City of Basketball Love

Andrew Robinson (@ADrobinson3)
––

NORRISTOWN — It all felt, from a matter of perspectives, very familiar for Archbishop Carroll boys basketball.

For Patriots coach Francis Bowe, there was more than one flashback to three years ago when his team lost a big lead to Allentown Central Catholic in a state playoff game. For Rell Davis and his teammates, it was a halftime chewing out from their coaches they’d heard a few too many times this season.

Carroll might be short on experience but the Patriots don’t lack for talent, and they used it to rally past the Vikings 62-56 in Tuesday’s PIAA Class 4A second round. Carroll faces Carver Engineering & Sciences in Friday’s quarterfinals at a site and time to be announced.

“It ain’t nothing new,” Davis said with a smirk. “Coach comes and chews us out, so we gotta prove him wrong and show why we really want it.”

In the 2020-21 state quarterfinals, Allentown CC erased a 17-point deficit against Carroll on its way to the Class 4A title. So, when his team that consists of only freshmen and sophomores found itself trailing 29-14 in the second quarter, Bowe had a familiar feeling.

Things didn’t look great for the Patriots. On offense they were settling for 3s against the Vikings’ 1-3-1 and 2-3 combo zone, while defensively they had no answer for Jahrel Vigo. The forceful 6-foot-2 junior scored a game-high 25, but it was the ease with which he got his 14 first-half points that irritated the Carroll coaches.

“We weren’t guarding, we didn’t put our bodies on the line,” Davis said. “We were arguing with each other, we were basically being selfish. That’s how we got in a hole in the [Philadelphia Catholic League season], we were being selfish and that’s when we started losing by 20 and when we figured it out, it was easy.”

Davis played a pivotal role in the second-half turnaround on both ends. He stepped up to the task of guarding Vigo while Nasir Ralls locked up Allentown Central Catholic shooter Lucas Mushrush.

Bowe said in the first half Davis was able to get into gaps, but the Patriots weren’t hitting shots from it. Offensively, the freshmen flipped roles with Ian Williams, letting Williams take over the on-ball responsibilities while Davis played off the ball. 

“Knowing me, I’m the energizer of the team, so if I do something the team’s going to follow,” Davis, who netted 14 points, said. “Ian, we found out Ian needed to be the point guard because he can create for others. I feel like I’m a better scorer, so that let me get some easier shots.”

Davis connected on three looks from the 3-point line, and the positional tweaks also allowed Munir Greig to get going. Greig, who led Carroll with 19, was able to slash and attack the rim more as he netted seven third-quarter points while the Patriots trimmed a 30-18 halftime deficit to 43-40 going to the fourth.

Bowe has the utmost belief in his players, the Carroll coach calling them “hoopers” who go at each other with intensity daily at practice. Still, there are some trying moments and others like the one that came early in the fourth quarter that sometimes leave Bowe not quite sure what’s coming.

“They said to me, down three, ‘Coach, we’re not going home,’” Bowe said. “I literally stopped coaching and just stared at them. I turned them around, said ‘Let’s go,’ and they did the rest.”

Williams, who was strong on both ends of the floor as well, found Luca Foster for the go-ahead 3 in the left corner with 4:01 to play, giving Carroll its first lead at 51-50. Allentown CC came back to tie it 53-53, then Davis slithered through the lane to draw contact and stuck both free throws with 1:51 left, also fouling Vigo out of the game.

That kicked off a string of three straight possessions where the Patriots went all in on defense and came up with stops, the last a steal by Davis, while extending their lead at the foul line.

“Intensity, just intensity,” Bowe said. “These guys go after each other, in a good way. We don’t break up fights, but it feels darn near close and they brought that. What you saw in the second half is what we see on a daily basis.”

From a matter of perspective, this state playoff run could be viewed as setting Carroll up for the future. From the Patriots’ perspective, it’s all about the here and now.

“We’re in it to win it,” Davis said. “We need to put another banner on the Carroll wall.”

By Quarter

Archbishop Carroll: 10 | 8 | 22 | 22 || 62

Allentown Central Catholic: 16 | 14 | 13 | 13 || 56

Scoring

Archbishop Carroll: Munir Greig 19, Luca Foster 17, Rell Davis 14, Ian Williams 8, Drew Corrao 4

Allentown Central Catholic: Jahrel Vigo 25, Lucas Mushrush 16, Cole Cook 4, Tim Spinosa 3, Yariel Gonzalez 3, David Fridia 2

~~~

PIAA 4A Boys (local games)

First Round (Fri., March 8)
12-1 Neumann-Goretti 86, 3-6 Littlestown 63
12-4 Overbrook 53, 1-1 Pope John Paul II 49 (OT)
12-2 Engineering & Science 51, 11-3 Pottsville 44
12-3 Archbishop Carroll 66, 3-2 Big Spring 59
11-1 Allentown Central Catholic 68, 12-5 School of Future 33

Second Round (Tue., March 12)
12-1 Neumann-Goretti 72, 3-3 Berks Catholic 51
2-1 Scranton Prep 71, 12-4 Overbrook 61
12-3 Archbishop Carroll 62, 11-1 Allentown Central Catholic 56
12-2 Engineering & Science 45, 4-1 Danville 38

Quarterfinals (Fri. March 15)
12-1 Neumann-Goretti vs. 2-1 Scranton Prep
12-3 Archbishop Carroll vs. 12-2 Engineering & Science

Girls Class 6A: Archbishop Carroll 37, Conestoga 33 (OT)

Alexis Eberz was done sitting back.

In what had been an expectedly methodical game between two of the top defensive teams in the area, a bit of aggression early in overtime made a difference. Eberz came up with a steal on one end and drew a foul on the other, hitting the go-ahead free throw on the first possession of the extra period.

That bit of explosion proved pivotal as Archbishop Carroll girls basketball edged Conestoga 37-33 in overtime in the PIAA Class 6A second round.

“I knew it was overtime, and I had to step it up,” Eberz said. “You gotta be motivated on defense, so I knew I was going to get that steal.”

Tuesday’s game featured plenty of prolonged scoring droughts, not from a lack of trying to score but from an abundance of effort from both teams to not let up any points. Carroll got out to a quick start, leading 11-3 after a quarter, but the Pioneers just steadfastly kept chipping away.

A buzzer-beater by Ryann Jennings pulled ‘Stoga within 15-12 at the half. They still trailed by just three at the fourth, and their tenacity kept Carroll to just two points over the final eight minutes of regulation. Archbishop Carroll scored a minute into the fourth, a great feed by Brooke Wilson getting Abbie McFillin a layup, but that would be its last made shot of the night.

“It came down to who was making shots, but we weren’t making shots and they weren’t making shots,” Carroll coach Renie Shields said. “We got a little content sitting back, and we told them they had to step up and start getting into passing lanes. We had fouls to give; I hate giving up free throws, it drives me crazy, but when we had fouls to give, we could be more aggressive.”

After Eberz put Carroll ahead in OT, the Pioneers didn’t immediately go into foul mode, instead trusting their defense to extend the game. That trust was well placed, Conestoga giving Carroll fits as it tried to run clock while protecting that one-point lead.

Deflections by Marisa Francione and Isabella Valencia led to Francione on the floor clutching the ball as Conestoga called time with 28.9 left in overtime. That was the Pioneers’ final timeout, something that caught them when coach AJ Thompson called for another one as his team tried to inbound the ball from the baseline on the reset.

“That’s completely my fault,” Thompson said. “Heat of the moment and I called it. We knew we got one extra when we started the overtime. I think there was some confusion whether we had one or two left, and it’s completely my fault. I feel bad for the girls to put them in that position, especially the seniors, and have it end that way when it felt like we really battled them tonight and had a chance to win that game.”

Conestoga calling the timeout it didn’t have meant a technical foul, Eberz knocking down one of two at the line, and gave Carroll possession. With the Pioneers now forced to foul, Wilson put two away at the stripe for a 37-33 lead with 21 seconds left.

It was an unfortunate moment in what was otherwise an extremely competitive game. While it was a bitter ending for Conestoga, the Pioneers again managed to raise the bar by winning their first-round state game after losing in the first round last season.

The team’s seniors — Francione, Isabella and Katrina Valencia and Ariell Lepage — set a high standard for the next classes to follow. Jennings had 10 points, and junior Janie Preston had seven; they are the top returning options next season.

Carroll moves on to face District 11 winner Parkland in Friday’s quarterfinals. 

“Our defense was the main thing that helped us tonight,” Eberz said. “A low-scoring game, it goes to show, we just have to keep up our intensity and come with that every single game.”

By Quarter

Archbishop Carroll: 11 | 7 | 13 | 2 | 4 || 37

Conestoga: 3 | 12 | 13 | 5 | 0 || 33

Scoring

Archbishop Carroll: Brooke Wilson 13, Alexis Eberz 9, Bridget Archbold 6, Olivia Nardi 5, Abbie McFillin 5

Conestoga: Ryann Jennings 10, Maggie Neary 10, Janie Preston 7, Isabella Valencia 3, Ruth Lanouette 2, Katrina Valencia 1

~~~

PIAA 6A Girls (local games)

First Round (Fri., March 8)
1-5 Haverford 66, 12-3 Dobbins Tech 28
12-2 Cardinal O’Hara 49, 1-8 Upper Dublin 17
12-1 Archbishop Carroll 58, 1-11 West Chester Henderson 37
1-1 Perkiomen Valley 78, 3-6 Manheim Township 33
2-1 Hazleton Area 63, 1-9 Pennsbury 48
11-1 Parkland 41, 1-10 Downingtown East 34
3-2 Dallastown 43, 1-7 Central Bucks East 36
1-3 Conestoga 45, 3-4 Wilson 29
3-1 Central Dauphin 41, 1-12 Kennett 23
1-6 Garnet Valley 58, 11-2 Easton 50 (OT)
1-4 North Penn 48, 11-3 Emmaus 34
1-2 Spring-Ford 71, 3-5 Northeastern 37

Second Round (Tue., March 12)
1-1 Perkiomen Valley 64, 1-5 Haverford 50
12-2 Cardinal O’Hara 55, 2-1 Hazleton Area 46
12-1 Archbishop Carroll 37, 1-3 Conestoga 33 (OT)
1-6 Garnet Valley 52, 3-1 Central Dauphin 46
1-4 North Penn 56, 7-2 North Allegheny 54 (OT)
1-2 Spring-Ford 74, 7-3 Peters Township 53

Quarterfinals (Fri., March 15)
1-1 Perkiomen Valley vs. 12-2 Cardinal O’Hara
11-1 Parkland vs. 12-1 Archbishop Carroll
1-6 Garnet Valley vs. 1-4 North Penn
1-2 Spring-Ford vs. 7-1 Norwin