Suburbs rule All-Star Labor Classic

SUNDAY'S ALL-STAR Labor Classic featured nine players who are moving on to play college basketball, but the unheralded players were the ones who stole the show as the Suburbs team defeated the City team, 107-85, at Upper Dublin High.

The Suburbs squad was led by Academy of the New Church's Dinjiyl Walker and Cheltenham's Nafis Walker, who scored 18 and 17 points, respectively, in what was likely the last game of their basketball careers.

"It's a really big deal and I'm just really cherishing the moment right now," Nafis Walker said.

Dinjiyl Walker, an Ontario, Canada native who joined ANC in 2010, staked the Suburbs out to an early lead with 15 points in the first half. Penn Wood's Malcolm Richardson added nine points as the Suburbs took a 55-28 lead at halftime. The game did not feature much in the way of defense as both rosters went into the game without having a single practice.

"For not having a practice, it's just a matter of getting them up and down the court and not being selfish and I think they did that for the most part," said Jim Rullo, Malvern Prep and Suburbs coach. "This was the first time we got together and we just had a genuine liking to each other and it was just about going out and competing, having fun and being unselfish and I thought they did a good job."

In the second half, Nafis Walker and Chester's Erikk Wright carried the load for the Suburbs with 19 combined points, and nearly every player on the roster chipped in to keep the lead.

After a slow first half, the City team started showing signs of life. Billy Shank, from state champion Neumann-Goretti, led City with 13 points. Jamal Nwanieka, from Conwell Egan, who is going on to play for Rider, finished with 11 points. West Catholic's Mark Perez and Lincoln's Michael Bowers each put up 10 points for the City team.

In the girls' City-against-Suburbs matchup, the Suburbs triumphed, 48-39, despite the City team having the coach and three players from state champion Archbishop Carroll. The Carroll trio of Meghan Creighton, Rachel Pearson and Shannon Shields collectively scored just 13 points. Shields was the City's leading scorer with 10 points, Pearson had three and Creighton, coach Chuck Creighton's daughter, was left of the score sheet. William Penn Charter's Diana Palmer was the City's second-leading scorer with eight points.

On the Suburbs side, the scoring was a team effort as no player finished with double-digit points. Council Rock South's Alex Wheatley was the leading scorer with nine points and Cheltenham's Christina Coleman finished with eight.