The (18-6) Red Knights opened the heavyweight contest with five straight points and built a 18-8 advantage on the scorecard. The (16-7) Muhls trailed 19-10 after eight minutes. A three-point play by Perez pulled Muhlenberg within 23-19 midway through the second quarter. Merriweather contributed five points in that period and Reading led 35-25 at halftime. The southpaw was playing in Santander Arena for the first time. “I liked it a lot. I always like big moments. I never get nervous,” he replied. Cameron “Bron Bron” Jones, a 6’ sophomore, chipped in with ten points. Rosario and Jamier Jacob finished with eight points apiece in a balanced attack. “Anybody on this team could score. Being unselfish, that’s how we play best. If we keep doing that, we’re a great team,” emphasized Merriweather.

The Muhls, as expected, didn’t go away quietly. They began the second half with a 12-to-4 run. The Red Knights responded by scoring ten of the next twelve points. Rosario converted a three-point play and Jones hit a triple. Muhlenberg was behind 49-41 entering the fourth quarter. A 11-to-3 run by the Muhls evened it up at 52-52 with 5:36 to go. Eli Hemmings squeezed twelve of his game-high 22 points into the final period. The lanky 6’4 junior guard put home an offensive rebound and was fouled with 4:34 on the clock. Hemmings sank the free throw to give Muhlenberg its first lead at 55-54. His scoop shot put the Muhls on top 57-56 with 1:47 to play. Rosario, the lone senior in Reading’s starting lineup, drove down the right side of the lane and scored with 1:26 left. Merriweather then found DeCastro for a layup with 52 seconds remaining. DeCastro opted to attack the basket with a 60-57 edge in the final seconds. He missed which gave Muhlenberg another opportunity to tie the game. Hemmings passed to Perez in the corner for a 3-pointer. Jones got his hand on the ball just before Perez released the shot. It came up short, grazing the right side of the rim.

The Red Knights were outstanding from the foul line. They went 12-for-14 and the Muhls ended up 12-for-16. Jones knocked down two of Reading’s four treys. Muhlenberg only connected three times from beyond the arc. Nelson “Coco” Malave had 15 points, including eleven in the first half. The junior guard played for the Red Knights last year. Perez provided eight points off the Muhls’ bench. They were trying to reach the Berks Conference Championship for the first time since 1974. Reading has claimed a record 25 BCIAA titles. “We don’t look ahead…We talk about what we’re gonna do the next day at practice. We don’t want to talk about championships,” explained Merriweather. They’ll get another chance to cut the nets down on Friday night at Santander Arena.

Reading was in front 9-8 after the opening quarter in the nightcap of its holiday tournament. The (6-3) Red Knights took control by outscoring Berks Catholic 15-to-3 in the second quarter. Jones banked in a 3-pointer from the left wing to make it 20-9 with 3:15 remaining in the period. The 6’ sophomore then found freshman Tai’je Slaughter for a layup and a 23-11 advantage. Merriweather provided a spark in the first half. The 6’2 southpaw led everyone with nine points at the break. McKoy was just 1-of-4 from the foul line at halftime. He had one airball from the stripe and was shaking his right hand. Ten days ago, McKoy made seven 3-pointers and dropped a career-high 40 points at Muhlenberg.

Weshly Rosario hit a triple from the top of the key to increase Reading’s margin to 31-14 with six and a-half minutes left in the third quarter. The senior point guard picked up his third foul thirty seconds later. Carmelo Harper got hot in the third period for the Saints. The 6’1 sophomore guard jammed all ten of his points into that quarter. Berks Catholic pulled within 36-30 entering the final eight minutes.

Brady Altimar knocked down a trey from the right corner to cut the deficit to 38-33 with seven minutes to go. The (6-2) Saints got as close as 40-36. Rosario went back to the bench with 5:14 to play after getting his fourth foul. Berks Catholic then lost 6’5 junior forward Johnny Giesa to an injury with 3:12 remaining. Neither team could buy a bucket for several minutes. A putback by McKoy made it 45-40 with 40 seconds left. Berks Catholic got the ball back, but committed a turnover with 25 seconds on the clock. Rosario split a pair of free throws before Jostin DeCastro sealed the deal with a one-handed dunk that got the crowd on its feet. “That was tough, everybody was going crazy. That was amazing,” replied Merriweather. DeCastro continued his outstanding junior campaign with a game-high 18 points. The 6’3 guard showed off his mid-range jumper and got to the basket. Jones and Rosario added seven points apiece. Altimar had nine points for the Saints. Gavin Welker chipped in with eight points. Their five-game winning streak came to a halt.

There were only seven combined 3-pointers. Berks Catholic connected four times from beyond the arc, including two triples by Altimar. The Saints were 6-of-12 from the foul line, while the Red Knights went 9-of-16. Reading committed 13 turnovers, but only one in the pivotal second quarter when the Red Knights built a 13-point cushion. Merriweather finished with nine points. He knows all about the basketball tradition at Reading. His father, Brad, played for the Red Knights in the late ‘90s and continued his career at Alvernia. “It was my dream. Me playing here is a blessing,” stated Javon Merriweather.

Reading will face Lansdale Catholic in the championship game tonight at 7:15pm. The Crusaders defeated York Country Day 56-52 on Monday at the Geigle Complex. Brayden Martin, a 6’5 junior, poured in a team-high 18 points for Lansdale Catholic. Ayden Lewis, a 6’5 sophomore, provided 15 points. After a three-game losing skid, the Red Knights have won three in a row. “We’re definitely back on track. Our energy picked up in practice. We’re locking in more to the game plans,” noted Merriweather. Meanwhile, Berks Catholic takes on York Country Day at 5:30pm in the consolation matchup.