Vikings grind on
Allentown Central Catholic outlasts Pocono Mountain West in 2 OTs
During a nine-game win streak that had completely turned around a season that began at 2-3 and with a lot of concerns, Allentown Central Catholic's boys basketball team faced many challenges.
They played a team from the Philadelphia Catholic League, a solid program from New Jersey, a District One squad and one of the Colonial League's best.
But ACCHS hadn't faced anything like they faced Friday night at Rockne Hall.
A relentless, talented Pocono Mountain West team looking for revenge after losing to the Vikings in last year's Eastern Pennsylvania Conference title game had ACCHS down and nearly out several times.
The Panthers, who had won seven straight and 11 out of 12 since an opening-night loss to Notre Dame-Green Pond, fought back from an early 16-8 deficit and led 42-35 late in the third quarter.
Central Catholic fought back from a 50-44 deficit over the last four minutes of regulation and tied it at 53 on a spin to the basket by Jahrel Vigo with about 25 seconds left and saw West's late 3-point attempt by Devin Artis miss.
At the end of the first overtime with the scored tied, ACCHS defended the Panthers as best it could and then watched as Brady Behr's 3-point bid just missed.
Finally in the second OT, Vigo scored seven of his team's nine points and the Vikings were able to hold West scoreless for the first three minutes and pulled away for an intense, hard-fought 67-60 EPC win that might serve as a preview for what's to come in next month's league's tournament.
Vigo finished with a career-high 36 and Central finished the night with a 10-game win streak, a 12-3 record overall, a 7-2 EPC mark and a new level of respect for West and a better idea of what it will take to repeat as EPC champs.
“That's the epitome right there of conference basketball,” Vikings coach Dennis Csensits said. “There was a lot of grinding it out. Both teams know each other well. Going in, you know what to expect from each other and it really makes for a great challenge in a basketball game.”