Author: delcohoops

By Matthew DeGeorge

Kevin McCarthy’s introduction to high school basketball came with a splash from deep.

From his COVID-abbreviated freshman year, McCarthy’s niche at Episcopal Academy was first and foremost as a shooter. Leave him open behind the arc at your own peril, opposing teams would quickly learn.

Word would get around, as it always does, and that novelty would burn off. Yet McCarthy kept on making 3-pointers. And with that as the cornerstone, he would diversify his game, grow physically into a rangy 6-4 defender and become the kind of offensive facilitator that makes others around him better.

“Definitely the best asset of my game is my shooting ability,” McCarthy said. “When I was an underclassmen, I did a lot more solely 3-point shooting. As I matured, I developed my game and made my game better all around, and I play off my 3-pointer more now. So teams close out on me hard, they guard me really heavily. I use my 3-pointer to get to the basket, to get open diving lanes.”

Along the way, McCarthy collected 1,527 points, eighth-most in program history. He picked up three Division I offers before fulfilling his dream of going to West Point to play for Army.

And he makes history as the first Churchmen player to be named Daily Times Boys Basketball Player of the Year.

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By Matthew DeGeorge

First team

Kevin McCarthy, Sr. G, Episcopal Academy

Aasim Burton, Sr. G, Cardinal O’Hara

Matt Gardler, Jr. G, Marple Newtown

Kevin Rucker, Sr. G, Bonner & Prendergast

Deuce Ketner, Sr. F, Bonner & Prendergast

Jake Sniras, Jr. F, Garnet Valley

(click on this link for the 2nd & 3rd teams)

By Matt Smith

Molly Rullo’s future in basketball is an open book. Her story is nowhere near finished. As one of the brightest high school stars in Pennsylvania, the Cardinal O’Hara junior has enjoyed seeing the revolution of women’s hoops unfold before her eyes.

Caitlin Clark is a household name, but many other players are responsible for shining a national light on the sport.

Earlier this week, Rullo’s eyes lit up as she discussed the game’s meteoric rise and the influence it has had on her own burgeoning career.

“It has been super impactful,” she said. “You know, growing up I felt like I was prone to watching a lot more men’s basketball. That was cool and all, but they are way different than the girls. It’s just a different game.

“When I think back, what motivated me to come to O’Hara was watching Hannah Nihill, Kenzie Gardler and all of those girls win the (Catholic League title) back-to-back years. That is what I thought was so cool, going to The Palestra and seeing them play in front of thousands of people. That was so impactful to me at a young age.

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By Matt Smith

First Team

Brooke Wilson, Sr. G, Arch. Carroll

Joanie Quinn, Sr. G, Card. O’Hara

Molly Rullo, Jr. G/F, Card. O’Hara

Haylie Adamski, Jr. G, Garnet Valley

Rian Dotsey, Jr. F, Haverford

Aniya Eberhart, Sr. G, Haverford

(click on this link for the full the 2nd and 3rd teams)

By Ed Morrone

They say that defense wins championships — but having Molly Rullo and Joanie Quinn on your side certainly helps too.

Rullo scored 10 of her 13 points before halftime before passing the baton to Quinn, who tallied 14 of her game-high 16 points in the second half to lead Cardinal O’Hara to a 42-26 victory in the PIAA Class 6A state championship game on Friday night.

It was the third state title in four years for the Lions, who held a normally strong shooting Spring-Ford team to an 8-for-37 night from the field, including a 2-for-17 clip from downtown.

“I love these girls with everything in my being,” Quinn said. “To be able to share this experience with people that I love so much, I can’t even describe what that means.”

The Rams had cruised through their first four state playoff games, winning by an average of 21.7 points per game.

Then they ran into Quinn and Rullo’s O’Hara buzzsaw.

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By Matt Smith

Greta Miller’s contributions to Cardinal O’Hara’s 2023-24 season cannot be measured by the markings that appear next to her name in the scorebook.

She didn’t score 20 points per game and she wasn’t the player opposing teams planned for when facing the Lions. The senior guard made her impact with textbook defense and rebounding.

She scored from time to time, and was never afraid to take her shot even when going through a cold spell. Coming into the PIAA Class 6A final against Spring-Ford, Miller had played two straight games without scoring a point.

But Miller had one more big shot left in her Friday at the Giant Center, swishing a 3-point field goal in the third quarter after Spring-Ford had rallied to close the gap to six points. It was an offensive rebound by Miller that led to her clutch basket.

When O’Hara needed someone to make a play, Miller answered the call. The Lions never looked back, ending the game on an 18-8 run en route to a 42-26 victory over the Rams, earning O’Hara’s third state title in four years.

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By Matt Smith

If Cardinal O’Hara has anything in common with Spring-Ford, its opponent in Friday’s PIAA Class 6A championship game, it’s that each team has unfinished business.

The Lions were eliminated in the semifinal round of the 2023 tournament, falling by one point to eventual state champ Archbishop Carroll. Meanwhile, the Rams were ousted by O’Hara in the quarterfinals a season ago, and hope to avoid leaving Hershey empty-handed for the second time in four years.

O’Hara (25-4) and Spring-Ford (27-6) are vying for the title of best girls basketball team in PIAA’s highest classification. Tipoff at the Giant Center is 6 p.m.

O’Hara captured Class 5A championships in 2021 and 2022. Those teams were led by two-time Daily Times Player of the Year Maggie Doogan (Richmond) and All-Delco Amaris Baker (Drexel), both of whom have played key roles in helping their college squads to the NCAA Tournament. In 2021, when Spring-Ford lost to North Allegheny in the Class 6A final, Villanova star Lucy Olsen was arguably the best high school player in Pennsylvania.

There is connective tissue on both current rosters linking the teams’ previous state championship runs.

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By Matthew DeGeorge

After the first quarter Thursday night, the PIAA’s DJ queued up some Sia for the fans in attendance at the Giant Center. The pop star and wig aficionado wasn’t singing about Lincoln Park’s offense. But she may as well have been.

The Leopards were, as the Australian intoned, unstoppable. A 15-for-19 start from the field and 37 points in a signature performance by Brandin Cummings helped the charter school from Midland claim an 80-50 decision over Archbishop Carroll in the PIAA Class 4A final.

It’s the 19th straight win and fourth state title for Lincoln Park, one shy of the school whose building they inherited, Midland High. It won this game over Neumann-Goretti, 62-58, last year. All the energy that Carroll, the seventh-place team in the Catholic League and third seed out of District 12, expended to make this run to Hershey was used Thursday not to get blown out.

Lincoln Park just took what it wanted offensively early. It went on a 16-0 run in the first quarter and led 51-22 at halftime on 21-for-30 shooting. Only some prudent clock killing by a team that played like it’s been to this stage before kept the score reasonable.

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By Austin Herzog

It’s hard to find a team more level-headed than the Spring-Ford girls’ basketball squad.

The wins — there have been many — don’t elicit the euphoria you’ll see from other programs. That has a lot to do with the pedigree that comes from District 1’s most successful program over the last 15 years.

The losses — there have been significant ones — don’t come with a crushing, tearful display.

Both sides of the coin, and the Rams’ response to each, is what has delivered Spring-Ford to this moment, a spot in the PIAA Class 6A championship game on Friday against District 12 powerhouse Cardinal O’Hara.

The Rams and Lions meet in the state playoffs for a second straight year, this time on the big stage of the Giant Center in Hershey at 6 p.m. Friday.

It’s the final hurrah for a pair of senior-led squads that have experienced more winning than almost any others in the last four years.

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By Bob Grotz

Almost hidden by the championship talent that will be on display in the PIAA Class 6A girls’ championship between Cardinal O’Hara and Spring-Ford Friday is the understated savvy of the coaches.

In addition to the players, Chrissie Doogan of Cardinal O’Hara and Mickey McDaniel of Spring-Ford also are among the best at what they do in the state, and it will only take a few minutes for spectators to realize that when they begin watching the chess match at the Giant Center in Hershey (6 p.m.,, PCN, pcntv.com/basketball stream).

Doogan and McDaniel stood tall among a skilled cast of coaches in the final four round of the state playoffs. Doogan’s Lions wore out a once-beaten and highly skilled Perkiomen Valley squad with gifted 6-foot-3 center Quinn Boettinger and aggressive forward Grace Galbavy (6-0), using a defense that relentlessly overplayed the strengths of those playmakers, and wound up making the former a liability late in the contest.

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