JAN. 28
CATHOLIC LEAGUE
Neumann-Goretti 69, SJ Prep 64 (OT)
   The Prep had 1-2-3 late chances to give the Saints their second face-slap of the weekend after a Friday loss at Roman, but it wasn't to be. We take you to the very end of regulation, with the score tied at 56-56. N-G is running down clock when sr. PG Antonio "Scoop" Jardine makes penetration along the left side of the lane. Sr. PG Matt Griffin trails and makes a poke-away steal, with jr. WG Matt Williams, a sub, recovering on the floor, and calling a simultaneous timeout, a short distance away. The clock reads 33.6. With star defender Tony Chennault, a frosh WG, having fouled out, Griffin is being covered by sr. sub G Wali Hepburn. Griffin wastes clock and then begins a drive to the right side. The flip shot does not go. Jr. C Rob Coney attempts a tap. It does not go. Jr. F Larry Loughery, flying right to left across the lane, snags the rebound and, all in one motion, with his back to the baseline, uses his right hand to attempt a curl-it-in layup from the left side. It does not go. Three chances at what would have been a memorable road win. Though N-G assuredly did not dominate the OT, it made the plays that counted and all suspense was gone as the final seconds melted away. Mr. Inkman was sr. PG Antonio "Scoop" Jardine (Syracuse), who poured in 32 points mostly because Prep had no one to match his combination of size/speed/strength. He started off slowly, as did his team, but he was then sensational as the Saints used a 28-11 run to reverse-and-then-some a 20-12 deficit. Using his patented, rock-back, throw-in-a-hitch shooting motion, Jardine drained 5 of 9 attempts from Way Out There. Overall, he went 10-for-20 from the floor and 7-for-10 at the line. He added four rebounds, three assists and four steals. Coach Carl Arrigale has told Scoop to be much more, well, aggressive, even selfish, and to look to score. As for the turnovers that may occasionally result, Arrigale says he'll live with them. Sr. C Rick Jackson had a crazy day. He consumed 20 rebounds and logged nine rejections, but shot just 5-for-14 at the line en route to 15 points. He flubbed nine of his first 11, in fact, before regrouping. At least Rick had the brass TO regroup and convert a double-bonus with 26.4 seconds left in OT, raising N-G's lead to 66-61. Jr. WG-SF Jim Mower could not knock down a left-wing trey and sr. F Mark Hatty, the FB QB, officially closed the door with a double-bonus at 15.8. After an earlier spot appearance, Hatty played the final 5:40 following the departure of Chennault (five fouls). He totaled four of his six points and five of his seven rebounds in the extra session. He also received what could have been a killer tech after getting a little too rambunctious at the back end of a held-ball situation. Jr. PF Rashad Savage snagged 11 rebounds. Griffin, recently offered scholarships by Rider and St. Peter's, had 16 points and five assists. As happened the first time around, Chennault did a tremendous job on him. Matt had just five points through three quarters (and the threeball came after a screen and defensive switch), then became noticeably more aggressive, in terms of looking for his shot (and feeling comfortable in doing so), when others began to cover him. Loughery reached double figures in points (10) the WAY-hard way. He shot just 4-for-20 and, though we didn't keep specific track of this, I'd bet Jackson got at least seven of his nine blocks on Loughery. Larry would work and work and work and try all different methods to get off clean shots. Rick would wait and wait and wait and just swat/alter the end result. Like Rick, Larry struggled at the line (2-for-7 total, 1-for-4 in OT). Mower finished with 20 points, going 8-for-20 total and 3-for-10 on treys. He did his best work early, using two treys to post eight first quarter points. Coney shot 5-for-7 for 10 points while adding five boards and two blocks. The aforementioned heroics notwithstanding, the game's most impressive feat might have been turned in by Williams, the sixth man. With 1:40 left in regulation, he was fouled by Chennault (off a defensive switch) while launching a trey. He strolled to the line and knocked down all three shots with NO problem. The ball barely rustled the net, let alone hit the rim. Impressive! N-G's gym has six rows of stands on each side. The stands were packed and many stood/sat/got in our way (smile) behind the basket at the north end of the gym. Nah, not really. Those nearby were quite considerate and almost never blocked the sightlines for sidekick Frog Carfagno and Yours Truly. When asked to back up/move over just a shade, all did so immediately and without complaint. Thank you! We could have sat at the other end, but N-G's cheerleaders were in full effect and the noise/smell of perfume might have hindered our efforts. Not to mention that they might have gotten in the way for pictures. On second thought, that might have been a GREAT thing. Maybe someday we'll have special photo pages just for cheerleading squads and award Cheerleader of the Week T-shirts. How does that sound, folks? (smile)

JAN. 25
PUBLIC LEAGUE
Franklin LC 62, Overbrook 57
   Not a total one, but this tilt had at least a partial feel of an old-school Pub game. A decent number of fans were on hand and both schools featured crowd-pleasing stars with talent and pizzazz. For FLC we're talking sr. CG Malcolm Eleby, who has signed with St. Bonaventure, and for Overbrook we're talking soph WG Nurideen Lindsey, who someday might get signed by some streetball organization (smile). The two went after each other on a few occasions and mostly got so carried away/excited, nothing special happened. The fans still roared, though. Isn't that what it's all about? Um, not really. It's about respecting the game and your teammates and like I said, the sideshow didn't last too long so overall no major harm was done. Eleby, a lefty, can go with the best of them. If this kid had concentrated on track, he probably could have emerged as a top-notch triple jumper. I swear (or affirm) he can get from halfcourt to the basket in three steps! OK, maybe six or seven. But they're impressive steps (smile). Early, Eleby was mostly on the wing as jr. Kyle Sawyer ran the show. He later handled the point and mostly attacked down the lane. Before providing an interesting interview, which in part focused on the fact that he leaves his house before 6 o'clock most mornings to work out at the YMCA at Broad and Master (yes, BEFORE school), he totaled 25 points, eight rebounds, six assists and three steals with nine, four, two and two coming in a 14-10 fourth quarter. Though his shooting from the floor was certainly respectable (8-for-16), his free-throwing was butt-ugly (9-for-17) and five different times he made one, missed one, on the same visits. He bricked five in the last quarter and, yes, he's quite thankful 'Brook could not make the Bobcats pay. The other upperclassman of note is 6-7 C Dante Wooten, another lefty. Wooten has the look of someone who'd be a better fit in the Catholic or Inter-Ac. He's kind of laid back and very rarely makes a play that screams out, "I'm taller than everybody and I just showed it!!" Hey, he's not the first guy who's winding down his high school career while still trying to find his way and if he becomes a terror down the line, he won't be the first to do that, either. D-Is are on him. He had six points (all in the first half) and nine boards. Jr. PF Ryan White showed some brass in the second half, collecting all 12 of his points and eight of his 10 boards. Sawyer had 11 points, three assists and six steals. Soph WG Khalief Trawick had six points while going 0-for-5 from Threeball Land. Lindsey had 20 points, nine boards and, tellingly, just one assist. This kid can maneuver around/through ANYBODY, but the problem is, he often keeps the ball until two-three guys are around him. Flat out, Nuri is TOO talented to settle for bad shots and once he learns to differentiate, the fans will love him even more. With his body control, he should be able to shoot 15 to 20 free throws per game. Undersized Jr. PF-C Kevin Leland showed a warrior's heart all game long. Of course, when doesn't he? What a great teammate this guy is. He was killin' in the first half, witness his 14 points. However, he went 0-for-4 in the second and overall went 2-for-10 at the line. Sitting on one baseline, it was impossible not to notice how HARD Leland tried to will the free throws into the basket and then his agony as nothing came close to working. He claimed 13 rebounds and since he strikes me as the kind of young man who will take his free-throwing miseries to heart, here's assuming he'll work hard all weekend and do much better next week. Jr. F Vernon Harris was bouncy and competitive (14 points, 11 rebounds). A major downfall for 'Brook was the foul trouble experienced by steady sr. PG Derrick Evans (four assists, three steals). He incurred his fourth with 6:59 left and his fifth at 5:22. Ex-West Philly scoring whiz Freddie Stokes did a solo act as Overbrook's coach. FB boss Ken Sturm is listed as the head man, but he has let Freddie run the show all season and today, according to AD Gail Cohen, he guided the JV team in a road game. Weird, right? Had a funny pre-game chat with two Ovb FB players, Alan Sipes and Vincent Gowans. Alan wanted me to know he'd had an interception during the season and wondered whether I'd make the fix now. Yeah, why not? I've got nothing better to do (smile). Gowans was amazed that I knew his name and that it was spelled with "ans" at the end as opposed to "ens." Fifty-percent chance, right? I did know who he was. Promise. Vincent is hoping to get noticed for college and I gave him the same advice I'd give to any junior. Take the SAT early and often!!!! I know it can be scary, but you need to know where you stand as early as possible. If you can get a qualifying score, or come close to it, before the completion of your junior year, it could make a GIGANTIC difference. College coaches will be much more inclined to pay attention. OK, that'll do it. Next chore: give Alan Sipes credit for his pick in the Panthers' game vs. Roxborough. TedSilary.com. We live our life for YOU! (ha ha ha).
  **The FLC-Mountain View game will be played Saturday, 6 p.m., at Ben Franklin HS.**

JAN. 24
PUBLIC LEAGUE
Prep Charter 82, Freire 63
   There's a reality series in here somewhere . . . Only in the Pub. With the characters dressed up as clowns. You won't believe this one! Yes, you will. Because you know, as do I, that everything is possible in The Goofiest League in America. Remember how last Tuesday Freire was supposed to host Prep Charter? And how I had trouble finding a parking space, then finally decided to park out by 30th Street Station and walk to Freire, near 21st and Chestnut? And then, when I walked into the school, how coach Lawrence Threadgill (nice guy; it's sometimes unclear which planet he calls home)  informed me the game had been postponed? And how I wound up at Dobbins-Olney, which turned out to be a pretty good game? OK, today was the makeup date. I headed straight for a part of Chestnut Street, out by 30th again, where the meters let you park for four hours, and pumped in 12 quarters, just to be safe. Trudge, trudge, trudge, down to Freire. Walk through the door. Past the front desk. Get close to the gym. Two players are standing there. I say to them, "Well, guys at least there's a game today, right?" Threadgill is sitting in his office. He pipes up, "Yeah, but it's not here. We're playing AT Prep Charter." Ha, ha, ha. Decent little joke. Except it's NOT a joke! Repeat: It's NOT a joke!! He says he thought he told me that last week. Um, no. Which is why I'm here right now, knucklehead! He said he was forced into a deal by the PC folks. They'd agree to a date change only if Freire agreed to give up the home game. He said the Dragons would be leaving soon for PC. Unbelievable. Classy guy that I am, I don't even curse. At least not while still inside the building. Outside, guess whose number I punch in first on the somewhat trusty cell phone? The one belonging to Charles Sumter, the PL hoops commissioner. "Yo, Charles, I'll have to torch your ass on the website again!" He sighs. "Uggggh. What now?" I break it down. He says, "That game is now at Prep Charter? They didn't tell ME." Turns out, they didn't specifically HAVE to because Threadgill was told to arrange for refs independently and they were given the heads-up on the site change. Not us, though, and as a byproduct not the thousands of people (OK, maybe six or seven?) who saw the schedule in the paper and had plans to show up at Freire. Anyway, I drive down to PC. Ready for Part II of the latest Freire Fre-asco? As Threadgill heads for Freire's locker room, he notices that PC is wearing white uniforms. Duh. Home teams always wear light colors. He says to me, "Doesn't the visiting team wear white?" Um, no. And because you've been coaching for, what, half a decade, you should know that! PC coach Dan Brinkley says PC's road uniforms are not available. So, you've got it, both teams wore white. Chant along with me now, "Only in the Pub! Only in the Pub! Only in the Pub!" Yo, Vallas, spend just one week with any of us on the PL trail. Just one. Come in disguise, though, so the folks won't have a chance to quickly switch to best-behavior mode. Nah, forget it. Don't get this league into line. Much more fun this way. And great website fodder . . . The game? Not bad. Take one of the Morris twins and put him on Freire and you're talking potential classic. Freire has no height, but its guards/small forwards are talented and brassy and the Dragons held a lead into the second quarter. The Ink Man was sr. SF Marcus Morris, who's 1 inch shorter (6-9) and 7 minutes younger than PF-C Markieff. Both have signed with Memphis, although it's looking more and more as if they'll spend a year at a Phila.-area prep school (somewhere in the suburbs). In part because Markieff had to sit with foul trouble, Marcus was the twins' far-and-way statistical leader with 23 points, 14 rebounds, two assists and two blocks. Markieff settled for 10 points, seven boards and four rejections. Soph PG Parrish Grant now appears to have a great handle on what role he needs to fill for this squad. If big-time scoring ability is in there somewhere, let it come out next year or in '09. Today he had 12 points while launching only the shots that cried out to be launched. Otherwise he kept the ball hopping (10 assists) and was a defensive pest (six steals). Nice job! The other sophs, SF Tyree "Chuck" Harris (7-for-9, 17 points) and Jesse Morgan (11, five steals) also had mostly good moments. Morgan did force SOME shots, but that was mostly in the game's playgroundish stages. Freire had its full complement of players and, if there were such a thing as a 6-2/and/under Pub league, these guys would be dynamite. I'd seen jr. SF-WG Jarrod Denard, a lefty, last week vs. Imhotep. He again impressed, especially on the move, en route to 19 points. He went oh-fer on treys (5 attempts), so that's where works need to be done, especially with the next level in mind. He used quick hands and timing to pluck seven steals. This was my first look at jr. WG Donta Fisher. By contrast, he's more of a pure WG with a classic jumpshot and authoritative moves, as well. He knocked down three treys, giving defenders facials each time, and scored 23 total points. Also in his stat bin were four assists and four steals. He hasn't played in that many games (not sure why), but he is a PLAYER. Soph PG Ramon Galloway, about 6-1 and thin, also has The Look. He had 11 points, with two treys among his baskets. FB star Antoine "Blueberry" Singleton dealt five assists and lent sensible support, along with grit. There was a scary moment late in the game. While pursuing a loose ball, PC guard John "Tatoe" Brown suffered what might have been a serious injury to his left ankle. He said he'd be getting X-rays. The tiny Tatoe (heightwise, that is; he has a thick build) plays sparingly, but is in the rotation. He's a favorite of the fans AND his teammates. We hope he's OK.

JAN. 21
CATHOLIC LEAGUE
SJ Prep 55, Roman 47
  I mean, like, both teams played hard, and stuff, but there are so many other things I could be doing instead of writing this stupid report, and where can I get a hot dog that doesn't have a bun that tastes like barf? . . . Just thought I'd begin with a Kevin Silary impression, folks. Hope you liked it (smile). Both teams DID play hard and anything less would have been unacceptable, seeing as how they occupy upper-echelon spots in the Southern Division. In my last few visits to Prep's gym, for photo-taking purposes, I've taken a spot behind the east basket. Today, that provided a clear view of how the Roman players, early and often and sometimes with passion, complained about the officials' calls. Were some of the calls bad? No doubt. Were many others questionable? No doubt again. Is it within the realm of possibilities to think that a Speedy Morris-coached squad is going to get the benefit of the zebra-ing, especially in a home game? Um, yes. But the Cahillites, I felt, as did others nearby, did themselves a disservice by reacting again and again and again with looks/words of disbelief/disgust, and we all sensed that their negative thoughts were lingering long after calls were made, most likely distracting them from the next task at hand. Part of being a great player is channeling effort/emotions into the proper areas. Just a thought, guys, and now we'll move on . . . With no true center and not even a power forward, Roman can have problems against a team with height/inside savvy and that was what happened today. The Hawks were in command virtually throughout and the tall guys were much of the reason. Early, the biggest impression was made by 6-6, late-blooming sr. C Rob Coney. Though quite thin, he showed no hesitation at mixing it up with Roman's brassy group and he finished a 21-17 first half with nine (of his 12) rebounds and six (of his seven) points. The throughout-the-game force was 6-6 jr. F Larry Loughery, who got the ink. "Lock" had the low-blocks area on lockdown, shooting 7-for-11 from the floor and 6-for-9 at the line while adding 10 rebounds and five get-that-crap-outta-heres. He also showed nice timing on his contributions; each seemed to come at a big moment. With 2:08 left in the half, Coney's follow provided a 21-13 pad and there was just a hint of this in the air: Hmmm, maybe, somehow, Prep's gonna cruise through this one. Not to be, of course. Roman scored four points prior to intermission and then, with 6:36 left in the third quarter, sr. WG Bradley Wanamaker (Pitt) posted a three-point play off a steal, three-quarter-court drive and thunder dunk while drawing contact, putting Roman ahead, 22-21. Loughery had an answer 13 seconds later, converting a pass from jr. WG-SF Jim Mower. Flash to the stretch run: Prep had a five-point lead when Wanamaker missed a right-wing trey. Coney rebounded and flipped to sr. PG Matt Griffin. Loughery ran the floor and was rewarded with a feed from Griffin, and the result was a three-point play. Loughery later scored a bucket to make it 47-39 (from Mower) and his pass TO Mower produced another two-pointer for 52-45 at 0:39. What a strange weekend Mower had. He had 16 points in the FIRST quarter vs. K-K on Friday, thanks mostly to four treys, and none (0-for-5) through three quarters today. He finished with eight. The ballhawking Cahillities forced Griffin into some turnover miseries and Matt went just 2-for-6 at the line down the stretch, but he was ever-brassy and his squad's workload as the only thing close to a ballhandler is enormous. Roman killed itself with shooting woes, going 18-for-52 from the floor and 8-for-18 at the line. FOUR times the Cahillites missed both ends of two-shot fouls. Talk about disheartening. Bradley had 10 points, four rebounds, three assists and four steals. Twin Brian had eight points, seven boards and three assists. Jr. G Courtney Stanley hit a pair of third-quarter treys. This game, a Coaches vs. Cancer event, was well-attended, but the atmosphere never reached electric proportions. The Prep had nowhere near the amount of student fans it would have had if the game had been played on a Friday afternoon. Former Prep player Kevin Gallagher, now a senior at Pennsbury, was among the spectators. His tag-along guy was star big man Lavoy Allen. University City star Kenny Moore was also in attendance. If you go to the photo link, you'll notice that some of the early pics (sometimes the order gets a little messed up; no idea why) are of Prep JV player Rich Hofmann. Yup, his dad is the legendary Daily News sports columnist. Gotta hook up my peeps, right?? Young Rich has that ever-popular lefthanded stab of a jump shot. Decent! He also went hard to the hole a few times. Decent again! He plays in the Narberth League in the summertime and already can tell great Puck stories. Beyond decent! (smile) Meanwhile, back in THIS family . . . Kevin, a sophomore, spent the day in Toms River, N.J., competing in an indoor track meet. Believe it or not, he's pretty fast and for the moment the coach has him running in the 55-meter dash. (He went out for the team thinking he'd try the pole vault or shot put.) We finally got to talk about 9:45. Kevin said there were four heats in his event with eight kids in each. This was his first meet. He didn't advance to the final. Um, not even close (smile). "I learned some things," he said. "It'll help me for the next time. My start was messed up." I told him how I started THIS report and he was cracking up. "That's good writing," he said. "You get that from ME." Ha, ha, ha.

JAN. 20
NON-LEAGUE
GAMP 53, Audubon (N.J.) 33
(Report by Kevin Silary)
  Early morning, January 20, 2007, my pops asks me to go to a basketball game at 2, with a pickup time of 12:40. Being lazy and tired and because it was also my sister's birthday, I was not very interested. There is always more that I could go to. But somehow I ended up going to Audubon, N.J., to see the Green Wave play the Pioneers of GAMP. I knew this was going to be a good game! (wink)
  The first significant thing that happened there was, I got a delicious hot dog and orange Gatorade! The hot dog was great, but the bun tasted like barf and made it take too long to eat, so I had to stay outside the gym for around 10 minutes eating my hot dog and drinking my ice cold Gatorade. The Audubon girls' basketball team was playing when we got there and that, um, stunk, so I'm not gonna say much about that. I wore my Eastern HS Baseball shirt on purpose, because Audubon is a fellow South Jersey team, so they know Eastern. They were scared of me. I could see it in their faces. But enough about that, let's get to the game!
  The first basket scored was by the Green Wave nearly 2 minutes into the game. I thought this was going to be a close game, but I thought wrong. Seconds later junior guard Stefan Thompson drained a 3. It was all downhill from there for Audubon. Nearing the end of the 1st quarter GAMP was ahead, 14-2. That hot dog earlier did not do the job. At this point I was starving, but I couldn't go get another one because I had to pay attention so I could write this stupid report. Sophomore PG Laron Byrd is doing a good job handling and dishing off the ball to Thompson, who ended the 1st quarter with two 3s and 10 points.
  As my need for another hot dog went on, so did Audubon's need for a basket. They went nearly 7 minutes without a point, until #13 sank a trey. But that didn't mean much anyway. GAMP never stopped. One big thing that I noticed was that Audubon definitely had a height advantage, but GAMP played much harder and smarter. Mad props to Archie! (My pops says that's the nickname for GAMP's coach, Art Kratchman). In fact, Laron Byrd his team with 5 rebounds, and was hardly the tallest kid out there. I also noticed that both teams had the same shoes, but that doesn't mean much. This game was going very fast. Mostly because there were almost no free throws.
  At the end of the 2nd quarter it was 28 to 12, and I could finally get my next hot dog. Of course, because of the stupid bun I was outside of the gym about 2 minutes into the third quarter. But once I got back I snatched the camera from pops and started taking pictures. They were all really good, too! Senior Eric Funaro buried three 3's in the 3rd quarter. He ended the game with 14 pts. Sophomore PG Larry Lambert, a sub, did a good job driving hard for a couple points late in the 4th. Everyone had a good game for GAMP in my eyes. It was sweet. Audubon, um, isn't good.

JAN. 19
CATHOLIC LEAGUE
SJ Prep 65, Kennedy-Kenrick 41
   I can hear you asking, "Why'd you go to this game?" Just as some people were asking at the Prep, "Why'd you come here?" Hey, there was nothing else that HAD to be covered and K-K's staff is populated by good peeps who are working hard and it's doubtful I would have seen this squad at another juncture, so why not? Don't K-K's players deserve the indignity of seeing bad pics of themselves on this website, too? (smile) K-K is young and, um, under-talented in comparison with the other teams in the Southern Division and ugly became the watchword pretty much right away. It took 90 seconds for Prep to storm to a 9-0 lead and the bulge finally reached 21-0 before jr. G-F Karlton Byrd converted a pair of free throws with 2:03 left in the first quarter. In the first quarter, sr. PG Matt Griffin totaled five assists, two steals and even three rebounds and jr. WG Jim Mower racked up 16 points -- yes, 16 -- on four treys and two regulars. The Hawks had assists on their first 11 field goals and that streak wasn't halted until sr. backup G Drew Horgan made a medium-length drive for a FG that created a 33-9 lead. Coach Speedy Morris could not have been kinder to the Wolverines. The starters pretty much disappeared after the first quarter. Horgan wound up fashioning a memorable performance, totaling 17 points (6-for-7 floor, two treys, 3-for-4 line) along with six boards, three assists and two steals. Dare I say it? He was Griffin-like! (smile). Jr. G Chris Farrell scored eight points while sr. G Sean McNulty was not quite as fortunate. The fan favorite launched nine shots in the fourth quarter and none touched cotton. The only K-K player with a combination of skill and the accompanying confidence -- to this point, anyway -- is Byrd. He's a classic tricky-dick lefty with lots of body control and swagger. The only "problem" is, he often takes a while to break down defenders, whipping the ball back and forth between his hands (he's equally adept with either) and his teammates tend to watch. But he can GO and PLAY and in an old-style Public League game, he'd be good for 35 to 40. He finished 9-for-18 and 4-for-7 for 22 points and at least 15 of his shots were layups or flip shots off relentless penetration. He took one trey -- decent form; didn't hit it -- and a jumper from close to the arc. That didn't go, either. He also snared nine rebounds and dished five assists, so he was responsible for all but three of his team's FGs. He played all but maybe the last half-minute. Soph G Greg Santangelo, of budding football fame, drained three treys. The Wolverines played hard througout and I liked their togetherness. In the fourth quarter, soph F Alex Byrne and jr. F Francis Orr had a pair of blocks. Niiiiiiiice! I'm writing this report in the auxiliary gym at Germantown Academy before the Patriots' game against Malvern. The cheerleaders are in here practicing their routines, especially the one that includes dancing. Not sure what the song is called, but I have a feeling it'll be pounding around in my head alllllll night. OK, about 10 after 7 now. Over to the other gym. I'm guessing neither one of these teams will roll to a 21-0 lead. 

JAN. 18
PUBLIC LEAGUE
Mastery 61, World Communications 39
   Sometimes we have good/great games in mind, and it's pot luck as to which kid gets the story. Today was the opposite. I headed to the former Thomas Middle School, in South Philly (behind an elementary school at 9th & Oregon), with specific designs on writing about Brian Reid. Because he's 6-5 and is talented/sensible enough to play the point and, more importantly, because he has great grades (3.9 GPA) and a qualifying SAT score, Reid has become a hot name for D-II and D-III coaches. He's probably a shade slow for D-I, but let's face it, there have been some decent players through the years in the Ivy League who would have never medaled in a jumping/running event in a track meet. This kid has nice body control and instincts, along with a decent left hand. He went for 23 points, 12 rebounds, five assists and two steals. Admittedly, WC is a true weak sister and could not offer much in the way of opposition, especially with competent sr. CG Maurice Jones falling hard to the floor in the beginning of the game and getting dinged again later. Reid easily could have dropped 40. Instead, he limited his shots to those in the flow and was more than willing to involve his teammates. Soph WG Arval Knox shot 2-for-3 on treys en route to 10 points while adding four assists and three steals. Soph SF Jaleel Khabeer had seven points, six boards, three assists and four steals. The coolest Mastery player, though, was frosh Andrew King, who goes all of 5-1, 101 pounds. As soon as he came into the game, he ran to the baseline and set a purposeful pick against a much bigger player. He missed his two shots, but went sliding across the floor and out of bounds during a steal attempt and good-naturedly posed for a post-game pic (the ol' stand-on-a-chair trick) with sr. big'un/teammate John "Donuts" Duncan. And thanks to John, too, for going along. Jones had to settle for 12 points. He also had five boards and three assists. Peter Graham grabbed seven rebounds. Tyreek Renwrick, tall and thin, had eight points and five boards. Damon Reid, a frosh G, is the son of a former Neumann star of the same name. Dad was a hard-nosed player, so Son might bear watching, too. Meanwhile, B. Reid has a pair of sisters on Mastery's girls' squad. Brittany is his twin (no, not identical -- smile). Brandy is a soph. They also liked having their pic taken with Brian. The gym is on the fourth floor. The color scheme is insane (ha ha). Large swatches of yellow and blue and green and orange. The floor looks as if it hasn't been refinished since the 1940s. The rest of the school is beautiful and/or being refurbished. It only has up to 9th grade for the moment. The sophs to seniors attend school in a downtown building. There are other campuses as well and coach Quincy Reed said he hopes his team next year can play games at Pickett MS, all the way up in Germantown (Wayne & Chelten). Temple student Terrance "T-Time" McNeil, a reporting stalwart for the website during FB season, made his first appearance on the hoops trail. He has been hired by the Phila. Tribune to work 19 hours a week as a news clerk. Congrats, T!! Your foot is officially in the door. Time to kick butt and take names (smile). Terrance mostly hung out with Froggy for this one, learning our system for taking stats. Not an easy first game: WC's uniforms have no numbers on the front. Grrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr.

JAN. 15
CATHOLIC LEAGUE
Carroll 50, W. Catholic 48
   These are teams that will find it difficult to make the playoffs. They found it easy to play hard against each other and the viewing was mostly enjoyable, though the multitudes did not exactly turn out for this one. Hopefully, Huck will send me a note if I'm incorrect, but I'm pretty sure Carroll coach Paul Romanczuk used 11 players (Huck says it was 12! -- thanks, buddy) and that's a highly unusual total for a tight game. The Patriots overcame a shaky first half (they trailed, 31-22) to pull off a satisfying road win and deny West jr. G-F Eric Brennan a day in the spotlight. Brennan, the lefty who was dislodged as West's QB in the midst of what became a championship season (after starting since his frosh year), is looking more and more like someone with a basketball future. He collected 23 points, 11 rebounds, three assists and two blocks and often found himself out front with the ball, being given the chance to take his man off the dribble. He went 8-for-16 from the floor and 6-for-6 at the line and was the only Burr to notch a second-half field goal. His best sequence came in the first half when he blocked a shot and then ran downcourt, accepted a pass from soph PG Rob Holloman and drained a trey. Brennan's drive and flip shot made it 45-45 and his layup advanced the Burrs within 48-47 at 2:59 after Carroll sr. G Pete Clancy (four assists) swished a trey on a feed from jr. G Lamar Jackson (10 points, four assists and even a team-high seven rebounds, despite his 5-10 stature). Holloman later hit one of two free throws for 48-48 math. With the score still tied at 0:40, soph F-C Kasheef Festus was called for traveling after catching an inbound pass against a fullcourt press. Brennan followed with a missed trey from a shade to the right of dead-on and Jackson willed himself to grab yet another board. Festus atoned for his mess-up with a hard drive for a field goal at 0:10, while drawing a foul. He missed the free throw and West soph F-C Koron Reed consumed his 12th rebound. West took the ball to the right side. Brennan had it briefly in the right corner, but no good looks were available. He passed to soph G Haleem "P-Nut" Hayward, who to this point was 2-for-2 on treys. This one did not connect. He had to lean slightly backward while launching from in front of West's bench and soph F Andre Wilburn got a piece of the ball. Ballgame. Story honors went to jr. WG Ellis Rogers, who saved 12 of his 16 points for the second half. He added three steals and came off as a classy young man in the interview session. He has a 3.2 GPA, receives strong family support and is already receiving contact from Duke and UConn for his skills as a FB player; primarily as a DB. He also likes hoops a whole lot and says it could take him a long time to decide which sport to pursue in college. Jackson, a transfer from Bodine (of the good, ol' Pub), displayed a certain warrior mentality. At least to some degree, he appeared to mess with Holloman's mind and Rob will undoubtedly learn from this experience. Down the line, I'm sure he'll be doling out similar punishment. Off the bench, in spot duty, FB lineman Bill O'Brien, a sr., had six boards. Sr. G Shamus McNulty buried his only shot, a trey, and provided a nice photo opp by unintentionally upending a West player right in front of where we (also Huck and his main bud, Matt "Cauls" McCauley) were sitting. You da man, Shamus! (smile) West sr. F Mike Williams finished with 11 points (10 in the first half) and seven rebounds. He had three first quarter FGs and Huck said, "He scores in bunches." His second quarter FGs were also scored in quick order. Huck: All-Knowing and Quite Disappointed. Why disappointed? Well, before the game, a newspaper photographer (not our guy) walked up to Huck and said, "Are you Puck? I was told I can get the names and numbers from you." Did you notice? Read the quote again. The dude called him PUCK, not HUCK. Geez, next time just stab him or shoot him or something. Huck hid his devastation well. At least on site. Might have experienced a sleepless night, though. Complete with tears. (smile)

JAN. 14
CATHOLIC LEAGUE
La Salle 55, McDevitt 42
   Traditionally, many of La Salle's best athletes reside in the area that mostly feeds McDevitt, and these schools are maybe a mile apart geographically, so the teams, in all sports, usually go at it with passion. It was a shame not many students were in attendance (they mostly can't hang with Sunday afternoon affairs these days; what's with that?), but a decent number of adults were on hand and McDevitt, though young and outmanned, put forth yeoman effort. Among the spectators, sitting right next to each other across from La Salle's bench, were two stars from a decade ago -- La Salle's Joe Meade and McDevitt's Ryan Presson. Ryan bested Joe for the North scoring title in '97, but they were good buddies beforehand and have remained so to this day. Nice to see them. (McDevitt had an alumni game to start the day. Ryan either made or missed the last shot to win or lose the game. I forget what someone told me. Let's hope he made it -- smile. A piece of trivia: Ryan's dad is one of the new-generation Temptations. If you don't know who they are, you have my deepest sympathy -- another smile.) OK, where were we . . . This was my first look at each team. I could tell from the boxscores that La Salle coach Joe Dempsey was using a deep rotation and that continued today. Keeping everyone happy is a difficult chore. However, the Explorers showed good togetherness and I saw no long faces upon removals. I always look for players' body language and facial expressions, especially away from the center of attraction, because they can tell so much about what's really going on with a team. Listen, every kid would kill (or least maim) to play 32 minutes. Ain't possible. Those who put the greater good FIRST are the ones worth keeping. The ink went to jr. WG Clay Penecale, an athletic kid (good hops) with a classic-form jumper. He nailed three quick treys and appeared headed to a 100-point outburst!! He finished with 14. Not because he uncorked a whole series of bricks. In fact, he took just two more shots from the floor. The game didn't call for him to pump indiscriminately, so he didn't. He had some very impressive moments that had nothing to do with scoring, so he more than did his job. Among them: While hounding an inbounder, he jumped to deflect the pass and then controlled the ball for one of his three steals. Later, he caught an outlet pass on the run and finished with his left hand while absorbing contact. La Salle's primary PG is jr. Mike Topley, a lefty who still looks quite young but no doubt has the inner fire. I guarantee you, this kid has MANY fans. He hit three treys en route to 11 points while adding four dimes and even four boards. Junior Matt Crozier, a transfer from Conwell-Egan (wonder if he's the first kid EVER to make that transfer??), was a nice physical presence inside with seven rebounds and two blocks. He added seven points. Star FB receiver Joe "Gettin' Miggy With It" Migliarese had an oh-fer day from the floor, but had three assists and four fourth quarter rebounds. Jr. G Frank Pierson hit a pair of treys in the second quarter. Sr. G-F Anthony Acey-Davis mixed six points, six boards. La Salle has a 6-8 frosh named C.J. Aiken. If he stands straight up, he'll be 6-10 (smile). He's thin and even narrow-framed and wasn't out there too long, but I also got at least a little look at him in the JV game and there's no reason to think he won't become a player. One tip for gaining weight, young man: Tastykakes! Unless someone provided bad info, McDevitt has just one senior on its roster, G Anthony DeTuro (and, yes, he assured me it's spelled with a capital T). He's a feisty dude and I liked how he played. Unfortunately, he was hit with bad foul trouble, in part because he had to dog Penecale, and his total minutes were limited. He had six points and four assists. Jr. PG Matt Davis, a lefty, also showed well in the heart department. He managed four assists and three steals in addition to eight points although, like others, he was guilty of some errors that weren't particularly forced. Soph F Aaron Walker and jr. F James Williams gave similar appearances. Reasonably springy. Able to face up and challenge stronger defenders. Just not fully polished and maybe not yet completely confident. Walker glassed it to the tune of six boards. The mother of jr. F Dan Drennen sang a beautiful rendition of the National Anthem. And the legendary PA man (and DJ), Fr. Bill Chiriaco, earned major points by filling a timeout gap with the sounds of the Spencer Davis Trio. It was also great to see former McDevitt player Tom Casey (class of '77; his sister, Rita, works in La Salle's front office; Oreland Forever!!) and ex-Judge coach Charley Greenberg (uncle of La Salle all-timer Chip Greenberg and yes, basketball did exist at Judge before Bill Fox -- smile), among others.

JAN. 12
GUEST REPORT . . .
By Former Dobbins FB Player "Famous" Amos Leak
(About to return to IUP)
  Hey, Ted. I was at the game yesterday with Prep Charter vs. World
Communications. I don't know if you want to post this up or not, but
that kid from World Communications, Maurice Jones, he's a dynamite
player. D-2s and definitely D-3s should be looking at him. He's a
good player. His team is not that good. To be honest, they showed some
signs of life in the first quarter. It just fell apart because they
had no other person to look forward to scoring except Jones. Jones, early
in the first quarter, stated his name by catching a fast break
alley-oop from Basir Crandall and literally dunking on a Prep Charter
player (I won't say his name because that's embarrassing) off the
alley-oop. That's when the crowd went absolutely nuts. Prep Charter's
girls' basketball team was in the house and watching the game and they
were talking about how they respect Jones' game and so were some other
people. That was basically the highlight for World Communications.
Jones and the first quarter. After that, it got bad for them. Prep
Charter started coming alive . . . and I mean ALIVE. Every time we turned
around the Morris Twins were dunking, and you would think they were the only
two trying to get the ball and score. They actually dish out the ball
very well. It's like a different feel of a team from last year. Last
year with Doug Davis (I have no idea where he is) and Josh Martin
(Gratz) and Rodney Green (La Salle U.), they dished the ball to the big
men. Now with them gone, the big men are getting the feel of having
to dish out the ball to other players to create opportunities. I
actually like that idea. In the first half the twins were a little
quiet. Second half, all of that quietness went out the window. It
started with a few layups and then it went to a few dunks. Then they
started to get alley-oops and put-back dunks. They both ended up finishing
the game with double-doubles. Marcus had about 34 points and 12
rebounds and Markieff had about 23 points and 14 rebounds. They played
well and even gave out a few assists. I think they'll be fine at
Memphis. They really have improved their games since last year!
  Thanks, Ted, for the time.
  Oh, yeah, check out that Leak that won the national championship. Good
family! Congrats, Chris Leak!

JAN. 11
PUBLIC LEAGUE
Eng. and Science 45, Franklin 24
   In a league with 53 schools, it's amazing how often the where-to-go pickings are slim. The HOPE was that this game would be competitive in part because Franklin was the home team. The REALITY: it was a mismatch almost from the opening tap. E&S' starting lineup includes five respectable seniors and the players have obviously bought into the system -- be patient, but don't be afraid to PLAY -- being taught by C.M. Brown and his two legendary assistants, Rich Yankowitz and Ken Hamilton. The Engineers worked for a good shot for the entire first minute of the game and you could almost hear the Electrons muttering, "This crap (or some version thereof) ain't right." E&S kept working for good shots and kept making them through the first half (28-10) and limited Franklin to four, yes, four rebounds. There was a hint of stirring for Franklin in the final 16 minutes, but nothing earth-shattering and the game lasted all of 63 minutes. I walked back to the office and Ed Barkowitz asked whether the game had been halted or canceled. Nope, just short and not particularly sweet. The story subject was Thiel Benn, a 6-5, 215-pound power forward prospect for the IIs and IIIs. The lefty formerly headed the Uncoordinated Basketball Players of America organization (smile). Not anymore. He can rebound a little, score a little, pass a little and even block shots without fouling and his body is ever-improving. He has a 3.4 GPA with a qualifying SAT score and the word is starting to spread. The stats were not exactly piling up at a Huck-would-love-this pace. Benn finished with 10 points (5-for-8), six rebounds, two assists and three blocks. The other double-figure scorer was soph SF Marcus Brown, who continues to impress with his combination of hands, body control and bounceability (though he's not exactly a leaper). He hit for 12 points off the bench. Sr Gs Sandy Tanner and Jaret Richardson took care of the ball. Srs. Darrell Mills and Anthony Pough, like Benn a lefty, were the starting Fs. No one reached double digits for Franklin. For some head-scratching reason, jr. F Brandon Penn, the lone Electron with anything close to a combination of height and inside savvy, was stationed in the corners for most of the game. He rarely got the ball. That can't happen. He settled for seven points, added to four rebounds and two blocks. Not sure if 24 points represent a school-record low for Franklin, at least since the 1940s, but that's a hard-to-believe total. Maybe 60 people were in attendance. Even harder to believe. Franklin used to be one of the very best stops on the Pub trail for crowd involvement, and sheer numbers. But now, the enrollment is getting smaller and smaller and FB coach Ken Geiser, also the AD, said the school no longer has ANY official feeders. Hay-zoos. Hamilton was disturbed about something that happened to him the other day at Overbrook. He went over there to help David Carter coach the girls' team. Carter played basketball under Ham at Franklin, but his primary sport was FB and he even had a nice career at West Virginia. Anyway, Ham said he was asked to leave the bench area by 'Brook AD Gail Cohen. Is that any way to treat one of the best coaches in Pub history???!!! Of course not. But I do understand it, in a way. Ham is not a registered member of Overbrook's staff and Cohen was merely following policy (and perhaps covering her butt; maybe some honchos were in the gym). All Ham wants to do is help. Maybe the School District could give him permission to serve as kind of a roving instructor?

JAN. 9
PUBLIC LEAGUE
Overbrook 66, Southern 53
   It's not too often that a team wins the game, but does not get the ink. That was the case today, though, because I covered this game as a tag-on to the noon press conference called by Southern sr. G-F Ramone Moore (Temple), and the story wound up being about his mixed-bag day. But one good thing about this website is that we can use it to soften the blows of injustices and, so, here we go with spotlight-on-'Brook time. Great effort, guys! With first-year coach Ken Sturm limiting himself to home games after recent shoulder surgery, the Panthers were guided today by energetic assistant Freddie Stokes, a great player (Pub scoring champ for West Philly in '68) and even better guy. Freddie is into it and really preaches the family concept. Ovb's top talent is soph WG Nurideen Lindsey, and he went for 18 points, six rebounds and four apiece of assists and steals. Lindsey has an old-school look. I love how he changes speeds on his moves and uses his hips to execute fakes and get around/through traffic. But he is hardly alone. Each of the other four main Hilltoppers (back-in-the-day nickname) was impressive for assorted reasons. Sr. WG Derrick Evans had a take-this mentality. More than once, he came down and stuck jumpers right in guys' faces. (We might have to check on his year. Stokes is sure he's a senior. He was listed as a junior when the season began.) Freddie said Evans was on the bowling team last year and he could not believe this kid had not been playing hoops throughout his 'Brook years. "It took me 5 minutes to see what this kid had," he said. Evans attempted three treys and hit them all. "This kid has great grades," Freddie said. "I'm trying to get some D-Is on him." By default, because Ovb has little height, jr. Kevin Leland has to mostly play inside. He's built well and battles and he had 11 points in addition to seven boards and two blocks. Soph F Vernon Harris is thinner, but just as determined, and he had 10 points and eight rebounds. Another soph, Najee Underwood, mostly did the ballhandling. He too reached double figures in points (13) while adding four assists and two steals. Every year, Southern causes head-scratching. This team has talent. Common sense? Togetherness? Those questions have to be asked. At least for today. Moore went 7-for-20 (one trey) and 10-for-11 for 25 points. He was a shade off, obviously, but I never had the sense he was taking bad shots. I love that he uses the glass for deep-angle shots. He's even more fluid on the move than I remember and his court vision is outstanding. His four assists could have been eight to even 10 if his teammates had converted chippies. Sr. Robert "Jay/Elevator Man" McKee is the center. He doesn't tower by any means, but jumps like crazy. 'Brook refused to give him much room and he had to settle for 11 points along with 13 rebounds. The other two prominent Rams are jr. twins Antoine Reese and Anthony "Crip" Reese; Reese's Pieces as coach George Anderson calls them. They're vastly different in height. Crip (seven assists) plays the point, mostly. Antoine is a SF-PF. Today we saw the Power of the Duck!! Just one day after Duck ordered the School District to make Southern's new stands available for fans, guess what, they were!! Very cool!! Workers were making late adjustments about 45 minutes before the game. As in other years, however, Southern's rooters are hard to figure. They just watch and watch and watch and rarely make noise. They go nuts only if someone dunks and that never happened today, so they were mostly a non-factor. There was a 10-minute delay as the refs untangled a scoring snafu. 'Brook had 44 points after three quarters. The scoreboard had 45. In time, that one point was removed. I saw something I liked a WHOLE lot after the game. As the Rams were heading downstairs, one of the deep subs crowed, "We still gonna win the Pub!!" The other guys went nuts, chastising him for making such a "stupid comment." One guy said, "You don't do that. We just lost to Overbrook. In our house. What are you thinking?" There was some cursing and many Rams found the guy's actions disturbing. That was good. It shows they get it. Meanwhile, congrats to Southern assistant "Mutch" Jones for making the arrangements for Ramone's press conference. It was a nice affair. But after watching the Rams, one has to think maybe they attacked the food table maybe just a little too hard (smile).

JAN. 7
CATHOLIC LEAGUE
O’Hara 58, West Catholic 39
   This one figured to be respectable. Well, didn’t it? Both were waxed in Friday’s games and had the chance for redemption. And then the ball got lofted upward and O’Hara zipped to a 12-2 lead in the first four minutes by going 6-for-6 from the floor and, well, maybe this will be more competitive the second time around in the Burrdome. The Lions finished the quarter 8-for-9 and with an 18-10 lead. The lone miss – check this out – was an airballed trey by jr. G Zach Tansey. How does that happen in the midst of such perfection (smile)??? Overall, the Lions went 22-for-35 (63 percent) on an assortment of short jumpers, layups and treys. The Hucks – oops, the Burrs -- didn’t dog it defensively, but neither were they able to provide much resistance. O’Hara mostly took care of the ball and the extra pass often did what it’s supposed to do: turn respectable shots into darn near gimmes. The ink went to sr. F Matt Romano, who shot 8-for-9 for the most points, 16, he has ever scored in a high school uniform. Matt first attended Roman after a stellar career at Holy Spirit, in Sharon Hill, but things never quite worked out and in his second year at O’Hara, he has become an important worker bee. He added three boards, two assists and two steals. With West still hanging around shortly into the third quarter, Romano maneuvered into the lane and drained a pair of 8-foot, contested jumpers. He later showed versatility by rejecting a shot, grabbing the rebound, steaming downcourt and finding jr. WG Jim Kelleher for an it’s-assuredly-over threeball. I always enjoy watching these kinds of developments, when a low scorer has the game of his career, and I suspect Matt enjoyed it even more than I did (smile). Kelleher provided the early-game impetus by pouring in nine of his 20 points. Overall on treys, he went 3-for-6 and showed a solid stroke. What kind of college ball he plays will likely be determined by where his body and release time go from here. Tansey had 11 points, four assists, six rebounds and two blocks. I like that he appears to see the game in slow motion. Jr. C-PF Mark Wedderburn wasn’t much of a factor. That was OK. He didn’t need to be. Jr. Ryan Wolski, a lefty, recently was handed the main PG role. He looked comfortable. As Huck has detailed, West is having its annual bout with academic/behavior/injury issues. It’s tough for coach Bill Ludlow to plan from day to day, let alone week to week, and it must be a draining experience for one of the league’s true good guys. Soph PG Rob Holloman, who wears No. 3 (hmmmm), shows waterbug potential. Matching the right play with the correct situation is still an issue and there are very few polished people to whom to give the ball, but I like him and he’s definitely one to watch. Even though O’Hara’s gym is brutally dark – “If they have playoff games in here, it’s a joke,” Hockey Puck moaned – it was a good day on the picture-taking trail. The baseline stands are close to the court and the flash was working. But of course, when I’m behind the lens, especially indoors, “good” is quite the relative term (ha ha). “You got that right,” said The Wife.

JAN. 6
INTER-AC LEAGUE
Malvern 55, Chestnut Hill 50
   Both coaches made their league debuts for schools where they'd starred as players -- Jim Rullo for Malvern, Mark Burke for Chestnut Hill. I liked their approaches and that their players went all-out. Early, this one had the look of serious track meet. The teams combined for seven treys in the first quarter and though I didn't keep an official play-by-play sheet, I'd bet almost all of them came by the midway mark. Bang! Bang! Bang! It was quite a dial-from-distance sight to see. Later, the game became more of a rugged affair and Malvern prevailed because of its edges in size and weight. Leading that charge was sr. PF Mike Francisco, a lefty. Mike was a non-factor during the mostly-up-tempo first half. But in the second, he scored all 12 of his points and snatched six of his seven boards and impressed, additionally, by going 8-for-9 at the line. Rullo considers Mike's little things big things and was effusive in his praise. Francisco's final tallies came on a three-point play with 2:48 left on a pass from FB QB Ryan Nassib. They raised the score to 52-42 and that was pretty much it. A shade before that, jr. backup G Matt McManus had drained a left-wing jumper -- on his first shot of the game -- to make it 47-42. Two other FB stars aside from Nassib are part of the Friars' rotation. Sr. G Joe Hoban, a headlining WR, is very athletic and energetic. His shot was off, but you could tell he plays with confidence in all areas and he has often been Malvern's leading scorer. He went for 10 points (and he knows, especially as a guard, he needs to shoot better than 4-for-9 at the line -- smile). He also had four apiece of assists and steals. Plus seven boards. Lineman Paul Ostick lent brief doses of strength while flashing who-me? facial expressions after meting out punishment (ha ha). The strangest game was experienced by sr. WG Phil Gosselin, better known for baseball. He racked up three quick treys, then took just two more shots from the floor en route to 12 points. While GA (see report below) has all kinds of playalike forwards, CHA goes the every-guard's-the-same route. The main three are srs. David Jennings (13 points, three treys), Mark Justice and Maurice Young (11 points). They're all in the 6-foot range. Srs. Mike "Spike" Christiansen and Luke Pelullo are in the 5-8 range. Boasting matted down rather than spiked hair, at least on this day (smile), Christiansen probably made THE play of the game. At one point, Malvern jr. G Kevin Corbett took off downcourt for what had the look of an easy breakway layup. Christiansen gave big-time chase and slapped the ball out of Corbett's hands before he had a chance to release the layup. Great hustle!! The Blue Devil player who most qualifies as a conversation piece is soph Gary Lawrence, a 6-6 small forward. This kid is the very definition of herky-jerky lefty. The way he rushes through his foul shots, it looks like he has no confidence. In fact, he barely looks at the rim before releasing. And he shoots from a spot to the right of dead-on. No player starts his career doing something like that, so it must have been an adjustment he made somewhere along the way, hoping to improve a shaky situation. It's not working. At least it didn't today (4-for-9). His field performance was 3-for-10, including 0-for-6 on treys. Meanwhile, I loved Gary's wide base on his moves. He used long strides and could go to his right as easily as to his left. That ability will serve him well. With improved shooting form, he could border on uncoverable down the line, especially as he gets stronger. Kudos to CHA's student rooters, the Kingsley Krazies. (If I remember correctly, the school's gym is named after someone named Kingsley.) They were involved all game long and came out with a goodie, mindful of Malvern's Chester County location: "Where'd you park your tractors??!! . . . Where'd you park your tractors??!!" Thanks to manager Tim Gramlich, of FB and eating fame, for tracking down CHA's scorebook well before the game so I could fill in some scoring blanks. Tim this week captured first place in the school's version of the Wing Bowl. Maybe he'll tell us about it in HIS report (smile).

JAN. 6
INTER-AC LEAGUE
Gtn. Academy 43, Haverford School 39
   This was game No. 1 of the Inter-Ac's annual tripleheader, played at Arcadia University (nee Beaver College), and though it was hardly a classic, there indeed was some interesting viewing. GA is without star sr. PG Kyle Griffin, a La Salle signee, who's at least battling mono but perhaps something similar that has not quite been diagnosed (coach Jim Fenerty said the doctors are baffled). Holding down the fort (Washington?) is jr. Joe Hill, who's listed at 6-2 and owns a solid build. He's much more of iron-will PG than a purebred, but I liked his approach and execution on offense on defense and he gave the impression that he intends to make the most of this opportunity. He had two assists and three steals and his 2-for-12 showing from the floor can mostly be overlooked because most of his shots made sense; they just didn't go in. The frontcourt Patriots are the same person. I swear! (smile) They have similar builds and similar skills and similar grit and are pretty much interchangeable. The most productive today was 6-4 sr. Donn "D.J." Johnston. He shot 6-for-10 and 4-for-4 for 16 points (only Patriot in double figures) and claimed 12 rebounds. Seven of those carom-clutches came in the last quarter, as did six of his points. Johnston also showed some enforcer qualities, and he had some of the Fords backing off slightly during rebound scrambles. Frosh Cameron Ayers, son of Randy, brother of Ryan, had some impressive moments. He's nothing close to a go-to guy yet, but he will be in time. He hit a three (pass from Hill) that put GA ahead for good, at 34-32, with 5 minutes left. Among the late-game heroes was jr. F Tim McCarty, renowned as an all-time gym rat. He had a steal and two rebounds and a field goal with the outcome still in doubt and it didn't bother me TOO much that he went 0-for-3 on free throws because I liked how he strode to the line immediately after getting fouled, showing he wouldn't be afraid to be there. As for Haverford, I'm sure coach Steve Cloran and his players are sick of hearing they're "much improved." Old news to them by now. They want to advance to the next step and this loss had to be disappointing, especially with GA missing its franchise player. The lead Ford is sr. WG John Haldy, whose primary sport is lacrosse. He's not really the true definition of a slasher, but he does do almost everything on the move and in that context is more of a SF, especially since he almost never shoots from distance. He scored 10 points, going 4-for-13 from the floor. The almost-lead Ford -- yes, even now -- is frosh Dan Stewart, a 6-5 forward. Verrrrrrrrrry interesting player. He can run and jump and float and already has excellent savvy in terms of knowing the ins and outs of baseline maneuvering. He missed just one of his nine shots while posting 17 points and claimed 11 rebounds, as well. Frosh PG Tyreek Duren also has interesting possibilities. Um, let's make that probabilities. He looks like the kind of player who could not only be a pest, but a headlining pest. The best kind. Jr. F Andrew Hubley, something of a rock at 6-3, had eight rebounds. One of the bench Fords has a surname that has to be one of the longest in city hoops history. (Even national hoops history?) Say hello to Lou Karapanagiotides, my new favorite player. That's 16 letters! I'm guessing it's Greek. I'm also guessing he was at least a third grader before he could spell it (smile). In the late 1960s, North Catholic had a prime-timer, who went on to star for Villanova's 1971 national finalists (19 points in the 68-62 loss to UCLA), by the name of Hank Siemiontkowski. Fourteen letters. A mere pittance.

JAN. 5
CATHOLIC NORTH
Ryan 47, Judge 24
  It’s hard to believe Ryan even bothered to continue having a basketball team after Mike Varanavage (’06) took his vast two-sport skills (also FB) to Valley Forge Military Academy. I mean, has there ever been a bigger loss in the history of high school sports? . . . That’s for Mike and his roadies, who’ve been known to rattle my cage on occasion (smile). All were in attendance tonight and by the end of this mismatch, they might have been saying, “Anyone have a dagger I could stick in my eye?” Ouch. This one was brutal, folks, and the report is gonna be short. In part because the game was bad. In part because there’s still much to do in this early a.m. and the Inter-Ac tripleheader looms. Judge shot 10-for-39 and only jr. F-C Andrew Vose had more than one field goal (6-for-8, 14 total points). Ryan steamed to a 17-9 first quarter lead thanks to four treys and only achieved more dominance from there. In its entire history, I can’t believe Judge too often (if ever?) has allowed an opponent to come within a point of we-doubled-'em glee. The story went to sr. F-C Jeff Sottnick, who goes 6-2. He grabbed 10 boards and made some sensible passes (three assists) in the Raiders’ bore, then score offense. Other mainstays: jr. PG Andrew Rogers had 10 points and two assists; sr. WG Keith Czarny missed just one of his shots en route to 14 points. Jr. WG Eric Jann had seven points, three assists. FB enforcer Chris Wilk, a junior, grabbed four boards. In other news, a few of Ryan’s female students were mildly good-looking. OK, let’s make that the vast majority. Varanavage and his buddies – how’d Penn Charter’s Brian Teuber crack that clan? -- had a tough time paying attention to the game.

JAN. 5
CATHOLIC SOUTH
Neumann-Goretti 51, SJ Prep 43
   Big crowd. Lots of emotion. Decent game, but hardly one that folks will be talking about years from now. Maybe not even by Monday, to be honest. A score this low just doesn’t compute in modern hoops, unless there’s white-knuckle tension down the stretch and a game-winning shot, preferably from distance (see last year’s CL final). This game did not reach those proportions. On most occasions, N-G is able to out-offense its foes. The story this time was defense and the leader was a young boah, frosh WG Tony Chennault. In N-G’s man-to-man, Chennault had the responsibility of guarding sr. PG Matt Griffin and, man, was he ever effective. Griffin can run all day and night and onward into the next day and Chennault, who got the ink, admitted afterward that he was pretty tired all day on offense because he had to expend so much energy on defense. Griffin went scoreless, going 0-for-6 overall and 0-for-5 on treys. He and his teammates had almost no clean-look, easy-release shots all afternoon as all of the Saints (well, most of them for most of the time) dug deep and put forth special effort on defense. Truly, it was unbelievable how many almosts were recorded by the Prep, especially at the basket closest to where the fans enter Prep’s gym. Amauro said more than once, “There’s a lid on that basket.” Know what? It remained there in the second half. N-G had several shots pop out after the ball appeared to be halfway down. Very weird! To his credit, Griffin did not fire indiscriminately. And he finished with four assists and three steals. But his sensible mad bombing often sets a tone for the Hawks and that just wasn’t happenin’. It’s so refreshing, meanwhile, to see a young player who truly understands the importance of everything involved in the game, and to see how he relishes being a shutdown defender. As always, sr. PG Antonio “Scoop” Jardine and sr. C Rick Jackson (both are Syracuse signees) were bold-relief guys. Jardine ignored game-long chants of “ball hog! . . . ball hog!” from Prep’s students to finish with 19 points, three assists and even six rebounds. He saved 12 of those markers for the second half. Jackson managed 10 points, 12 boards and six blocks. He picked up his third foul on an offensive clearout just 18 seconds into the third quarter, but actually played better thereafter, especially on defense. That’s the sign of a goodie. Jr. F Jamal Wilson had 11 rebounds. For Prep, jr. F Larry Loughery toughed out a 13-point, 10-rebound, three-assist, three-block performance and jr. WG Jim Mower showed major gumption. After a 2-point first half, during which he missed all three of his trey attempts, he began mostly going to the hole – or close, anyway. He added 13 more points en route to 15, posting a braveheart kind of performance. In earlier views, I liked the progress being shown by late-bloomer Rob Coney, a 6-6 sr. C. This was an outing to forget. Some simple tasks were not performed – catching passes; even being prepared for their arrival – and that will have to change. I have a feeling coach Speedy Morris delivered that message to Rob in much stronger fashion than I just did (smile). Meanwhile, Amauro and I were stunned when N-G momentarily opted to use a zone in the fourth quarter. Sr. SF Matt Dolan immediately drained a trey on a pass from Loughery, advancing Prep within 45-41, and the fans got a little, um, excited. N-G switched back to man and re-established command; the score went to 49-41 on a transition basket by Wilson (pass from Jardine). Then, with the count at 49-43, Griffin drove hard and wound up trying his only non-trey of the afternoon. Jackson notched a block-rebound combo. A shoutout to the N-G fans who were sitting behind us in folding chairs behind the far-end basket. They were guilty of severe overreaction a few times when Jardine made impressive moves and one of the guys went WAY over the top when he compared Jackson with Hakeem Olajuwan, but they added entertainment value and there’s nothing wrong with that (smile).

JAN. 4
PUBLIC LEAGUE
Math, Civics and Science 72, Delaware Valley 62
   It was time to see how the other half lives. Well, not “half” exactly because Division C of the Public League (for charter schools; except for two with large enrollments) includes just 11 of the league’s 53 schools. In recent years, Division C included all of the lower-enrollment schools and league play for these guys had to start at the very beginning of December, pretty much. But now December is reserved for non-league play and this was my first all-charters match of the season. MC&S is a first-year Pub entrant. It’s located within a deep jump shot of the Daily News-Inquirer building (you know I’m putting our paper first – smile) and plays its games at the YMCA cattycorner from William Penn, at Broad and Master. There was an interesting sight well before the game began: the Mighty Elephants (LOVE that nickname) swept the floor, arranged the team benches, set up a bunch of folding chairs, etc. And I didn’t hear one complaint about the extra duties. Nice! MC&S’ players are pretty much small and smaller. They have some juice, though, and they’re respectable in transition because everyone can handle the ball. Coach Danny Jackson is involved on the sideline and appears to have the proper approach, as in when it’s time to scold and time to encourage. The ink went to sr. James Gregory, a 6-1, 180-pound center. He’s the “center” only because no one else is available and, in our postgame interview, he showed a lot of maturity when explaining how he handles the situation. Aside from shooting 8-for-18 and 4-for-6 for 20 points, Gregory swept 13 rebounds, dished two assists, made five steals and swatted three shots. Twice, he notched rejections, grabbed the rebound and immediately took off for the other end. No one attempted to stop him, at least early in his sashays, so he powered all the way to the hoop. The finish? With the off (left) hand. Impressive! The primary ballhandler is sr. Justin Nixon, especially in halfcourt sets, and he notched four assists. Jr. Eric Johnson is a small wing guard with a sweet-looking shot. He had 20 points (three treys) and I liked that he went 6-for-6 at the line in the fourth quarter to help seal the win. The other prime-timer is soph Zaahir Smith, a combo guard. His brother, Zakee (in attendance), was the floor leader for some quality squads at Franklin Learning Center and Zaahir bears a strong facial resemblance to his bro. Playing resemblance, too. Both in skill and his I’m-here-to-enjoy-myself approach. Smith mixed 20 points, four assists and five steals and was particularly effective in a 20-12 third quarter (nine points on four straight makes). He’s a crowd favorite and should provide a lot of enjoyable moments over these next two-plus seasons. Jr. SF Kenny Adams had three assists. DV, you might remember, got into all kinds of trouble last season for scheduling too many games and fudging about some of the details, etc. The old regime is gone and the program looks to be more organized/stable. Unfortunately for the Warriors, one of the key returnees, Alibaba Odd, transferred to Gratz. The headliner is sr. WG Troy Blue, a spidery double threat – deep bombs, strong “takes” – with a huge upside. Not sure about Troy’s academic profile or who’s recruiting him, but this kid is a player. In the first quarter alone, he rained down four treys. And they weren’t stand-still zone-busters. Each one was an on-the-move, rise-up, BANG-that-crap kind of shot and the whole gym enjoyed ‘em. Later, he became a shade overanxious and was sometimes off-balance upon releasing, but then he showed another good trait: He began going hard to the hoop when he saw he was off from distance. Overall, he went for 28 points and 12 boards. With jr. PF-C John Jackson (eye injury) unavailable, the Warriors were also height-challenged. Jr. F Terrell “T.O.” Jenkins managed 12 points and 13 boards. Soph PG Dain “D.J.” Suber showed good court sense (four assists), but went just 1-for-12 from the floor (1-for-8 on treys). Jr. F Malik Rice had nine points and three dishes. While walking to my car afterward, right on Broad Street in front of the building, I passed by two guys having an animated, heated discussion maybe 15 yards apart. They were gesturing and talking serious, um, junk and there were mentions of “busting a cap” and such. Phew! I’m not even sure these guys were inside the facility during the game. Let’s hope not. Also, let’s hope their exchange was nothing more than immature posturing. I didn't wait around to find out.

JAN. 2
CATHOLIC SOUTH
Neumann-Goretti 71, Roman 68
   My Daily News story concentrated on all the ins and outs of this game, with regard to the closed gym, etc., and we have linked to that. How, you ask, was the basketball itself? Pretty good. Early, there was fear of a blowout as N-G roared to a 9-0 lead. Nah, just kidding. No one was thinking blowout. Everyone knew Roman would make a game of it (and did so, and then some) and the outcome was not decided until 6 seconds showed on the clock. Because I wanted to check out the whole scene, I arrived 90 minutes before the 3:30 starting time. And experienced a VERY strange sensation. At the far end, a guy was shooting a jump shot and I said to myself, immediately, "Phew! Oh, man! That HAS to be Anthony Chennault's son. That shot is an identical match!" The stance, the load-up, the release, unbelievable. I asked someone and got confirmation. Yup, that's Tony Chennault. In '81, Anthony was our City Player of the Year as a wing guard for Frankford. Tony is only a frosh and some national scouting services list him as the best in his class. It'll be interesting to watch his progress. One N-G teacher spoke glowingly of Tony, saying he's already making a mark in the school as someone who always does his work, carries himself with class and is unceasingly upbeat. Great to hear! Since we're talking about Chennault, we'll also report that he finished with 13 points. He exhibited a good blend, mostly staying in the background in deference to N-G's "oldheads" but also making some big-boy plays when the opportunities presented themselves. He already has a good body, and the control to go along with it. The Saints' headliners, of course, are best friends Rick Jackson, a 6-9 center, and Antonio "Scoop" Jardine, a point guard. They're going to Syracuse together. Jackson was dominant early, then strangely stopped receiving the ball, especially in cause-damage locations. Later, the Saints remembered him and he finished with 16 points, 12 boards, nine blocks (eight after halftime) and even five assists. As he put it afterward, "The ball had to come to me. If three-four guys run at me, we're still OK. I'll get it to the open man." Jackson did game-long talking to his teammates, mixing encouragement and chastisement. He was so shy early in his career. It's amazing to witness the transformation. And he doesn't think he's above everyone else, either. At one point he made a mistake and said out loud, "My fault, y'all. Won't happen again." Jardine shot 7-for-15 (3-for-4 on treys) and 9-for-15 en route to 26 points. He showed some electric qualities, especially in transition, and appeared to truly relish the spirited competition with Roman's assorted guards. He added four rebounds, five assists, four steals. Junior F Rashad Savage never got untracked. Off the bench, FB QB Mark "Matty" Hatty had an important four points (1-for-1, 2-for-2) and four boards. Jr. G-F Jamal Wilson was a serious non-factor in the first half and even had to hear some biting remarks from Jackson. He was much closer to his usual self in the second half, going 3-for-4 and 3-for-4 for nine points. With nothing close to a pure post player, Roman is an interesting team to watch. The Cahillites also do not have any guards who would be considered lightning quick or run-all-day types. But this team has serious moxie and no doubt will be ready to pounce later this season if N-G does any backsliding. The Cahillites feature two sets of twins, sr. Gs Bradley and Brian Wanamaker and jr. swingmen Wes and Will Kirkland. Bradley boasts solid fundamentals and pure WG skills and is a Pitt signee. Brian was known mostly for suffocating defense, but it's obvious that he worked on his offense at well. In fact, in total, he was the much more reliable Wanamaker in this one, going 7-for-10 (one trey) and 6-for-8 for 21 points. He packed 10 of those points into the fourth quarter, assuring a Roman hang-around. Bradley went 5-for-19 (no treys) and 11-for-13 for 21 points, as well. Bradley made up for his shaky shooting with his team's best overall game -- nine boards, five assists, two steals. Of the Kirklands, Wes is known for outside sniping and Will is more of a little-things guy, at least for now. They combined to go just 4-for-17 from the floor. The other main rotation guys are jr. G Courtney Stanley and soph G Maalik Wayns. Stanley, a transfer from K-K, did not show the same kind of swagger he had at K-K. Understandable, as he's still feeling his way and now part of a team with much more overall talent and established cornerstones. Wayns shot just 2-for-12, but he made a good impression mostly because of how he looks. He was decidedly chubby last year and there was some worry that his body might go South. He obviously dedicated himself to a reshaping, though, and that can only help him as time goes on. Some pertinent late-game detail: Jardine hit the second of two free throws, staking N-G to a 61-54 pad with 3:33 remaining. Jackson notched two rejections to ruin Roman's subsequent possession, then whipped a perfect outlet pass for a Jardine layup.  Roman stormed within 66-68 on two free throws by Bra. Wanamaker, as opposed to Bri. Wanamaker, at 16.2 and when Jardine hit only the first of two at 12.6, the door was still ajar. Bradley could not connect on a long, left-wing trey. Jackson removed the suspense, at 71-66, with a double-bonus conversion at 6.0. The last basket? An uncontested thunder-dunk by Bradley.