Father Judge Wins Philadelphia Catholic League Championship: Kehler On Hoops

Article by David Kehler

 

Father Judge defeated Roman Catholic 41 to 34 on Sunday afternoon at The Palestra to win the Philadelphia Catholic League championship before a sellout crowd.  The view from here is that the Philadelphia Catholic League playoffs are the premier competition in Pennsylvania boys basketball.  It has been proven time and again that it is much more difficult to win the Philadelphia Catholic League championship than to win a PIAA state championship.  On Sunday, Judge defeated defending League champion Roman in a fierce defensive battle.

 

Looking at the final score, one might be tempted to suppose that both teams played a ball control, slowdown game throughout.  That wasn’t the case.  Although Judge has several sensational scorers when they have possession, it was Judge’s defense that decided the outcome, and much of the game was played uptempo.

 

Almost never does a high school team surrender 10 consecutive points in a contest and eventually win the game, but Judge did just that on Sunday afternoon.  Roman scored the first 10 points in the game and held Judge to just two free throws in the first quarter.  But, although Judge fell behind early, the pattern of the game was quickly established.  On Roman’s first three possessions, 6′ 10″ Judge senior Everett Barnes blocked shots launched from close to the basket.  Barnes’ interior defense was superb in this game.  He didn’t leave his feet unnecessarily, but when he did jump, his timing was great and he jumped straight up.  He maintained position really well, and his footwork was terrific.  Barnes made it difficult for Roman to score inside.  Judge’s quick perimeter defenders made it difficult for Roman to shoot from outside and to slash to the basket.    That said, Roman drew first blood, although no points were scored by either side in the first three minutes of the game.  Roman scored first on a power move by 6′ 8″ senior Shareef Jackson.  That was followed by a 3-pointer by 6′ 6″ Roman junior Sammy Jackson, a 3-pointer by 6′ 2″ Roman sophomore Tyler Sutton, and a fast break layup by Sutton. Trailing Roman by 10 to 0, Judge finally got on the scoreboard with 48 seconds left in the first frame on a pair of free throws by 6′ 5″ junior Max Moshinski.

 

Judge had a strong second quarter, out-rebounding Roman eight to five and out-scoring them 15 to 8.  Six Judge players scored in the second period.  Judge finished the scoring in the second quarter with a 10 to 1 run on a putback by Moshinski, a putback by Barnes, a jumper by Moshinski, a drive by 6′ 3″ junior Derrick Morton-Rivera, and a clutch jumper by 6′ 5″ senior Kevin Beck.  Roman led 18 to 17 at halftime, but Judge had seized the momentum.

 

Early in the third quarter, Judge tied the game at 20 on a 3-pointer by Morton-Rivera, the first of the game’s six ties.  The teams went back and forth exchanging leads until Morton-Rivera closed the third quarter scoring with a layup to give his side a 28 to 25 lead.

 

The tension built as the final quarter started.  Roman began to be very careful when they had the ball, and their possessions became longer in duration, as they looked for good shots.  A 3-pointer by Roman’s Sutton tied the game at 29 with 4:45 left.  Following a Judge miss and a Roman rebound, Sutton scored on a twisting acrobatic drive to put Roman up 31 to 29 with 4:05 left.  Judge responded with an extremely clutch 3-pointer by 6′ 1″ junior Rocco Westfield.  It was his only score of the game, but it was absolutely a turning point.  Nonplussed, Roman came back with a couple of free throws by Sutton, and they led 33 to 32 with 3:34 left.  The teams exchanged one -missed-shot possessions.  Then, Barnes grabbed a defensive rebound, was fouled, and made a free throw to tie the game at 33.  Following a Roman missed shot and a Judge defensive board, Judge’s Morton-Rivera put his side up 35 to 33 on a fast break layup with 1:20 left in the game.  Judge led the rest of the way, and all subsequent points were scored at the free throw line.  After Judge’s Kevair Kennedy, a 6′ 2″ senior, made two free throws with 56 seconds left to give his team a 37 to 34 lead, a Roman turnover sealed the win for Judge.  

 

It was an excellent game played at a high level of skill before a huge and enthusiastic crowd in basketball’s greatest venue.  The Philadelphia Catholic League championship game is one of Pennsylvania’s top sports events every year, and this year was no exception.

 

Judge had a 30 to 28 edge on the boards.  Judge had five turnovers–just one in the second half–and Roman had eight miscues.  Judge was 13 of 19 from the free throw line, and Roman was nine of 13 from the stripe.  Judge made two 3-pointers, and both of them were crucial.  Roman scored five times from beyond the arc, four of them by Sutton.  There were six ties and nine lead changes.

 

Father Judge scoring: Kevair Kennedy 10, Derrick Morton-Rivera 9, Max Moshinski 8, Nazir Tyler 6, Rocco Westfield 3, Everett Barnes 3, and Kevin Beck 2.

 

Roman Catholic scoring: Tyler Sutton 20, Sammy Jackson 6, CJ Miller 5, Shareef Jackson 2, and Sebastian Edwards 1.

 

Father Judge 2 15 11 13-41

Roman Catholic 10 8 7 9-34

 

Winning the Philadelphia Catholic League championship was the primary goal for both teams this season, but there are more games to play.  Judge will play Imhotep Charter for the PIAA District 12 Class 6A championship, and both of them have already qualified for the PIAA state championship tournament.  Roman will play Samuel Fels, and the winner of that game also qualifies for the state championship tournament.  It’s conceivable that Judge and Roman could eventually play again in the PIAA state tourney.  

 

In a thriller in the first game of the doubleheader at The Palestra on Sunday, Neumann-Goretti defeated a very game Archbishop Carroll squad 50 to 43 for the Philadelphia Catholic League girls championship.  Neumann forged an early lead, eventually expanding it to 14 points.  Carroll clawed back into the game and took a 40 to 39 lead in the fourth quarter on a couple of free throws by freshman Kayla Eberz.  Neumann quickly recaptured the lead on a drive by senior Carryn Easley.  Clutch free throw shooting down the stretch by two Neumann players–senior Amaya Scott and sophomore Reginna Baker–sealed the win.

 

On X (formerly Twitter): @david_kehler