By Owen McCue
Roman Catholic’s Philadelphia Catholic League title defense began this season with a group trying to get back to the Palestra, although quite a few Cahillites players had never been there before.
Along with junior pillar Shareef Jackson and senior point guard Robert Cottrell, a new-look Roman squad followed up last season’s PCL championship with the top seed in the league tournament. 
The Cahillites looked every bit the par of the league’s top dogs in Friday 71-32 night’s romp over Cardinal O’Hara, setting up a matchup with Father Judge on Wednesday at the Cathedral of College Basketball.
“Coach Chris (McNesby) needed people to step up for him this year, and I was one of them,” senior Hunter Johnson said. “Now I’m going to the Palestra.”