In this year's newly-formatted divisions in the Stellar Construction summer basketball league, four teams from both the Small School and Big School groups qualify for the playoffs.

Salisbury, after defeating Phillipsburg 46-41 last Thursday, was one of four teams that finished the regular season with a 9-3 record and moved onto the postseason.

The playoffs begin after the Stellar Construction "Catch A Rising Star" Basketball Showcase and SportsFest "A-Town Throwndown" tournaments have completed. Notre Dame (Green Pond), Lehighton and Lincoln Leadership were the other three squads to earn a spot from the Small School Division. Emmaus (10-2), Parkland (9-2), Bangor (9-3) and Nazareth (8-4) are the Big Schools that qualified.

The Falcons closed out the season with a solid performance against Phillipsburg.

"I said to the guys that I thought 75 percent of the possessions we got good shots," head coach Jason Weaver said. "Did we shoot the ball well? No, we missed a lot of layups. I don't know if we hit a jumper at all tonight, but I thought we got good shots."

A big reason the Falcons were able to pull away from Phillipsburg was the play of Tevon Weber, who finished with a game-high 18 points. Weber scored 16 of those points in the first half to help Salisbury rebound from an early 12-8 deficit and lead 26-19 late in the opening half.

"I thought Tevon was the difference maker," Weaver said. "He got the tips, he got the loose balls, and he got the post-ups. He made the right passes. He has been out for a couple of games; he strained his hip a little bit. It was good to have him back tonight."

Phillipsburg wouldn't go away quietly. Salisbury's lead diminished to just four points by the halftime whistle, and the Falcons' momentum carried into the final 20 minutes of play.

Phillipsburg, looking to end its summer season with a .500 mark at 6-6, took its first lead at 36-34 since it was a 12-10 game early. Their last lead came moments later at 37-36 before the Falcons held on down the stretch with key free throw shooting and solid ball security.

Complimenting Weber down low was forward Jaxon Costello, who finished with 10 points and a number of key baskets in the second half. That performance came two days after pouring in 30 against Lehighton, another playoff-contending team as well.

Weaver believes Costello and Weber contain the experience and talent to be one of the more formidable post tandems in the Colonial League.

"Those are two guys that I think in the Colonial League are going to be tough to handle inside," Weaver said. "Dylan [Belletiere] has been very steady and intense and playing hard."

But their defensive approach still remains up in the air with the personnel Weaver has. Play in the upcoming weeks should provide a clearer answer to that question.

"I'm used to Brendan [Reichenbach], Bryce [Fairclough], Dasheen [Reid], Justin [Aungst], and all of those guys that were solid defenders," Weaver said. "We're just not physically as quick this year, so there's going to be a little adjustment.

"We're bigger and more physical inside. But we've lost a lot of quickness from last year."

The point guard position is still a point of emphasis after seven weeks of summer play, but Weaver has been pleased with the play at the top of the key.

"I think Sean Snyder has matured," Weaver said. "He just finished eighth grade, but he's doing a much better job handling the pressure and playing good defense. He was stepping up tonight. I was happy to see his role in terms of playing with more confidence, which was important."