Archbishop Ryan Defeats Archbishop Wood 55-54: Kehler on Hoops
Written by: Dell Jackson on January 24, 2023
Archbishop Ryan Defeats Archbishop Wood 55-54
Archbishop Ryan defeated visiting Archbishop Wood 55 to 54 on Monday night in a taut battle between two of the top teams in the Philadelphia Catholic League. Close all the way, there were five ties and five lead changes in the contest, and the biggest lead of the game was eight points. With abundant talent on the floor, there were a number of Division 1 college coaches in the stands to watch the intensely played matchup between two skilled teams. Both squads are major contenders for the Philadelphia Catholic League championship and also for PIAA state championship honors. Ryan is in the 5A classification, and Wood is a 6A team.
Ryan opened in a 1-3-1 zone defense, and Wood immediately attacked the basket, getting the ball inside to 6’ 8” senior Carson Howard. Howard has been on fire lately, having had superb games last week in Wood’s wins over Neuamnn-Goretti and over Father Judge. Howard was immediately effective against Ryan’s 1-3-1, scoring eight points in the first quarter and drawing a couple of fouls from 6’ 9” Ryan junior Thomas Sorber. A Howard free throw late in the first quarter gave Wood a 13 to 5 lead. That would prove to be the biggest margin of the contest.
Ryan got out of their 1-3-1 late in the first stanza, switching to a man-to-man defense. The teams were even up in the second frame, but Sorber went to the bench after committing his third foul. Wood led 25 to 19 at halftime. Apart from a 2 to 2 tie, Wood led for the entire first half.
Both offenses were more effective in the third quarter. In the uptempo third stanza, each team’s outstanding backcourt shone. For Ryan, 6’ 4” junior Darren Williams, who was a 3rd team Class 5A All-State selection last season, scored nine points in the third period. For Wood, 6’ 4” Jalil Bethea, who was a 2nd team Class 6A All-State selection last season, notched 10 points in the third frame. After trailing for almost every second of the contest, Ryan tied the game at 37 with 1:47 left in the third quarter on a 3-pointer by Michael Zaire Paris off of a superb assist from Williams. However, Wood held off the surging Ryan with two free throws by 6’ 3” sophomore Milan Dean and a couple of free throws by Bethea. That made it 41 to 37, Wood, but Ryan closed the scoring in the third quarter on a terrific fast break dunk by Williams off of an assist by Paris.
Ryan took their first lead of the game, 45 to 44, on a free throw by Sorber. A few minutes later, Wood recaptured the lead, 52 to 51, on a fast break layup by Bethea. Ryan’s Williams responded with a putback following a gritty offensive rebound, and Ryan was up 53 to 52, with 59 seconds left in the game. With 45 seconds to go, Wood regained the lead, 54 to 53, on two Bethea free throws. Ryan’s Paris, who is very quick, scored the winning basket on a drive to the hoop with 10 seconds left in the game. In the waning seconds, Wood was able to get off a shot, which missed, but 6’ 3” Wood junior Josh Reed grabbed the offensive rebound and put the ball in the basket—just after the final buzzer had sounded. There couldn’t have been a more dramatic ending to the game.
There was outstanding play on both sides; For Ryan, 6’ 6” junior Jaden Murray had a very good night, with nine rebounds, three assists, and two blocked shots. Also for Ryan, Paris had six assists and five rebounds, Sorber had seven rebounds, and 6’ 2” junior Rocco Marabito had five rebounds.
For Wood, Howard had seven rebounds, and he shot five of nine from the floor and nine of 12 from the stripe. His teammate Bethea had five rebounds, and 6’ 2” Wood senior Gus Salem had four assists.
Ryan had a 34 to 30 rebounding edge. Ryan committed 10 turnovers, while Wood had 11 miscues. Ryan was nine of 12 from the free throw line, while Wood was 17 of 26 from the stripe. Ryan made four 3-pointers, and Wood scored three times from beyond the arc.
Archbishop Ryan scoring: Thomas Sorber 19, Darren Williams 15, Michael Zaire Paris 12, Rocco Marabito 5, and Jaden Murray 4.
Archbishop Wood scoring: Carson Howard 19, Jalil Bethea 18, Gus Salem 6, Josh Reed 6, Milan Dean 3, and Deuce Maxey 2.
After the game, Villanova offered a scholarship to Ryan’s Thomas Sorber, who was a 1st team Class 5A All-State selection last season.
Archbishop Wood 13 12 16 13-54
Archbishop Ryan 7 12 21 15-55
Follow LLhoops on Twitter @LLhoops
