Arcidiacono finishes strong, leads Neshaminy over Malvern

No matter the situation, Neshaminy point guard Ryan Arcidiacono feels confident and poised when the ball is in his hands.

The junior led the Redskins to a 61-49 victory over host Malvern Prep on Saturday at the Kobe Bryant/Philly.com Classic and helped them improve their record to 13-2.

After a slow start, Arcidiacono, a Villanova recruit, scored 16 of his 21 points in the second half, including a perfect 8 for 8 from the foul line in the fourth quarter.

"Coach told me to let the game come to me and just stay patient," Arcidiacono said.

With 1 minute, 12 seconds remaining in the fourth quarter, Neshaminy had an eight-point lead and was in the double bonus. Arcidiacono was intentionally fouled at the top of the key, much to the dismay of the Friars' bench.

"I heard someone yell, 'No, not him,' " Arcidiacono said. "It just proves that people don't want me to shoot."

For most of the first three quarters, Arcidiacono faced variations of a box-and-one and a triangle-and-two from the Malvern Prep defense. The added emphasis on the guard freed up wing guard Dwight Williams, who knocked down two three-pointers on his way to a 12-point first half.

"We've seen those types of defenses before, and I was nowhere to be found. I was able to find holes in the defense," Williams said.

For Malvern Prep (16-4), Brendan Kilpatrick was a force inside, getting a game-leading four blocks and grabbing eight rebounds. The 6-foot-5 junior forward is close friends with Arcidiacono, as the two have been AAU teammates for the past two seasons.

Arcidiacono said the two aren't the type that would "talk smack" leading up to the game.

"We don't even say hi before the game," Arcidiacono said. "This is business for us."

Of Arcidiacono's 10 assists Saturday, none looked better then his no-look pass to senior forward Michael McGarry in the final minute of the fourth quarter.

Arcidiacono broke a full-court press as he raced by two defenders and, in transition, found a wide-open McGarry underneath for an uncontested layup.

"When I'm being double-teamed, I know other guys can finish, so I gave him a pass there," Arcidiacono said.

Twice Saturday, Arcidiacono had the ball in his hands with the game clock running down. With less than 20 seconds remaining in the first half, the 6-3 guard received a pass at the top of the key, dribbled toward his defender, and promptly hit a fadeaway three-pointer as the buzzer sounded.

"Coach told me to go get it, but that shot was kind of selfish of me. If I missed it, I'm sure I would've heard something about it," said Arcidiacono, who also hit a two-point jumper as the third quarter expired.

Neshaminy   17131021-61

Malvern Prep   11141212-49

N: Ryan Arcidiacono 21, Tyler Katz 3, Charlie Marterella 2, Michael McGarry 17, Richie Schafer 2, Dwight Williams 16.

MP: Sean Gordon 12, Brendan Kilpatrick 17, Carl Nassib 2, Steve Perpiglia 8, Tom Pitt 8, Kevin Rafferty 2.