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Dan's
Spin
Return to TedSilary.com Home Page Dan (nee Danny) Spinelli
was one of our youngest website writers ever. Now he's a veteran (junior at La Salle
High) and has been attending scholastic events for what seems like forever
and he's pumped up about being able to express his thoughts on the Explorers
and other squads. Thanks for your contributions, Dan! |
Dan is now doing shows about Philly high school sports with his
buddy, Nick Mandarano, who attends
Lansdale Catholic.
Here's the link . . .
http://www.30minutesofmadness.com/highschool.html
FEB. 10
CATHOLIC LEAGUE
Carroll 65, La Salle 52
When I was in eighth grade (and but a shadow of the fearsome La Sallian I am today), my dad brought me to the Palestra to watch Neumann-Goretti play Archbishop Carroll in the PCL Championship. For a wide-eyed boy from the suburbs, this was a mesmerizing trip. I remember the game to this day. Neumann jumped out to an early lead and Carroll battled, but could never seem to recapture the Saints. At the time, Tony Chennault was the star player for N-G (He now plays off the bench at Villanova). I remember Chennault and some Carroll players got into a little brouhaha which resulted in some suspensions for a couple of players. But what I remember most were the exploits of a little freshman by the name of Yosef Yacob. Somewhere inside me I felt scared. This kid is going to be in the league for three more years…? Yacob was not yet a star but he was surely was in-the-making. I have to give Coach Paul Romanczuk and the rest of the Carroll Patriots some credit. They played incredibly. OK, now that I have given my honest regard to Archbishop Carroll, let’s recap this game, one that diehard La Salle fans will not soon forget.
The stage was almost beautifully set. A large amount of basketball alumni returned, stretching back to the Class of 1957, and two exhibition games were held. Coach Joe Dempsey really did his best to make this an incredible day for all of the former La Salle basketball players, their families, and their friends—and he succeeded. Kudos to Coach Demps and all the La Salle guys (athletic director Mr. Parisi, Mr. Carabello, Mr. Miller…) for their continued support of the program. The fans came out in FULL numbers, replicating the tremendous effort of last year’s Silent Night. If anyone has forgotten, the “Silent Night” is a special occasion where all the student fans dress up in ridiculous costumes and stay quiet until the tenth point. Among the costumes on Sunday were Barack Obama and his Secret Service agents, the Gingerbread Man, a lion, a couple Mount “girls,” lacrosse star Matt Rambo in Christian Brothers’ garb, and SpongeBob SquarePants. My personal favorite student section antic was dressing up senior Nick Higgins as Paul Romanczuk and having him imitate Carroll’s coach during the game. Higgins got a few Explorer freshmen into the act as well, and they dressed up as Carroll basketball players. All of the antics were in good fun and it was entertaining to watch.
Even amidst this crazy environment (where La Salle even officially STOPPED selling tickets…the gym was that packed), there was a basketball game to be played. And for a certain La Salle senior, there was a milestone to be reached. Amar Stukes came into Sunday eight points away from the 1,000 point milestone. Stukes has averaged over 20 points in Catholic League games this season, so the question was simply WHEN not IF he would score the 1,000th point in this game. We’ll get to that special moment, of course, but first let’s look at the first half:
The Explorers took a 7-6 lead with 3:25 left in the first quarter on a beautiful and-one layup by Stukes. He was fouled by Carroll sophomore center Ernest Aflakpui (who picked up his 2nd foul a minute later…sidelining him for a bit). With La Salle three points away from that magic “10” that would set the students off, senior Steve Smith kept launching treys to no avail. Eventually, senior Malik Janifer was fouled on his way to the basket, sinking the layup. He completed the three point play with 59 seconds left in the quarter, finally setting off the manic student section. La Salle would go into the second quarter leading 12-11.
A Stukes bucket had ended the previous quarter at the buzzer, meaning Amar was now 3 points away from 1,000. After he nailed two free throws, Amar was one point away with 4:20 left in the quarter. Meanwhile, the Patriots were going on a mini-spurt. Yacob ended up with 10 points in the first half, and was complemented by the rebounding might of sophomore Derrick Jones. Seriously, Jones was a FORCE under the rim. A humorous moment of note in the second quarter occurred at the 3:25 mark when La Salle junior sub Jalen Herdsman blocked Aflakpui, drawing plenty of “oos” and “ahhs” from the student section. Carroll led 25-21 at halftime. They ended up outscoring La Salle 14-9 in the second quarter.
At halftime, Amar Stukes was recognized for his outstanding achievement as he joined the select group of Explorers who have scored 1,000 points. His memory-maker came on a right-side layup with 2:25 remaining. His accomplishment was going to be acknowledged at the next stoppage of play, but that turned out to be halftime. He was presented with a decorated, prepared-beforehand ball and was joined for a picture by a group of former 1,000 point scorers, including La Salle University stalwart Chip Greenberg. But Amar’s beautiful ceremony still could not inject life into this game. Carroll was already on a roll.
Aflakpui notched his third foul only 90 seconds into the quarter, drawing some hope that his absence would help La Salle on the boards. But the combination of Derrick Jones down below and Yacob on the perimeter only tortured La Salle. Carroll extended their lead to 35-27, forcing Dempsey to call timeout with 1:59 left in the third quarter. The demoralized La Salle student section finally started a “Let’s Go Sixers!” chant to draw recognition from 76ers coach Doug Collins, who was in attendance to support his son-in-law, Paul Romanczuk. Collins gave a polite acknowledgement to the students.
The quarter ended on unfortunate terms as Derrick Jones converted a lob into two extra points, bringing Carroll’s 39-33 lead into the fourth quarter. Two treys from La Salle senior Pat Cooney could not even save the day in the fourth quarter, as Yacob continually kept Carroll ahead by a comfortable margin. The fouling parade began with two minutes left in the game and Carroll rolled to a 65-52 victory. Paul Romanczuk drove out of Wyndmoor with his fifth win against La Salle in six years. He has ended the Explorers’ playoff hopes three straight years in a row. But the man did say hi to me (which goes a long way for a little-known website writer). See, even when you break a young man’s dreams each year, saying hello works wonders! Romanczuk will probably have little chance to end La Salle’s season again, as they travel down to 17th and Girard for a rematch with St. Joe’s Prep on Friday. Dempsey will look to rebound against three straight losses to Speedy Morris and the Hawks, who will be primed to defeat their rivals again.
The season drudges on. I have faith as always in my Explorers, but Friday will be brutal. Congratulations to the seniors: managers Zach Scheier, John Shields, and Preston Murrey, as well as Amar Stukes, Steve Smith, Pat Cooney, Ryan Winslow, Alex Cuoci, Malik Janifer, and Jon Naji. It was a pleasure watching these guys and, as always. Friday we fight again.
FEB. 8
CATHOLIC LEAGUE
Ryan 57, La Salle 56
The atmosphere for the game was terrific. Ryan had a great student section out for the game and La Salle brought a few notable faces as well. La Salle history/religion teacher and former basketball coach at Holy Family University Dan Williams was in the house. Williams has a deep basketball legacy in Northeast Philly, as this article illustrates very well. It was great to see him! Before the start of the game, two kids from the Athletes Helping Athletes program came to center court to meet with players from both teams. La Salle’s favorite son Matt Beckman was there, as was Ryan’s athlete, Mike Haegele. With the crowd in high spirits, the game began.
The first quarter was surprisingly pretty high-scoring (something you don’t see often in Ryan’s gym—smile) with La Salle leading 14-13 at the end. Raider senior forward Tyler Reed (14 points) scored seven points early, including a banked trey that gave his team a 1 point advantage with 3:40 left in the quarter. The Explorers gained the lead through intelligent defense, where good traps resulted in traveling calls on Ryan. La Salle senior center Ryan Winslow (12 points) also hit three shots in the quarter, helping to inspire some life into the Explorers under the basket.
The tempo of the game slowed down a bit in the second quarter as each team hit a standstill. The Explorers had trouble making outside shots, but gained points from three straight baskets by senior guard Amar Stukes (18 points). At the 4:40 mark, Ryan took a 20-18 lead on a three-pointer by senior Shawn Miller (10 points). The final minutes were a little back-and-forth with Ryan again gaining a 23-22 lead on another trey by Reed. Archbishop Ryan preserved their lead going into halftime, heading La Salle by a 1 point margin: 25-24.
La Salle embarked on its typical third quarter explosion, going on a remarkable run in the third quarter. Luckily for the Raiders, they were able to compensate for most of those points with a nice spurt at the end, but the Explorers definitely gained some momentum in their 20-point third quarter. The run also managed to silent the usually fiery Ryan crowd. Stukes started the show off by again rattling off six consecutive points. Treys by seniors Pat Cooney (3 points) and Steve Smith (11 points) helped get the ball rolling. Then, senior Malik Janifer (6 points) nailed two straight jumpers, helping to energize the La Salle base. Another Smith trey pushed the Explorers’ lead to ten points—44-34. A trey by Shawn Miller with fifty seconds left helped quell the La Salle spurt. A basket by Ryan senior Billy Dykan (4 points) cut La Salle’s lead to 44-39 at the third quarter buzzer. Ultimately, Dykan’s basket provided the difference in this hard-fought game.
Well, the fourth quarter was the best excitement that a $5 ticket can buy. Ryan went on a 5-2 run to start the quarter, forcing Explorer coach Joe Dempsey to call a timeout with 4:54 remaining. After Ryan junior Brendan Horan (13 points) completed a three-point play on a foul by Cooney, Ryan stayed close—down 49-47 with 3:20 left. After both teams traded three-pointers, a basket by Ryan senior Bryan Okolo (14 points) tied the game at 52-52 with 2:04 left. Now here is where the fun starts. This is how the end of the game broke down: (1) Stukes makes two free throws after being fouled by Dykan: score becomes 54-52 La Salle and under two minutes left; (2) Horan makes one free throw after Cooney fouls him: 54-53 and 1:45 left; (3) Dempsey calls a timeout, Stukes gets fouled and misses the front end of a 1-and-1 BUT gets his rebound; (4) La Salle winds forty seconds off the clock looking for a shot, but the ball gets stolen; (5) Tyler Reed drives toward the hoop and is fouled by Stukes. He makes the shot but misses the free throw: score 55-54 Ryan, 25 seconds left; (6) Horan gets fouled and makes both FTs: 57-54 Ryan; (7) Stukes nails a jumper after a La Salle timeout: 57-56 Ryan with twenty seconds left; (8) Okolo is fouled but misses the front end of a 1-and-1, La Salle gets the ball; (9) Amar’s shot attempt misses but he recovers possession—ultimately the ball goes out of bounds; (10) A last second three-point attempt doesn’t hit the mark and Ryan wins.
Ryan and La Salle will both play difficult opponents on Sunday as the Raiders face off against Roman Catholic and the Explorers play Archbishop Carroll. It should be another great day for basketball in the Catholic League. A shout-out is in order for the La Salle coaching staff and managerial staff that made it out to this game (in not the greatest of road conditions). Assistant coach Ben Campetti, who formerly coached at Conestoga High School, is always a source of wisdom on Joe Dempsey’s bench. Campetti’s knowledge of basketball in this area goes back to his days as a student at Archbishop Carroll. I’m sure Coach Campetti’s school pride will not interfere with his coaching allegiance this Sunday, though. La Salle sophomore manager Gary McCabe also made it out to the game. Gary lives in far-away Collegeville, but only rarely misses a game or practice. McCabe is also a stellar golfer who will surely be one of the best players in the Catholic League in the years to come. We at La Salle are surely happy to have him as one of our managers!
JAN. 25
CATHOLIC LEAGUE
La Salle 72, McDevitt 56
It was a frosty night outside, but with a sizable student section in attendance (and decked out in full patriotic gear), the Explorers upped their league record to 7-1. The 72-56 final score does not accurately reflect the game’s progress (do final scores ever do?), but the La Salle players surely earned this victory. Explorer senior guard Amar Stukes again put on a virtuoso performance, scoring 27 points along with two treys. Fellow senior Steve Smith hustled for 20 points, all in the second half, while knocking down 4 threes. The Explorers, at least in my opinion, won the game in the third quarter; Stukes and Smith combined for 18 points as La Salle outscored McDevitt 20-5. The 48-39 Explorer advantage after the third period put this one in the books.
While the night turned out to be another “W” on the Catholic League schedule, McDevitt put up a serious fight in the early going. The Lancers jumped out to a 7-0 advantage, ultimately leading 22-13 at the end of the first quarter. McDevitt’s early charge was led by seniors, Dan Hanagan (7 points) and Tymere Wilder (7 points), as well as junior Tyrell Long (17 points). Bishop McDevitt scored four treys total in the quarter, with two coming from Wilder. In the second quarter, things did not improve much for La Salle as McDevitt preserved a consistent seven-point lead. Each time the Explorers would trudge back into contention, the Lancers would bring the lead back to seven. Ultimately, McDevitt entered halftime with a nine-point lead. I would have paid money (smile) to be in La Salle’s locker room during that halftime speech, but surely Coach Dempsey riled the troops and it worked: the Explorers came out rolling.
The third quarter was beautiful to watch. Besides Smith and Stukes’ performance, senior Ryan Winslow (12 points) added a field goal and some awesome defense. Explorer senior Alex Cuoci (9 points) put on another stellar performance under the rim, getting his fair share of layups. Some inspired underclassmen also performed well for La Salle in this game. Junior swingman Jalen Herdsman scored a bucket—I’m sure we will see more of him as this regular season draws to a close.
The fourth quarter ended without much drama. McDevitt senior Kenyatta Long (11 points) fouled out with 36 seconds left, as La Salle was leading 68-56. The Lancers could not put an adequate dent in the Explorers’ lead, and ultimately their early advantage shriveled away. La Salle survived—which really, is all you must do in this brutally tough league. This week’s slate of games includes two away games: a Monday matchup at Cardinal O’Hara and a sure classic on Friday against St. Joseph’s Prep.
JAN. 20
CATHOLIC LEAGUE
La Salle 65, Bonner-Prendie 62 (OT)
Every good team needs a game like this. Joe Dempsey’s
heart rate probably doesn’t need a game like the Explorers found yesterday
at Monsignor Bonner, but surely the players do. During an overtime game that
seemed to go on forever, La Salle outlasted the upstart Friars 65-62. La
Salle senior Steve Smith was in top form with 19 points, six
rebounds, and a game-saving 5-point swing in overtime (we’ll get to that
later on). Friar senior Pat Vanderslice (18 points) led his team with
a monster fourth-quarter that forced the overtime. An overtime game was
probably not what the Explorers ordered to cap a 4 game in 7 day run, but
Catholic League games are never easy.
The game began to get WILD in the beginning of the fourth quarter. After going back and forth with Bonner all game, the Explorers finally held a 41-32 lead at the end of the third quarter. But Monsignor Bonner was not finished yet. Immediately, Vanderslice hit a trey to cut the deficit to six. After a basket on La Salle’s end, V-Slice knocked down another three-pointer, cutting the deficit to five points. La Salle was definitely rattled, especially when Explorer senior Amar Stukes (16 points) committed his fourth foul with three minutes left. He had to be taken out, and was replaced by sophomore Najee Walls (2 points). Bonner would ultimately go on an 8-2 run to start the quarter. With 1:32 left in the 4Q, crunch time began:
The Explorers inbounded, Bonner senior Christian Summers (10 points) intercepted the ball and was fouled, he made both foul shots making the score 50-46 La Salle. After Explorer senior Ryan Winslow (6 points) missed the front end of a 1-and-1, Vanderslice made another shot, putting his team within 2 points with 50 seconds on the clock. Steve Smith extended La Salle’s lead to three by making 1 of 2 free throws on the other end, but Bonner lurked close with only 30 seconds left. Again, Vanderslice scored—making the score 51-50 La Salle. With 24 seconds left, La Salle senior Pat Cooney made 1 of 2 foul shots, but Bonner scooped up the ball and charged down the court to tie. A clutch shot by Bonner sophomore Danny Ings tied the game at 52 with a couple seconds remaining. The Explorers could not get off a final shot and we were off to overtime.
In OT, it was Monsignor Bonner who controlled the early-going. After a go-ahead free throw by Steve Smith, two made baskets by Friar senior Nick Czibik gave Bonner a 56-53 lead with 1:39 left in OT. Dempsey called timeout and La Salle tried to regroup. Something magic must have gone down in that timeout, because the Explorers came raging out of the break. Steve Smith drained a trey to tie the game again. When I looked down at the scorebook to write a “3” next to his name, I heard yells only to look up and see Smith with the ball again, dribbling for a layup. He had apparently stolen/intercepted a ball and now sealed a five-point swing in the Explorers’ favor. With a 58-56 lead, La Salle would hold on for the rest of the game.
The star of this final minute of overtime was Pat Cooney, whose clutch free throw shooting preserved La Salle’s lead. A basket by senior Malik Janifer and another free throw from Stukes complemented Cooney’s effort down the stretch. A last minute shot by Ings ended the period, but lacked the effect of his 4th quarter shot—La Salle had already won, 65-62. A 6-1 league record is nothing to complain about, but this game surely put perspective back in the Explorers’ eyes. Each and every league game will be a fight. Six regular season games await the Explorers who are, already, more than halfway through their schedule. Next up is Bishop McDevitt on Friday at La Salle High.
JAN. 18
CATHOLIC LEAGUE
La Salle 47, Wood 39
On another Friday night at La Salle High, the Explorers celebrated
the end of exams with a 47-39 league win over Archbishop Wood. The low-scoring
game got pretty messy at times, but La Salle was able to earn their third win in
five days. With a series of victories over West Catholic, Conwell-Egan, and
Wood—all during exam week—the Explorers upped their record to 5-1 in the
Catholic League. Last night’s victory was highlighted by a stellar performance
by senior guard Pat Cooney, who scored 20 points (including four treys).
He was assisted (excuse the pun) by senior Amar Stukes, who scored 18
points while dishing out six assists. Senior Steve Smith made his money
on the boards, collecting 11 rebounds while battling with Wood junior big man
Joe LoStracco (8 points) under the rim. Now, let’s get to the nitty-gritty: The
first quarter was, well, tough to watch. Both teams struggled early with their
shooting and it looked like we might enter the second quarter with no team in
double digits. Cooney finally resurrected the La Salle offense with a few
minutes remaining in the opening period; he nailed two treys to inspire a late
Explorer salvo that gave them a 12-8 lead at the end of the period. LoStracco
showed his might under the basket, but he collected his third foul with 1:36
left in the first quarter, thus limiting his playing time in the next period.
His absence was felt as La Salle embarked on an 11-1 run in the second quarter.
A basket by Wood junior Eric Walsh finally ended the Wood scoring
drought. Walsh had an interesting game—he played about four minutes, racking up
five fouls in that span. At the 7:20 mark of the fourth quarter, he finally
fouled out. Anyway, the Explorers ended up outscoring Wood 13-3 in the second
quarter. Again, Viking head coach Jack Walsh dressed to impress, sporting
a nice tan suit jacket with matching pants. My opinion has not changed from last
year—he is still one of the best-dressed coaches in the league.
Now, it was obvious that Wood would not go down without a fight. They came out guns-a-blazing in the second-half, but still, their scoring was scarce. They were running nice offensive sets, with a series of tough screens to either get an open shot or acquire available space for LoStracco to shoot. Shots were just simply not falling for them. After a scoreless first half for the normally potent junior, Pat Smith, he came out strong in the latter half of the game. Smith ended up with 11 points, and was complemented by fellow junior guard Tommy Rush, who also dropped 11 points. Pat Smith scored first in the third period, bombing a trey to help put some life back in his team’s fan section. Rush had five points in the quarter, and Wood ended up outscoring La Salle 12-10 in the quarter. The fourth quarter is a little harder to evaluate in context. Wood outscored the Explorers again, this time 16-12, but as the score line clearly shows—it was too little, too late. Stukes helped his team by going on a 6 point run early in the quarter. But he, along with the rest of the team, suffered from the free throw line. La Salle ended up making only 5 of 15 free throws in the fourth quarter, while finishing 50% for the whole game. While this is a disappointing statistic, I feel OK excusing the Explorers, who managed to score a win even during a brutal week of basketball/testing. Wood staged a late run, even getting within four points (43-39) with forty seconds left, but La Salle made enough free throws at the end to avoid a slip-up. A missed trey by sophomore Viking, Cody Fitzpatrick (2 points), at the 25-second mark sealed the win. La Salle will finish their hellish week on Sunday at Bonner-Prendergast. They have strutted out to a 5-1 league record, but still have a tough slate of games remaining. The JV Explorers, as well as the always-stellar freshman team, have continued their undefeated seasons. Hopefully I don’t jinx these guys by continuing to mention them in my column, but they are truly having awesome years. Another shout-out is in order for assistant freshman coach, Rob Zanneo, who surreptitiously disappeared from my list of the freshman coaches last column. He, along with Coaches Alex Brown and Tom McCaffery are doing an A+ job. The La Salle student section has also shown their support tremendously this year. They continue to fill the stands each home game, adding a lot of life to the La Salle gym. Some special recognition is due to the football players, who do their part and support the other La Salle athletic teams during the football offseason. Finally, Explorer seniors Nick Higgins and Christian Endrigian have also added to the sports culture at La Salle with their outstanding Twitter feed @LaSalle_Sports. The Twitter page began last year, and was coordinated by Higgins, Endrigian, as well as another senior, Joe Dooney. Their page already has 1,386 followers and continues to inform Explorer fans all throughout the world with up-to-the-minute updates from each sport. Check them out! It’s surely a good year for La Salle basketball. Let’s hope it continues that way.
JAN. 11
CATHOLIC LEAGUE
Roman 56, La Salle 49 (OT)
Roman Catholic and La Salle again reminded us why there is simply
nothing better than Catholic League basketball on a Friday night. This game
defined WILD and passionate high school basketball. It was truly a pleasure to
see two schools, drenched in their pride and traditions, go at it. In front of a
capacity crowd at La Salle, the Cahillites edged the Explorers 56-49 in
overtime. La Salle senior guard Amar Stukes (28 points) again led the
way. Stukes has averaged 24.7 points in league play this season. Seniors Pat
Cooney and Alex Cuoci were next in points with six each—truly showing
the dominance of Stukes’ performance for the Explorers. For Roman, they were led
by the incredible junior Shep Garner (16 points), but breakout
performances were turned in by sophomore guard Traci Carter (19 points)
and junior Rashann London (15 points). Carter had six steals on the day
while sophomore TreVaughn Wilkerson (4 points) had fourteen boards. It
was altogether a brilliant game, with the atmosphere almost reminiscent of a
playoff game at the Palestra.
At the 1 minute point in the first quarter, I surely did not imagine classifying this game as “brilliant.” Roman broke out to a 12-0 lead in the first quarter, helped by the superb play Carter (3 treys, 2 floor shots in quarter) and London (2 floor shots and a three-point play). The Explorers made bad passes early, and their early shots were flat. La Salle coach Joe Dempsey finally ended the torture with a timeout call at the 4:18 point of Quarter One. Stukes broke the drought on a steal-turned-layup with 50 seconds left. The quarter ended with Roman up 12-2; the ten point lead was surely not insurmountable, but the Explorers’ morale had definitely been hurt.
The second quarter was a different animal. A salvo of offense greeted the crowd at the beginning of the period. The 12-2 score turned into a 20-10 lead for Roman only minutes into the quarter. La Salle could never gain an edge on their deficit, but they were scoring the ball at least. Roman retained its ten point lead at halftime (27-17) as both teams added 15 points in the quarter. During halftime, two teenagers from Athletes Helping Athletes, an organization centered on helping special-needs athletes, took turns shooting the ball on the court. One kid, Pete, had serious range and drained a couple shots from beyond the arc. His fine marksmanship brought both the La Salle and (admirably large) Roman student section to cheers. Pete might have brought the opposition together for a moment, but the student sections began to firmly antagonize each other in the exciting second-half.
Pat Cooney hit La Salle’s first trey a minute into the third quarter, cutting Roman’s lead to seven. The three-point arc had been cruel to La Salle for the entire first half; it was surely a good sign to hit a three early in the second half. After some responsive shots by Garner, Stukes led La Salle on a 7-0 spurt, scoring on two floor shots and a trey. His nice work cut Roman’s lead to 31-27 with 3:30 left in the third quarter. The quarter would end with Roman retaining a lead, 36-31. And THEN things got crazy…
La Salle overtook the lead through the play of (who else?!) Amar Stukes. A three point play from a foul by London cut Roman’s lead to two points (36-34). A Stukes three-pointer soon followed, finally giving the La Salle fans what they so wanted: THE LEAD. At this point, the outrageous La Salle fan base began screaming “Scoreboard! Scoreboard!” This chant came in return to Roman’s fans frequent referencing of the score as both sides traded catcalls. Among the more notable chants: “Roman Football!” (La Salle fans), “Overrated!” (Roman fans), and “One-Sport Wonder!” (La Salle fans). I must extend my gratitude to the Roman Catholic fans for not responding to the “Roman Football” chant with “Coatesville Football!” THAT would have been a slap in the face for the Explorer faithful.
La Salle stood in a pretty good place with a little over three minutes remaining in the game. They had overcome a brutal first-half deficit to hold a six point lead (46-40). A steal-turned-layup by Traci Carter cut the lead to four. Another Roman basket made this a two-point game. Roman was forced to take its final timeout with 1:18 left in the game, as the Cahillites could not get an inbound in. Garner tied the game at 46 with 50 seconds left; La Salle could not gain the lead and we went to overtime.
To put it frankly, Roman won the overtime period. La Salle put forth an A+ effort in the second-half to overcome early mistakes, but they could never gain traction in overtime. With both teams in the bonus to begin overtime, all referee calls made your heart beat. An early foul call on La Salle senior Malik Janifer brought Garner to the foul line—Roman facilely took a two-point lead. London extended the lead to four with his jumper, from an assist by Roman senior Matt Simon. Stukes traded free throws with the Cahillites throughout the rest of the period; La Salle couldn’t get any shots to fall on their end. After a slew of free throws which extended an already potent Roman lead, the 56-49 final score came as an anticlimax.
Even though the night ended with a “L,” I really enjoyed the atmosphere and seeing some familiar faces. I had another encounter with my “statistics-taking” mentor, Mr. Puck McKenna. His presence alone suggests the lore of this Roman-La Salle matchup. I also spoke with Dan Hoban, Roman’s PA announcer/golf coach/scorekeeper, who also moonlights as a TedSilary.com writer! His love for Roman is truly representative of tradition-fueled team. I hope to see him again in the playoffs. After the game, I also saw Roman head coach Chris McNesby. We had a nice talk, which included an apology for my comments about the Cahillites’ gym last year. McNesby along with the other members of Roman’s coaching staff were consummate gentlemen. I hope to see their team again, hopefully in a different, more collegiate setting.
Before I sign off, I want to congratulate La Salle’s freshmen and JV teams which are BOTH undefeated. The freshmen team, coached by Alex Brown and Tom McCaffery, went undefeated last year as well. The JV team, coached by Bill Donohoe, Kevin Miller, and Coach “Ace,” are rocking the world with alley-oop plays to sophomore Dave Krmpotich and strong offensive play by juniors Sean Greenberg, Joe DiAndrea, Mick Barrett, and Langston Ellison. Congrats to all!
JAN. 7
CATHOLIC LEAGUE
La Salle 65, Neumann-Goretti 62
No streak can last forever. After 73 straight Catholic League wins, the mighty Neumann-Goretti Saints have fallen. This is the website report I thought I would only write in my dreams. Since La Salle moved to the Wyndmoor campus in 1960, this game has to rank as the one of the best wins in the Explorers’ gym. In fact, I would cite this game as the best La Salle win of Joe Dempsey’s tenure as head coach. Now yes, a regular season victory, even over Neumann-Goretti, doesn’t win a City Title; it doesn’t get you to the Elite Eight of the state tournament, but this was the win Dempsey needed. In my opinion, beating Neumann-Goretti united the school around a basketball team that for years had been second…third priority behind football and baseball. Only minutes after the game ended, the school’s incredible fan base spread the word on Facebook and Twitter; most of the tweets were congratulatory messages to Amar Stukes, Steve Smith, and the rest of these magic Explorers. The amount of work put in by this coaching staff and the players, especially the incomparable Amar Stukes, merits this well-deserved victory. This win capped an incredible journey for Dempsey and his players—a journey that has only just begun. I am beyond happy for them. I’ll recap the incredible fourth quarter before giving some context for the full game.
The Explorers entered the game’s final period trailing the Saints by four points, 47-43. At this point, Carl Arrigale, the head coach of Neumann-Goretti, had not used a timeout. After realizing this at the beginning of the quarter, La Salle’s premier assistant, Jim Sheedy, presciently stated, “Oh, he’ll be using them. Don’t worry.” How right Sheedy was. A basket by senior forward Alex Cuoci cut Neumann’s lead to 47-45 with 5:53 left in the game. The Explorers earned the lead after Stukes was fouled by Saint junior Troy Harper on a layup attempt. The basket went in, as did Stukes’ ensuing foul shot, putting the lead at 48-47 La Salle. After a Neumann basket, La Salle regained the lead with a three-pointer by senior Steve Smith. Smith would have six total treys on the day. His basket gave La Salle a 51-49 lead; the Explorers would own the lead the rest of the way. Another Smith trey along with a layup by Neumann junior Ja’Quan Newton kept the score close—54-53 La Salle with three minutes left. Another three-point play by Stukes extended the Explorers lead to 61-56 with just under a minute left. Neumann sophomore Lamarr Kimble was then fouled while shooting a trey—he made all three free throws. A La Salle bucket in response extended the Explorers' lead again, this time to six points, with around twenty seconds remaining. The Explorers rode their 65-59 advantage into the final seconds, where a Kimble trey at the buzzer gave the game its final score: 65-62. Stukes scored 11 of his 26 points in the quarter, cementing a victory that he owned the whole way. La Salle as a whole outscored Neumann 22-15 in the final period.
While I began this report with La Salle’s happy ending, this game actually looked like an easy “W” for Neumann for a long time. The Saints led by ten at halftime, and were especially potent on offense. Newton did not start—for “personal reasons,” according to the Neumann manager—and he only entered the game with 2:27 left in the first quarter. The Saints led by one (16-15) after one period. Neumann continued its offensive rampage in the second quarter, scoring eighteen points. Newton and fearsome senior center John Davis led the way. Davis is absolutely excellent—his rebounding is terrific and his interior moves get him points pretty much every time he drives. His foul shooting…well, that could be a point of improvement. I was also really impressed with Kimble and Harper, who will surely torture La Salle in the years to come (smile).
Last year, I wrote a mildly depressing column detailing an 82-53 Neumann victory in the La Salle gym. Never in my wildest dreams would I have imagined the Explorers beating them. No respect has been lost for Neumann; this is surely only a game to motivate them further. I have the utmost respect for Carl Arrigale’s squad and always have. Their players are excellent and I love watching them play. But boy, how great is it to see the Explorers end that streak? All I can say is there is ABSOLUTELY NOTHING like the Philadelphia Catholic League. Ted Silary is my idol, but c’mon—“only in the Pub…?” How about “only in the PCL?” The Catholic League is second to none.
I’ll end with this anecdote: After a nonleague loss to Imhotep Charter, I rode back to La Salle with John Shields, a fellow manager, and Coach Dempsey. During the ride, we discussed the difficulty of the league and how ridiculously tough it is to compete in the PCL. One thing Dempsey said (that is something most Catholic League coaches, surely Dan Spinelli, Sr., would echo) is “Do people realize how good these other teams are? It’s not easy playing in this league at all.” Dempsey's right. It’s not easy playing these teams and hoping to succeed. La Salle’s playoff record against Archbishop Carroll will sadly attest to that fact. But Dempsey, along with his extremely motivated team, beat one of the best teams in this city. Amar Stukes, Ryan Winslow, Steve Smith, Alex Cuoci, Pat Cooney, and Malik Janifer—all seniors, all leaders, contributed to this win. Winslow played out of his mind, battling under the basket with John Davis. Cuoci came into his own again and didn’t let anyone from Neumann intimidate him. Cooney didn’t just “belong,” he made things happen on offense. And Malik did his job and produced a team victory. I mean every word I write about these guys. They have amazed me yet again. But I think the final congratulations has to be given to the man who eats, breathes, and sleeps La Salle basketball—I hope Coach Dempsey gets a great night’s sleep. He deserves it beyond a doubt.
JAN. 4
CATHOLIC LEAGUE
La Salle 62, Judge 56
The Explorers triumphed over Father Judge in a stirring Catholic League opener for both schools. Judge’s arena was filled to the brim with spectators and the players fully obliged the crowd’s expectations. La Salle owned the first quarter, even grabbing an 11-0 lead out of the gate. The points in succession were: two jumpers by senior forward Ryan Winslow(6 points), a three-point play by senior guard Amar Stukes (20 points) on a foul by Judge junior James Bogans, a steal turned layup for Explorer senior guard Malik Janifer (7 points), and finally a layup by senior forward Alex Cuoci (14 points). Two free throws by Judge senior Jeff Seigafuse (9 points) finally put the Crusaders on the board with 4:48 left in the first quarter. They fought back within six, and the first quarter score was 19-13.
The Explorers had a nice offense set up to attack Judge’s 2-3 zone; Stukes would dish the ball low to either senior forward Steve Smith (7 points) or Winslow, who would get the defense to converge, and while fellow senior Pat Cooney could inch in from the opposite side, they would hit him with a pass. If Cooney could not get a good shot, he would draw the defense in and begin the cycle again. The routine definitely tired out the defense and it was good offensive play-calling by Coach Joe Dempsey.
La Salle continued its hold on the game in the second quarter, outscoring Judge 12-9. The Explorers gained a psychological edge at the quarter’s beginning as star sophomore center Dave “Krump” Krmpotich swatted down two Judge shots. Krump also put on a SHOW in the JV game, scoring on a reverse dunk as well as an alley-oop. Judge junior Malik Robinson (9 points) scored a nice three-pointer to pull his team back, but a wide-open layup by Cuoci at the buzzer ended the half at 31-22 La Salle.
During halftime, the Crusaders put on a beautiful presentation for one of their fallen alumni, Lieutenant Bob Neary. A good amount of Neary’s former teammates were on hand, as well as his wife, to witness the unveiling of a banner in Neary’s honor to be put in Judge’s gym. It was a very nice ceremony—kudos to Judge!
The third quarter began with a knock-down trey by Janifer, extending La Salle’s lead to 12 points. At the 6:50 mark in the quarter, Robinson received a technical foul for apparently making an inappropriate comment quite close to the referee. He did not return for the rest of the game. Surprisingly, when Robinson exited, the rest of his teammates rallied for an offensive surge. A three-pointer by Cooney gave La Salle a 20 point lead (46-26), but then the Crusaders came storming back. Two treys by sophomore Aaron Higgins as well as a jumper by Seigafuse put the score at 47-34. A late score by Crusader senior Brandon McGuire (11 points) put the game within six (49-42) as we entered the final period. Judge had outscored La Salle 20-18 in the quarter.
Though its players tried as they could, Father Judge could never get closer than six points. A jumper by senior Sean Hanna (11 points) left the score at 56-50 La Salle with 2:19 remaining in the game. Nice foul shooting by Stukes and Smith down the stretch helped preserve an Explorer win, with the final score reading (again a six point difference) 62-56 La Salle.
DEC. 31
NON-LEAGUE
La Salle 59, Malvern 42
In tune with the customary Eagles loss on Sunday, basketball season has finally arrived. The classic New Year’s Eve matchup between La Salle and Malvern Prep capped off an impressive nonleague season for the Explorers as they now hurdle toward Catholic League play. After last year’s gut-wrenching loss to the Friars, La Salle achieved a solid 59-42 victory to ring in the New Year. Senior Alex Cuoci led the Explorers with 14 points as he again showed his might under the basket. Explorer stalwart senior Amar Stukes contributed 13 points while going 9-10 from the foul line, including a perfect 8-8 in the fourth quarter. Finally, senior Steve Smith scored nine points, all on three-pointers in the Explorer-dominated third quarter. Smith and Stukes again helped their teammates succeed, as Smith collected nine rebounds and Stukes dished out the same number of assists. In a day always wrought with good feelings, La Salle only added to the excitement.
The first quarter ended in a 14-14 standstill as both Cuoci and Malvern senior Jimmy Gordon battled in the paint. Cuoci contributed seven points to lead the Explorers while Gordon scored 8 points in the quarter off of two treys and a nice midrange shot. Gordon ended the game with 17 points, leading his team. La Salle began to take over in the second quarter, where Stukes definitively began the period with a raging block. The Explorers knocked down five field goals in the quarter, including a trey. La Salle senior Pat Cooney scored his 6 points in the first half, coming off of two strong three-pointers. Malvern’s only points in the period came on four free throws (say that five times fast) with two each from seniors Ryan Ammerman and Sam Ramagano. La Salle held the advantage heading into halftime, with a 25-18 score.
The third quarter again favored the Explorers as La Salle held Malvern again to single-digit points. A Steve Smith three-pointer capped a 7-0 run for La Salle to begin the quarter, as they eventually outscored the Friars 20-7 in the period. Explorer senior Ryan Winslow helped out under the basket as well here—his efforts resulted in 13 points. La Salle held a 20 point lead to begin the fourth quarter, winning 45-25.
To their credit, Malvern Prep fought back brilliantly in the fourth quarter, outscoring La Salle 17-14. The Friar defense held the Explorers scoreless until Alex Cuoci made a field goal with 3:16 left in the game. La Salle’s points in the quarter really came from free throws. As noted before, Stukes was perfect from the line in the fourth quarter, adding eight points to the Explorers’ total. Friar senior Alex Dentinger contributed 6 points in an attempt to get his team back in it, but the effort was too little too late. A basket from Jon Naji, whose name you might recognize from my football articles as La Salle’s TE/DE, sealed the game for La Salle. The final score was 59-42.
The win against Malvern propelled La Salle’s nonleague record to a respectable 6-3 as they now “start over” with a clean record in Catholic League play. After a difficult nonleague stretch last year, the Explorers came back with might this year. I was very impressed with the La Salle starting five, who truly embraced their roles. Alex Cuoci, who split JV and varsity time last year, has fit into the offense beautifully as a center/forward. Cuoci “made his bones” this year against Boys’ Latin, where in a thrilling overtime game, he led the Explorers with 21 points, six blocks, and six rebounds. The 70-64 overtime win contrasted with La Salle’s season-opening overtime loss to State College. Throughout December, the Explorers grew as a team during some very challenging games.
In a tight 60-58 win over state power Reading High, three La Salle starters scored in double figures, as Stukes (17 points), Smith (14 points), and Winslow (12 points) led the way. With 8 assists for Stukes and 9 rebounds for Smith, the Explorers’ senior leaders again showed their unselfishness. Throughout these early-season games, La Salle’s seniors showed leadership when it was needed most. Against New Jersey stalwart Roselle Catholic, the Explorers fell short in a 53-49 loss, but helped grow cohesively as a team. When La Salle most needed him, Stukes stepped up in this game—finishing with 29 points.
These games against Boys’ Latin, Reading, and Roselle Catholic helped unite La Salle as a team, where now all the players have accepted their roles. Senior Malik Janifer is a perfect example of this type of selfless player. Janifer is not a scorer, but his ball-handling ability and superb defense make him invaluable to the Explorers. Also, Malik’s terrific attitude helps keep the team “up” even in its most depressing moments. Fellow senior Steve Smith has also “grown” this season with a matured style of play that befits his future as a Division 1 athlete. Smith continues to add dimensions to his game, so that both his three point shooting and incredible rebounding help to win games for La Salle. These are all players who had to be leaders for the 2012-13 Explorers, and they are eagerly filling those roles.
The final element of La Salle’s early season success has been the bench. Players like juniors Langston Ellison and Jalen Herdsman, as well as sophomores Najee Walls and Dave Krmpotich (best name on the team) have shown great skill in the season’s early going. Ellison and Herdsman are workhorses who have gradually found their niche in La Salle’s program. Walls is continuing to develop as an all-around player, but his ball-handling is already at a varsity level. Krmpotich has already shown great prowess in JV games and I am sure that he will be a major contributor to the varsity team next year.
I am extremely excited for another year of La Salle basketball in the Philadelphia Catholic League. Basketball season has been sorely missed and I am sure that this year of Catholic League ball will be fruitful for La Salle.