No Controversy: Shawnee Ends as South...
No Controversy: Shawnee Ends as South Jersey's No. 1 Team Shawnee began the season as the No. 1 boys’ basketball team in South Jersey in most polls and the Renegades ended there as well.
The Renegades finished 29-5 and won the state Group 4 championship, along with their second straight South Jersey Group 4 title.
Shawnee has now captured six state titles, all under the guidance of coach Joe Kessler.
This was a veteran team that received tremendous senior leadership from 6-1 Dean Noll, 6-7 Dylan Devenney and 6-4 Daevon Robinson.
Noll was among the most improved players in South Jersey. Last season he averaged just over 14 points per game and this season he increased his scoring output to 21.7 ppg.
Devenney was among the biggest matchup nightmares. Not only could he score inside, but he was among Shawnee’s most dangerous outside shooters. He averaged 17.6 points per game.
Robison was a selfless performer who became Shawnee’s all-time leading rebounder. He was also an adept defender and most of all, a winner. During the fall he was a key performer as a receiver on Shawnee’s South Jersey Group 4 championship football team. He will attend Rutgers on a football scholarship.
What made this year’s team so impressive is that the Renegades won without two starters who missed the season with knee injuries – junior Patrick Kernan and senior Sean Heine.
Shawnee’s toughest playoff game enroute to winning the South Jersey championship was a 59-54 win over Eastern.
Devenney led the way with 21 points while Robinson added 14 points and 15 rebounds.
The Renegades then beat Atlantic City, 61-48 to win the South Jersey title. Leading 49-42 entering the fourth quarter, Shawnee sealed matters by outscoring the Vikings, 12-6 in the fourth period. Devenney led the way with 22 points.
Shawnee then beat Trenton 51-40 in the state Group 4 semifinal as Devenney scored 19 points. The Renegades then won the state title with a 56-53 nail-biter over Newark East Side as Devenney continued his strong playoff run with 18 points.
Shawnee then beat state Group 1 champion Woodbury, 68-47 in a first-round Tournament of Champions first round game before ending their season with a 49-39 TOC semifinal loss to Don Bosco Prep.
Shawnee had so many big wins this season including an 89-87 double overtime victory over eventual South Jersey Group 3 champion Delsea and a 51-48 win over South Jersey Group 2 finalist Camden in back to back games in January.
As usual, Shawnee played one of the tougher schedules in South Jersey and it prepared Shawnee for its extended postseason run, and earning the No. 1 spot in South Jersey, one that this season was easy to make.
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Author: Marc Narducci
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