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Steaks for everyone in Roman win

TO THE VICTORS went the cheesesteaks. But first to the kids who helped them. Lunch periods last Friday at Roman Catholic High were rather amazing, according to rising basketball star Rashann London.

TO THE VICTORS went the cheesesteaks. But first to the kids who helped them.

Lunch periods last Friday at Roman Catholic High were rather amazing, according to rising basketball star Rashann London.

"When they made the announcement, guys were cheering and screaming," he said. "They were going off. Everybody was excited."

Even against rivals, Sunday games can be tough sells for students, so Roman coach Chris McNesby told the school to inform the students he'd pay for cheesesteaks for the first 50 to show up for the Catholic League battle vs. St. Joseph's Prep.

Roman's legendary gym was almost filled before the noon start of the JV game and guess what items were being tossed up to the kids on the stage by assistant athletic director John Pensabene before that one ended?

You got it - cheesesteaks.

Much later, the jubilant varsity guys stormed downstairs to a classroom, took seats in desks to listen to McNesby's postgame speech and . . . chomp, chomp, chomp.

They got cheesesteaks, too!

"Mine was still pretty warm," London said, smiling. "I liked it. No extras. Only salt, pepper and ketchup. That's all you need, right?"

To lock up a 62-58 win, Roman received a bit of controversial help.

London hit two free throws with 23.2 seconds remaining to give the Cahillites a 61-58 lead. The Prep's Stephen Vasturia (Notre Dame), Miles Overton (Wake Forest) and P.J. Kelly then played hot-potato beyond the arc until Overton finally launched an unsuccessful trey. The ball went out of bounds at 2.8, possession to Roman.

Prep fans sitting not far from the shot's launch site - shade to the right of straight-on - went nuts. Across the way, so did the coaches.

Had the shot been an airball? Or had it been tipped by soph TreVaughn Wilkerson?

The nearest ref, to his credit, consulted with the next closest. The original call stood. Matt Simon sank the front end of a double-bonus at 2.1.

Did Wilkerson get a piece of the ball?

"Yeah," he said, smiling. "That was good defense."

When Wilkerson's admission was repeated to Roman's coaches, an assistant joked, "He said that because he wants the block for his stats."

In a game where poor shooting was plentiful, London, a 6-2, 170-pound wing guard, was a refreshing exception. He went 5-for-9 from the floor and 11-for-13 at the line while notching 21 points, and he complemented his performance with four assists (along with numerous other feeds that led to foul shots).

"Rashann had the look in his eyes," McNesby said. "He wasn't going to be denied."

Defensively, London mostly covered Vasturia, who went 7-for-20 (three treys, 5-for-5 at line) en route to 22 points.

"He's a real good player," London said. "I had to work hard to stay close and make sure the shots he took were tough. He plays at a smart pace. It's hard to speed him up."

In time, London hopes to be viewed in a similar light.

"I want to leave my legacy here," he said. "I want to go down in the books as one of the really good guys who came out of Roman.

"I'm known pretty much as a slasher for now. I like to get to the basket while also getting my teammates involved. I'm working on the rest of my game, from the midrange all the way out to the three."

Roman's backcourt also features franchise junior Shep Garner and up-and-coming soph Traci Carter, a point guard and defensive terror.

Carter missed this one due to an ankle injury. Garner notched 14 points and a buzzer-beating trey to end the first quarter lifted his career total to 1,002 (en route to 1,011).

"I've played with Shep since the seventh grade," said London, who lives on Michener Avenue, near Wadsworth, in Mt. Airy. "We're a good one-two [punch]. We've got that chemistry. Know how to play off each other."

And the students love them.

After London uncorked one particularly impressive move, a kid yelled, "I want your sneaks for my mantel!! . . . And your No. 10 jersey, too!"

"Really? I didn't that hear that. That's good," London said.

With 2:50 left, a fastbreak bucket by Simon almost placed Roman in we-can-coast territory, at 55-46. The Hawks declined to die and a quartet of three-point bursts - trey by Vasturia, three-point plays for Overton, Vasturia and Chris Clover - increased everyone's heart rate.

"I knew they'd have a push," London said. "Every good team does that. I also knew we'd hold them off."

Inside bully Manny Taylor had 17 points and 11 rebounds for Roman. Carnell McGirt added seven boards.

Vasturia mixed in nine rebounds and three apiece of assists/steals. Though he shot just 5-for-22, Overton did collect 11 boards and three assists. Kyle Thompson claimed all 10 of his boards after halftime; he also had three assists.

Roman's final home will be Friday, 3:30, against Cardinal O'Hara.

"Having those guys up there on the stage gives us a lot more toughness," London said. "They also bring us camaraderie, which is exactly what we need."

Meanwhile, it's likely one kid won't be there.

At one juncture, a guy on the Broad Street side of the stage yelled to another guy two-thirds of the way across, "What are you doin' here!? You never come to the games! You just wanted the cheesesteak!"