Archbishop Wood catches fire in 2nd half, tops Neumann-Goretti for first PCL title

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PHILADELPHIA >> Collin Gillespie never wavered.

When his team was down 15 points in the second quarter, his face stayed the same. When all the momentum was on Archbishop Wood’s side in the second half, and shots were going down, his face stayed the same. The moment wasn’t going to get to him, not with the Philadelphia Catholic League title he and his teammates had been chasing for four years was in front of him.

Gillespie, as he’s done all season, delivered again and his teammates followed suit at the Palestra. Wood rallied back in the second half to defeat Neumann-Goretti 65-58 to win the first PCL title in program history.

After struggling as a team in the first half, Wood spurred its way back behind hot second half showings by Ty Pickron and Matt Cerruti.

“They really turned the game around for us,” Gillespie said. “They got us going offensively, moving the ball. I’m speechless.”

The Saints (18-7) came out on fire in the first half, going on an early 10-0 run to take a 13-2 lead with 3:24 in the first quarter. Goretti led 19-11 at the end of the first and kept rolling, ripping off an 11-0 run after Wood (22-3) closed within 19-15 in the second.

Neumann-Goretti led 30-15 with 2:50 to play in the first half and Wood couldn’t seem to do anything right. Pickron had a nightmare start, going 0-of-5 from the floor and 2-of-6 from the foul line in the first half, while Gillespie struggled on his own right, scoring just two points at the break.

Cerruti had five, leading the team, but he only took two shots. Wood’s offense wasn’t operating like it usually does, the ball wasn’t moving and guys were trying to do too much.

“It wasn’t our offense,” Wood coach John Mosco said. “We weren’t moving the ball around and settling for shots. We talked about relaxing, moving the ball around and shooting with confidence. We didn’t panic, it wasn’t like we were down 30 and we told them we weren’t going to get it back with one shot.”

Neumann-Goretti’s standout guard Quade Green had 18 points and seven assists, but his supporting cast didn’t provide the same kind of support Gillespie’s did after halftime. Neumann-Goretti big man Dhamir Cosby-Roundtree spent long spells on the game on the bench with foul trouble, as did center Marcus Littles, and when Wood started making shots, the Saints couldn’t afford to play both of them.

Wood trailed 31-18 at the break, but once Cerruti started the second half with a 3-pointer and Pickron followed with a trey off a Cerruit assist, the Vikings were back in business.

“We kept pushing,” Cerruti said. “We didn’t change anything, we just kept on working. With our players, we know we’re going to keep battling back. We hit two 3s to start the quarter and we realized we were still in this.”

Wood scored 25 points in the third, all of them coming from Cerruti, Pickron and Gillespie. Pickron was a perfect 3-of-3 from 3-point range in the quarter while Gillespie shot 3-of-4 in the frame. Gillespie’s cutting layup off an Andrew Funk assist pulled the Vikings within one and then the Villanova recruit’s score with 13 seconds left put the Vikings up 43-41 heading into the final frame.

“It’s a credit to our coaches,” Cerruti said. “They push us every day. We don’t get too many off days but I don’t take that for granted. I love being around these guys and I wouldn’t trade any teammates for anybody else in the world. We came out, proved we belonged on this stage and we won it.”

Wood’s offense was what grabbed attention, but its defense was also excellent after the break. Cerruti, Keith Otto, Gillespie and Funk all took turns guarding Green, with Funk providing some big-time defense and rebounding off the bench.

In the first half, Mosco said the Vikings were allowing too much transition offense and letting Green get what he wanted, either a shot or an assist. After the break, the Vikings went harder to the glass, limiting offensive rebounds and keeping the Saints from breaking out.

A Cosby-Roundtree basket gave N-G the lead back at 45-43, but a 3-pointer by Gillespie returned it to Wood a possession later. Another trey by Gillespie gave Wood a 49-47 lead with 4:18 left, though Green’s three-point play in response again gave N-G the advantage.

Then, Wood’s fortunes changed. A basket interference call counted Seth Pinkney’s shot, Gillespie hit two free throws, then Pinkney muscled in an offensive rebound with 2:35 left for a 55-50 lead. Gillespie, who scored 16 of his 24 points in the fourth quarter, scored again with 1:41 left for a seven-point edge. He also surpassed the 1,000-point mark for his career during the contest, but that paled in comparison to the end result.

“Me and Keith have been here all four years and Matt came in last year,” Gillespie, the cut-down net draped around his neck, said. “We stuck together and this year the juniors have really stepped up for us. We preached about leading all year and we just wanted this so bad.”

After two missed free throws on Wood’s end, Green drove and went up for a shot, only to be blocked by Gillespie, who charged down the court and got fouled. He made both and Wood’s mass of white-clad student fans started to sense the moment.

Pickron and Gillespie went 6-of-6 at the line over the final 34 seconds to close out the win, with Gillespie exiting the game and embracing Mosco on the sideline. When Mosco took over the job four years ago, he said the goal was a PCL title and his guys believed in him.

“The school trusted me and believed in me, giving us a chance to just play,” Mosco said. “We just settled down and played.”

Cerruti ended the night with 15 points while Pickron scored 13 and Pinkney had eight for Wood. Noah Warren and Mike Milsip had 13 and 11 respectively for N-G, but each also hit a late fourth-quarter 3-pointer with Wood up multiple possessions.

“Once we saw the ball go in a couple times, we just kept throwing them up and they kept going in,” Cerruti said. “Collin led us like he usually does, he’s the MVP. It was just so much fun.”

Archbishop Wood 65, Neumann-Goretti 58
Neumann-Goretti 19 12 10 17 – 58
Archbishop Wood 11 7 25 22 – 65
Neumann-Goretti (58): Quade Green 7 3-3 18, Noah Warren 5 1-2 13, Dhamir Cosby-Roundtree 3 2-4 8, Mike Milsip 4 1-2 11, Marcus Littles 2 0-0 4, Christian Ings 1 0-0 2, Emil Moody 0 2-2 2. Nonscoring: Montague. Totals: 22 9-13 58.
Archbishop Wood (65): Collin Gillespie 7 8-9 24, Ty Pickron 3 4-8 13, Seth Pinkney 4 0-0 8, Matt Cerruti 5 3-4 15, Andrew Funk 1 0-0 2, Karrington Wallace 1 1-1 3. Nonscoring: Keith Otto, Julius Phillips, Shawn Thompson. Totals: 21 16-22 65.
3-pointers: NG – Warren 2, Milsip 2, Green; AW – Pickron 3, Cerruti 2, Gillespie 2.

Top Photo: Archbishop Wood coach John Mosco and senior Collin Gillespie celebrate after the Vikings’ 65-58 victory over Neumann-Goretti in the Philadelphia Catholic League final at the Palestra in Philadelphia on Monday, Feb. 27, 2017. (Andrew Robinson/Digital First Media)

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Andrew Robinson

Andrew Robinson
Montgomery Media/Lansdale Reporter sports writer.

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