Author: delcohoops

By Josh Verlin

The Catholic League’s down to its final four. The girls’ semifinals are this Tuesday night at the former University of the Sciences, now part of Saint Joseph’s, while the boys are Wednesday night at the Palestra. 

Here’s a look at all four games as well as my predictions:

Girls Semifinals
2) Archbishop Wood vs. 3) Cardinal O’Hara (6:00 PM)

There have been four clear contenders for the 2023 Catholic League girls’ championship this season, and they’re the four remaining in the semifinals, with any of the four perfectly capable of winning their next two games and emerging with a title at the Palestra next Monday. These two teams met at this same spot last year, a 55-48 win for O’Hara, but many of the stars of that one are gone: O’Hara’s Maggie Doogan (Richmond), Sydni Scott (Marshall) and Annie Welde (Villanova), as well as Wood’s Ryanne Allen (Vanderbilt) and Bri Bowen (Delaware), leaving it up to the next group of Lions and Vikings to carry the torch. 

(click on this link for the full story)

By CoBL Staff

The first round of districts is over, with 16 teams left who find themselves in good position to make the PIAA bracket — 12 of those 16 will play in states, including the eight winners of Tuesday night’s second round and four of the losers, who all go into play-backs to determine those final spots. 

Here’s a look at all eight games on Tuesday, as the top eight seeds make their district debuts:

8) Garnet Valley vs. 9) Methacton
Only 14 hundreds of a point separated Methacton and Garnet Valley in the district rankings, the Jaguars with just enough of an edge to be hosting this game instead of it being up in the PAC. Garnet Valley (15-8) enters the postseason on a three-game losing streak, including scoring just 29 points against Springfield (Delco.) in the first round of the Central League playoffs, but Mike Brown has had 12 days to get his squad back on track as they host a Warriors side that comes in 16-8, having beaten Conestoga 48-38 in the first round of districts after themselves losing in the opening round of their league playoffs. This one is a rematch of a district quarterfinal from last season when the then top-seeded Warriors held off the then 24th-seeded Jags in OT. 

(click on this link for the full story)

Being on the road didn’t bother Episcopal Academy in the championship game of the PAISAA Commonwealth Cup.

The second-seeded Churchmen took control early and cruised to a 67-56 victory over top-seeded Germantown Academy Saturday.

EA opened up a 12-7 lead to start the game, expanded its advantage 53-32 heading into the fourth quarter and shot 8-for-12 from the free throw line to hold off the Patriots and win the title.

Kevin McCarthy paced EA with 17 points. He made two free throws in the fourth quarter, as did T.J. Lamb and Murilo Pereira.  Timmy Dennis and Calvin Szorodi chipped in with 14 points each.

Bryce Rollerson led the top-seeded Patriots with a game-high 20 points.

In the District 1 Class 6A tournament:

(click on this link for more game stories and scores)

By Josh Verlin

It was about a month ago that Upper Darby got a dose of good news: senior wing Yassir Joyner was going to be postseason eligible. The South Philly transfer and Upper Darby native had received a unanimous ruling from a District 1 panel, Royals coach Bob Miller said, and was going to be able to play for as long as Upper Darby’s season went. 

For a team that’s been playing good hoops all season but is highly reliant on its starting five, it was a crucial outcome, allowing the Royals to be at full strength both physically and emotionally for the playoffs.

“We need everybody but we need him, that’s like my battle twin,” senior forward Niymire Brown said. “Once we got him, it was like, oh yeah, we’re good.”

Upper Darby certainly benefited from Joyner’s presence in their District 1 6A opener, the No. 10 seeded Royals getting a big-time double-double from their senior wing in a 74-54 win over No. 23 Cheltenham. 

(click on this link for the full story)

By Terry Toohey

Penn Wood’s Nasir Washington seems to rely solely on his natural abilities, of which there are many. The 6-foot-3 senior guard works at his craft, even if there can be a few stumbles along the way.

Washington also likes to work out three times a day. That’s a heavy load, but it’s hard to argue with the results.

Thursday, for instance, Washington made 300 shots in a nighttime workout and that paid huge dividends against Norristown in the opening round of the District 1 Class 6A opener Friday night.

Washington poured in 37 points in just three quarters to pace Penn Wood to a 78-48 romp over the Eagles.

“I just came in today all confident,” said Washjington, who finished three points shy of equaling his career high. “This is my last year, so I’m just doing whatever I can to help the team.”

Myron Kirlew led the 19th-seeded Eagles (10-14) with 22 points but it wasn’t enough to offset Washington’s torrid shooting performance. He didn’t miss many.

(click on this link for the full story)

By Sean Barnard

Roman Catholic did not have the momentum it desired heading into the Philadelphia Catholic League playoffs. Losing two of their last four games, falling to the hands of Neumann-Goretti and St. Joe’s Prep, the Cahillites had to do some real soul-searching to get back on track.

The pair of losses put a blemish on an otherwise perfect Catholic League record as they cruised to a 19-3 overall record. However, with the biggest games still to come, the Cahillites had to wipe away their recent disappointing performances and get back to the impressive team they proved to be early on in the season. 

“We were a really good defensive team like early in December and January, and we kinda fell off,” senior guard Xzayvier Brown said. “Getting our identity back was our main focus.”

(click on this link for the full story)

By Josh Verlin

The Garnet Valley playoff magic is back.

Last year, the Jaguars made a run to the Central League championship as the No. 5 seed, then won at Methacton to make it to the state tournament, a stretch that coach Joe Woods admits was “unexpected” after a much-more-expected dominant squad a couple years before. 

Though most of the GV rotation is different from last year, with three sophomores in the starting lineup, the Jaguars aren’t done making noise in February. Despite trailing big early at Pennridge, the Garnet girls bore down on defense and found their shot, two of those sophomores leading the way to a 45-42 comeback win.

Kylie Mulholland finished with 16 points, including two fourth-quarter 3-pointers and the game’s final points, a pair of foul shots in the final 30 seconds to help the Jaguars hang on. 

(click on this link for the full story)

By Jack McCaffery

Among the varied goals set four years ago by Brooke Impriano was one she could consider met by Friday night.

The fluid senior forward was confident she and fellow senior Mary O’Brien had left the Marple Newtown girls basketball program on a firm foundation, even after a 62-42 loss at Mount St. Joseph in the opening round of the PIAA District 1 Class 5A tournament.

“There were a lot of ups and downs this year,” Impriano said. “There are a lot of good teams in the Central League. But as a program, we really evolved and I think that we did really good. I’m happy with our season.”

Despite Impriano’s 20 points and 14 more from O’Brien, the Tigers ended their season at 12-11, yet not without pride in having reached the district playoffs in a fourth consecutive year.

“We went down with a winning record,” she said. “And the fact that we made it this far is still amazing. I couldn’t ask for a better team and better coaches.”

(click on this link for the full story)

By Matt Smith

Freshmen Kayden Barrata and Riley Ford-Bey couldn’t say for certain the last time a Phoenixville girls basketball team won a District 1 tournament game.

“It’s been a long time,” Barrata said.

It had been at least 15 years. Despite its dubious streak of postseason misfortune, No. 11 Phoenixville walked into sixth-seeded Radnor feeling pretty good about its chances.

“We believed we could do it,” Ford-Bey said.

With Ford-Bey and Maliyah Warren taking care of the low post against a smaller Radnor team, and Barrata delivering several clutch baskets, the Phantoms indeed pulled off the upset and ended their lengthy playoff drought.

With their 46-37 victory, the Phantoms (14-9) advanced to the quarterfinal round of the District 1 Class 5A playoffs. They will play No. 3 Villa Maria (21-3), which is the Catholic Academic League champion.

(click on this link for the full story)

By Matthew DeGeorge

Everybody in the gym at Sun Valley Friday night assumed, with less than a minute to play and the Vanguards trailing by three, that the ball would find its way to Chris Kwaidah.

Unfortunately for the Vanguards, that number included Marple Newtown’s Matt Gardler, the one player with the ability to stop it from happening.

For all of Gardler’s outstanding offense in a 23-point outing, it was a defensive moment – jumping the passing lane, getting fouled and making two free throws – that iced No. 9 seed Marple’s 53-50 win over No. 8 Sun Valley to open the District 1 Class 5A tournament.

“He was on fire the whole game,” Gardler said of Kwaidah. “He couldn’t miss a shot. I knew after I saw the flare screen coming that I didn’t want him to get the ball and shoot that final shot and have someone else shoot it. I just jumped the pass.”

(click on this link for the full story)