City of Basketball Love

Justin Procope (@1procope)
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Larenzo Jerkins knows the importance of setting a tone. 

The first drop of sweat had yet to emerge on the forehead of the chiseled 6-foot-5 junior before he was up in the grill of 6-9 Archbishop Carroll forward Drew Corrao, daring him to try to score on him. 

“We needed somebody to set the tone, show that we're here and we're not gonna leave,” Jerkins said. “So in order to set that tone, I need to show examples. I need to block shots, I need to yell in people's ear. I need to do anything possible to get that juice going for us and to up uplift us.”

Neumann-Goretti needed every ounce of his intensity down the stretch Friday night against a young and talented Caroll team eager to make a name for itself. 

With the game hanging in the balance late and Neumann-Goretti clinging to a single-digit lead, it was Jerkins who made the biggest plays in the final period. None bigger than the two free throws he knocked down with the same composure and maturity he has off the court to put his team up five with just five seconds left in the contest. 

Those points were the last scored in a hard-fought 89-83 victory over the Patriots. Neumann will have yet another chance to play for a Philadelphia Catholic League championship at the fabled Palestra, something Jerkins was determined to achieve after having to watch from the bench last season due to his transfer. 

“Motivation is an understatement towards something like this,” Jerkins said. “This is just something that I've been very patient with and just waiting for my moment. Now that it's finally here, I'm willing to execute everything.”

Neumann-Gorretti making it back to the Palestra would not usually be news, but injuries to key players and a few losses cast doubt in the mind of head coach Carl Arrigale. 

“We looked like a lock when we had [Khaafiq Myers] and everything was rolling and everybody was healthy,” Arrigale said. “We were playing really well, and then when you run into all those problems and you lose a couple games in a row and you have to kind of regroup and you don't know who's practicing from day to day or who's playing from day to day and you just kind of piece it together and you earn the home playoff game, which was always our first goal.”

Senior guard Myers was one of the contenders for Catholic League MVP before he went down with a season-ending knee injury. The 6-6 Amir Williams was in action and scored 10 points, but he has been in and out of the lineup all season with a nagging shoulder injury. He left the game periodically to tend to that shoulder and was limited on the court.

The injuries to Neumann have forced players to step up and produce in their absence. Jerkins has been one of those players, along with sophomore point guard Torrey Brooks, who scored his 1,000th varsity point Friday night. Both players were selected along with Myers to the All-PCL first team. 

“We don't have any choice, I tell him some people's misfortune is other people's chance to play,” Arrigale said. “You don't like to see anybody get hurt or anything, but if you're the next in line, you’ve got to be ready to go.”

Jerkins, who Arrigale said had been struggling with an ankle injury leading up to the game, bullied his way to a team-high 26 points with numerous highlight reel blocks on the other end.

“He's just relentless, he's different,” Arrigale said. “He's such a unique player, when he's playing with that energy and all it just gets everybody else going.”

Right behind Jerkins was DeShawn Yates with 18 points. The 5-9 guard used his quick first step and shifty handle to his advantage, finishing the first half with 15 points. Rounding out the scoring was junior Keon Long-Mtume with 14, Brooks with 12 and Stephon Ashley-Wright with nine. 

The Saints raced out to a 9-2 lead and never trailed in the contest, but the youngest team in the PCL gave them just about all they could handle. The Patriots had an answer for everything the Saints threw at them, finishing the first period down only six. Every time it looked like Neumann delivered the knockout punch, Carroll rose from the mat. 

“I know it's hard tonight, it'll be hard for the next 48 hours, but we'll come back and look at this moment and realize it helped us get to where we want to ultimately get to before these guys graduate,” Carroll head coach Francis Bowe said. 

That theme continued into the second half when 6-5 sophomore Luca Foster delivered a punch of his own midway through the third quarter when he took off from just inside the circle to deliver one of the dunks of the season over Yates. 

Foster was phenomenal for Carroll, finishing with a game-high 31 points and five 3-pointers, looking every bit the Division I prospect he is. Despite his play, the Patriots found themselves down 11 headed into the final quarter. 

Carroll switched to a full-court press that turned Neumann over a couple times. The Patriots cut the deficit to four. The biggest moment came with just 40 seconds left, when Foster was able to steal the inbound before laying it up plus the foul. 

However, the referees decided the foul was made on the floor and the basket was no good. What could have been a one point game with 40 seconds on the clock stood at five. The Patriots were unable to score on the following possession, and Jerkins sealed the victory at the line.

The win sets up a showdown on Wednesday against Catholic League co-MVP Thomas Sorber and Archbishop Ryan. Neumann won 60-59 in an overtime thriller when the two sides met back in January. 

“We have to stay on track, stay focused, just keep doing what we're doing and be angry, have more passion. A lot more passion,” Jerkins said. “Especially with this game, we need a lot more passion if we're going to beat a team like Ryan again. For sure.”

Consider the tone set. 

By Quarter 

Neumann-Goretti: 21 | 27 | 19 | 22 || 89

Archbishop Carroll: 15 | 23 | 18 | 27 || 83

Scoring

Neumann-Goretti: Larenzo Jerkins 26, DeShawn Yates 18, Keon Long-Mtume 14, Torrey Brooks 12, Amir Williams 10, Stephon Ashley-Wright 9

Archbishop Carroll: Luca Foster 31, Darrell Davis 15, Munir Greig 14, Ian Williams 8, Drew Corrao 7

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Catholic League Boys

Quarterfinals
1) Roman Catholic 71, 9) Cardinal O’Hara 32
5) Archbishop Ryan 51, 4) St. Joseph’s Prep 49
2) Neumann-Goretti 89, 7) Archbishop Carroll 83
6) Father Judge 78, 3) Archbishop Wood 71

Semifinals
1) Roman Catholic vs. 6) Father Judge
2) Neumann-Goretti vs. 5) Archbishop Ryan

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