Boys: Izaiah Pasha has presence to get Cardinal O’Hara to PCL quarterfinals

Cardinal O'Hara's Hunter Johnson, center, drops in a layup ahead of the defense of Bonner-Prendergast's Jamal Hicks in the first half Wednesday night. O'Hara earned a 49-47 win in the Catholic League first-round game. (Pete Bannan/MedianNews Group))

Cardinal O’Hara’s Hunter Johnson, center, drops in a layup ahead of the defense of Bonner-Prendergast’s Jamal Hicks in the first half Wednesday night. O’Hara earned a 49-47 win in the Catholic League first-round game. (Pete Bannan/MedianNews Group)

By Matthew DeGeorge

 In short order, Izaiah Pasha has become central to the plan for Cardinal O’Hara. Even on a night like Wednesday, when the game wasn’t coming to him quite as easily as it has during the junior guard’s All-Catholic season, the presence of Pasha opened space for others.

It also went a long way toward opening up a 49-47 win for the eighth-seeded Lions in a Catholic League playoff affair with Bonner-Prendergast.

On a night when the Friars hung tough despite missing two starters, O’Hara needed everything it could get. And often that meant making the most of what Pasha can do, particularly when defenders flocked to him and opened space in behind for others to fill.

“With his length and his speed, he really opens up the floor,” forward Pearse McGuinn said. “He makes everything a lot easier for everyone else. You can always get an easy bucket when he facilitates.”

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