JayJay Jordan-Berks Catholic

The Berks Catholic Saints weren’t happy with their performance on Tuesday at Conrad Weiser. Berks Catholic trailed entering the fourth quarter before pulling out a 63-57 win. The Saints brought a different level of intensity into Thursday’s Division 2 matchup in Reiffton. They raced out to a 14-6 lead and handed Exeter its first loss 73-63. “The Conrad Weiser game was a slip up. We’re back. We’re just trying to find that groove that we fit in. We’re gonna ride the wave,” said JayJay Jordan. The Berks Catholic point guard got some extra motivation from Ruben Rodriguez. The reigning Berks County Player of the Year and all-state guard was in attendance with some of his Reading teammates. Rodriguez told Jordan that he wanted to see something special. Jordan obliged. The 5’11 senior finished with a career-high 32 points including ten in the opening quarter. Jordan attacked the basket over and over again. When he didn’t score, he got fouled. The all-county pick was 9-of-14 from the free throw line. Berks Catholic went 17-28 overall from the stripe. The Saints were on top 18-13 after eight minutes. Kevin Saenz drilled a 3-pointer at the first quarter buzzer. The 6’3 junior had a team-high 21 points for the (3-1, 1-1) Eagles. He connected four times from long distance. Alex Kelsey made a pair of free throws to tie it up at 24 midway through the second period. Kevin Lawlor responded with two treys for the (6-0, 3-0) Saints. Freshman Kingston McKoy hit a baseline jumper to give Berks Catholic a 36-25 edge at halftime. He chipped in with eight points and Lawlor added six. The Saints’ bench outscored Exeter’s reserves 17-to-8. “Everyone knows Coach Snip is not going 9-10 deep, but this year we have it. We have a bunch of shot creators and a bunch of playmakers that are on the bench that can help us,” noted Jordan. The Eagles went inside to 6’7, 280-pound senior Anthony Caccese in the third quarter. The Delaware football commit provided seven points in the period and a dozen on the night. Senior point guard Zyion Paschall contributed eleven points, one shy of his career-high. Jordan gave Berks Catholic a spark with a 3-pointer from the left wing as time expired in the third quarter. His first triple of the season gave the Saints a 54-40 lead. Jordan jammed eight points into the final period, and went 4-4 from the foul line down the stretch. His previous career-high of 30 points came on January 26th against York Catholic. Josh McKoy (12) and Ryan Koch (10) combined for 22 points. I asked Jordan where Berks Catholic should be ranked within the county. He replied, “I feel like it’s a tie up there at No. 1. I’m ready for the game. We all know what I’m talking about.” The Saints will battle Reading on January 24th at the Geigle Complex. That’s a date to circle on your calendar.