The Pope John Paul II boys basketball team improved to 3-0 last Saturday by taking down White House and CPA in the Beech Tip-Off Classic.
Against the Blue Devils, JPII dominated as Sabino Otirapoured in a game-high 23 points to lead the Knights to a 77-58 victory.
The Blue Devils jumped out to an early first-quarter lead but couldn’t hold on. JPII extended the floor with their three-point shooting and ability to attack the rim.
In the second quarter, the Knights flexed their muscles on the glass and in the paint, scoring six paint points and knocking down a trio of three-point field goals.
“I liked our defense in stretches tonight,” JPII coach Charles Wade said. “Especially in that second quarter, we were really good. That allowed us to push out the lead to as much as 20. Our defense turned into quick offense.”
“I thought Pope had some really good shooters and had some length on us,” White House coach Caleb Cook said. “I thought overall Pope was a good team to play against. They will really benefit us down the road.”
Leading 36-18 at halftime, JPII added three more three-pointers and another eight points in the paint to maintain their lead. That came despite the hot shooting from White House senior Logan Neufeld, who torched the net for 12 points on four three-pointers.
“They did a really good job of running plays for him, and we didn’t do a good job of switching over their screens and communicating,” Wade added.
In the fourth quarter, JPII made its free throws down the stretch. The Knights went 10-for-13 from the charity stripe to preserve their double-digit lead.
They also added three more three-pointers to finish with 12 for the game.
“We are a shooting team, make no mistake about it,” Wade said. “We are an outside-in team, and I think that allows us to get some things on the inside as well.”
JPII added 24 paint points against the Blue Devils.
Neufeld led White House with 21 points. Senior forward Durstin Adams also finished in double figures with 18.
BOYS BOX SCORE
JPII (77): Sabino Otira 23, Sam Specht 14, Taggert Patterson 14, Rahkilon Williams 5, Michael Martini 5, Elijah Williams 4, Connor Tuerff 4, Timothy Lark 3, Jarrett Lucombe 3, Matthew Shipley 2.
White House (58): Logan Neufeld 21, Durstin Adams 18, Evan Webster 6, Jacob McDonald 5, Noah Johnston 3, Nathan Bowman 3, Zak Lamaal 2.
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