(Park's Derek Cheatom has been a standout.  Photo by Buffalo News)

 

Last year, Park entered the Monsignor Martin Association.  In the offseason, the MMA changed its postseason format to hold separate Manhattan Cup tournaments for the large and small  schools, coming off of a season when a small school, Nichols, had won the whole thing.  Park is considered a small school and will compete in the Class B portion of the Manhattan Cup playoffs.  But the small schools still get one game each season against the Class A teams of the MMA, and for Park, that series of games against the large schools has begun.  Last night, they visited St. Joe's, and with their speed and talent on full display, the Pioneers looked like the largest school in the area.

 

Park took a commanding 18-point lead at halftime and withstood the Marauders' best shot in the second half, to secure a 77-67 win.  The Pioneers remain undefeated in the MMA and against every team they've faced from this area, with their only loss coming to Vaughan of Ontario, a nationally ranked Canadian team.

 

"They've got size, they can shoot it, they're athletic – it's a challenge", St. Joe's head coach Mark Simon said.

 

After spotting the Marauders the game's first four points, Park quickly rattled off 12 unanswered.  The Pioneers got scoring from all five starters in the opening quarter and led 21-12 after St. Joe's Nick Motley sank a '3' in the closing seconds of the frame.

 

Late in the second quarter, the Marauders were still hanging around, trailing by seven points after slipping behind by 13 points earlier in the stanza.  With 2:15 left before halftime, Randy Golda scored for Park to kickoff a 13-2 run to end the quarter.  Jordan Nwora threw down a nice baseline dunk and canned a 3-pointer, Kyle Harris hit a '3' and Golda scored the last three points of the half to account for the Pioneers' scoring spurt.  Park took a 47-29 lead into the break.

 

Before heading into the locker room, Simon looked at me, raised his eyebrows, and said "We didn't play bad".  He was right, it was more about how well Park had just performed.  A barrage of points in a very short time.  When I later asked Simon about his message at halftime after giving up that late-half run, he replied "I gave them the play harder speech, which they did".

 

St. Joe's won both quarters in the second half, outscoring Park 15-10 in the third and 23-20 in the fourth quarters.  After trailing by 13 points heading into the fourth quarter, Motley hit a '3' to cut the deficit to 10 points at the start of the final stanza.  Three minutes into the last quarter, a pair of free throws from Motley had St. Joe's within seven points.  After a timeout, Park was back up by 13 points just 44 seconds later, after Cheatom scored & converted an 'And 1' and Nwora sank another 3-pointer.  The Marauders still kept coming and got the deficit down to nine, before Kyle Harris got a long off-balance shot to go, followed by another score from Cheatom.  No matter what St. Joe's did, Park just continued to knock down shots or get to the rim.

 

"I'm lucky, I've got guys that can score",  Park head coach Michael Battaglia said.  "I might look like a good coach, but shoot, when you've got guys like Derek Cheatom, Jordan Nwora, Randy Golda, Hunter Anderson, Kyle Harris, you're going to score points no matter what offense you run".

 

"What are you going to do"? Simon asked. "You smile and shake your head.  You don't want to lose, but it's OK when guys are making shots, it's part of the game".

 

Battaglia spoke after the game on the Marauders finding their way back into the game, following such a strong finish to the first half for his team.

 

"Their man pressure bothered us a little bit and Randy Golda being in foul trouble, he was a beast", Battaglia said.

 

Golda had scored 11 of his 16 points in the first half, attacking St. Joe's aggressively in the paint.  Another player who Battaglia spoke of was Cheatom, citing his team leadership and overall impact on the team's success.

 

"He (Cheatom) plays hard every second, he takes pride in defending, and he takes pride in rebounding.  Not too many kids do all those things", Battaglia said.  "And he can score, he can shoot it or go to the basket – he's just outstanding".

 

Nwora led Park with a game-high 24 points, including four bombs from beyond the arc.  Cheatom scored 16 points, and Harris added 10 points.

 

Grant Beyer finished with a team-high 19 points for St. Joe's, while Motley abd Marcell Davis each scored 14 points in the loss.

 

-centercourt