The real McKoys show up as Berks Catholic breezes to second straight win
Josh McKoy didn’t score a point in his Berks Catholic debut Friday night.
It’s not what he or anyone else visioned after he transferred from Antietam, where he averaged 15.4 points as a sophomore and scored six or more points in each of the Mounts’ 26 games.
“I don’t think I’ve done that in a while,” McKoy said when asked the last time he went scoreless in a game.
The 6-3 junior got past that quickly Saturday. He dropped a 3-pointer a couple minutes into the Saints’ 65-38 win over Cedar Crest at the Exeter Showcase and finished with a game-high 16 points.
“I cleared my head, had nothing on my mind (today) but do my thing and get busy,” he said.
McKoy hit 6-of-8 shots from the field, including a pair of 3’s, sank both his free throws, blocked a shot and was active on defense and on the glass, just as you might expect from the all-division pick.
“It was nice to see Josh hit his 3,” said Saints coach Snip Esterly, “that’s just going to get him going.”
McKoy and his brother Kingston, a freshman, each looked more comfortable on the offensive end Saturday than a night earlier when the Saints (0-2) struggled at the outset against Allentown Central Catholic.
Berks Catholic trailed by double digits in the first half before getting big second-half efforts from Jack Miller, who had a couple 3’s in the third quarter, and Parker Nein, who came off the bench to score all 12 of his points in the second half, sparking the 47-40 win.
“(It was) definitely a sluggish start,” McKoy said, “then we picked it up. Our bench came in and did a tremendous job, did everything Coach asked: Rebounded, passed, moved the ball the and scored.”
McKoy did all his coach wanted Saturday. He showed his versatility, on the wing, in the post and in the open floor. His addition, as well as his brother’s, made an already strong team that much stronger.
The defending District 3 Class 4A champs would’ve been expected to battle for another crown. Now they’re clearly the team to beat, especially considering the way they played Saturday when they raced to a 32-11 lead after 12 minutes.
They moved the ball quickly, knocked down shots and defended, as Esterly teams always do.
Granted Cedar Crest was without its best player, 6-6 junior Aiden Shomp, an all-league defensive end in football and a force in the post, but even at full strength the Falcons weren’t going to stop the Saints.
Berks Catholic just has too much firepower, what with All-Berks point guard Josiah Jordan, all-division forward Ryan Koch and sharpshooting Jack Miller.
Now, with the addition of the McKoys, Esterly has a legitimately deep bench — and he’s not unwilling to tap into it, either. He went to the bench early and often Saturday, working in Nein, Kevin Lawlor and Kingston McKoy.
The Saints hardly missed a beat.Lawlor and Nein each dropped a pair of 3-pointers and Kingston McKoy scored six points. The threesome combined for 20 points.
Miller had eight first-quarter points. Koch finished with seven points, seven boards and five assists. Five different players had a 3-pointer.
The McKoys didn’t transfer to Berks Catholic until a month or so before school opened and didn’t play with their new teammates until the fall. Even then Jordan and starting center Jaxon Geddio weren’t available because of their football commitment; same for Lawlor, who plays fall baseball.
Given how little time the McKoys have spent in their Berks Catholic uniforms Saturday’s performance was encouraging.
“They fit in great,” Esterly said, “but they’re not sure of themselves yet. (Today) was the first time they actually tried to do some things (offensively), which is nice. Defensively they’re sharp, but offensively they’re not there yet. They showed a little glimpse (today).”
Josh McKoy said the pace with the Saints is faster than he’s used to, but he likes that style. The competition he’ll face will be much better, too, what with a pair of games against Division II rival Exeter and crossovers against Reading High, Wilson, Muhlenberg and Gov. Mifflin.
He, like his coach, is confident things will soon fall into place.
“I have two amazing shooters on (either) side of me,” he said of Miller and Koch, “and a great point guard to lead the team. We get up and down the court.”
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Final | |
| Cedar Crest | 9 | 10 | 7 | 12 | 38 |
| Berks Catholic | 21 | 20 | 18 | 6 | 65 |
| Falcons(2-2) | FG | FT | 3’s | A | R | Points |
| Tirado | 5-8 | 0-0 | 1-1 | 0 | 4 | 11 |
| Marquez | 2-4 | 1-2 | 0-0 | 0 | 1 | 5 |
| Chernich | 0-6 | 0-0 | 0-4 | 1 | 5 | 0 |
| Reyes-Vega | 2-6 | 0-0 | 1-5 | 1 | 5 | 5 |
| Waranavage | 2-3 | 0-0 | 1-1 | 0 | 3 | 5 |
| Speaks | 1-3 | 2-2 | 0-1 | 0 | 1 | 4 |
| Custer | 0-1 | 2-2 | 0-1 | 0 | 2 | 2 |
| Groff | 1-2 | 2-2 | 0-1 | 0 | 0 | 4 |
| Abreu | 1-2 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0 | 1 | 2 |
| Lambros | 0-0 | 0-1 | 0-0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| Erausquin | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| Totals | 14-35 | 7-9 | 2-14 | 2 | 24-24 | 38 |
| Saints (2-0) | FG | FT | 3’s | A | R | Points |
| Geddio | 1-2 | 0-0 | 0-1 | 0 | 4 | 2 |
| Jordan | 3-10 | 1-2 | 0-2 | 3 | 4 | 7 |
| Koch | 3-8 | 0-0 | 1-4 | 5 | 7 | 7 |
| Miller | 4-6 | 0-0 | 1-3 | 0 | 1 | 10 |
| J. McKoy | 6-8 | 2-2 | 2-3 | 1 | 4 | 16 |
| Nein | 2-3 | 0-0 | 2-3 | 1 | 0 | 6 |
| Lawlor | 3-5 | 0-0 | 2-4 | 1 | 2 | 8 |
| K. McKoy | 3-6 | 0-0 | 0-2 | 1 | 2 | 6 |
| Diaz | 0-2 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 1 | 3 | 0 |
| Dominguez | 0-1 | 0-0 | 0-1 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| Garcia | 1-3 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0 | 1 | 2 |
| Treacy | 0-2 | 0-0 | 0-2 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Komoro | 0-0 | 1-2 | 0-0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| Altimar | 0-1 | 0-0 | 0-1 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| Totals | 26-57 | 4-6 | 8-26 | 13 | 31-33 | 65 |
Turnovers: Cedar Crest 18, Berks Catholic 11.