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Weikle and Confer fuel dominant performance as Muncy boys rout Montoursville

By Chris Masse 6 min read

Three Muncy starters are averaging double figures this season. Make no mistake, though, the two others are quite the playmakers, too.

Just ask Montoursville.

Eli Weikle and Noah Confer dazzled early and often Wednesday against the Warriors. So did their teammates. Together, they all formed a dynamic blend as Muncy overpowered the Warriors on their home court.

Weikle scored 11 of his game-high 15 points in the game’s first six minutes, while Confer again stuffed the stat sheet as Muncy defeated Montoursville, 56-27. Ross Eyer (14 points, 10 rebounds, 4 assists) and Mike Fry (13 points, 6 rebounds) scored in double digits and Confer produced eight rebounds, six assists and four steals. Everything clicked and Muncy (6-2) imposed the mercy rule against a quality 4A team by the third quarter.

“You can’t be a good team without good chemistry. The only thing that’s going to beat that is a team with even better chemistry or athleticism,” Confer said. “We have chemistry and athleticism. When we put it all together, that makes a good basketball team.”

They may fly under the radar, but Weikle and Confer are darn good basketball players.

Weikle set a blistering tone early as Muncy essentially landed a first-round knockout. He made all five shots during those first six minutes, including a 3-pointer. Weikle also dealt an assist and capped the burst with a steal and layup. Those plays were the equivalent of a prime Mike Tyson upper cut as Muncy jumped all over the Warriors.

By quarter’s end, Muncy led 28-11. Nobody could have guessed at that time that the Indians already had enough points to win. Weikle, the man they call Mojo, played a key role in making that the case, providing strong defense to go along with his scoring. He did so in a variety of ways, including outside shooting, attacking the basket and getting down the court in a flash.

“I felt pretty good before the game. I was locked in,” said Weikle, also a four-year starter on the football team which won district or league titles each season. “I just played and whatever happened, happened and that’s what happened.”

“You don’t know who it’s going to be. Mo got off to a strong start in the first quarter,” Muncy coach Jason Gresh said. “When he gets it going, you start focusing in on him and then it’s Michael’s turn or Ross’s turn or Branson’s turn or Noah.”

Confer’s scoring opportunity came in that first half when he produced his seven points. But there is so much more to the game than scoring and making baskets is only a small part of the value Confer provides. The versatile 6-foot-4 junior can play inside or outside, runs the court well and wreaks havoc at the top of Muncy’s 2-3 zone defense.

“Since my freshman year I’ve been a role player and that’s all I have to be and then next year I have to step up, so I’m taking it all in this year,” Confer said. “We can rely on everybody and I don’t have to worry about trying to do anything special.”

Confer might not think his contributions are anything special, but his coaches and teammates sure do. On a well-rounded team featuring four senior starters, the three-sport standout helps provide the glue which holds everything together. Whatever the assignment, Confer has the skill set to handle it.

His fingerprints are always on Muncy’s success whether the box score indicates it or not. That was the case against Montoursville with Confer pulling down six rebounds, dealing three assists and making four steals by halftime as Muncy built a 35-15 lead.

“Noah is just Mr. Consistent,” Gresh said. “When you’re 6-4 at the top of the zone and 6-4 at the top of a zone press, that presents a problem. He’s somebody you have to pay attention to and prepare for.”

What makes Muncy so dangerous is that opponents have to prepare of everyone because any starter can go off at any time. When they start doing so simultaneously, Muncy can operate with frightening efficiency.

That’s what happened in the first quarter as Muncy led 10-2 just past the two-minute mark after Weikle drained a 3-pointer. Nobody cares about stats on this team and players beautifully set up each other for quality shots, whether in transition or in half-court sets. Muncy made 12 of 17 first quarter shots and the lone player who did not score, Branson Eyer, was as dangerous as anyone on the court, dishing three of his six assists during that time and energizing a stingy defense.

Muncy’s offense cooled in the second quarter, but the defense never did. When the offense came alive again in the third quarter, Muncy shockingly imposed the mercy rule. Going in, this felt like a toss-up game, so that the Indians won was not stunning.

How they did was. Especially considering Montoursville defeated Muncy by double digits last year and had not lost in this series since 2015.

“We kind of just let the game speak for itself. We didn’t really expect a mercy rule. We were just ready to come in here and play,” Weikle said. “Going into the game knowing every guy can put the ball in the hoop and fulfill their role, it gives you a good feeling out there on the court.”

Montoursville (2-4) was unable to generate any good vibes as it suffered through a horrendous shooting performance. The Warriors made just 1 of 28 3-point attempts and missed their last 24 following a first quarter trey. The more Montoursville struggled, the more compact the zone defense became.

With the Warriors unable to hit from the outside, Muncy collapsed its zone deeper in, cutting off just about any path toward the basket or post scoring opportunity. As a result, the vast majority of non putback shots were outside the arc. After building its 17-point advantage, Muncy quickly went ahead by 20 and never let the Warriors pull closer than 18 again.

The good news for Montoursville, which has to flush this one fast as it plays at St. John Neumann Friday, is it quickly could get another shot at Muncy. Both teams are competing in the North Penn-Liberty Tournament next Tuesday and Wednesday. If they win their semifinal games in which they are favored, Muncy and Montoursville will compete for the championship.

MUNCY (56)

Ross Eyer 6 1-2 14, Branson Eyer 2 2-4 6, Mike Fry 5 0-0 13, Noah Confer 3 1-2 7, Eli Weikle 6 2-3 15, Brady Ryder 0 0-0 0, Konnor Shearer 0 1-2 1. Totals 22 7-13 56.

MONTOURSVILLE (27)

Bryce Eberhart 1 0-0 2, Quinn Ranck 2 0-0 5, Tanner Menne 3 0-0 6, Gavin Cott 1 0-0 2, Matthew Conklin 0 0-0 0, Shea Ulmer 1 0-0 2, Jimmy Mussina 1 0-0 2, Wyatt Fry 2 0-0 4, Chase Snyder 1 0-0 2, Nason Tran 1 0-0 2. Totals 13 0-0 27.

Muncy 28 7 14 7-56

Montoursville 11 4 8 4-27

3-pointers: Muncy 5 (Fry 3, R. Eyer, Weikle); Montoursville 1 (Ranck).

Records: Muncy 6-2. Montoursville 2-4.

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