Nick Rindock's injury on Sunday during Parkland's game against Gill St. Bernard's was unfortunate considering the Trojans are playing good baskeball and we are now just a day away from the much anticipated meeting against Central Catholic.
You hate to see a starter on either side, especially a quality senior like Rindock, go down and miss the regular season's biggest game.
Rindock suffered what appeared to be a sprained ankle.
I hope to find out more on Monday about the severity of his injury, but as he left Parkland on crutches on Sunday it appeared highly unlikely that he'd be able to play at Rockne Hall on Tuesday night.
I've said it more than once that Parkland is the deepest team in the area and if any team can absorb a loss like this, it's Andy Stephens' squad.
CCHS is right there with them in depth, but the Vikings, in my opinion, can't afford to lose Muhammad Ali Abdur-Rahkman, Jeanlee Baez or Brendan Wagner.
The Trojans can't lose point guard Jimmy Hahn either beacuse he's really the one who runs the show. But any other starter can be replaced, at least to a certain extent. They proved it on Jan. 14 when they beat Emmaus without Justin Zajko.
Rindock provides experience, savvy and scoring punch. He is a very good player, but Parkland has talented people it can turn to, albeit less experienced. There are players waiting in the wings to get their shot and I wouldn't be surprised if one or more of these players used this injury as their chance to show what they can do in a big way.
Now our weekly league rankings:
1. Central Catholic (16-0, 9-0) ... Last time, No. 1 ... Only two teams (Liberty and Whitehall) have been able to stay within single digits of the Vikings... Up next: Host Parkland Tuesday.
2. Parkland (14-2, 7-2) ... Last time, No. 2 ... Trojans are 4-1 in overtime games which is another indication of their depth. .. Up next: At CCHS Tuesday.
3. Emmaus (12-4, 6-3) .. Last time, No. 4 ... Have won 10 of last 11 ... Up next: at Liberty Monday.
4. Easton (10-7, 4-5) ... Last time, No. 5 ... Red Rovers are better off than most teams with their schedule. They are done with nonleague games and of their remaining five they don't play a game against a team (Nazareth, Freedom, Dieruff, Liberty and Becahi) with a winning record as of Monday morning. ... Up next: at Nazareth Wednesday.
5. Whitehall (10-6, 5-4) ... Last time, No. 7 ,,, Zephyrs impressed by coming back from tough loss to CCHS with a quality win over Wilson West Lawn. ... Up next: host Freedom Monday.
6. Bethlehem Catholic (8-8, 5-4) ... Last time, No. 3 ... Thought the Golden Hawks would give Abington Heights a better battle. Huge week with Dieruff, Parkland and Liberty over a four-night period. ... Up next: Host Dieruff on Tuesday.
7. Allen (9-7, 5-4) ... Last time, No. 6 ... With their close calls against CCHS and Parkland, the Canaries have proven they can play against anybody. But they are so inconsistent that they can also lose to almost anybody. ... Up next: Host Whitehall on Tuesday.
8. Liberty (7-7, 3-6) ... Last time, No. 10 ... Hurricanes still have eight games to play overall and plenty of time to get their act together. Don't count defending champs out of the league tournament. They are only two games behind both Becahi and Freedom in the LVC East race and get one more crack at both. ... Up next: Host Emmaus Monday.
9. Freedom (6-9, 5-4) .. Last time No. 9 ... Great comeback against Dieruff on Friday, but looks they didn't really show up at Rockne Hall on Sunday. Schedule is brutal with a current six-games-in-seven-nights stretch. ... Up next: at Whitehall Monday.
10. Dieruff (7-7, 2-6) ... Last time No. 8 ... Need to at least split their final eight games to qualify for districts and the schedule is brutal starting with Pocono Mountain West tonight. ... Up next: at Pocono Mountain West Monday.
11. Nazareth (6-10, 2-7) ... Last time No. 11 ... Blue Eagles are in a six-game skid ... Up next: Host Easton on Wednesday.
12. Northampton (2-13, 0-8) ... Last time No. 12 ... Konkrete Kids still have six chances to get a league win and play spoiler for someone's chances. ... Up next: Host Liberty Tuesday.
COLONIAL LEAGUE
1. Bangor (12-4, 10-1) ... Last time No. 1 ... It's not always pretty with the Slaters, but it is generally successful. ... Up next: At Palmerton Tuesday.
2. Salisbury (12-5, 9-2) ... Last time No. 2 ... Can the Falcons sweep through the South a second time? I kinda doubt it. ... Up next: At Saucon Valley Tuesday.
3. Southern Lehigh (11-5, 8-3) ... Last time No. 3 ... Still beat Palisades despite 17 missed free throws. ... Up next: At Notre Dame Tuesday.
4. Notre Dame (9-9, 7-5) ... Last time No. 5 ... Don't look now, but Eze and the Crusaders are right back in the thick of contention ... Up next: Host Southern Lehigh Tuesday.
5. Saucon Valley (10-8, 8-4) ... Last time No. 4 ... Will the Panthers be on the outside looking in when it comes to the league tournament? They can alleviate some of those concerns on Tuesday.. .. Up next: Host Salisbury Tuesday.
6. Wilson (8-8, 4-6) ... Last time No. 8... One thing is for sure. veteran Warriors coach Bob Frankenfield loves not only his team, but Colonial League basketball in general. If he's not coaching a game, he's there watching one. ... Up next: At Palisades Tuesday.
7. Northern Lehigh (10-7, 7-4) ... Last time No. 6 ... If the Bulldogs could play 3-on-3, they might be league champs. ... Up next: Host Northwestern Tuesday.
8. Catasauqua (9-7, 7-4) ... Last time No. 7 ... Big one for the Roughies on Friday night when Bangor comes to town ... Up next: At Pen Argyl Tuesday.
9. Pen Argyl (6-10, 4-7) ... Last time No. 9 ... Lots of low-scoring games for the Green Knights. ... Up next: Host Catasauqua Tuesday.
10. Palisades (4-11, 2-9) ... Last time No. 10 ... Pirates have had trouble hitting the 40-point mark lately. ... Up next: At Palmerton Monday night.
11. Northwestern (4-13, 1-11) ... Last time No. 11 .. Have lost to Pen Argyl twice this season by a combined total of five points. ... Up next: At Northern Lehigh Tuesday.
12. Palmeton (1-14, 0-11) ... Last time No. 12 ... Last time I was at Palmerton for a game was January 16, 2009 night, that bitterly cold night when Palisades ended their 85-game losing streak. Could another losing streak end tonight when the same two meet in Palmerton? .... Up next: Host Palisades Monday.
MOUNTAIN VALLEY CONFERENCE
1. Stroudsburg (8-6, 6-1) ... Last time No. 1 ... Can Mounties sweep ES North? ... Up next: Host ES North Tuesday.
2. ES North (13-3, 7-1) ... Last time No. 2 ... Timberwolves got tremendous balance in rout of Lehighton with two guys scoring 14 points and two others scoring 12. ... Up next: At Stroudsburg Tuesday.
3. PM West (10-4, 6-2) ... Last time No. 3 ... The Panthers have a lot of basketball to play in the next two weeks. ... Up next: Host Dieruff tonight.
4. Pleasant Valley (6-8, 2-5) ... Last time No. 4 ... The Bears have almost all single digit losses with only the Parkland loss being non-competitive. ... Up next: At ES South Monday.
5. Lehighton (9-6, 2-5) ... Last time No. 5 ... Up-and-down Indians have lost twice to ES North by a combined total of 56 points ... Up next: Host Pleasant Valley Tuesday.
6. ES South (5-10, 2-4) ... Last time No. 6 ... Cavaliers don't look like they will match the 11 wins overall or the seven MVC wins they posted last year. ... Up next: Host Pleasant Valley Monday.
7. PM East (1-14, 0-7) ... Last time No. 7... I got up to the Chateau Resort alongside Camelback on Sunday night for the Pocono Mountain East football banquet. Got to see Justin Bullock, who was out of the hospital for the first time since October. Quite a special moment. Lots of smiles, and lots of tears ... Up next: Host ES South on Tuesday.
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