Blamon and DiLeo lead Cinnaminson over Collingswood

It was pick your poison for Collingswood.

With senior guards Napolean Blamon and Max DiLeo combining for 49 points, Cinnaminson opened its season with an impressive 72-60 victory over Collingswood Monday night in a nonleague clash of South Jersey Group 2 powers.

"Those two kids are very, very good players," Collingswood coach Joe McLoughlin said of Blamon and DiLeo, Cinnaminson's only senior starters.

The 6-foot-1 Blamon collected 27 points and 15 rebounds. The 6-foot DiLeo generated 22 points with four assists and five steals.

"If one of us isn't scoring, the other one is," DiLeo said. "If both of us are, we're a tough team to stop."

Chris Michael and Karon Waller each scored 16 for Collingswood (1-1), the No. 10 team in South Jersey in The Inquirer's top 10.

Blamon (10) and DiLeo (12) combined for all 22 points as Cinnaminson burst out to a 22-12 lead in the first quarter.

"We wanted to come out strong," Blamon said. "Our coaches prepared us for this game."

Collingswood rallied behind a pressing defense in the second half. The Panthers closed the gap to 44-41 in the third quarter and to 54-50 early in the fourth.

But Cinnaminson weathered the storm as sophomores Dan Haddon and Xavier Wilson combined for nine points in the fourth quarter. The Pirates also got a big lift off the bench from senior Mark Berardis, who scored nine points.

"Our guys were waiting since the summer for this game, and they came out like it," Cinnaminson coach Mike Fries said.

Collingswood   12 12 21 15 - 60

Cinnaminson   22 13 16 21 - 72

Coll: B.J. Jones 4, Julian Welsh-White 11, Karon Waller 16, Chris Michael 16, Jermaine Feaster 5, Kris Williams 2, Derek Wormley 2, Shaquille Maynard 4.

Cinn: Max DiLeo 22, Napolean Blamon 27, Dan Haddon 5, Xavier Wilson 9, Mark Berardis 9.