No.3 Roman Catholic downs No.1 Carroll, 54-46

Roman Catholic coach Chris McNesby said he removed Manny Taylor from the starting lineup for a period to "motivate, not punish" the junior forward for a less-than-complete effort.

"We wanted him to be more of a power inside and on the glass," McNesby said. "We expected more than three rebounds a game from him. We knew he could do better."

Apparently, the plan worked.

Sunday afternoon at packed Philadelphia University, with an inspired Taylor scoring 20 points and collecting nine rebounds, the Cahillites, ranked No. 3 in Southeastern Pennsylvania by The Inquirer, upended No. 1 Archbishop Carroll, 54-46, in a Catholic League showdown.

Taylor, who rejoined the starting lineup last Monday against Father Judge, shot 8 for 13 from the field and 4 for 6 from the line. He added a steal and a blocked shot.

"It was a big game for us," the 6-foot-6, 270-pounder said. "TreVaughn [Wilkerson, another 6-6 junior] and I were talking before the game about how much better Carroll thought they were than us. We had to show them what we could do."

Shep Garner, who has committed to Penn State, contributed 10 points, including seven in the final quarter, in Roman's biggest win of the season. Fellow senior guard Rashann London, who is bound for Drexel, added nine points and three assists.

"In my eyes, we were supposed to win this game," Garner said. "I don't see it as an upset like some people do."

The game was deadlocked, 18-18, at intermission. Roman (10-2, 4-0 Catholic League) used a 6-0 spurt, including Taylor's foul-line jumper, to gain some breathing room at 29-22.

At the end of the third period, Wilkerson (six rebounds, two blocks) answered Derrick Jones' putback slam with one of his own, giving the Cahillites a 35-29 edge.

"The Roman frontcourt outplayed our guys," Patriots coach Paul Romanczuk said. "They were tougher than us mentally and physically. [Taylor] impacted the game in a lot of ways."

Jones, a 6-6 junior, paced Carroll (9-2, 3-1) with 17 points and five boards.

Archbishop Carroll 10 8 11 17 - 46

Roman Catholic 11 7 17 19 - 54

AC: Joe Mostardi 3, Ernest Aflakpui 5, Derrick Jones 17, Austin Tilghman 11, David Beatty 8, Josh Sharkey 2.

RC: Tony Carr 7, Rashann London 9, TreVaughn Wilkerson 6, Manny Taylor 20, Shep Garner 10, Gemil Holbrook 2.