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BOYS’ BASKETBALL: Coronavirus Brings an End to a Promising Season for Five Philadelphia Catholic League Programs

By Rich Flanagan Photos: Mike Nance, Kathy Leister, Donna Eckert & Geanine Jamisonon, 04/10/20, 3:00PM EDT

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By: Rich Flanagan

Photos/Videos: Mike Nance, Kathy Leister, Donna Eckert, Geanine Jamison & Vita Marks

PHILADELPHIA - When Matt Griffin took the job at Roman Catholic, he expected every season to be played deep into March.

He hoped to continue the tradition of winning and excellence that has been a staple of the Cahillites program dating back to the early 1920s. He has preserved that with two Philadelphia Catholic League titles, four trips to the Palestra, four trips to the state tournament (including this season) and a state championship in 2018.

His team advanced to the state quarterfinals once again this year, but the run had an added element: a sudden halt as a result of a growing epidemic. All professional sports, including the NBA, were suspended and the NCAA canceled the men’s and women’s basketball tournament due to the spread of the coronavirus. The Pennsylvania Interscholastic Athletic Association (PIAA) followed suit, suspending its winter championships and spring sports season on March 12.


Roman Catholic head coach Matt Griffin - PSD Photo by Mike Nance

For Griffin and fellow PIAA head coaches, it was an unprecedented move that had never been done before.

“I don’t think anybody has seen anything like this,” Griffin said. “When things like the Masters, Kentucky Derby and even the NCAA Tournament and NBA season are (suspended), I don’t think we’ve ever seen something like this. I’ve never been a part of or witnessed something like this as a player or a coach to this severity.”

Thursday brought a presumptive conclusion to the high school basketball season as Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Wolf announced that all schools will remain closed for the remainder of the 2019-20 academic year. Not long after, the PIAA cancelled all remaining winter and spring sports and championships. This is the first time both state championships and an entire sports season have been canceled in PA.

Last year was the first time since 2013 that at least one Philadelphia Catholic League boys’ program had not brought home a state title and this will be the second consecutive year as five teams made it to the quarterfinals before play was stopped.

While Griffin is Roman Catholic’s head coach, he’s also the school’s athletic director and a teacher. He’s been communicating with his players as well as students and faculty every day and while he feels for his team he understands there’s a much bigger picture to take into account here.

“The first thing you think about is disappointment but you also take a step back and put everything into perspective that basketball isn’t life,” Griffin said. “There’s this life outside of basketball that’s far greater and more important. Basketball is what we use to teach life skills to our players. This is another lesson for them to learn. Nothing is promised or guaranteed and that we’re certainly just keeping all those in need in our thoughts and prayers.”

The Cahillites (19-9) had their share of bumps and bruises throughout the year but still made a run to their third straight Philadelphia Catholic League title game appearance. Behind the trio of three-time First Team All-Catholic Lynn Greer III,  Justice Williams and 6-foot-10 big man Jalen Duren, Roman Catholic held off Coatesville in the opening round of the PIAA Class 6A Tournament then downed last year’s runner-up Pennridge to advance to the quarterfinals.

Greer, who reclassified to the Class of 2021 and will be doing a prep year at IMG Academy in Fla. next season, averaged 18.2 points per game this season despite missing both state tournament games due to a hip injury suffered in the regular-season finale against Bishop McDevitt. 

PIAA 6A Roman vs. Pennridge Game Highlights by Kathy Leister

It’s his second straight season missing the state tournament after being ruled a transfer and therefore ineligible to play a season ago.  Duren, one of the highest rate prospects in the Class of 2022, avg. 17.1 points, 12.5 rebounds and 3.4 blocks in his second season. Williams, a 6-foot-3 sophomore combo guard, led the Cahillites at 18.6 ppg.

Williams came to Roman Catholic with the expectation that every season was going to culminate with at least an opportunity to compete for a state title and with last year’s loss to PCL-rival La Salle in the state quarterfinals the cancellation hurts even more.

“It hurts because last year we won the PCL but I never got the feeling of winning a state championship,” Williams said. “I was really chasing that. I was hoping to get one this year since we lost in the PCL championship. Even though our season wasn’t a failure, it feels like it.”

Williams and Duren will be back next season as well 6-foot freshman guard Xzayvier Brown, who avg. 8.1 ppg which included a 17-point game vs. Coatesville in the state playoffs.

Neumann-Goretti (24-4), the team that downed the Cahillites in the PCL final, was one of the most dominant teams in PA this season after capturing head coach Carl Arrigale’s 11th league crown. The 2020 class of Hakim Byrd (14.7 ppg), Cameron Young (13.1) and Jordan Hall (10.9 ppg) was not able to finish its senior campaign with a league, District 12 and state title as a result of the cancellation. Byrd will play at Marist, Young will play Bowling Green and Hall will play on Hawk Hill for St. Joe’s next year.

Arrigale, who was hoping to add to his seven state titles after the Saints claimed wins over Brandywine Heights and Holy Redeemer, felt even before his team’s second-round matchup of the PIAA Class 3A Tournament that this was the trajectory of how things were headed.


The Neuman-Goretti Saints were crowned 2020 PCL champs after defeating Roman Catholic - PSD Photo by Mike Nance

“Leading up to our game against Holy Redeemer, one of my assistant coaches said, ‘Do you think you should say something to the guys,’” Arrigale said. “We got a sense of what was going on and this was even pre-Rudy Gobert and Tom Hanks. I actually said pregame to the guys that this might be our last game. I said we had no control over it and this could be the last time we play as a team. Let’s go out with a bang. I felt like I at least brought it up so they didn’t feel sideswiped.”

Along with guard Hysier Miller, who avg. 14.1 ppg, and 6-5 forward Blaise Vespe (7.8 ppg), the Saints accomplished portions of their season agenda but the coveted state title will always have an asterisk next to it.

Miller and Vespe will be two of the leaders come next season but for Hall, the Saints floor general, not having a shot at the state championship became a reality when Arrigale addressed the team before its game versus Holy Redeemer.

“Before our last game, we kind of knew it was going to be our last game,” Hall said. “We huddled and said we might as well go out and play like it’s our last game. After hearing about the NBA and the NCAA Tournament, we had a feeling.”

Another PCL semifinalist, Archbishop Wood (22-5), advanced to the PIAA Class 5A title game a year ago and will not be given an opportunity to get back there. League MVP Rahsool Diggins (20.2 ppg) spearheaded the Vikings run this season, which included a PCL-semifinal record 35-point performance vs. the Cahillites. Juniors Jaylen Stinson(14.4 ppg), Marcus Randolph (14.2) and Daeshon Shepherd (13.1) helped the Vikings win both of their state playoff games against Strath Haven and Pittston Area by 27 points.

Head coach John Mosco will return all five starters along with 6-5 athletic forward Muneer Newton (7.4 ppg) next season but after losing in the state final last year and the PCL semis this season, feels this group has unfinished business as its driving force heading into the offseason.

PIAA 5A Wood vs. Pittston Area - Video by Donna Eckert

“We feel like we had unfinished business and our goals for the season were not reached,” Mosco said. “We lost last year in the final last year then lost in the Philadelphia Catholic League semifinals this year. We had a good shot this year and you never know what’s going to happen. Most of the kids feel disappointed.”

Archbishop Ryan (19-9) made its third trip to the PCL semifinals in five years under head coach Joe Zeglinski then extended their impressive season even further by advancing to the state quarterfinals for the first time since 2017. The Raiders defeated Penn Wood and Elizabethtown, a 28-point thrashing, in the PIAA Class 5A playoffs. Not only did they become the first PCL team to come out of the first round of the playoffs to advance to the semifinals but also won a pair of state tournament games without its leading scorer, junior Aaron Lemon-Warren (24.4 ppg).

Campbell commit and senior guard Gediminas Mokseckas avg. 19.0 ppg this season and scored 20 points in both state playoff games.

Along with 5-11 junior point guard Dominic Vazquez, 6-6 senior big man Christian Isopi and 6-foot sophomore Luke Boyd, the Raiders appeared primed for a potential matchup with the Vikings in the state title game, had both teams advanced to that point, and the possible return of Lemon-Warren.

Now, players like Mokseckas feel there was a real chance to accomplish something great but while the season has ended the program has something to build on.

“I think with this team we had a really good opportunity to finish strong in states,” Mokseckas said. “Even if the tournament is canceled, I believe our program is good for the next few years. Guys know what it means to play in the states and they’ll be even better in the next year or two.”

Vazquez avg. 11.5 ppg in the state tournament and Boyd avg. 12.4 ppg over the final five games of the season. Both players as well as Lemon-Warren will be back next year.

Bonner-Prendergast (20-5) looked to be the best team in the PIAA Class 4A Tournament following victories over Eastern York and Valley View, which they won by an avg. of 36 points. The Friars had advanced to the state quarterfinals in each of the last three seasons, coupled with two state semifinal and a state title game appearance. Behind First Team All-Catholic senior Tyreese Watson (17.4 ppg), senior Donovan Rodriguez (13.3), junior Malik Edwards (13.0) and senior Oscar Uduma (7.0), the Friars were rolling after falling in the PCL quarterfinals to Roman Catholic but also capturing the District 12 4A crown over Imhotep Charter in the process.

The 2020 class has been known for playing deep in the postseason for its entire career and for Watson, the tournament cancellation was the latest example of what this group has endured together.

“It’s been a blessing to have played with the guys I have the last four years,” Watson said. “We’ve been through our very best and our very worst. For them to stop us from playing is just another thing I can say we’ve been through together. We’ve literally been through war.”

Friars head coach Kevin Funston was named PCL Coach of the Year and seeing this particular group move onto its next step in life with having accomplished so much but not being allowed to finish their final season the way they had hoped is devastating.

PIAA 4A Bonner-Prendergast vs. Eastern York by Vita Marks

“It’s just really disappointing for every coach involved because they would say their team is definitely deserving of a state championship,” Funston said. “You don’t get to this point without working really hard and putting long hours in. For my seniors, my heart is broken. With the year we had, it’s definitely one of the most successful years that I’ve been a part of and probably that Bonner has seen.”

Edwards returns as does 6-8 junior Gestin Liberis,  who had 11 points vs. Eastern York,  James Welde,  5-10 sophomore Mandon Seapoe and fellow sophomore Jared Cowan for a team that finished with 10+ league wins for the third consecutive season.

While the state began practicing social distancing on March 12, coaches remained optimistic that the PIAA would call for the basketball tournament to continue after a few weeks and they were having their players prepare like that was the route that would be taken. 

Griffin was connecting players with trainers through Instagram Live and YouTube while also breaking down game film on Hudl. He and Funston took advantage of the app, Homecourt, where players can track their shots and learn instructional drills to sharpen their skills. Players like Watson were doing push-ups and running laps around the block. It helped the Friars senior to have his brother, Maurice Watson Jr., who starred at Boys’ Latin and scored 2,000+ points before playing at Boston University and Creighton, working out with him to keep him motivated.

The quarterfinal matchups were set the day before the tournament was suspended. Roman Catholic was set to meet Methacton, a team they downed in December. Archbishop Wood was preparing to play Dallas and Archbishop Ryan was prepping to face Muhlenberg. Bonner-Prendergast would have been playing District 3’s Bishop McDevitt. Neumann-Goretti was scheduled to take on Loyalsock Township. The sad truth is none of those games will be played and no champion will be crowned from any of the classifications.

There will never be another PIAA basketball tournament like this one and the hope is that no future championships or season, for that matter, will have to come to a crushing halt. Still, this was the best path forward to keep all players, coaches, referees and spectators protected. It’s a season that will not soon be forgotten but one that will have a lasting effect on PA sports and abroad.