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Catholic League Championship Preview (Feb. 27)

02/26/2017, 11:30am EST
By Josh Verlin

Collin Gillespie (above) and Wood are hoping to cap a dream season with the school's first PCL championship. (Photo: Mark Jordan/CoBL)

Rich Flanagan (@RichFlanagan33)
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John Mosco has seen the majesty of the Palestra on numerous occasions.

He’s gazed up at the rafters and seen the names of the Big 5 schools that have played epic games there since the five universities which epitomize the grit and intrigue behind Philadelphia basketball began playing their yearly slate in 1955. He knows the history and euphoria surrounding the building and he has had his fair share of experiences there, being an assistant at Neumann-Goretti for 17 years and a member of 11 teams which made it the Philadelphia Catholic League championship game, which has made its home inside the “Cathedral of College Basketball” almost every year since 1942.

He returned on Wednesday night and received his first victory as a head coach at the Palestra, at the helm of Archbishop Wood as his Vikings downed Archbishop Ryan 75-66.

While Mosco is no stranger to the building, leading his team from a sideline where many former greats -- including those who have made a name for themselves in the PCL -- have coached can be both intimidating and humbling.

“That was a special feeling on Wednesday when I got out there. I had to take a second to look around and take it all in,” said Mosco, now in his fourth season at Wood. “I went out there, stood in front of the bench, looked out at the crowd and took it in that all of these great coaches who came before me were able to coach on that sideline. There’s numerous names within our league like Dennis Seddon, William ‘Speedy’ Morris, Carl [Arrigale] and Chris McNesby, let alone college and pro. It was a special feeling.”

Mosco, who just had his first taste of leading a team to the Palestra, goes against a coach and mentor who has known plenty of success in that building than some coaches have in their entire careers.

Arrigale will coach in his 15th PCL title game, including nine straight, when he leads Neumann-Goretti onto the Palestra floor on Monday night against the Vikings, and with a win he’ll surpass former Roman Catholic head coach Seddon (10) for the most titles in league history.

Mosco was a member of Arrigale’s staff for 13 seasons, and Arrigale stressed how this year’s title game has a different feel going against a good friend and former colleague.

“John and I were friends, long before basketball. We grew up in the same area,” Arrigale said after the Saints 67-56 semifinal victory over Roman on Wednesday. “He’s a good guy. I hated to lose him, but he’s doing a great job over at Wood. I think it’s going to be a very good game.”

Hearing Arrigale’s pedigree to put aside his personal relationship with an opposing coach, particularly with Mosco, has certainly rubbed off on the Archbishop Wood coach as well.

“Just happy to be there, of course with a chance to go against Carl, we’re good friends, it’s going to be tough until the ball goes up in the air,” Mosco said. “Once the ball goes up in the air, it’s going to be a war, and hopefully both teams play to the best of their ability. I think last game was a show for the fans and this one could be better.”

Mosco was referring to the show his team, notably senior guard and PCL MVP Collin Gillespie, put on in its 82-73 victory over the Saints in game played at Archbishop Ryan on Jan.26, which ultimately sealed the No. 1 seed in the PCL playoffs for the Vikings.

Gillespie, bound for Villanova, posted a career-high 42 points, tied for the most in a single game in Archbishop Wood history, and he had plenty of help as senior guard Matt Cerutti (10 points), junior guard Tyree Pickron (11) and fellow junior Andrew Funk (10) all chipped in valuable contributions. Wood put on a balanced performance against the Saints and 6-foot-11 junior center Seth Pinkney, the team’s defensive anchor, only had a single point.

The atmosphere of that game was similar to the one Wood played in against Ryan on Wednesday because of the opponent and the emotion of the crowd.

Gillespie, the PCL’s leading scorer at 22.6 ppg, feels the atmosphere of the Palestra is actually an advantage for his team as they’ve played most of the season at neutral sites due to an issue with Wood’s gym, and doesn’t feel his team’s lack of experience in this game to be an impediment.

“It definitely helps playing in big games in the offseason and in the regular season, like at Ryan, that really helped,” said Gillespie, who is only eight points shy of 1,000 for his career. “Because it’s a big gym, there’s a lot of people there, I know there’s going to be a lot more people here now, but just playing in environments like that...it helps prepare us for games later on in the season.”


Quade Green (above) and Neumann-Goretti have lost the last two PCL championship games. (Photo: Mark Jordan/CoBL)

Arrigale lost impact players in Zane Martin (Towson), Vaughn Covington (Caldwell) and Rasheed Browne (prep school), and from last year’s PIAA Class 3A title team but two integral parts returned: senior guard Quade Green (Kentucky) and 6-9 forward Dhamir Cosby-Roundtree, who will be a teammate on Gillespie’s with the Wildcats next year. Both are 1,000-point scorers and had strong games against Wood in their regular season matchup; Green dropped 30 points, while Cosby-Roundtree had 12 and four blocks.

Green and Cosby-Roundtree have been the stalwarts for the Saints but they’ll need players who have as much experience as those from Wood when it comes to playing in a game of this caliber. Mike Millsip has come into his own during his senior year scoring in double figures in seven games and sophomore Christian Ings (9.3 ppg) has been a viable third option in the backcourt.

The X-factor could be 6-8 forward Marcus Littles, a transfer from Academy of the New Church. Littles, who already holds numerous D-I offers, had his best game of the season against the Vikings scoring a season-high 12 points and could cause a matchup problem for Wood, whose next biggest player after Pinkney is 6-7 junior Karrington Wallace. While each player has improved over the course of the year, playing in the PCL title at Palestra presents an added challenge.

Green, a three-time First Team All-Catholic selection, and Cosby-Roundtree, named to the First Team twice in three years, have won two state titles together but the PCL title has alluded them, losing to Roman each of the last two years. Green was a key contributor off the bench on 2014 Neumann-Goretti’s PCL title team but he has not won one as a starter and neither has Cosby-Roundtree, who feels there’s an even greater sense of urgency with this being their final shot at one.

“I’ve been thinking about it. This is our last chance to win a Catholic League title, so I just try to give 120 percent every time,” Cosby-Roundtree said after the semifinals. “I thought I needed to step up this whole season. In order for us to be a good team, I felt like I had to push everyone from the last man to Quade. I felt like I had to push everybody.”

While he had the chance to gaze upon all the Palestra had to offer as a head coach for the first time on Wednesday night, Mosco will now have to look down the sideline and see Arrigale, who has now become a rival. Couple that with having to keep a team focused on its goal and having to block out all of the distractions that come with preparing for a championship game.

This game is a story of two coaches who know a lot about a each other. It’s also about one team familiar with the game’s atmosphere but has been unable to close the deal in recent years. The other has one game under its belt at this venue but has not played in the biggest game the arena has to offer for its league.

Whatever happens, another chapter in the history of the PCL will be written on Monday night at the intersection of 33rd & Walnut in the heart of Philadelphia.


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