Asher Kemble is a post presence, an inside guy, a big man. In today’s basketball lingo, he’s a ‘big’.

 This weekend, Kemble certainly came up big for his Elco boys’ basketball team.

 On Saturday night, during the consolation game of the Lebanon Athletic Booster Club’s annual tip-off tournament, Kemble led the Raiders to their first victory of the season, a 60-37 triumph over Red Land. The 6-5 junior forward poured in a game-high 17 points and hauled down ten caroms for the Raiders in the non-league contest.

 Kemble tallied his points on seven mostly inside buckets and three-for-four foul shooting. But perhaps more importantly was Kemble’s energy, intensity and hustle, which set the tone for the Raiders’ effort.

  Because of his performance, Kemble was named to the event’s all-tournament team.

 A night earlier, Kemble had notched four points during a season-opening setback to Cedar Crest.

 Going forward, Kemble’s play on the inside may hold the key to success for an Elco squad which entertains high hopes but is mostly perimeter-oriented.

 – Jeff Falk