Archbishop Ryan Defeats Previously Unbeaten Radnor 69-65 in PIAA Class 5A Playoff Quarterfinal: Kehler on Hoops
Written by: Dell Jackson on March 18, 2023
Archbishop Ryan Defeats Previously Unbeaten Radnor 69-65 in PIAA Class 5A Playoff Quarterfinal
Archbishop Ryan advanced to the semifinals of the PIAA Class 5A state championship tournament with a 69 to 65 win over previously undefeated Radnor on Friday night in Bensalem. Radnor had beaten Ryan 57 to 42 in December in the Diane Mosco Foundation Shootout at Archbishop Wood.
This intense, high quality game was close for the entire 32 minutes of the contest. Until the final quarter, the largest lead of the game had been eight points. Although Ryan led most of the way, Radnor was never out of striking distance. The teams had sharply contrasting styles of play, with Radnor’s long range shooting the strength of their offense, while Ryan had a more balanced attack. On defense, Radnor primarily played man-to-man, while Ryan often deployed a 3-2 zone that featured 6’ 9” junior Thomas Sorber in the center of the front line. Sorber, who had a tremendous defensive performance which included nine blocked shots, would sometimes slide from the zone’s front line to positions in the lane and close to the hoop. During the second half, following 3-pointers on three consecutive possessions by 6’ 5” Radnor senior Jackson Hicke, Ryan played some man-to-man.
Darren Williams, a 6’ 4” Ryan junior got his team off to a great start in this game, scoring the first six points of the contest on a three point play on a drive and a 3-pointer. Radnor called a timeout to regroup. Although Radnor was held scoreless in the first three minutes of the game, their offense got a big boost from sharpshooter Jackson Gaffney, a 6’ 8” senior, who hit a couple of 3-pointers from the baseline in the first quarter. Gaffney’s second 3-pointer tied the game at 10, but, other than that tie, Ryan led for the entire first half. Ryan’s Williams had a terrific first half in which he notched 19 points on an array of drives to the hoop and some outside shooting. His teammate, Sorber, committed his third foul with 4:32 left in the second quarter and Ryan leading 21-13. With Sorber on the bench, Radnor surged, trapping on defense and exploiting a broader array of scoring opportunities. Late in the first half, 6’ Radnor senior Danny Rosenbaum scored on a three point play to cut Ryan’s lead to 30 to 28, and that was the halftime score.
Radnor came out blazing in the third quarter. Jackson Hicke, a 6’ 5” Radnor senior, had spent a big slice of the first half on the bench with foul trouble. He hadn’t scored in the first 16 minutes of play. A terrific outside shooter, Hicke hit 3-pointers in three consecutive possessions at the beginning of the third quarter, the second of which gave Radnor their first lead of the game, at 34 to 31. Hicke’s third 3-pointer gave Radnor what would prove to be their biggest lead of the game, four points, at 37 to 33. Then, Ryan made some defensive adjustments and played some man-to-man. Ryan’s defensive change was the turning point of the game, and they soon recaptured the lead at 38 to 37 on a three point play by Sorber. From that point, Ryan led for the balance of the contest.
However, no Ryan lead was completely safe with Radnor long range bombers Hicke and Gaffney in the game. Accustomed to winning, Radnor played with admirable confidence and poise, even when they fell behind 60 to 49 on a 3-pointer by Ryan’s Williams midway through the fourth quarter. Radnor cranked up the defensive pressure, forced some Ryan turnovers, and got back into the game on back-to-back 3-pointers by 6’ 4” senior Cooper Mueller and Hicke. That cut Ryan’s lead to 60 to 55. Radnor hung with Ryan until less than 1:30 remained in the game, when 6’ Ryan junior Ryan Everett hit a very clutch 3-pointer from the left baseline corner to put his team up 66 to 59. There wasn’t enough time left for Radnor to recover from Everett’s hoop from beyond the arc.
Every player on the court for both teams played well. Both teams have outstanding coaches and terrific chemistry and poise. The play was intelligent and skilled. The gym was full, and the crowd was lively and absorbed in the game. The contest was a prime example of what makes the PIAA playoffs so great.
Ryan had a 28 to 25 edge on the boards. Ryan committed 16 turnovers in the game, half of them in the fourth quarter when Radnor clawed back into contention. Radnor had eight miscues. Ryan was 16 of 22 from the free throw line, while Radnor was 14 of 17 from the stripe. Ryan scored seven times from beyond the arc, while Radnor made 11 3-pointers, several of them from very long range by Hicke. There were three ties and two lead changes.
Archbishop Ryan scoring: Darren Williams 28, Thomas Sorber 14, Michael Zaire Paris 11, Ryan Everett 10, and Jaden Murray 6.
Radnor scoring: Jackson Gaffney 20, Jackson Hicke 14, Cooper Mueller 9, Danny Rosenblum 9, Charlie Thornton 9, and Michael Savadove 4.
Archbishop Ryan 16 14 17 22-69
Radnor 10 18 11 26-65
Archbishop Ryan, now 17-10, will play Imhotep Charter in a PIAA Class 5A playoff semifinal on Monday, likely somewhere in Philadelphia. Imhotep defeated Ryan 69 to 58 on March 2 on a neutral court for the PIAA District 12 Class 5A championship.
The view from here is that Radnor, the Central League champion, was the best team in PIAA District 1 this season, irrespective of classification. Their tremendous season ends with a 29-1 record, with some mighty impressive wins along the way. Five of their first seven players are seniors.
On Twitter: @david_kehler
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