0-4 | 1-2 | 0-1 | 2 | 5 | 1 |
| McFadden | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| Akings | 1-3 | 0-0 | 1-2 | 0 | 0 | 3 |
| Totals | 19-46 | 7-13 | 9-22 | 4 | 29 | 54 |
| Tigers (20-3) | FG | FT | 3’s | A | R | Points |
| Karnish | 6-11 | 6-7 | 0-3 | 1 | 8 | 18 |
| Soumas | 7-15 | 0-2 | 2-5 | 2 | 2 | 16 |
| Herb | 4-8 | 4-5 | 0-1 | 1 | 1 | 12 |
| Svoboda | 2-5 | 0-0 | 0-2 | 0 | 6 | 4 |
| Williams | 1-6 | 0-0 | 1-3 | 1 | 5 | 3 |
| Hilburt | 0-1 | 0-0 | 0-1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Totals | 20-46 | 10-14 | 3-15 | 5 | 22 | 53 |
