December reports

SPECIAL NOTE (REPEATED FROM LAST SEASON)
  Just wanted to post a note about the reporting of scores/boxscores. More than ever this season, managers are calling in boxscores with only the first names of guys scoring points. (I've seen this for myself, as well, in teams' scorebooks.) This is unacceptable, troops. It's tough enough to keep track of all this stuff without having to deal with THAT nutty twist (smile). Also, please be prepared to make note of which Johnson/Smith/Brown, for example, has done the scoring in games where teams have players with the same last name. Generally, it's better for us when the winning team calls in the results. That way we get info to explain HOW the game was won because representatives of the winning team will usually be in a better mood (just human nature) to provide extra details such as rebounds, assists, etc., or the identity of someone who maybe hit a winning shot. One last thing: please be careful. For years I've asked the leagues to make a rule that would force scorekeepers to sit next to each other with the scoreboard operator to one side or the other. It would thus be much easier for the scorekeepers to coordinate fouls/timeouts, not to mention cross-check info on which players actually make the field goals/free throws. Please remember, we want the info to be correct and making that happen is only fair to those involved. The number for Score Service is 215-854-4570. Thank you.
  If your name is misspelled on a TEAM PAGE, please speak up. Send an email to silaryt@phillynews.com or leave word on my voicemail at 215-854-5814.

JAN. 27
PUBLIC A
Frankford 70, Bartram 62
  Bartram roared to eight points, with no benefits from treys, in the first 69 seconds and one had to think, “Uh, oh.” After all, the Braves have a guy who’s widely considered the city’s top junior prospect, go-all-day G Tyrone Garland, and are accustomed to ringing up major numbers. But if the Pioneers were momentarily rattled, they did not let it show. In fact, they went even harder and, with the support of enthusiastic fans, wound up doing exactly what Bartram usually does to teams – wear 'em down. Before the Braves made a late rush – believe me, there was no cause for consternation – Frankford led by 18 points with roughly four minutes remaining. Bartram is in a late-season lull. It recently lost by just three points to Penn Wood, a suburban powerhouse, and maybe read too much into that. The Braves will obviously be one of eight teams to make the Class AAAA portion of the Pub playoffs, so it’s not quite jump-off-a-bridge time. But there are leaks to fix. DN ink went to jr. CG Dehaven Brown, said by all to be a tremendous young man and he certainly came off as such during and after the game. (Coach Ben Dubin said Dehaven is an honor-roll student with upper-echelon classes. Great to hear!) Brown turned in both the sequence of the day AND the play of the day and it’s guaranteed that the spectators are still talking about both. He began with a hard drive and a lefthanded layup and, yes, that was impressive. Then he got the ball out front and “broke the ankles,” as they say, of Garland. Tyrone went sprawling backward on his butt as Dehaven finished the sashay to the basket. It was classic stuff and the Pioneer fans went berserk. Dehaven almost yawned. No one would have begrudged him at least a little display of celebration or even a hint of an in-your-face stare or mini-gesture toward Garland. Nothing. High road all the way. Next he roared down on a break and posted a three-point play, giving the Pioneers a 61-46 pad at 5:00. Ballgame. Brown finished with 16 points, five rebounds, one assist and two steals and did a masterful job of controling tempo. He was hardly a one-man gang, of course. Frankford has an interesting three-headed frontcourt monster in jr. Carl Wallace, who’s ambidextrous and very bouncy/"slicy," and the Poole first cousins, soph Steffon and jr. Darryl. Steffon is the son of former Edison star Lamar Poole. These three guys significantly outplayed their Bartram counterparts and were especially impressive in transition. Wallace mixed 11 points, nine rebounds and five assists; he shot free throws lefthanded but usually used his right in traffic. The cousins Pooled their scoring resources (smile) to finish with 12 points apiece. Darryl added six boards. Jrs. Jerline Harris and Harold Hicks took turns making Garland work for every last point. As it was, The Braided One shot 11-for-22 from the floor (1-for-8 on treys) and 6-for-9 at the line for 29 points. Tyrone is a LOT like ex-Overbrook star Nurideen Lindsey (still hasn’t popped up on Bartram’s roster; guess he won’t at this point) in that he gets anywhere and everywhere he wants and knows how to create contact that goes in his favor. He also has incredible lift on his jumper. I do wonder, though, if the braids are sometimes a hindrance. They’re long and flop around and they have to affect his vision at times. WGs Quasim Jones (jr.) and Solomon Davis (sr.) scored 10 points apiece, but did little to distinguish themselves, honestly. Insiders Devon Moore and Danny Walker grabbed nine and seven rebounds. A telling stat: Bartram had just six assists for the game. The game was handled in fine fashion by refs Kevin McKinley and Paul “Snoop’s Pop” Graham. Frankford’s cheerleaders departed at halftime. Don’t know what that was about. Dubin was hoarse at the end of the game.

JAN. 26
CATHOLIC BLUE
Dougherty 80, Kennedy-Kenrick 68
  Perhaps you just read this scoreline or even the blurb leading you here back on the homepage and muttered, “Why’d he go to THIS game?” You were not alone, troops. (smile) Pretty much everyone I spoke with had the same question, including all three refs at different times, beginning in the parking lot as I headed toward the entrance. The best line came from the ref who said, “You do get around. You’re an equal opportunity masochist.” I often go on hunches and something just said to be here. Back in the day, in its stretch as Bishop Kenrick, this was maybe THE best stop on the trail for Friday night games because the students/parents always turned out in force and showed great enthusiasm. K-K will cease to exist after next school year, so who knows how many opportunities there’ll be to come back? Anyway, as the first quarter proceeded, my choice was looking like the worst in history. K-K missed shot after shot after shot, many of them supposed chippies, and fell into a 17-1 abyss. Ouch. With 46.7 left, soph G Billy Malescio turned a steal into a three-point play and – woo-hoo! – we had the makings of a ballgame. Well, not yet. But at least the Wolverines were off the FG schneid. Much later, K-K caused the Cardinals more than a little concern as several times it rallied within four points. OK, so a dramatic finish was not to be, but you know there had to be entertainment value in a CL game with 148 points. Thanks, guys. DN ink went to jr. CG Brandyn Wims, a crafty lefty who’s capable of draining a trey one instant and then maneuvering around/through everyone for an easy-as-pie layup the next. Honestly, at times earlier this season, the inexperienced Cards didn’t have much more in terms of reliable firepower. At least some other guys have developed. Wims was at his most productive in the pinball-machine fourth quarter, during which the Cards almost lost their lead and then created comfort space. He had seven of his 21 points and three of his five assists in that frame and was involved in a classic spurt that put things away. With K-K down, 64-60, Wims released and notched a three-point play on a pass from jr. G Dawan "Duke, Duke, Duke, Duke of" Earle. K-K missed a trey and the Cardinals again were off to the races. This time, the roles on another three-point play were reversed. Next, Wims picked a pocket and roared in for a layup. Oops. But jr. F Art Comas was there to grab the offensive rebound and then hit one of two free throws. Crisis averted. Earlier, it appeared the ink man was going to be jr. F Brandon Brown, who was especially effective in the paint and helped to force K-K sr. C Brad Miller into some of his early difficulties by nudging him out of his comfort zones. Brown finished with 17 points and 12 rebounds. Earle notched 11 points and four assists while sr. C Norman Dorsey-Poles had 10 points. Comas and another F, sr. Kairi Suswell, were productive off the bench, halving 14 boards. Comas added eight points and two assists. Suswell had six and four along with two steals. Nice job, guys. Miller regrouped nicely after missing his first five shots and scrambled for 14 points in addition to collecting five boards and three assists. Jr. WG Rob Griffith totaled 19 points and five apiece of assists and steals in a strong total effort. Malescio, the sixth man, jammed 13 of his 18 markers into the second half while adding two dimes, three pilfers. Sr. F Alex Byrne hustled for 10 boards and sr. G Kevin Shemar hit a pair of treys during the fourth quarter. After interviewing Wims, I was walking toward the exit when a guy called out from the other end and waved for me to go down there. It was photographer Steve Falk, who needed help with some photo IDs. I needed to drive back downtown in a hurry. Our ridiculously early deadline was looming! Grrrrrrrrrrr. (Ha, ha.) Then I turned and was able to exchange only a quick hello with ex-Kenrick coach Tom Kehoe, one of the all-time good guys and brother-in-law of Phil Martelli. (Phil made his first bones as Kenrick’s boss.) In conclusion, I regret not at all choosing to cover this game. It was fun and you know I had more while writing about Wims’ statement that he transferred last year from North because of its’ “all-boys situation.” Guess what, ladies. Brandyn is currently available. Well, at least he was last night. I’m writing this report Tuesday morning. He might be taken by now (smile).

JAN. 25
CATHOLIC RED
Ryan 64, La Salle 51
  Let’s start even before the beginning. The teams are lining up and ref Gary Duda, head of the three-man crew, is standing at midcourt. It’s very quiet and it’s not hard to hear a voice from the very top of the stands opposite the benches. “Yo, Gary! We shoulda had dis cwew Fwiday night!” Guess who it was. Yup, the Puckster. On hand to film the contest for Norf Catlic. (He was referring to North’s 70-62 loss to Roman.)  Without turning around, Gary, who first got to know the nuttiness that is Puck since his VERY quality playing days at Malvern two decades ago, responds while laughing, “Behave yourself.” Puck then babbles some more and Gary, while pretending to cover one ear, says, “I can’t hear you.” OK, now let’s go back even before that. While driving along Cheltenham Ave., I noticed the Puckster walking toward La Salle on the other side of the street. Luckily, no cars were coming from behind, so I stopped in the middle and he hustled/bustled over and got in the car. On the passenger seat were my clipboard, a folder with numerous – and I do mean numerous -- phone numbers (I always keep it with me on work days) and my wallet. As Puck piled/barged in and plopped down, as only he can do, I picked up the stuff and stacked it on top of him and his gym bag (the video camera was inside) while saying, “Just keep this stuff here.” As he turned to fumble with the seat belt, I plucked the wallet off the top of the pile, so it wouldn’t fall off. So he turns back around, notices that only the clipboard and folder are on top of his bag and says, “Yo, somebody steal you wallet.” I laughed the rest of the way to La Salle. After saying, of course, “It was ME, goofball! We’re the only two people in here!” If the game had been better, I would have started with some of those details. It wasn’t horrible, but Ryan took early command (11-2 lead) and maintained it pretty much throughout. DN ink went to sr. PG Rus Slawter, who has decided to play basketball in college even though he passed for 3,300-plus yards in three years as the Raiders’ QB starter. Going 0-10 in ’08 and 8-24 total soured him enough to bid football adieu and he’s listening to basketball come-ons from Gwynedd-Mercy, Chestnut Hill and Rosemont. Now that the grid thing is out of his system, he’s devoting all free time to polishing his ballhandling skills and I’m confident he’ll be quite productive on the college level thanks to talent and brass. In Friday’s loss to SJ Prep, the Raiders shot 9-for-32 (ouch). Today they were 12-for-15 at halftime and finished 23-for-33. Quite a difference, eh? Early, they got some of their patented backdoor layups and other open shots and the early success certainly snowballed. Slawter finished with 15 points (6-for-7 floor, two treys), two steals and four apiece of assists and rebounds. Sr. WG Anthony “Les” Keiter, who also handles the point on occasion, rattled home 17 points. The bench brigade provided major help. Jr. G Anthony Magallanes, the sixth man (and nephew of former Judge star RB Jerry Magallanes; in attendance today, he’s now a prominent college FB head ref), added 12 points and three assists while sr. PF-C Tom Sottnick, the seventh man, led his squad in rebounding by claiming five in maybe six minutes of action. No wonder his new nickname is Mr. Rebound! (smile) The starter in that spot, sr. Jerry “Yes, It’s Jerry With a J, Not a G” Smith, had nine points, four boards and two assists. La Salle received 15 points (three treys) from sr. WG Tom Cooney and 14 from a guy, sr. Todd Stokley, who does pretty much the same things but is a shade more athletic (while Cooney is more of a standstill sniper). Jr. Troy Hockaday, a guard who must do some frontcourt things out of necessity, had seven rebounds. No other Explorer had more than two! And only two guys had that many! Phew! Soph PG Eddie Joyner-Mitchell dealt three assists. When Pucklehead and I walked in, the second half of the alumni game was just beginning. It was great to see so many guys I’d covered through the years, um, decades, going all the way back to ’73 co-franchise Lou Canelli (that was for a suburban newspaper chain), who has organized other alumni games to benefit worthy causes. I know I’m going to forget some guys, but here are some names of participants listed merely in the order they pop into my head: Chip Greenberg, Dennis Stanton, Ernie Koschineg, Joe Meade, Joe Sobocinski, Colin Fitzgerald, Matt McGurkin, Brian Hogan, Jack Horgan, Gabe Marabella, Nick Shattuck, Mike Morsell, Kevin Burke, Emmett McGowan . . . if assistant Bill Donohoe has a complete list of players, I’ll gladly post the names of the rest. Thanks! One last Puck tidbit. When we walked into the gym and looked around, Puck kept saying, "Yo, whehe Cwis O'Bwien? How come Cwis not heah?" Chris O'Brien, an '81 La Salle grad who later played at Drexel, was one of Puck's all-time favorites. He once had this legendary comment about Puck, referring to summer league activity. "Thanks to Tom, I was the leading assist guy in games I didn't even play in." We used to say Puck would give Chris assists merely for breathing on the ball (smile).
Here's a list from Bill Donohoe Jr. of all people who were on hand, to play and/or attend the reception . . .

JAN. 23
CATHOLIC RED
Roman 70, N. Catholic 62
  Might be time to purchase and distribute another batch of T-shirts, folks. Yes, in reference to Roman basketball, this is still very much Wayns’ World. But one could very much make the case that it’s also Rahk’s Realm and that point was driven home with authority tonight. Showing his usual assortment of jumpers and drives and snappy passes and giving off his usual I’m-the-MAN persona (but in a good way), Wayns totaled 19 points and five assists. But since the duo totaled 50 points, yes, that means jr. WG Rakeem “Rahk” Brookins rang up 31 and did so quite impressively. At just 5-10, Brookins is hardly the size of classic college WGs. But schools such as Drexel and Delaware are all over him already and at that level of D-I, you have to believe his mix of skills and gonads would allow him to not only succeed, but thrive. And who knows? Deep inside maybe there’s a PG, though we’ll see about that down the line. Brookins shot 11-for-21 from the floor (2-for-5 on treys) and 7-for-9 at the line. This kid's form and lift and concentration on jumpers are so special, when he misses, as I wrote for the DN, the spectators are prone to turn to each other and ask, "Geez, what happened there?" Brookins, in a rat-a-tat fashion, put Roman’s first six boards onto the board. He was just getting started, of course. He saved his best moments for the stretch, though. He jammed 11 into the fourth quarter, with a trey and two conventional three-point plays mixed in. His best moment decided the game. With 1:25, jr. F Bob Makor hit the front end of a one-and-one to move North within 63-62. The Falcons got the ball back and had the chance to go ahead. But a trio of shots on one possession failed and Wayns grabbed the rebound. I head my down briefly to write down the missed shots, but I could hear the oohs and aahs as ‘Lik moved upcourt. Sidekick Amauro said later he’d bobbed and weaved around/between various defenders. Anyway, Wayns penetrated and then kicked it to Brookins along the right wing. Rahk was in front of the arc, slightly, and in front of him, largely, came the flying 6-9 soph Rakeem Christmas. At least twice earlier, Xmas had appeared seemingly out of nowhere to punch Brookins’ offerings. But this time only the net was gotten. Splash! Christmas smacked into Brookins and backward and down he went. From a sitting position, literally inches from the stands, Brookins roared in delight while semi-flexing. Moments later, as he prepared to shoot the free throw, he looked at some Roman fans and pounded his heart-area with his right fist. Yes, he’s a warrior. Swish again. That made it 66-62. At the other end, jr. WG Jaleel Mack could not connect on a trey. Wayns rebounded and fired to a leaking frosh F Andre Horne for a layup and a 68-62 lead at 19.0. That was it. When people asked beforehand what I thought might happen, the response was, “Well, if North IS going to beat them, you’d think it would be here, right?” North’s Pit was packed and a closed-circuit broadcast was even fed into the cafeteria, though rumor has it not many people wound up having to go in there. Roman gained early control and the game had this look: North will hang around and hang around, but never quite be able to make enough of a dent. Then it happened. With 4:37 left in the half, Mack drew an offensive foul on Wayns and both tumbled to the floor. As Wayns quickly tried to pop up and get away from the scene, he pushed Mack in the face and was issued a tech. No one seemed to think that Wayns had MEANT to show Mack disrespect. Only that he thought he could use some part of Mack’s body to brace himself while getting up, as guys tend to do, and just as he reached for maybe an arm, Mack moved and that became his face? Who knows? Just speculating. Whatever, it didn’t LOOK good and George Geiss called a tech, which meant Wayns incurred two fouls in the same moment. He picked up his third just 41 seconds later and sat down until halftime. North trailed, 32-21. It HAD to make headway, and did. Roman’s lead at halftime was only 33-31. The Falcons hung tough throughout the second half and even went ahead, briefly. Jr. F Kevin Regan, as has become a habit, did little things in big ways. He had 10 rebounds and five assists. Sr. C Koron Reed, who had to sit down late from time to time with left-shoulder miseries, had seven boards and two blocks. He still needs to find ways to FINISH, though. Horne had 11 points, five boards and three steals. For North, Christmas had nine points, eight rebounds and eight blocks. He didn’t get enough touches, but Reed is a serious leaper so entry passes were difficult. Jr. PG Woody Redding had 11 points, seven assists and even seven boards in a nice overall outing. Mack hit three treys en route to 11 points. The best Falcon came off the bench, though. Jr. F Josh Stevens again and again mixed hustle with sense, not to mention in-the-paint heart. He had 14 points, five rebounds and two steals. Thanks to the North folks for allowing me to find a quiet place to get some work done before the game (Bodine story for paper; pics for website). After that I made a quick trip to the McDonald’s across the street. What a circus! The computers shut down momentarily and the workers were having major difficulty keeping the orders straight. My food was delivered right before that happened, so while wolfing down the usual No. 2, no onions, I sat off to the side and enjoyed the show. The number of F-bombs, in English and Spanish, approached HBO levels (ha ha).

JAN. 23
PUBLIC D
Bodine 58, Robeson 44
  If the PIAA somehow establishes a Roughly 6-Foot and Under League, Robeson would be a strong contender for state honors. But the severely undersized Huskies (bad nickname; no one is even remotely husky, either – smile) were no match for a team that had taller players in pretty much every position. Wickedly poor shooting (16-for-68) didn’t help. DN ink could have gone to several guys, but the decision was made to highlight sr. WG Donte Greene, who routinely earns mostly B’s in the classroom and is in his THIRD season of being the captain. Not bad, eh? The gym inside Northern Liberties RC is inCREDDDDDibly loud. At times, it’s difficult to even hear the referees’ whistles. Greene, a lefty, says he loves the noise and how much it hypes him, but somehow he’s able to play under control and provide a calming influence. He shot 6-for-10 for 12 points, grabbed seven rebounds, dished six assists and made three steals. Bodine’s most intriguing prospect is 6-8 jr. Erik Raleigh, another lefty. His first few shots were step-out jumpers and down the road, for this team to go anywhere (which will be very hard in AA), he’s going to have to take up residence on the blocks. But it’s nice to see the athleticism and the variety and he’s one to watch. Where? Not sure. Raleigh attends one of district’s new schools, Constitution, and that place wants to have a varsity next season. Raleigh had 16 points, 10 rebounds and five blocks. Sr. SF Lamar Gary added 14 points, nine boards and three apiece of assists and steals. Of all the Ambassadors, he shows the most spit and grit and I could picture him playing for a back-in-the-day Franklin or Dobbins squad. Sr. PG Pendarvis Williams is interesting because he’s tall and wiry with arms and legs that go on for days. His shooting was off for much of the day, but he got it going a little down the stretch with the help of some slinky drives. He also claimed 11 boards. Sr. WG-SF Tarran Prince added seven boards and three steals. Robeson sr. PG Jay Harris, though quite small (he HAS gotten stronger) is the very definition of big-hearted warrior. What a treat it is to watch him play. He’s a buzz-saw, but somehow controlled, and he’s going to make some college coach very happy. Early, the Ambassadors made the big mistake of leaving him open and he drained four treys. He wound up with 21 points in addition to eight rebounds, two assists and four steals. Sr. SF Dom Owens, who’ll be a WG in college, just couldn’t get going. He kept making tough baseline moves only to see the ball fall off the rim. He did snag 10 boards. Jr. WG Xavier Brown also experienced major shooting difficulties. Bodine has roughly 25 cheerleaders. When I went to take a picture (“Jethro” doesn’t have football; those who want to play do so for Mastbaum), the coach said the principal does not allow the girls to be group-photographed. Sorry, ladies. I did take a pic of a halftime routine. Robeson’s cheerleaders appeared along the way, but never took off their coats. They stood in a corner and yelled and screamed like crazy, though.

JAN. 22
PUBLIC A
Univ. City 69, Kensington 61
  It took a long time for things to heat up. No. 1, UC’s gym was cold. No. 2, since the Pub honchos now bracket teams in divisions by enrollment instead of geography, the schedule features a lot of games where the players are mostly strangers to each other. Speaking of strangers, this tilt had basically no players who prefer to line up close to the basket. Yet another byproduct of the watered-down Pub. Almost everyone’s a guard or small forward and no one wants to, or even can, play with his back to the basket. Oh, well. There was still some decent entertainment, though a game of maybe three-on-three would have been even better (smile). DN ink went to sr. WG Kevin Garris, whose pop, Tyrone, was a pretty good guard for William Penn in 1990 and then got even better after hitting the JC trail. Tyrone wound up becoming a first-magnitude star at New Orleans and had the Privateers in the Top 20, or at least close to it, in his senior season of 1996. Until I looked it up in our database for the DN story, I’d forgotten one of the reasons Tyrone was overlooked at Penn. With four games left in that season, there was a pretty ugly incident after a game with UC. The principal and School District terminated the Lions’ season and made them forfeit the last four games. (I hadn’t forgotten the incident and aftermath; just that it happened during Tyrone’s playing career.) Anyway, Kevin is not yet a Tyrone-type talent, but he has late-bloomer possibilities, especially since he currently, ahem, packs only 140 pounds on a 6-1 frame. Though he hit two treys, he’s more of a mid-range, take-it-to-the-hole guy and he finished with 23 points, seven rebounds, two assists and four steals. The other main Jaguars are sr. CG Marcus Holland, an aggressive lefty with windup-toy ways (and some strength), sr. SF Brian Coleman (really a guard, though) and small jr. PG Brandon Baynes. Holland had 14 points, four assists and four steals. Take this guy to the playground and make him go one-on-one against a succession of challengers. It says here he beats most of them. Coleman boasted 19 points and four steals. Baynes posted 13 points and six steals. Only four guys scored. The beefy Christian Maynard, a jr., did grab five boards. The most impressive player on the floor was Kensington sr. WG prospect Henry “007” Bond. He has serious hops and a SF slant, for the moment. Coach Joe Egenolf said Bloomsburg is coming to check him out. Others should, too. He shows good jump-shooting form and the ability to trickily move through traffic. He went for 25 points and claimed 15 boards. His most impressive play came on a break. As he neared the basket, there was maybe a CHANCE to go over a defender. Instead, he pulled up at about 8 feet and swished a feathery jumper. Niiiiiiiiice! Another time, on the offensive glass, he soared over a group of guys and almost wolfed down a follow dunk. Niiiiiiiiiice! Sr. SF Theo West totaled 16 points, 10 boards and three blocks. He’s also worthy of state-school interest. Among the others: Jr. Kyle Richardson grabbed seven boards while sr. Victor Wardrope made four assists. Kensington wound up being very sloppy with the ball throughout the game, allowing UC to rack up 22 steals. (The Kenzos, by contrast, had just six.) A very quick six-point flurry, sparked mostly by Coleman’s defense, allowed UC to raise the lead to 13 with 2:03 left. Ballgame.

JAN. 20
PUBLIC D
Math, Civics and Sciences 72, Boys’ Latin 61
  A team with quality seniors and more strength is supposed to defeat a team that includes only freshmen and sophomores (because that’s only what the school has, so far). Don’t think for a moment, though, that the Mighty Elephants trampled their way to victory. This road win, collected at Shepard (nee Haddington) RC, just a few blocks from Wilt Chamberlain’s childhood home at 401 N. Salford Street (near 60th and Callowhill), was earned in every possible way. Did things ever get REALLY tight near the end? Nah, MC&S kept the Warriors at arm’s length. But another trey here and a good stop there, and this could have become a stretch-run classic. DN ink went to sr. CG Zaahir Smith, who sounds hopeful of attending Delaware State and is the brother of ex-FLC & Cal State-Fullerton PG Zakee Smith, a second team DN All-City honoree in ’98. Zaahir is put together better than Zakee was, and shows the same competitive spirit. Though he can hit treys, today he was more effective on smart stop-and-pops and soaring drives to the hole. He had 20 points, four assists and six rebounds; just last Thursday he surpassed 1,000 for his career. The other ME headliner is sr. WG-SF Jose Ortiz, who last year incurred a shredded left knee. “Hose” still wears a brace, and appeared to be limping evvvvvvver so slightly, but the next play he takes off will be the first. He’s one of those born-scorer types with a true sense of when to challenge guys and when to kill them softly with jumpers or even partial set shots. Sr. PG Ramone Williams ran the ballclub in sensible fashion and made across-the-board contributions – 10 points, three assists, four steals and 10, yes, 10, rebounds. Though sr. C Jeffrey Lord posted decent numbers (16 points, 14 rebounds, five blocks), he was upstaged by 6-6 soph Isaiah Gans, who merely exploded for 21, 20 and four. Like all of his teammates, Gans experienced some early struggles and that was entirely understandable considering the sophs vs. seniors subplot. But down the stretch, he was showing manchild tendencies thanks to quickness off his feet and a go-forward mentality. His shot is weird, though. Serious moonballs. His arc is 50 percent more than “normal.” He went just 3-for-10 at the line. Frosh SF Zachariyah Ruffin had 11 points and nine rebounds. Soph PF Kwalil Coleman-Jones had six boards. The Warriors’ floor leader is frosh Maurice Watson, son of the same-named head coach. He looks much younger facially, and even body-wise, but there’s much to like about his game. He boasts the effective pitter-patter, back-in, back-out dribble thing and can create space both for himself, and to make passes. He was a shade overmatched early, honestly, but was showing swagger by the fourth quarter. Final numbers: 14 points, three apiece of assists and steals. The officiating was shaky, at best, but the BL guys need to cut back on their complaining. Almost every call, literally, was met with chirping by one or more players. You guys are just getting started. Nip that rep in the bud now. When I arrived at the rec about 50 minutes beforehand, a bunch of neighborhood guys were running fullcourt in spicy fashion. Later, I noticed a familiar face along the sideline – Nurideen Lindsey. All kinds of stories have been circulating about him and this much is fact: he hasn’t played anywhere this season after previously starring at Overbrook. We spoke briefly. He said he’s OK and will be able to graduate before following through on his commitment to La Salle. He said he was enrolled before at Bartram’s annex and is still hoping to play for Bartram this season. This young man is ABUNDANTLY talented. Here’s hoping he’s able to get back on track

JAN. 19
CATHOLIC LEAGUE
W. Catholic 62, Dougherty 36
  Kids DON’T say the darndest things. Go to Google and type in Haleem “P-Nut” Hayward and see how many hits you get. I came up with 136. Guess what? The nickname is spelled wrong! I feel like hittin’ him on the head with a walnut!! Or even a coconut (smile). Hayward has been a two-sport factor for a good while now and he never bothered to tell us that his nickname isn’t spelled that way. (Just like FB-BB star Rob Hollomon never spoke up about his last name being misspelled as “Holloman.” During FB season, Rob’s sophomore brother, Brandon, who’s now a basketball starter, finally said something to Huck.) Hayward got DN ink tonight and as we finished the interview, I said to him casually, “So, have we been spelling your nickname right all along?” And he said, “No. Actually it’s ‘P-e-a-n-u-t.’ " Grrrrrrrrrr . . . This note goes to ANYONE whose name/nickname is misspelled on this website: Let us know! We want this stuff to be correct! My email is silaryt@phillynews.com. My voicemail is 215-854-5814. Speak up, troops! Peanut, an energetic small forward with great respect for his teammates and how things should be done, finished with 10 points, eight rebounds, six assists, five steals and one amended spelling of his nickname. He made game-long contributions in all areas and, as he said, finally feels as though he’s completely back on the basketball beam after the physical/emotional drains of FB season. This was a memorable game for goofy reasons. Dougherty reached intermission with NO two-point goals, having collected its 19 points on five treys (with four by jr. WG Brandyn Wims, a tricky lefty with multiple skills) and four free throws. The score was 27-19. With 6:41 left in the third quarter, the Cardinals finally posted a regular FG as jr. F Brandon Brown passed to soph G Christian Gibbs for an uncontested layup to cut the deficit to four, at 27-23. Jr. G Dawan Earle then added another regular field goal and it was 27-25. Just when the onlookers allowed themselves to think, “This could turn into a goodie,” Dougherty fell into a gigantic abyss. NO kinds of shots were succeeding and West was in takin’-candy-from-a-baby mode. Right before the third-quarter buzzer, Peanut accepted a pass from R. Hollomon (14 points, three assists, four steals) and drained a right-corner trey, making it 46-30. Ballgame. Might as well have been, anyway. Wims had to settle for only the 14 points he owned at halftime. He went 0-for-6 thereafter as the Burrs did a good job of containing him with R. Hollomon, and others in switch-to-him or double-him manners. No one else scored more than seven points for the Redbirds. Other leaders for West were soph PG Aquil Younger (14 points, three apiece of assists, steals and rebounds) and 6-7 sr. C Ade “London” Barek (eight points, seven boards, six blocks, two apiece of assists/steals). He’s still raw, but there is leaping ability and improving timing. He still veers off course too easily, especially in reaction to shaky calls, and he’s unsuccessful at the line because his left hand fights the right as he’s releasing the ball. Also, the backboard is your friend, Ade. Use it! (smile) Brown posted five rebounds and four blocks for CD. Gibbs managed seven boards. Among the witnesses: McDevitt players Mike Palmero and Reggie Charles. Lancer coach Jack Rutter was also in attendance. He came over to congratulate Huck on his engagement to the wonderful Shannon Connor and drew a laugh when he said, “Hey, Huck, I hear Shannon is Puck’s sister.” Not quiiiiiiite. Know what, though? Puck has four, maybe even five sisters (I forget for sure; he’s the oldest), and rumor has it they’re all very pretty. I’ve known the Puckster for 32 years and have never met his sisters or parents. Have talked with some on the phone, though. Don’t worry. They’re all non-Puckish (smile).

JAN. 16
CATHOLIC RED
Roman 82, Bonner 43
  Let's see. Twenty-four goes over five on one side of the equation and "x" goes over 32 on the other. Multiply 32 times 24 and divide by 5 and . . . ch-ch-ch-ching. Roman was on a 153-point pace for a full ballgame! With 2 1/2 minutes left in the first quarter, the score was 9-9. With 5 1/2 left in the second quarter, it was 33-14. How'd it happen? How DIDN'T it happen? The Cahillites played great defense and then FLEW upcourt and then sr. PG Maalik Wayns (Villanova) and jr. WG Rakeem Brookins (similarly talented, though a different kind of player) wreaked havoc with hard drives or sweet jumpers. I don't have other stats because Mr. Goofball, a k a Thomas "Hockey Puck" McKenna, insisted Roman would keep rebounds, assists, steals, etc. He added, referring to the guy who keeps the scorebook, "Dan Hoban weally good. He wight down evweeding." So, I went over afterward and Dan said, "I keep the shooting, but only turnovers aside from that." How many times do I have to let Puck ruin my life?? Ha, ha, ha. Anyway, Brookins wound up pouring in 28 points and Wayns "settled" for 24. I also kept the shooting. Brookins, whose swishes make a certain sound all their own, went 12-for-19 and 4-for-8 on treys. He made no foul-line visits. Wayns went 8-for-17 (no successful treys) and 8-for-8. Even though it cuts down opportunities for rebounding pics, I love it when guys make all of their free throws. It shows respect for the game, and for teammates. After all, they're FREE! Take 'em for all their worth. Jr. skywalker Koron Reed added 13 points and frosh Andre "He's a Freshman!" Horne had 11. Last year the Roman kids chanted the same thing for Aaron Brown. He's now at Penn Wood. Never know in today's transfer-crazy high school world. The interesting part was wondering whether Roman would keep finding ways to double up the score on the Friars. Just when I said, "OK, that has happened for the last time," they'd go on another run and do it again. A lefthanded layup by Wayns made it 76-38 with 4:44 left. He then drove hard for another layup and subs mostly finished from there. I sat on the stage with the nutty Roman students and they went crazy when sr. PF-C Brandon Moultrie entered the game. He missed his only shot, but did notch an assist with a nice pass to soph Abdul King. The chants were OK -- nothing sensational -- but one of the kids did have a classic observation and follow-up bust late in the action. Noticing a Bonner sub with an unusual haircut, he blurted out, "That kid looks like a Russian gymnast." He then hollered, making up the name just as I'll be guessing on the spelling, "Look, it's Schwam Pedichenko!" Everybody nearby was lovin' it. The only Friar who enjoyed anything close to a satisfying performance was sr. WG Bill Scanlan, who shot 7-for-11 and 3-for-5 on treys for 17 points. The frontcourt guys got into decent spots, but had major trouble finishing, mostly due to Reed's intimidating presence. Hartford coach Dan Leibovitz and assistant Chris Gerlufsen were among those in attendance. The Episcopal product has done pretty well with Philly guys since leaving Temple to take over that program. Plenty more where they came from, Dan, as you well know. Great seeing you!

JAN. 15
PUBLIC C
Straw. Mansion 73, Freire 67
  Mansion coach Gerald Hendricks delivered the news no more than 5 seconds after I walked into the gym. There’d been a fight during the school day and he’d have only six players in uniform. Ouch! He didn’t say which guys would be missing at that point, but simple logic would indicate at least some would be starters or even stars. As it turned out, eight Knights were able to dress and three were starters – sr. CG Marcus Grimes, jr. WG-SF Devonte’ “DJ” Newbill and sr. PF-C Lawrence Elliott. With help from their friends, they proved to be more than enough. Grimes earned DN ink and during the interview he rocked back and forth, left foot to right foot, right foot to left foot, maybe, oh, 1,000 times! He was making me dizzy! (ha ha) Luckily, he showed that same energy during the game and really turned in a wonderful performance. Grimes was more dominant during the first half, when Mansion mostly ran plays out of a halfcourt offense. There was a shade more freelancing thereafter, and the smooth, yet determined Newbill showed his stuff more often. They combined for 50 points, with Grimes posting just two more (26 to 24). I loved how both guys respected the value of the free points that can obtained at the foul line. Marcus went 12-for-13 at the stripe (made last 11) while Newbill nailed all six of his attempts. Elliott was also perfect, albeit on only three attempts. Grimes also had three assists, two steals and eight rebounds while Newbill’s eerily similar numbers extended beyond the points to two assists, three steals and nine boards. Elliott is never an eye-popping-numbers kind of guy; that’s not his role. But he added nine points and six boards and, best of all for him, he was able to bask in the glow of making THE play of the game. With the score tied at 62-62, he embarked on a drive right toward Freire jr. F-C Octavious Booker. Elliott drew a foul while converting the layup and then nailed his free throw for a three-point lead. VERY nice. Frosh WG Khyree Wooten, already a crafty lefty, had nine points (just 3-for-8 at line, though). Jr. Rasheed Harris (five assists) and soph Cedrick “Bird Legs” Powell mostly shared the point. Tarique Wilson and Kiari Saulbury also saw time in this most satisfying win, considering the circumstances. The day’s best development was seeing how much Booker has progressed. As a frosh and sophomore, though he produced, he had the look of someone who might have peaked, physically. I feared maybe he’d never get much better. Happy to say I was wrong! He has redefined his body, losing the baby fat and toning up, and now he’s much more athletic. He made one move, in particular (along the left baseline, curl up for reverse layup), that never would have been possible in his former body and, generally, he was just more springy while showing he’d retained his toughness. Booker finished with 27 points and 14 rebounds and even nailed both treys he attempted. Beautiful! The Dragons were kind of a mish-mash beyond that. First-year coach Leon Shamsid-deen stepped aside last weekend (the departure was said to be mutual; if Brother Leon would like to dispute that he knows my number) and the team is now being steered by Bruce Reavis AND Floyd Butler. Today, at least, Reavis took the lead as Butler stayed further down the bench. Ex-coach Lawrence Threadgill, also the AD, was right behind the bench. Made for a weird situation. Freire used 10 guys by halftime. Only soph WG Jabril Trawick (good form/lift on his J) scored more than 10 points (11) while only slightly beefy sr. Ladreese Grimes (wonder if he's related to '05 Freire strongman Lavine Grimes?) claimed more than four rebounds (seven). I’m not sure if the Dragons always mix and match like this. Maybe it’s a way for Reavis/Butler to keep guys happy in the aftermath of the recent turmoil. Among the legends in attendance: Horace Owens, Ashley Howard, Ron Haigler (ex-Penn all-timer; long-time teacher at Mansion), Ellis Gindraw (Mansion product now a Cheyney assistant), Littel Vaughn, refs Tommy McClain and Kevin “Cat” Compton, Mansion AD Charles “Mack Daddy” Sumter, Dwayne Davis, Devon White, Jarrod “G” Denard and DN statman Big Steve Reid (also a Mansion product). If I didn’t mention your name, it’s still mid-January. More chances to come (smile).

JAN. 14
CATHOLIC RED
Roman 58, SJ Prep 45
  What time does the game start? Oh, it's over? Even Roman fans no doubt left the gym feeling a little unsatisfied. Why? Well, this game never quite had "the feel." Roman jumped to an 8-2 lead and then went on to post 22 of the first 29 points. The Prep had some good moments, no doubt, but never was able to make the Cahillites feel fully uncomfortable and there was never that there-could-be-a-great-finish aura. Oh, well. Maybe Tuesday night when the teams play again at Phila. University. Though Roman's chief attractions are sr. PG Maalik Wayns (Villanova) and jr. WG Rakeem Brookins, a case could be made that today's best performance was turned in by jr. F Kevin Regan, who's also the FB quarterback. The lefty scored 12 points, shooting 4-for-5 (one trey) and 3-for-4. He also totaled five rebounds and two assists; the feeds came in the fourth quarter as Roman kept the Prep at bay, 15-12. His major contributions were on defense, though. Coach Chris McNesby said he started Regan on sr. F-C Pete Buzby not so much because he's a major scoring threat, but because he makes things work with his perception (PG in disguise, basically). Pete finished with just two points and took no shots through the first two quarters. With 5:50 left in the third quarter, McNesby called time after jr. WG Joe Nardi hit a pair of treys to draw Prep within 32-24. Chris said Kevin came into the huddle, tapped his chest and said, "He's my man!" The change in defensive assignments thus was made and Nardi was not part of the equation thereafter; he did hit a late trey during the final minute, a k a garbage time. Anyway, Regan turned in a very nice overall effort and it did not go unnoticed. Wayns finished with 17 points, four rebounds, three assists (all in first half) and three steals (also in first half -- weird). Brookins scored 14 points, but posted more than one stat only in the assist category (two -- weird). Skywalking sr. C Koron Reed helped to create the early rush with five quick points, then went for 13 total along with seven boards. This club just really comes AFTER you. Nardi had 17 points while going 5-for-8 on treys. Sr. F Mike Leithead, the sixth man today, shot 5-for-8 en route to 11 points. The Hawks notched just four offensive rebounds for the game and scored NO field goals on follows. There was a moment of silence beforehand for Dick Trotter, a major Roman benefactor and sports fan who passed away recently. It was nice of the Prep people to show such respect for a man associated with a rival. RIP, Mr. Trotter. Here's a link to the obit on philly.com. Long-time attendees of Roman games will undoubtedly recognize Mr. Trotter, even if they didn't know his name.

JAN. 13
PUBLIC C
Del-Val 61 (really 62), Franklin 58
  DV sr. WG-SF Kevin Mack will be telling the story for years. How he was gypped out of one point and how that mistake almost forced his team to go into overtime in this game that wasn’t too great for a long time, but got very interesting in the fourth quarter. Here we go: DV sr. WG-SF Alex Gaddy, an abundantly talented guy who received DN ink, fired a long inbound pass to Mack, who was fouled as he went up for a layup. Mack made the first, missed the second, but the point never went onto the board. DV’s coaches and players and fans were squawking as it happened and even more so after Gaddy scored a bucket at 43.4 on a pass from sr. WG Dain “DJ” Suber, making it 60-56 in reality but only 59-56 on the board. If I knew the refs a little better, I would have spoken up. After a lengthy discussion, the score stayed at 59-56. Franklin’s possession featured a missed trey by jr. WG Sean Penn and a successful follow layup by sr. PG Jeffery Giddings at 13.6. Mack was fouled immediately and missed the one-and-one, but the rebound came out to DV and Suber wound up passing to Gaddy for a basket to make it 61-58 (ugh; it was really 62-58). The Electrons rushed upcourt and Giddings could only hit the heel of the rim on a desperation trey. OT was averted. DV got the W. Gaddy, a transfer from King, finished with 24 points and tallied 16 in the fourth quarter. This was my second look at him this season and he is just SO impressive. No idea why he’s still a sub, but I guess it has something to do with the fact that the other guys are holdovers and he’s still something of an outsider. The 6-2 Gaddy is strong with excellent body control and a big-time killer instinct. Shortly into the fourth quarter, after being removed late in the third and momentarily sulking, he turned in one of the all-time sequences – drive for a bucket, quick interception and layup for two more, another quick interception with a pass to Mack for two more. No way it took 10 seconds. Lightning fast! DV’s deficit went from 11 to five and the tone was set for the quarter. Gaddy 11-for-15 from the floor and had 16 of his points in a 26-14 fourth quarter. He ended the day with three assists and five apiece of steals and rebounds. Mack, not flashy but solid, had 17 points, five boards, three assists and four steals. He also showed a high-rev motor in the fourth quarter. Suber added five steals. Jr. WG-SF Rysheen Dorn grabbed six rebounds. Jr. PG Khalil Meadows dealt five assists before fouling out with 5:48 remaining. Until its late collapse, Franklin was takin’ it to the Warriors with the necessary zest being shown primarily by Giddings (20, four assists, three steals) and sr. WG Kenny Bey-Brown, a lefty (18, three assists). Sr. F Melvin Dixon mostly went unnoticed. Somehow, he didn’t do much positive OR negative. It was strange because he’s usually a front-and-center guy. Sr. F-C Donnell “BooBoo” Jones, of borderline FB fame (smile), snagged 10 rebounds. Had a nice talk beforehand with FB coach/AD Ken Geiser about TE-LB Jamel “Redz” Haggins. Kenny said Redz now ranks No. 1 in the senior class and is receiving persistent attention from several I-A and I-AA schools. Didn’t write this down, but I think he said Villanova recently has been at Franklin twice in pursuit of Redz. Tremendous! At one point, during a free throw, it was amusing to watch a possible rebounder watch a girl walk along the baseline and keep watching and keep watching. He was still watching as the free throw missed and hit off the rim. Luckily for him, the ball went to the opposite side and a teammate rebounded. How embarrassing would THAT have been? (ha ha). Considering how small Franklin is these days, enrollment-wise, there was a decent crowd on hand.

JAN. 12
NON-LEAGUE
Esperanza 85, Mastery North 56
  High school football has been over for a month now, but today I had to call an audible. The original plan was Bonner-Ryan at night for a story and maybe something in the afternoon just to watch and take pics; preferably two teams that would get some one-and-done attention. But as the morning rolled on, word came about a FB signing story that needed to be done (Malvern WR Joe Price is going to Villanova) and I wasn’t sure when he'd be available to talk on a school day (not until early evening, as it turned out). Plus, some information had to be gathered, and a phone interview conducted, for a special story that will run in Thursday’s paper. The potential problem was solved when I realized that Esperanza-MN was scheduled for the afternoon. Non-league games are usually ignored for story purposes on days when important league tilts are taking place (there were six CLs tonight), but if ever there was justification for veering off course . . . Do yourself a favor. If you’re free some Tuesday or Thursday afternoon and notice that Esperanza is playing another Public C lesser light, please go take a look at Andy Bousono. You’ll cherish the experience. Last week he became, by far, the shortest and lightest kid in city history – he says he’s 5-4, 135 pounds – to reach 1,000 career points during a blistering loss to Imhotep. I first saw Andy and fellow munchkin (smile) Zakee Moody, also now a senior, in the 2005-06 school year, when they were maybe 4-10 and 4-9 and probably (definitely?) the smallest backcourt in America. They agreed to my nutty request to pose with a gigantic kid from Lamberton and otherwise came off as personable kids with a love for the game. Today I took their picture again and commented that Andy appeared to be a slight bit taller. Zakee said with a laugh, “That’s because his sneakers have bigger soles.” He then added, “We go through this every week. I’m tellin’ ya, I’m bigger.” Unfortunately, Zakee had a rough afternoon. He took an elbow to a spot just above his left eye and blood was oozing out at a pretty fast pace, at least initially. He had to sit down for more than a quarter, then returned to action after getting bandaged up. His step-mom, Kenya, Esperanza’s AD and working the clock/scoreboard, said she was pretty sure Zakee would need stitches much later. As for Andy, well, he was a wind-up toy. Not only did he play hard and smart, he was unfailingly unselfish no matter how often he knew the chances that his snappy passes would be caught were iffy. After going for 29 points (4-for-8 on treys), nine assists (at least five other times, he hit guys on plays that wound up as two-shot fouls), six steals and even five rebounds, Andy enjoyed what he said was a career first: getting to watch the last two minutes because the Toros were so far ahead. He mostly stood during that time frame, encouraging his teammates and enjoying himself to no end. Again, it is so much fun to watch this young man and I give him every possible kudo for becoming such an accomplished player. Coach Terrance Hudson said Andy is receiving interest from two JCs – Manor and Mercer County – and a school in Ohio whose name was escaping him. Wherever he goes, he’ll instantly be the fan favorite and I hope he gets to show his stuff before an appreciative crowd at the Pub all-star games. Moody did manage to dish four assists. The undersized inside guys were able to experience some uncommon fun. Sr. Elias "Eli" Martinez had 18 points and nine rebounds. Frosh Samuel Rodriguez managed 12 points. Jr. David Martinez had 10. Soph Parris Baldwin had eight with seven boards and three assists. Sr. Alfredo Santana hit two late buckets, including a trey, for five points. Oh, did I tell about the latest Only in the Pub experience? This game was listed for MN, located in the former Pickett Middle School, at Wayne and Chelten, in West Germantown, but of courrrrrrrse was moved to Esperanza’s home site, a rec center at D and Ontario. Being my usual anal self, I arrived at MN an hour early and was able to make it to the rec center in plenty of time after a gym teacher at MN said a girls’ game would be taking place there. Next problem: MN has two campuses. The bus never showed up at Pickett, so only five players -- they all attend the Shoemaker campus -- made it to the game for the start. Next problem: When two more kids did show up, one of them was wearing jersey No. 7. That’s illegal, so Esperanza shot two techs when the kid, frosh F Ezekiel Evans, eventually entered the extravaganza (keeping the E theme going – smile). Next problem: MN wore black jerseys with royal blue numbers. It was impossible to keep stats. When these guys were at the other end, I could not tell who was doing what and quickly gave up. When someone scored, I kept my eyes on him until he ran back upcourt and I could finally read the number. Brutal! The best player was a soph WG named William Wingate (the rest of the kids were listed as freshmen). He had 21 points with four treys among them. The lefty barely made it to his tippy-toes on his “jumpers” but did show good athleticism on some drives. A beefy kid named Mark Dawson scored 14 points. Esperanza’s cheerleaders remained on a stage behind one basket throughout the game. When the Toros were shooting free throws, they swayed back and forth like hula dancers. Had to be distracting, right? Um, maybe not. Esperanza shot 12-for-17 at the line while going in that direction. However, one of the misses WAS an airball (smile).

JAN. 11
CATHOLIC BLUE
Kennedy-Kenrick 46, McDevitt 41
  If you want a long, wickedly draining losing streak broken, I’m your man. Yours truly was in attendance on Jan. 17 of 2006 when the Wolverines dumped visiting Carroll, 49-48, to end a 53-game CL skid. The next two games produced a loss and a win and then, yup, another long CL losing streak began. This one reached 42 games – 7, 14 apiece in the ‘07and ’08 seasons, 7 again – before ending today in front of 49 people in Lancerville (not counting those who had to be there). Well, 49 at the start of the game. Yes, I was goofy enough to count them. The Eagles-Giants tilt kept people away in droves. But let’s face it. Since both teams were 0-7 in division play, it wasn’t as if the gym would have been packed no matter the other circumstances. When K-K won that ’06 game, it was experimenting with a bunch of outsiders under a previous coaching regime. Among those guys were Courtney Stanley (later at Roman) and Dwayne Davis (Strawberry Mansion) and even Kasheef Festus (now at Carroll). The attempt failed for several (numerous?) reasons and things were back to normal for the 2006-07 season under former Kenrick player Jack Flanagan – guys almost exclusively (completely? not positive) from the local area. All four of Jack’s assistants are K-K grads from the early 2000s – fraternal twins Dan and Mike Rafferty (or should they be listed as Mike and Dan? smile), Dan Neeld and Ryan Dougherty, a former website writer. What the Wolverines lack in pure talent, they don’t lack in hustle and togetherness. So there was something very fitting about the fact that the six rotation guys contributed almost equally to this emotional win, just K-K's third in the last 99 CL games (wow!). Afterward, the players and coaches scrambled into a classroom around the corner and down the hallway from the gym and Flanagan began talking. His voice soared little by little and soon he was yelling. I felt like peering through the classroom window, but didn’t want to be a possible distraction. Couldn’t help hearing what was going on, though (smile). Jack made a reference to the stories that had been written about K-K in ’07 and ’08 (and beforehand) that credited the guys for their hustle in the midst of brutal defeats. He then noted that this day’s story would be about a WIN. “This is about us! Everybody will be reading about us! In a win! Us!” “Us!” is what the Wolverines chant as they break from timeouts and, by my unofficial count, Jack continued to chant it in the classroom 22 times, with the players and assistants joining in along the way at VERY high volume. It was all very cool. As the euphoria subsided, I moved over toward the doorway and Dan Rafferty was standing nearby. I caught his attention and, when he opened the door, I asked him if they could send out Shemar for an interview whenever it worked best. Kevin soon came out and so did Jack. Both had tears in their eyes as they exchanged an extended hug. In all the years I’ve been doing this, nothing has compared with watching a long-downtrodden team finally break through for a win. It still moves me, big-time . . . Anyway, K-K used a six-man rotation of srs. Shemar, Alex Byrne, jrs. Robbie Griffith and Dave Tornetta and soph Billy Malescio. Griffith is mostly the PG. Miller is the C. The others mix assorted duties. Here are some numbers: Shemar totaled eight points, six rebounds, one assist, two steals and numerous bruises (part of the DN angle). Griffith had eight points and three assists. Miller collected nine points and eight boards. Tornetta mixed seven boards, three assists and two steals. Byrne mixed seven points and five rebounds. Malescio, meanwhile, packed all 12 of his points into a 27-18 fourth quarter. K-K was up, 27-25, with 5:33 left when Miller departed with his fourth foul. Shemar hit Byrne for a bucket and then K-K went into double-high mode, with the idea of wasting clock but also taking available drives. Shemar’s made it 31-25. Malescio then followed with a three-point play and a regular to create a 10-point lead. It was eeeeeeasy from there, but the Wolverines mostly did what had to be done and, presto, the streak was over! For McDevitt, sr. F Courtney Havens-Dobbs likely had his best game of the season with 10 points, nine rebounds and three steals. No one else had more than three boards (ouch). Sr. G Mike Palmero hit three treys en route to 11 points. Soph WG Reggie Charles, used as sixth man, kept making good moves and getting to comfy spots, then had trouble finishing. He scored eight points, but went just 4-for-14. He added three assists. In case you’re wondering why the game wasn’t moved to tomorrow night, this was part of a tripleheader that started with an alumni game . . . At one point, there was solid contact on a play along the sideline opposite the benches. Ref George Geiss at first just awarded possession to K-K, but then pretty quickly changed his call to a foul. McDevitt coach Jack Rutter yelled over, “Who made that call?” Geiss responded, “George did!” Someone in the stands then bellowed over toward George, “It’s not Burger King! You can’t have it both ways!” Ha, ha, ha, ha.

JAN. 9
CATHOLIC BLUE
Neumann-Goretti 63, Carroll 49
  Well, maybe this isn’t a two-horse race. Perhaps the Saints are sigNIFFFicantly better than Carroll. Nah, I don’t really believe that, but a 14-point win says something and for the moment it says to Carroll, “Work needs to be done.” Where to begin? How about the foul line? The Patriots were wickedly bad, at 4-for-14. How about beyond the arc? They were 1-for-11 and the one success came from a sub, jr. G Trevor McNulty, who hardly played (but was a definite spark while he was out there; also three assists). On the good side, at least Carroll did scramble back into contention after letting N-G roll to a 21-6 lead by the very late stages of the first quarter. DN ink went to jr. PG Tyreek Duren, who’s best friends (and a distant relation) with jr. F Daniel Stewart. Duren had 11 points, four assists and seven steals. He particularly enjoyed thieving success by sneaking up beside guys in the post and flicking the ball away. As always, he showed great on-court chemistry with Stewart, especially early. Daniel totaled 16 points, 10 rebounds and two impressive dunks. Sr. C Andre “Scooter” Gillette (Niagara) notched all four of his blocks in the first quarter before being hampered by foul trouble. Wing players Mustafaa Jones (jr.) and Lamin Fulton (soph) continued to provide some loosen-things-up help by hitting two treys apiece. Jr. WG Tony Chennault had a weird night. He dealt five assists through three quarters and had, um, no points until the very end when he hit a free throw. Thereafter, it was as if he thought to himself, “I can’t leave here without points.” Maybe he felt some pressure, knowing that his father, Anthony, our Player of the Year in ’81 for Frankford (thanks for coming over to say hello, Ant), was in attendance. Anyway, Tony kept driving into two, three, four, 10 people (smile). Luckily for him, he received some favorable calls and went to the line four times for two-shot fouls. He finished with 11 points. Chennault’s one-on-one duel was with soph WG Juan’ya Green (15 points, three assists). This night, Juan’ya was the win’ya. Jr. PG DJ Irving had 12 points and three assists. Sr. PF-C Kasheef Festus had eight apiece of points and rebounds. Enjoyed a fun moment before the game. Before the coaches and refs, at midcourt, I made Carroll coach Paul Romanczuk aware that someone he knows very well had been nominated for the Labor Classic. HIM! Ha, ha, ha. The list was emailed to me yesterday by the woman who handles the player selections. Somehow his name wound up on it. Kiddingly, Paul said to N-G coach Carl Arrigale, “Did you do this?!” (Coaches are encouraged to nominate players.) Anyway, Paul is listed with averages of 10 points, nine rebounds. Not bad, but his numbers were better than that during his actual playing career for Carroll. He was even good enough to be a prominent player for Penn.

JAN. 9
CATHOLIC RED
North Catholic 60, SJ Prep 56
  This was almost certainly North’s most important win of the season, the kind that could provide long-range dividends. Why’s that? Well, the Falcons were severely shorthanded and nevertheless persevered. Star 6-9 soph Rakeem Christmas did not play at all after getting ejected from the previous game. Soph F Xavier Harris might as well have stayed home considering he picked up fouls almost as often as he breathed and received very little chance to contribute. Then, with 4:52 left in the third quarter, jr. F Bob Makor turned an ankle and was lost for the rest of the way. An eight-man rotation was now a five-man rotation. The guys on the floor did not have to play with one eye peeled to the scorers’ table, worried about who was ready to check in to replace them. The survivors played as a unit and muffled a squad that largely had frolicked through the first half. The Prep shot 14-for-20 – yes, 14-for-20 – in the initial 16 minutes. But early in the third quarter, it missed three shots on the same possession and I couldn’t help but think, “The lid is on. The fun is over.” In the second half, the Hawks attempted 15 treys. Only two succeeded. That was the difference. DN ink went to jr. WG Mike Terry, who has been playing wonderfully lately. His dad, also named Mike, starred for Franklin Learning Center in the late 1980s and was the kind of player you did NOT want to face. He had an edge. After cutting your heart out, he’d give you another and then cut THAT one out. Junior shows the same traits. Aside from collecting 21 points, two assists and three steals, Terry also chased sniper supreme Joe Nardi (11 points, 4-for-15). Jr. SF Jack O’Neill, taking only sensible shots, went 7-for-12 (two treys) en route to 18 points. He also dealt three assists. Oddly, no one claimed more than four rebounds. The other members of the Final Five were jr. PG Woody Redding, jr. G Jaleel Mack and jr. F Josh Stevens. For Prep, sr. G-F Dan Fitzpatrick finished with 19 points. Srs. Brandon Robinson (nine) and Pete Buzby (six) led in rebounds while sr. PG Pat Stewart (six) and Buzby (five) topped the assists list. Sr. F Mike Leithead scored all of his eight points (and took all of his five shots) in the second quarter. Terry’s left-wing jumper on a pass from Redding made it 54-47 with 1:47 left. North got two GIGANTIC breaks with 25.5 left. Stevens appeared to dribble the ball out of bounds, but the call went North’s way. Then, while inbounding, Stevens appeared to take, oh, about 12 seconds (smile) before calling for a timeout. It was granted. Prep trailed by 12 at the time. When the ball was inbounded, O’Neill was fouled immediately and he strolled down the other end to covert the one-and-one. Redding did likewise a short time later to assure there’d be no late disaster. This was the Prep’s third consecutive CL loss. As I suspected, a quick scan of past TEAM PAGES showed this is a first in Speedy Morris’ eight seasons as the Hawks’ coach.

JAN. 8
PUBLIC D
Palumbo 90, GAMP 63
  That score line should have featured Robeson and Boys’ Latin. But when I went to the rec center at 34th and Haverford, no one was around except two employees and one of them eventually told me that Robeson assistant Tahar Sutton had just stopped in to say that his team would be there tomorrow. (As it turned out, the Friday game would be a non-leaguer with Bartram. THIS game would be back at Robeson. Just two days and one day earlier, I’d been told by two different people that Robeson wasn’t using its own gym any more because it’s so small – the teams have to sit at the END of the court because there’s no room on the side. Duck has told me it’s even smaller than E&S’ old gym. Damn. What is it, a closet?) See ya! Back out to the car. Scrambled through my papers to find the cell phone number for head coach Rob Powlen. It went to voicemail. Called the office to let sports editor Josh Barnett know that we wouldn’t be covering R-BL. He read me the schedule. While that was happening, I eyed DN statman Big Steve Reid walking down 34th Street toward the rec center. Told Josh I’d get back to him when the choice of another game was made so he could switch the photo assignment. Headed back to the rec center. Steve was inside. He was trying to call me. We headed out and talked about which game to cover. I even told Steve HE could make the choice (smile). He said, “Nah, you do it, Ted. Anywhere’s fine with me.” Hmmm. Well, GAMP guard LaRon Byrd is putting up amazing numbers and Palumbo is a first-year Pub member, so there’s always that angle. Plus, GAMP’s Art Kratchman and Palumbo’s Steve Gittleman (formerly of Lincoln) are good guys and always cooperative and GAMP is now playing in a brand new on-campus gym, so I wanted to see that, too. Off to 22nd and Ritner, in South Philly. Called Josh back to let him know of our destination. Arrived at GAMP. Teams were warming up. Steve Gittleman said, “Well, at least you’ll see some history. Byrd needs just three points for their school record. ‘Archie’ is going to stop the game and have a quick presentation.” Game is slightly delayed. The scoreboard doesn’t work. Kratchman has to get one of those small portable boards that sits on the table and complement it with a flip-card scoreboard. As he’s walking past us, he flashes one of those “only in the Pub” looks (smile). Game itself? No contest. Palumbo was nothing special. GAMP was WAY below that. Just being honest, folks. DN ink went to jr. SF Anthony Wallace, who had 22 points, eight rebounds, five assists and two steals. His shooting numbers were 9-for-19 and 4-for-5. Near the end of the interview, I asked him if there’s any history of basketball in his family. Father, uncles, etc. He said, “Yeah, my dad is on your site back in 1974-75.” Name? “Like me. Anthony Wallace.” It hit me a little, but not completely. It came to me on the drive back to the office: Ah, that’s TONY Wallace. He could PLAY. He averaged 20 that season for Bartram and was part of a potent 1-2 punch with another wing player, Rodney Scott. Rodney was a little chunky and lefthanded. Tony was thinner and righthanded, and smooth. Anyway, this generation’s Anthony/Tony Wallace began his high school days at Roman and he said he started for the freshman team in 2006-07. He said he and his mother were dissatisfied with certain elements of Roman and that a decision was made to transfer to Palumbo, which Anthony said is considered a “South Philly version of Central.” Wallace appears to have a bit of playing mean streak. Nothing ever wrong with that, when harnessed correctly. He went hard and showed pretty decent athleticism. The Griffins had their way on the inside, getting three-four shots on some possessions. Jr. PF-C Devin Uqdah used his partial-beef to bag 15 points and 12 boards. Slender soph Maurice Harris knifed his way to eight points, 13 boards. Jr. PG Von Howard had eight and seven assists while jr. WG Mike Sawan sa-wished four treys (and I mean perfectly) en route to 15 points. The 6-foot Byrd was impressive. He handles and distributes well enough to play the point at the next level, but he’s also a snappy jump-shooter, even from Treyball Land, so he has multiple value. He gets great lift on his shot and the form is perfect. In traffic, he has the ability to fade back and still maintain the necessary body control and concentration and he’s close to death and taxes at the foul line. Understandably, he tired a little toward the end and left some shots short.  Today he became GAMP’s all-time leading scorer, according to Kratch’s numbers (though our numbers had him a few points over already; hey, it happens), and the game was briefly stopped after he hit his second field goal. Overall numbers: 10-for-22 from the floor (two treys) and 16-for-22 at the line. As I wrote for the DN, only near the very end did he make some questionable decisions in the area of shot selection. Earlier, he could not have been more team-oriented. He dealt five assists and deserved triple that number. It says here he should have fired away at least 40 times; his partners went 10-for-38. When they weren’t brickin’, they were failing to even catch the ball. Phew! Effort was always there, though. Jr. SF Carl “Shiny Sneakers” Guignard had nine rebounds. Sr. Clayton Graves had three assists. Jr. Jamal Jenkins had three steals. Palumbo’s team pic had been sent to us a while ago. There wasn’t time to get GAMP’s, though a student said she’d taken one before my arrival and would e-mail it. Thanks.

JAN. 7
CATHOLIC BLUE
Wood 59, Dougherty 56
  As the first half expired, Wood sr. Sean McCartney, of well-deserved FB fame, took a pass from soph PG Joe Getz and gingerly deposited a layup. There’s a reason for that description, folks. Those nutty occupants of Dougherty’s Looney Bin were in rare form and one of their primary targets was McCartney. Sean’s hair is red (more like orange, really), so every time he got the ball, he was pelted with chants of “Ginger! . . . Ginger!” . . . Ginger!” I caught Sean laughing once or seven times (smile) and he truly appeared to get a kick out of the cube-busting. Another target was jr. F Brian O’Grady, the star baseball player who now has pretty good strength. They were chanting something about power bars and another word or three that I couldn’t understand, but at one point someone yelled at him, “Put your 'guns' away!” Ha, ha, ha, ha. Meanwhile, the guys saved their best work for jr. SF-WG Doug Macrone, who actually had a major effect on this victory as sr. sniper Tim Fahy nursed an ankle sprain suffered Monday in practice; he hopes to return to action NEXT Friday). Doug is tall and quite thin and as a he readied to shoot a free throw, the Bin Boys (with some girls mixed in) belted out, “Someone feed him! . . . Someone feed him!” As I mentioned in my DN story, this was delayed plagiarism!! Ha, ha, ha. In 2001, Dougherty had a talented forward named Bryan Green, who was thin enough to make Macrone look like a body builder. Judge’s student rooters, led by FB star Ryan “Goose” Nase, hit Bryan with that one and he took it in tremendous stride. We let kids comment on the site at that time (until things got out of hand), and Bryan wrote in to praise the Judge guys for their cleverness. Here’s a link with a somewhat recent update from Bryan, who’s in the service. Anyway, back to basketball . . . DN ink went to 6-7 jr. F-C Fran Dougherty, who keeps growing but still retains some three-man skills he developed during a period early in high school when he thought maybe he’d topped out at 6-foot, 6-1. He can put the ball on the floor and shows soft hands and he’s even effective when his side is facing the basket. He finished with 19 points (major damage in first half), three rebounds (should be getting more than that by accident – smile) and two apiece of assists, steals and blocks. Dougherty and Macrone are AAU teammates and they displayed good high-low chemistry on several occasions. Getz had to sit down early due to wooziness; he’d been feeling sick in school all day. O’Grady had 11 boards. Macrone hit three treys en route to 14 points. Though it was getting crunched at halftime, 35-16, Dougherty rallied nicely as jr. PG Brandyn Wims, who continues to impress, finally got some help. Wims finished with 24 points (five treys) and had strong fourth quarter with seven points and three assists. Jr. F Brandon Brown (also nine rebounds) notched all 10 of his points in that session. Jr. G Dawan Earle also did some scrapping. Sr. F Ryan Colbert sprinkled his contributions (10 points, nine boards) throughout the game. With 0:51 left, the Vikings seemed safe at 52-45 after Dougherty hit a pair of free throws. Though the Cardinals kept getting big plays from Wims, Earle and Brown, sub jr. PG Scott Adkins nailed five of six free throws in a seriously clutch performance (especially since he missed his first in that bunch and could have gotten rattled). With 9.8 left, jr. G Jerry Rahill, another sub (and FB player like McCartney and Rahill), went to the line trying to expand a three-point lead. As Rahill readied, the Bin Boys hollered, "Why so nervous?! . . . Why so nervous?!" Turned out he wasn't. Rahill drained both shots to clinch the win. Another Bin-related tidbit. After McCartney had some successful moments, the Dougherty kids serenaded him with, “You’re still redhead! . . . You’re still redhead!” If I know him, Sean’s still laughing. It was nice to see ex-McDevitt FB star Mike Wojcik, now having a great career at Lafayette, in attendance. When I asked him why he was watching Wood-Dougherty, he said all of his friends go/went to Dougherty. Mike also played hoops. Early in the game, Dougherty coach Mark Heimerdinger snapped out about something and his antics of course stirred the crowd. Wojcik said sincerely, "Boy, I miss that guy." 

JAN. 6
PUBLIC D
World Comm. 52, New Media 51
(Special report by ex-Dobbins FB legend "Famous" Amos Leak, who's
home on break from college at IUP. Thanks so much for this, Amos!!)
  This game came down to heart and who had the biggest one of them all. It wasn't about who scored the most points and what had to be done. I actually have to say that New Media's crowd was outstanding and very exciting to watch. This game game started off a little slow with WC and New Media trying to get a feel for each other and their defense. They really tried to battle for position and establish the inside game but it started with the guard play of Evan Herbert and Shawon Tennessee. I guess Coach Green of New Media wanted Tennessee (great quickness and ability to finish a play, finishing with 5 pt., 6 assist, & 6 steals) to cover him like the state he is...LoL..and he sure did. He gave Herbert some fits in the beginning when he was trying to establish him self as the point guard and take control of his team. Herbert had received 2 early fouls in the first 5 minutes of the game, and then picked up his third in the early second quarter. Coach McKinney tried to keep him in but realized after 3 fouls and the game being 13-11, with New Media leading, it wasn't going to get any easier. It was amazing the type of defense that was being played for this New Media team and how they were using different defense to confuse and shake up World Comm to get them out of their flow. One exciting player was Isiah Clark (21 pts.), who is averaging 24 pts. in league play and has different fundamentals but chose to shoot from deep this game and was a little off in the beginning. Well the half ended 16-16 and it was very tight and nobody could understand why nobody could get their offense off. The second half started and New Media ended up coming off with a hit in the mouth. The started to force World Comm to rush their passes and throws by pressing them with a fullcourt defense, as if they had been down 20 points. The thing about it was that they kept doing it and with the crowd's noise it got intense to the point where Clark, Bryton Hawthorne (10pts) and Harold Gordon (13 pts. & 2 blocks) started to find ways of scoring by playing tough defense on the other side of the half court and getting many turnovers. Coach McKinney actually let them play through the pains and World Comm found themselves down 44-30. It seemed as though it was a landslide for them to think about trying to come all the way back into this game with Clark's great ability to find easy shots and penetrate defenses and create opportunities for others. With about 2 minutes left in the quarter, World Communications found a way thanks to inside BULL-BODY  Markeith Mont (14 pts., 12 rebounds), who started to get the ball and hit inside shots, while being tripled teamed ,or found himself on the line. With a little struggles, during the run that got World Communications within 5 at the end of the quarter was Shon Phillips (5pts. 3 steals), who's son of Val Phillips (All American at Virginia State in Basketball), who I am proudly to say I worked with at the Sonny Hill League. Phillips came in and gave a lift by also using full court pressure and it seemed as though New Media now could not hold on to the ball. Philips got a steal and passed it to Herbert from the extended elbow and then swung it back to Phillips to hit a three to get the game within 2. Then the next play out of bounds, Ichywond Savage (4 pt. 2 steals) who is very young, came to the rescue with another steal and got Herbert the ball, who then dished to Phillips again, from the same spot, but Phillips pumped faked and went to the basket, off the baseline and scored off a floater, to tie the game. Then New Media called time out. Coming in with a big game was Hawthorne, who only scored 10 pts but hit a huge 2 to put NM up by two. After a couple fouls and people going to the free throw line on both ends, New Media found themselves up 2 again with under a minute remaining. Coron Fletcher, who earlier had been a huge help because of his ability to drive to the basket as another speed option when Herbert was out (or even when both were in the game), completed a 3-point play in order to get them up one, off a layup and a hard foul. He finished the game with a huge 12 pts. Gordon went back downcourt and found himself open to score off another layup and foul. Gordon hits the free throw and so here's where it gets wild. World Comm calls a timeout with 7 seconds left on the clock with New Media up 2, 51-49. So Herbert gets the inbound pass and takes it the length of the court, looks up at the clock, sees he only have 3 seconds left, and up fakes Tennessee. Tennessee jumps in the air and as he comes down Herbert goes up for the three pointer and he releases and it goes in....and the crowd couldn't believe it. The game ends 52-51 on a three-point buzzer-beater. Only when this game seemed like it was over when New Media was up 14 points at one time ended up with World Comm, running on the court and celebrating a great win coming into this new year. These are 2 teams that lost a lot of good players but plan to battle hard to fight for a chance to prove they can hang with rest of the teams in the D divison of 1-A schools. They both have really good talent, but are still young and have a lot to learn. I really have to say, great refs in this one and I'm glad this came down to the last shot because of how intense this game was. Thanks Ted for everything and as for primetime players, Clark, Tennessee, Mont, & Herbert. I pray are getti ng some good looks because these are some great players, who love to play the game. Even if it's D3 or D2, man..it could be even JUCO..i think these kids really played hard and still got time to develop and get better being Jrs. and Sophomores. Great game TED..Now back to IUP..Sunday...6 hour ride...OHHHH LORD. P.S. Mike went back yesterday and is doing quite well. Also If I can, I've been to quite some games, and can I just want to note my top underclassmen that I've been watching, since the summertime up til now.
1. Girard College's John Johnson...(HANDS DOWN MY FAVORITE, SCORING 14 IN THE FOURTH QUARTER IN THE SNEAKERVILLA CLASSIC, OUSTANDING KID AND CAN REALLY PLAY)
2. Mansion's DJ Newbill...(WHAT A PLAYER...HE MIGHT BE THE NEXT COMING OF MARDY COLLINS, I WATCHED HIM WORK OUT ALL SUMMER AND THE KID JUST KEEPS IMPROVING EVERY TIME I SEE HIM)
3. RAKEEM BROOKINS (SOMETHING ABOUT HIM THAT STANDS OUT AND SAYS RECRUIT ME OR YOU'LL BE HURTING YOURSELF BY NOT....29 AGAINST RICE OF NY. YOU CAN'T DENY HIM LOVE)
4. Ky Howard (He's from Shipley..and the boy can play..brother of Ashley Howard, assistant coach from Drexel, has the same fire of the game as his brother did, really underrated to me)
5. Octavious Booker (There are some other kids I like and love to see on the court, but this one can really play the game like I've never seen, he really keeps things going, great inside player)

JAN. 7
NON-LEAGUE
Franklin Towne 49, Saul 46 (OT)
  One day after barely failing to pull off what coach Josh Rorer acknowledged would have been the biggest win in the school's short history, FT almost suffered what would have been a disappointing road loss to a team from a two-below-'em enrollment classification. Sometimes, desperation is good, though. Down by 10 points with about 5 minutes left, Rorer switched from zone to man-to-man and the Coyotes, who by definition HAD to be more energized, rallied to not only tie the game but win it in OT. Both teams were missing key players. Saul's absence was more noteworthy only because sr. F-C Jamar Smith stands 6-4 and routinely sweeps double-digit rebounds. He was setting up an exhibit at a farm show; remember, the concentration at Saul is agriculture. FT was without sr. F David Vaughan, who suffered an injury yesterday in a one-point loss to E&S. OT was forced when jr. PG Scott Davis, 0-for-6 from the floor to this point, took a pass from sr. G-F Jared Schwarz and drained a right-corner trey with 8 seconds left. Saul sr. PG Tyrell Smith had made it 41-38 at 23.7 by converting a one-and-one. FT missed a wild shot as the extra session opened, but sr. WG Matt Lyons was right there on the right block to notch the put-back. There was some pretty good back-and-forth action through the extra session before Lyons made it 49-46 with a one-and-one at 0:22. After some craziness, the last possession began with 5.1 remaining and Saul had to go the length of the court. On the upper left wing, Smith, while being challenged, ducked under a defender and tried a trey. It was in, then spun out. In retrospect, Saul was killed by a couple of calls traceable only to the fact Warren Gillis had to referee the game by his lonesome. In the first half, two Saul guys hit three-pointers within footsteps of where I was sitting. From the other side, Warren couldn't be sure so he called them twos. Hey, it happens. He did the best he could and, by the way, how does a game wind up with ONE ref on a Wednesday afternoon when almost NO games are being played? DISGRACE! Clark, a lefty with possibilities and height (maybe 6-1?), finished with four assists. Davis, also a PG, dealt five assists. Lyons did almost all of his scoring from the fourth quarter forward (11 of 13 points). Sr. F Randy Emerson, another lefty, had nine points and 11 boards. There's much to like about the frisky Smith (18 points, three assists). McClain and sr. C Dom "Nose Tackle" Randall halved 14 boards. Jr. F Alonzo Jackson showed good instincts and a competitive spirit en route to 12 points, 10 boards and three blocks. Had a long pre-game talk with Saul coach Paul Winters about the ins and outs of the PIAA with regard to how enrollment affects assorted sports and whether the Catholic schools in the suburbs would be better served by joining public-school leagues in their areas. Mostly, he feels football is the only sport where enrollment truly makes a difference. Good point, considering that the AA schools are dominant this year in the Pub and two AAAs, N-G and Carroll, are among the CL's best teams.

JAN. 6
PUBLIC A
Southern 72, Overbrook 45
  There was no real expectation of a contest because Overbrook is young and untalented and that’s not a good combination. Since the ‘Brook and West Philly are in different divisions now, there’ll be no meeting (how sad is THAT?) so this was likely my only shot to see the Panthers. Plus, I had nagging questions about what exactly was going on with Southern due to some puzzling losses recently. Anyway, the Rams looked pretty darn good, though, again, consideration must be given to the fact Overbrook didn’t have much to offer. DN ink went to sr. wing player Lamar Speller, who transferred from Dobbins mostly to be with his cousin, ’08 star Furnell Doster. One problem: Doster has been bouncing from school to school this year – he even spent some time in Memphis – and is not part of the program. Speller, a lefty, has good bounce and the typical lefty stab, both from distance and mid-range. He buried three treys almost right away and posted 12 of his 17 points in the first quarter. I’m not saying he couldn’t play D-I, but he might be better suited for the state school conference. He’s an outgoing kid and has really come to respect the importance of showing overall skills and being part of this team, so we wish him the best. Lamar also had six rebounds, three assists and four steals. When possible, we try to focus on seniors so I had NO trouble writing about Lamar; he deserved the attention. But the most impressive Ram was 6-6 jr. Jamir Hanner, a center with power and even small forward skills set. The first element that stands out is Hanner’s ability to jump. My goodness! He just keeps elevating. When you think his hand is going to reach maybe 11 feet, you keep looking and there it is at almost 12. Seems like it anyway. And it gets up there so effortlessly. He also showed a nice touch at the foul line and on mid-range jumpers while scoring 24 points. Worlds of possibilities for this young man! Five of his field goals were dunks; one came on a perfectly timed follow where he snagged the ball high above the rim and flushed it home. He also grabbed 17 rebounds. Jr. PG Deshon “Biggie” Minnis, who’s solidly built, had eight points and six assists. Sr. F Nasir “Bird” Johnson had seven points and four steals. Jr. G Haywood Henderson, though only 5-9, hustled for nine boards. The other highlight was a steal and drive for an authoritative dunk by jr. FB QB Shaquille Gaskins. ‘Brook had major problems taking care of the ball. Southern had 20 steals and the Panthers were probably guilty of at least a dozen more, throw-it-away turnovers. Coach Freddie Stokes, a true legend (Pub’s leading scorer for West Philly in ’68), is hanging in there as best as he can, but this has to be eating him up. Jr. F Cashad McFadden, cousin of ex-Gratz star Ish McFadden, did claim nine rebounds and jr. WG Raheem Nelson opened eyes near the very end by nailing a trio of treys from what looked like NBA distance. Otherwise, there wasn’t much on a positive note to take away from the game. Late, a Panther even tried to make a follow into the wrong basket. Ouch. It was good to see all the usual Southern folks from clock man Louie Sammarone to video man Bill Williams to coach George Anderson to assistant Arthur “Bunky” Russell to baseball coach/ticket man Craig Scioscia to AD Mike Jackson, to former star guard Crip Reese, etc. Also had some fun exchanging pleasantries/playful barbs with FB players Mike Henry, Tyree Parks, Nolan “You Never Take My Picture Enough” Davis and Richard “You Never Gimme Enough Tackles” White. Mike and Tyree had no complaints. What's up with that? (ha ha ha).

JAN. 2
CATHOLIC BLUE
Neumann-Goretti 60, Wood 46
  If you don’t mind, this time we’re going to start with pictures. The first one was taken soon after the game began and shows Wood soph PG Joe Getz attacking the hoop. It also showed the Vikings had no fear and were going to go right at their more talented foes. The second was taken later in the first quarter and again features Getz. But check out N-G’s defenders. Joe went right to the basket among FOUR Saints and not one stepped up to challenge him. Those two pictures illustrate why Wood enjoyed some great moments in the early portions of this game, played in Wood’s girls’ gym because the boys’ facility is being renovated/repaired/whatever. (The gyms are almost identical, by the way, so no biggie.) As highlighted in my DN story, the Saints perhaps were justified in floundering early. They’ll be playing tomorrow in a showcase event in West Virginia (North, Roman and SJ Prep) are also heading down there and the plan was for the tour bus to take N-G to Wood and then to West Virginny. But a problem was discovered as the bus sat in N-G’s parking lot and the varsity players and coaches had to pile into three cars and rush to Wood. (Long story short: the bus was eventually repaired and arrived at Wood in time to pick up the group and continue on to The State That Steve Slaton Made Famous -- sorry, couldn’t help it). In time, N-G’s athleticism and ability to wear down the Vikings won out, but don’t think for a moment that this one was easy. Wood mostly turned in a special performance under new coach Sean Tait (Joe Sette is on sabbatical) and it should have long-lasting positive effects. Jr. WG Tony Chennault, already committed to Wake Forest, was a scoring whirlwind in the second half, pouring in 18 of his 22 points and sinking his last six shots from the floor. He displayed a mixture of hard drives, soft pullups off semi-penetration and a cottony trey. He also appears to have a good handle on how to be a leader. Junior PG Tyreek Duren packed all six of his steals into the second half after getting four of his five assists in the first 16 minutes. Weird, right? This was also a strange circumstance: jr. G Mustafaa Jones (four) and soph G Lamin Fulton (three) combined for seven treys and all but one came before halftime. Jr. F-C Daniel Stewart had nine points and as many boards. As for Niagara-bound sr. C Andre “Scooter” Gillette, he was pretty much non-existent after getting into early foul trouble. Wood’s leaders were jr. F Brian O’Grady, of budding baseball fame, and Getz. O’Grady likely had the game of his so-far life, collecting 17 points, 16 rebounds (10 in the third quarter alone!) and two apiece of assists and steals. He showed game-long spirit and focus, shooting 4-for-5 from the floor (three treys) and 6-for-6 at the line. Getz was a true warrior as well, witness his 12 points, three steals and even nine boards. Jr. F-C Fran Dougherty managed 12 points and five rebounds and his ability to step away contributed to Wood’s success, keeping the lane/interior clear for penetration and Ryan-like, back-door cuts. Sr. WG Tim Fahy, a lefty known for serious streaky shooting, could not get going. He went just 1-for-8 on treys. Though N-G led at halftime, 31-23, and appeared on the verge of kick-butt mode, Wood again impressed by not only roaring back, but even going ahead at 36-33 on O’Grady’s right-corner trey. Good moments were scant thereafter, however. Unlike the boys’ gym, this one has a stage and I camped out off to one side for pic-taking purposes (just like at McDevitt). A couple “real” photographers joined me up there as did, eventually, former website legend/Judge product Kevin “Sparky” Cooney, who’s now a larger-than-life sports writer for the Bucks County Courier Times. Kevin spent part of last spring/summer/fall covering the Phillies and got to ride on one of the floats in the parade that celebrated the capturing of the World Series. Check out the Christmas card he sent us. Love it!! Ha, ha, ha. (His fellow sports writer, Randy Miller, took the pic.)