Neumann-Goretti's Kimble a 'Fresh' talent

W HEN A KID sports "Fresh" for a nickname, one can't help but wonder whether he blurts out the occasional curse word, or routinely sasses his teachers.

And then there's Lamarr Kimble . . . He's known as "Fresh" because of his respect for sartorial splendor.

"That name goes back to when I was little, maybe like in first grade," Kimble said. "I always looked nice and the kids started calling me that. Then it carried over to basketball. That's how everybody knows me. You'll see me in nice jeans, a nice shirt, nice sneaks . . . always the nice sneaks. I have lots of them. That's what I am, a sneaker head."

Thursday night, there was a Catholic League basketball game in South Philly and Kimble, a 5-11, 170-pound sophomore, came dressed as Billy Shank.

You remember Shank, right? Over the last three seasons, he often offered crisp mad bombing from beyond the arc as Ss. Neumann-Goretti extended its run of CL championships to four and its streak of league victories, counting playoffs, to 70.

That latter number is now 73 - the Saints posted earlier CL victories over Conwell-Egan and Lansdale Catholic - and Kimble helped in large part to make it happen.

Before an overflow crowd, with Shank among the witnesses and enjoying every Kimble moment, Fresh sniped 7-for-11 for 18 points as the Saints bested Archbishop Carroll, 70-59. And, yes, he notched seven field goals while still managing to tally 18 points, so that means four of his buckets were treys (out of six attempts).

The final three were important, too.

One came in the waning moments of the third quarter and gave N-G a hint of breathing room at 46-41. The next made it 57-50 with a shade over four minutes left in the fourth stanza and the last provided an eight-point pad, at 62-54, at 1:57.

That one was an example of coffin meet nail. It came off a great pass from point guard Hanif Sutton, who scurried into the lane from the right side and noticed Kimble, all by his lonesome, patiently spotting up in the left corner.

Splash!

Kimble, a very distant relative of former mid-'80s Dobbins Tech star and NBAer Greg "Bo" Kimble, is the only soph in N-G's rotation.

He appreciates the opportunity and plans to prove himself worthy.

"I have confidence every time I shoot the ball," Kimble said. "I always say to myself, 'This one's gonna go in.' If it doesn't, I just say, 'The next one's gonna go in.'

"Coach Carl [Arrigale] always tells me I'm one of the best shooters on the team and to always have that confidence. He says that every time I get an open look, take it. Because 50 percent of the time I'm going to make it."

Fifty percent of the time?

"Yup, that's what he says."

Kimble said his confidence really soared late in the summertime AAU season, when he rang up 35 points in an important game for Team Final.

"I was feelin' it," he said. "I think maybe four of those baskets were threes."

Overall, this weekend signals the start of the CL season. N-G played those two early games so it could make room for special events.

During the holidays, the Saints traveled to Oregon and - say it ain't so - dropped their last two games after notching the same number of wins.

"We grew a lot from that trip," Kimble contended. "We were making some minor mistakes and we have since corrected them in practice. Coach Carl made us go over and over them, so we could fix them in preparation for tonight.

"I guess we were kind of cocky. Went out there with the idea that no one could beat us. Now we know. We can be beaten. We're back to being hungry."

Junior wing guard Ja'Quan Newton was a whirlwind for N-G, collecting 24 points, 12 rebounds and two assists. Senior forward John Davis, a Towson signee, hustled for 15 points and 11 boards. Sutton dished five assists and scored nine points.

For Carroll, senior point guard Yosef Yacob (Binghamton) was the picture of aggression mixed with floor sense. He bagged 24 points and two assists, and that latter total should have been much higher. Soph Derrick Jones, an impressive forward, had 13 points and 12 rebounds. Foul miseries helped to limit 6-9 soph Ernest Aflakpui, who's here from Ghana, to six and three.

Kimble, who lives on Brill Street, footsteps from Tabor and Godfrey, maintains he continues to earn his nickname on close to a daily basis.

"Yeah," he said, laughing, "I still look fresh."