Lights Out Defense puts Monsignor Bonner Prendergast past Selinsgrove, 68-35
By: Benjamin Snyder | SportzWire | March 7, 2026 | Photo courtesy KT Rafferty
Selinsgrove, PA -
The Bonner Prendergast Friars defeated the Selinsgrove Seals on Friday night, overcoming a slow first-half start.
The Friars opened the game with a three-pointer from Jakeem Carroll followed by some excellent defense. The Friars held the Seals to just two points during the first four minutes of the game. During that span, Korey Francis furnished four points to help "Bonner Prendie" obtain a 10-2 lead.
During the first quarter, The Friars forced more than five turnovers, and postgame Korey Francis spoke on that asserting, "We had to slow it down, make them make plays, and then turn our defense into offense". The Friars certainly found ways to take advantage of the Selinsgrove turnovers.
The quarter closed with a five-point lead in favor of the Friars (14-9).
Kam Jackson got things started for the Friars with a three-pointer during the early moments of the second quarter. It didn't take long for Selinsgrove to respond as Julian Torres and Jack Piecuch connected on three-pointers to cut the Friars lead to two points. The Friars scored eleven points during the remaining parts of the second quarter, ten of them coming from Korey Francis.
After a low-scoring first half, Bonner-Prendergast led 28-23.
The difference was Bonner-Prendergast's subpar 23% shooting from three-point range during the first half, shooting 3/13. Both teams combined for a total of 22 first half turnovers.
The Friars came out of the second half on fire, blowing into an 11-0 run right out of the gates. Seven of the eleven points were netted by junior guard, Kam Jackson. The team chemistry helped the Friars jump out to the quick second half start, first said by Kam Jackson, "If we kept staying together, we knew the shots were going to come, the shots were going to fall, and we were just gonna play how we play".
Out of a Selinsgrove timeout, Griffin Parker ended Bonner's 11-0 run with a three-pointer. It wasn't nearly enough as the Friars then complied another major scoring run (8-0). Korey Francis scored four of the eight points as he continued to build on his 28-point performance.
A dominant 22-4 quarter put Bonner Prendergast up 50-27 over Selinsgrove after three periods of play.
The Friars were faced with a very rigorous Philly Catholic League schedule during the 2025-2026 season, allowing them to be prepared for a playoff game like tonight (March 6th). Postgame, Korey Francis stated, "In the Philly Catholic League, I think we do play faster than other teams outside of the Catholic, so we use that to our advantage".
The Friars opened the fourth quarter on another 11-0 scoring run, expanding on their major lead. Bonner Prendergast's substantial second half was derived from the team's desire to compete and win important games. Postgame, Korey Francis added, "The object being to win, I want to win just as bad as my coaching staff, just as bad as my teammates, and I haven't won anything yet". Korey made it clear that the Friars have a team-first, winning mentality which makes them such an exceptional basketball team.
Coach Billy Crosby gave the JV players some playing time down the stretch, where they managed to outscore Selinsgrove 7-5, sealing the game at 68-35,
Postgame Photo (Flickssbykt)
The Friars held the Seals to just 35 points, which was the Seals worst offensive performance of the season, further proving how talented Philly Catholic defenses are.
One of the major differences was rebounding, as Korey Francis and Kam Jackson combined for 14. Half of their rebounds were accumulated during the first half, and the other seven were grabbed during the second half.
The Friars will advance to round two of the PIAA 5A State Playoffs, kicking off next Tuesday. Be sure to stay in the know with their progress right here on sportzwire.com
Stats provided by Nick Zellmann
That's all from Selinsgrove Area High School!
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