Doubters motivated Carroll’s return to big stage

RADNOR >> Josh Sharkey and his fellow seniors heard the whispers as soon as the school year started.

They knew who was gone from last year’s run to the state championship game. They knew the external observer might think the cupboard comparatively bare.

You may wonder what it takes for a program that has played in two state finals in three years to feel underestimated and disrespected. The departure of three Division I players from Archbishop Carroll, engendering chatter that a plummet in Catholic League standing was imminent, did the trick.

Yet after passing test upon test, the Patriots find themselves in what seems their ordained place: Preparing for the PIAA Tournament.

The Patriots, District 12’s third seed, opens the PIAA Class AAA tourney Friday night against District One champion Holy Ghost Prep. Tipoff at Cheltenham High School is at 7:30.

The latest installment of Paul Romanczuk’s conveyer belt is looking to rectify a glaring omission of a state title. They reached the final in Hershey in 2013 (losing to Imhotep Charter) and last year, dropping a heart-breaking 69-67 decision to Catholic League albatross Neumann-Goretti.

Graduation took a toll on the Patriots, with 2014-15 Daily Times player of the year Derrick Jones heading to UNLV and center Ernest Aflakpui, who was injured last season, matriculating to Temple. Junior guard David Beatty’s defection to St. Benedict’s Prep in New Jersey was construed as the death knell, leaving Carroll to supposedly play catchup to the escalating troves of talent stocked by Catholic League elites like Neumann and Roman Catholic.

Those qualms reached the ears of Carroll’s veterans, lighting a fire under them.

“Everyone thought that because we lost Derrick and Ernest and some other guys who transferred, I think there was a lot of doubt,” Sharkey said. “The Catholic League, people thought we weren’t going to do as well, and now that states is starting, people think we aren’t going to do as well, but we use that as motivation. We know what type of team we are.”

Stocks of blue-chip recruits and the prestige of college offers are how success is measured in the summer. Once December rolled around, the Patriots (22-3) forged a unique identity.

Like past teams, this 2015-16 version is star-driven, led by a pair of Division I signees in Hartford-bound Ryan Daly (21.6 points per game) and Sharkey, the nightly triple-double threat who is averaging 14.5 ppg and is bound for Samford. But contributions have emerged from throughout the roster. With 13 players having seen action in double-digit games and nine playing in 20 or more, the Patriots have relied on balance that overwhelms many opponents.

“This is, more than any other team I’ve ever played on, this is a team,” senior John Rigsby said. “We all love playing with each other. We all love hanging out with each other. We all love being with each other every day. And that shows on the court, I think. We all move the ball around well. We’re a very unselfish team, and that shows.”

Rigsby is one of the most obvious examples, blossoming from a defense-first wing player averaging 3.5 ppg last year to a legitimate wing scorer this year at 11.9. Miks Antoms, coming off a career-best 13 points in the District 12 third-place game win over Imhotep, has filled the void in the post with Devon Ferrero and Jesse McPherson, while Colin Daly, Khari Williams and Alex House provide quality backcourt minutes.

The result has been precious few stumbles this season. They lost to Beatty’s Benedict’s team, were routed by Neumann-Goretti and dropped a Catholic League semifinal to tourney champ Roman Catholic after topping the Cahillites in the regular season. But short of those quality opponents, the Patriots have shown themselves to be head and shoulders above the rest of the Catholic League, methodically finding ways to win.

The Patriots will embark on the same road through states as last year, beginning with a matchup with District One champion Holy Ghost Prep (19-6). Last year, Octorara was the first opponent to bite the dust on Carroll’s romp to a silver medal, trampled 83-49.

The Firebirds breezed past Lower Moreland, 74-54, in the district title game. They have multiple scoring threats, led by 6-foot-4 guard Jack Coolahan. Aidan Bauer scored 22 points in the district final, while Mike McFadden and Julian Turner are also capable of double-figure explosions.

Containing Daly and Sharkey will be a tall task. The other Carroll players are aware of that, and the focus this week for the Patriots has been on refining their mental outlook. The quarterfinals loss to Philadelphia Electrical and Technical Charter two years ago still stings, and the lesson from that premature exit resonates as a warning of what happens when you underestimate an opponent.

However prevalent the external doubters once were, Carroll will enter most postseason games as a marked favorite. The Patriots know from experience, though, that doesn’t mean they have to be complacent.

The intensity churning inside Carroll all season has summarily disproven the doubts that fueled it. So for (what they hope to be) the last five games of the season, that fire still burns, even if the source of the blaze has shifted somewhat.

“There’s nothing we want more” than a state title, Rigsby said. “Me, Ryan and Josh always talk about how we want our legacy here at Carroll is to go out as champions. We want to win our last game in a Carroll uniform, and the only way to do that is to win a state championship.”