Kingston McKoy-Berks Catholic

Berks Catholic freshman Kingston McKoy has another name for the Berks Conference playoffs. “This is our revenge tour, revenge tour all the way,” he said. Muhlenberg, Exeter, and Reading were the only teams to beat the Saints during the regular season. There’s a chance Berks Catholic will face all three of those squads this week. The (20-3) Saints took down sixth-seeded Muhlenberg 65-48 in the county quarterfinals on Monday. The Muhls knocked off Berks Catholic 48-46 one month ago in Laureldale. This matchup took place at Lloyd Wolf Gymnasium because the Saints are the #3 seed. “Big difference, their student section is crazy over there. Muhlenberg [has] got some crazy fans,” remarked McKoy. The 6’1 guard finished with a season-high 18 points including twelve in the fourth quarter. McKoy, who’s known for his defensive skills, reached double figures for just the third time this season. He was 8-for-8 from the foul line in the final period. McKoy provided the Saints’ first ten points of the fourth quarter. Berks Catholic led 13-4 after eight minutes. Ryan Koch hit a pair of triples in the opening frame. The Pitt-Johnstown commit ended up with 18 points to increase his career total to 928. Koch, a 6’3 senior, made four of the Saints’ five 3-pointers. They were in front 24-7 with 2:45 remaining before halftime. The (14-9) Muhls went scoreless for four minutes and 22 seconds in the second period. McKoy’s putback with 0.2 seconds on the clock made it 29-14 at the break. His older brother, Josh, took over in the third quarter with nine points including a trey from the corner. The 6’2 junior forward had eleven points on the night. Foul trouble became an issue for both clubs in the third period. Dan Dan Mosquera and Mekhi Adonis each picked up their fourth fouls. Mosquera was limited to one point. The 5’9 senior guard was averaging nearly 14 ppg. JayJay Jordan was whistled for his fourth foul with 45 seconds to go in the third quarter. The all-county point guard managed just four points. Jordan is Berks Catholic’s all-time leading scorer with 1,130 points. He committed to Wilkes for football earlier in the day. The Saints held a 43-28 advantage entering the final period. They went 14-14 from the charity stripe over the last eight minutes. Berks Catholic was 18-21 overall from the free throw line while Muhlenberg went 8-13. The Muhls only connected from long range four times. They average eight 3-pointers per game. 5’11 senior Xzavion Robertson had a team-high eleven points. Eric Branch and Alex Collado chipped in with ten points apiece off the bench. Muhlenberg heads to the District 3 playoffs having dropped three of its last four contests. Meanwhile, the McKoy brothers are going to Santander Arena for the county semifinals. I asked Kingston McKoy what it’s like playing with his brother. “I love it…He’s my man. I love him to death,” he replied. We also talked about what happens when they go one-on-one. Kingston wasn’t bashful when it came to answering that question. The Saints will battle second-seeded Exeter at 6pm on Wednesday. #1 Reading meets #5 Wilson in the nightcap. The (22-1) Red Knights rolled over Schuylkill Valley 84-34 in the quarterfinals. The Bulldogs rallied to get past Fleetwood 54-53.