New Castle vs Central Catholic Game Report

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Ralph Blundo's first trip to The Castle came with high stakes--Avenge a loss to the Vikings from earlier in the season, win the divisional title, make a statement. The Hurricanes accomplished all three in their 67-53 win--They overcame a strong post game from PCC, held <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='991365' first='Dante' last='DePante'] </strong>under his average in his first game back after injury and absolutely neutralized the reliable supporting guard trio of <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1483892' first='Tommy' last='Kristian']</strong>, <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1186402' first='Randy' last='Wilkerson']</strong> and <strong>Payton Wehner</strong>. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p> Who stood out?</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1202037' first='Dajuan' last='Young']</strong> | G | New Castle</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The senior stepped up and went off for 20+ and giving Central fits in the process. He got it done in every way on offense, moving the ball, getting to the rim, pulling up, baiting bigger defenders into cheating out on him and finishing at the bucket. He was the catalyst for the Hurricanes this evening.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Isaiah Boice</strong> | G| New Castle</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>For 7 games, nearly a month, Castle went without their senior leader--The team managed to hold it together---but having him back, even if he was less than 100% at this point, was still better than 100% from about 95% of players in Pennsylvania. He dropped 18 points and was dangerous from beyond the arc. He showed tonight why he's one of the top available seniors in the WPIAL.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Jonathon Anderson</strong> | G| New Castle</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Boice's backcourt mate also hit for 18 points and provided some stifling defense, which is a Ralph Blundo mandate. With Boice and Anderson back together, the Hurricanes have a big advantage on the rest of 6A, though Coach Blundo was cautious in speaking to media after the game, saying that the 6A class is very evenly matched.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1284792' first='Debaba' last='Tshiebwe'] </strong>| F | Central Catholic</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The 6'7" big man played what may have been his best all around game in a Vikings uniform. He went off for 21pts and 17 boards in a dominating post performance to keep Central within striking distance(They got the lead down to 44-42 with 6:00 to go, but couldn't finish it off). Tshiebwe showed the scholarship level potential tonight--For Debaba, consistency will be key down the stretch to try and get a few offers, and if need be, a year of prep school could be the extra polish that he needs to push on to the next level.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Cole Sullivan</strong> | F | Central Catholic</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>While he's more lauded as a football player, the 6'5" Sullivan had another explosive performance on the hardwood. He chipped in 15 points as part of Central's post-heavy-offense that kept them hanging around. While he's an elite football prospect with offers that open doors to NFL futures, if Sullivan wanted to, he could easily put his post skills and footwork to use as a college basketball player--Just a junior, he could probably do it at the scholarship level after another year of HS hoops. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->