And the Oscar goes to ...
It was Sunday night and The Dribbler had finally digested a busy, three-day run of high school basketball when he realized it was time for the Oscars.
The Oscars, of course, are named after the Big O, Oscar Robertson, and recognize excellence in WPIAL basketball championship achievement. This year’s winners …
Best Picture — The Shot. Tess Myers drove the length of the court and sank the winning basket at the buzzer to help Cardinal Wuerl North Catholic down Beaver, 50-49.
Best Actor — Daivon Stephens, Penn Hills. Denzel doesn’t have anything on Daivon, who put up 23 points and grabbed 11 rebounds to bring Penn Hills its first title in 15 years. Best Actress — Gia Thorpe, Winchester Thurston. A triple-double in the championship? That’s big time. Thorpe went for 36 points, 14 rebounds and 10 steals in Winchester Thurston’s win. Best Director — Ralph Blundo, New Castle. The man can coach. No team plays harder and no team gets after it as much defensively. The champion ‘Canes dealt Quaker Valley its first loss. Best Costume — (Tie) New Castle’s “Ne-Ca-Hi” jerseys and Lincoln Park’s classic look complete with shorts so short that teams haven’t worn them since the ‘70s.
Here are his thoughts on this week’s top PIAA playoff games:
Boys
Franklin Regional vs. Highlands, 6 p.m. Friday at Fox Chapel — Here’s a statistic that’s so ridiculous, you might not believe it. Franklin Regional has made one field goal in the fourth quarter in its past three games. Yes, one field goal in 24 minutes. Here’s the kicker … the Panthers are 21 in those games. The loss was against Mars in the WPIAL Class 5A final. The Panthers have won two of three meetings with Highlands. Winner: Franklin Regional.
Kennedy Catholic vs. Propel Andrew Street, 6:30 p.m. Friday at Slippery Rock University — This is a classic David vs. Goliath matchup. On one side you have Propel Andrew Street, which a few weeks ago won its first WPIAL playoff game and is making its PIAA playoff debut. On the other side you have mighty Kennedy Catholic, which features 6-foot-9 Oscar Tshiebwe, 6-8 Mattia Acunzo and 6-5 Maceo Austin. This won’t be pretty. Winner: Kennedy Catholic.
Allderdice vs. Mt. Lebanon, 4 p.m. Saturday at Obama Academy — At long last, Allderdice is in the main draw of the Class 6A bracket. As talented as the Dragons are, they had to win two subregional games just to get to this point. After playing teams from Districts 10 and 6, they now get a familiar foe. They defeated Mt. Lebanon, 71-63, in January. Mt. Lebanon will bring lots of pressure, but the Dragons have the guards to handle it. Winner: Allderdice.
Pine-Richland vs. Central Catholic, 4:30 p.m. Saturday at Fox Chapel — Pine-Richland isn’t used to losing in WPIAL championship games, so it will be interesting to see how the Rams respond to falling to Penn Hills in the Class 6A title game. Central Catholic can relate, at least the part about losing to Penn Hills. The Vikings were defeated by the Indians in the quarterfinals. They will have gone two weeks without playing a game. Winner: Pine-Richland.
Penn Hills vs. Fox Chapel, 4:30 p.m. Saturday at North Hills — The previous time Penn Hills won a WPIAL title, the Indians went on to lose to Chartiers Valley in the second round of the PIAA playoffs. Will the Indians make a deeper run 15 years later? The Dribbler thinks they could. But if they don’t, the Indians can take solace in the fact that after losing in the second round in 2003, they won the title the following season. Winner: Penn Hills.
Girls
Peters Township vs. Bethel Park, 7:30 p.m. Friday at Canon-McMillan — For Bethel Park, will the fourth time be a charm? Peters Township has had Bethel Park’s number this season, winning two regular-season meetings and again in the WPIAL Class 6A semifinals. Makenna Marisa scored 25 points for Peters Township in the 55-39 playoff win. Unless Bethel Park finds a way to slow her down, Peters Township will make it 4 for 4. Winner: Peters Township.
Gateway vs. Trinity, 3 p.m. Saturday at Fox Chapel — So, let’s get this straight. Gateway won the WPIAL Class 5A title and now draws Trinity in the first round of PIAAs? Sheesh. To be the best, you have to beat the best, and Gateway showed that in the WPIAL playoffs by taking down the likes of No. 2 seed Thomas Jefferson and defending champion Chartiers Valley. Its next opponent, Trinity, was the No. 1 seed before upset in the quarterfinals. Winner: Trinity.
Blackhawk vs. Villa Maria, 4 p.m. Saturday at Edinboro University — When North Catholic beat Beaver in the WPIAL Class 4A final, it not only gave the Trojanettes their 18th title, but it also slotted Blackhawk as the WPIAL’s fourth-place team. That means Blackhawk draws District 10 power Villa Maria in the first round. Villa was the PIAA runner-up the past two seasons and beat Blackhawk by 25 in last year’s second round. Winner: Villa Maria.