Pope John XXIII rejected

By Nathan Mayberg
TRENTON — The Roselle Catholic boys basketball defenders stole, pickpocketed and stripped Pope John XXIII High School ball handlers in the New Jersey Tournament of Champions final at the Sun National Bank Center Monday en route to a dominating 57-45 victory.

The 12 point margin hardly told the tale of how an efficient Roselle defense locked down Pope John players in the passing lanes and driving lanes to stop the Sparta catholic school's championship run in their tracks.

It was an 18-point lead at one point in the fourth quarter.

While Pope John XXIII won the state championship this month in their class, they were no match for the athleticism of Roselle Catholic, a team from another class led by the Kentucky recruit Isaiah Briscoe, who scored 27 points.

Pope John didn't get held up without a fight.

Star forward Moustapha Diagne almost took the team on his back, scoring 15 points along with eight rebounds and four blocks while being double teamed throughout the game.

Diagne is headed to Syracuse University.

Diagne, who flashed advanced footwork skills around the basket, rarely had a chance for a breather as Pope John's bench was not as deep as Roselle's.

With about a minute left in the game after Roselle had performed a clinic on defense that would make Briscoe's future Kentucky teammates and coach proud along with a number of emphatic dunks, a sustained outburst by Pope John Coach Jason Hasson and one of his assistants against an official led to a technical foul and an ugly exchange with an official.

Hasson's team had nobody to blame for their team's performance except a superior Roselle boys team as well as a plethora of missed layups and jumpshots. They hit their only three-pointer of the night when senior guard Matt Zignorski drained one with 15 seconds left in the game.

Junior guard James Scott picked up two fouls early in the first quarter, putting him on the bench. Scott finished with 10 points in limited but brilliant playing time and made it known he will be a force next year though it remains to be seen whether they will get back to Trenton.

Pope John senior forward Jeromy Rodriguez played exceptional as well, throwing down a couple dunks of his own and finishing with 13 points.

It was the relentless pressure of Roselle's guards against the ball handlers of Pope John which decided the game.

Briscoe, a McDonald's All-American, credited freshman forward Nazreon Reid with leading that press and disrupting the passing lanes with his long arms. Reid, who finished with 12 points as his team's second leading scorer might have the most potential of any of the players.

Briscoe called Reid "a game changer."

Roselle's senior forwards, including Chris Silva and Ganlandou Cisse were clutch inside on defense, stymyng Pope John's penetration with redirections and blocked shots down low.

"We played a good game. We just lost," Diagne said.

Scott said after the game that he thought the team didn't play enough defense.

"We turned the ball over a lot," he said.

Zignorski said the team struggled offensively.

"They are a long team," Zignorski said.

"Even their bigs are quick and athletic," he said.

Hasson said he thought of Diagne, a Senegal import, like family. Diagne is one of three international products on the team, joining senior Damien Rance, of Australia, and Rodriguez, of the Dominican Republic.

"I love all these guys," Husson said of his players.

"They left Pope John in a much better place."

Reporter Nathan Mayberg can be reached at comm.reporter@strausnews.com or by calling 845-469-9000 ext. 359

Editor's Note: This story has been updated from an earlier version.