Daily Local News (West Chester, PA)
Great Valley, Shanahan face tough 1st-round tests
Friday night, the two remaining area teams in Class 5A start PIAA tournament play, and both Great Valley and Bishop Shanahan have very formidable tasks ahead of them against powerful District 12 teams.
Great Valley will face Archbishop Carroll at Spring-Ford High School at 7:30 p.m. while Bishop Shanahan goes to South Philadelphia High School to face a very skilled Martin Luther King team, also at 7:30 p.m.
Both local coaches have respect for their talented opponents and Great Valley coach Paul Girone talked about what Archbishop Carroll has to offer.
“Carroll is a very formidable opponent,” Girone said. “They are perennially one of the top teams in the state and without question this is the best team we have faced this season. I don’t see any weaknesses on their part. They have an excellent coach with several versatile players who play offense and defense equally well. Their guards are very quick and dangerous in the open court. Carroll also has good size and all their players shoot the ball well.
“To have a chance, we will have to have exceptional defensive performances against Khari Williams, and explosive guard and Colin Daly, a sharp shooting forward.”
Carroll is a very talented team. Williams averages 9.8 points per game, while Daly, a very good shooter, bangs home 11 points per game. throw in Coatesville native A.J. Hoggard and
his 10.1 points per contest and Carroll is a very balanced team.
Great Valley is going to have to defend better than they have all season and Liam Ward, Gavin Frankenheimer and Alex Capitano are all going to have to have good shooting games for Great Valley to spring the upset.
THE PICK >> Archbishop Carroll, 57, Great Valley 52 ••• Bishop Shanahan drew the District 12 No. 2 seed in Martin Luther King,
and Shanahan coach Ken Doyle knows his Eagles are going to have to rebound the basketball against a very tall Cougar front line that goes 6-foot-9, 6-foot-7 and 6-foot-6.
“Martin Luther King is very big and they have a few kids 6-7 or bigger,” Doyle said. “They are a very good defensive team also. We will have to play well on both ends of the floor and on offense, take care of the basketball and make some shots. Defensively, we have to slow their transition and box out well and be able to keep them in front of us to win.”
King features all Philadelphia Public League players in 6-9 Wiliam McNair, who averages 13 points and 10 rebounds per game, and Elijiah Kaih-El, who is a 6-7 slasher who is tough to handle in the open floor. Tthe Cougars also have very quick guards and will be a handful to slow down.
King does have a tendency to turn the ball over at times, and Shanahan has to shoot exceptionally well and somehow keep King off the offensive glass to win this contest and turn those turnovers into points.
THE PICK >> Bishop Shanahan 59, Martin Luther King 57