Roman tops Neumann-Goretti

The opportunities for redemption can sometimes come immediately, sometimes down the road, or sometimes never.

Brad Wanamaker made sure his chances didn't go the way of the latter.

In what has become a ritual of closely contested, contentious battles, Wanamaker willed Roman Catholic past rival Neumann-Goretti, 59-58, in another Catholic League South Division gem yesterday.

The 6-foot-4 Wanamaker scored a game-high 19 points, and did so by conquering one recent and another semi-recent blemish on his otherwise impeccable game.

Flaw No. 1 was easy to rectify, but the Pittsburgh-bound Wanamaker had to wait five days to fix it. On Sunday, Roman (13-3, 6-2) dropped a tough loss to steely St. Joseph's Prep. But in some ways it was the Cahillites who did themselves in, losing composure as the referees' whistles blew against them.

The recognized team leader, Wanamaker led the Cahillites in the lost-cool column. It's not a feat he was proud of.

"I didn't consider myself a leader that day because I started losing it mentally," said Wanamaker. "And when I lost it mentally, my team lost it mentally."

Wanamaker found it yesterday, especially in the late, game-deciding moments. With the score knotted, 57-57, Wanamaker drew a foul with 9.8 seconds left. He confidently walked to the line and stroked both free throws.

And when he was called for a block - his fourth foul - with 2.9 ticks left on the clock, Wanamaker didn't erupt, although after the game he did opine that it "was a charge. They just didn't call it."

"I learned from experience," Wanamaker added. "I couldn't think about it because I had to be ready for a rebound or maybe our own shot."

After Neumann-Goretti's Rick Jackson (12 points, 11 rebounds) missed the second freebie after making the first, however, the Saints retained possession as the ball skipped out of bounds off a Cahillite. Neumann-Goretti (14-4, 7-1), the top-ranked team in The Inquirer's Southeastern Pennsylvania Top Ten, had one more try.

But freshman Tony Chennault missed from the corner, and No. 8 Roman avenged its Jan. 2 loss to the Saints. And it was largely due to a reversal of fortune.

Which brings us to Wanamaker's second snatched opportunity, and to a larger extent Roman's. Last season, the Cahillites were victimized by poor foul shooting, most notably against area power Episcopal Academy (4 of 20) and then against Neumann-Goretti in the championship (10 of 24).

Yesterday, it was the Saints who played that role, shooting 11 of 25 from the stripe. Roman, meanwhile, connected on 19 of 23 free throws. And Wanamaker made 9 of 11, while his fraternal twin, Brian (14 points) hit 10 of 11.

"Every day we do a shooting contest," said Brad, "and everyone's more focused on the line because we know it's going to come down to the line like last year."

Despite its free-throw woes, Neumann-Goretti led, 43-36, after a close first half, due in part because of Jamal Wilson's trio of three-pointers early in the third quarter. But the 6-5 junior drew his fourth foul minutes later, as did Rashad Savage, and both had to sit.

The Saints shot 21 of 37 from the field through three quarters, but didn't make any of seven attempts in the fourth quarter as Roman's defense was stifling.

Neumann-Goretti17 15 22 4 - 58

Roman Catholic18 16 15 10 - 59

NG: Rick Jackson 12, Jamal Wilson 16, Rashad Savage 10, Antonio Jardine 12, Wali Hepburn 1, Mark Hatty 7.

RC: Brad Wanamaker 19, Brian Wanamaker 14, Courtney Stanley 6, Maalik Wayns 4, Will Kirkland 9, Wes Kirkland 2, Rakeim Brookins 5.