The Red Knights won at York 70-60 back on December 6th. The Bearcats came out with a much more aggressive mentality this time around. They pounded the offensive glass and held Reading scoreless for three minutes and fifteen seconds. A 3-pointer by Sincere Burgos made it 7-0 after two minutes. Justin Brown came off the bench and hit a triple from the left corner with five seconds left in the opening quarter. The Red Knights trailed 22-10 after eight minutes and point guard Weshly Rosario had picked up a pair of fouls. He’s the lone senior in Reading’s starting lineup. Meanwhile, six different players scored for York in the first quarter.

The Bearcats began the second period with a pivotal 16-to-6 run. Nasir Barnes made three free throws after getting fouled beyond the arc with five and a-half minutes remaining in the first half. The 6’1 junior point guard was just getting warmed up. He piled up 33 points and nine assists. Barnes is already the school’s all-time leading scorer with 1,614 career points. The smooth southpaw splashed a trey midway through the second quarter to give York a 33-16 advantage. A three-point play by Brown increased the margin to 38-16 with three minutes to go before halftime. The Red Knights closed out the half on a 13-to-2 run to finally gain some momentum. Javon Merriweather nailed a triple and Jostin DeCastro provided two three-point plays. DeCastro finished with a team-high 20 points before fouling out with 2:35 left. The 6’3 junior guard squeezed ten points into the third quarter. Reading was behind 40-29 at halftime.

A three-point play by Barnes put York in front 50-33 with 3:40 to play in the third period. The Red Knights responded with eight straight points. “A well-coached team, a lot of talented players, and we know Reading is gonna be tough and physical,” acknowledged Glover. The Bearcats maintained a 61-47 edge entering the fourth quarter. They missed their first four foul shots to start the period. Merriweather connected from long range to pull the Red Knights within 74-64 with 2:40 remaining. The 6’2 sophomore drained another trey from the left wing to make it 78-69 with two minutes on the clock. However, York sealed the deal with the final seven points including a 3-pointer from Barnes. He poured in 13 points over the last eight minutes. “Everyone knows he can score the basketball. I’ve challenged him to not just be the best scorer in District 3, be the best player. Be a leader, get other guys involved, and make sure we control the tempo,” remarked Glover.

When Barnes wasn’t scoring, he was getting into the lane and finding his teammates for easy buckets. He also spent a lot of time at the foul line, going a perfect 12-for-12. Brandon DeShields, a 6’6 senior, had 13 points. Yoziah Romero and Brown added ten points apiece. Dawone Hodges, a 6’3 senior, chipped in with eight points. The Bearcats went 24-of-31 from the stripe, while Reading was 20-of-26. York made seven 3-pointers, compared to just three for the Red Knights. Raybin Rubio provided a spark for Reading with a dozen points. The sophomore guard became a starter a few games ago. Rosario had ten points in his finale.

York clinched a berth in the state playoffs. The top eight teams in Class 6A advance to the PIAA tournament. Red Knights’ head coach Rick Perez will enter next season with 299 career wins. He’ll have a much more experienced squad next winter. DeCastro, Merriweather, Cameron “Bron Bron” Jones, Jamier Jacob, Rubio, and freshman Tai’je Slaughter will return. “This game has become much more than winning and losing to me. I fell short of being able to impose that on our guys and have them believe in that. That has always been the driving force to this program. I pray I can teach that, and show them that playing for something bigger than wins, losses and championships can take you further than you imagined. I will be better,” said Perez.

York High-64, Hazleton-51

Nasir Barnes scored a game-high 21 points for the (11-5) Bearcats, including eight in the fourth quarter. The junior guard surpassed 1,000 career points last month. Sophomore Yoziah Romero added 15 points. He had nine points in the first quarter as York raced out to a 19-8 lead after eight minutes. The (7-9) Cougars trailed 37-24 at halftime. They pulled within 51-49 when sophomore guard Edison Macko splashed a 3-pointer from the top of the key with 5:15 remaining. The Bearcats went on a 13-to-2 run to end the game. Hazleton committed seven of its 21 turnovers in the fourth quarter. Kendrick Ortiz, a 6’4 senior, finished with a team-high 16 points, including ten in the third period. Dylan Stish chipped in with 13 points and Oscaudy Vasquez had 10. The Cougars went 8-for-10 from the foul line, while York was 8-of-15. Hazleton connected five times from beyond the arc. Meanwhile, the Bearcats hit six triples. They’ve won seven of their last eight contests.

Spring-Ford-56, Reading-48

The Rams came out firing and drilled three 3-pointers in the first quarter. They jumped out to a 14-9 advantage, but the Red Knights closed the period on a 7-0 run. They were tied 25-25 at halftime. Syaire Barnes and Matteo Magazollo sank back-to-back treys to put Spring-Ford in front 31-27 with 4:50 left in the third quarter. Jack Kennedy buried another triple from the right corner to extend their cushion to 36-27. Reading scored ten of the next twelve points and got within 38-37 entering the final period. A 3-pointer by sophomore Javon Merriweather gave the (11-5) Red Knights a 42-40 edge with six and a-half minutes to go. The (14-4) Rams responded with a decisive 16-to-4 run. Bryce Robinson, a 6’4 junior, contributed all six of his points on three layups down the stretch. Reading was down 52-46 when sophomore Cameron “Bron Bron” Jones misfired from 3-point range with 25 seconds on the clock. Barnes and Magazollo then made four consecutive free throws to ice it. Spring-Ford went 11-of-12 from the stripe, while the Red Knights were 5-for-5. Blake Turner, a Colgate football recruit, led the Rams with 13 points, including seven in the opening quarter. Magazollo was responsible for three of their seven triples. He finished with 11 points. Barnes and Kennedy had 10 points apiece in a balanced attack. Jostin DeCastro, a 6’3 junior guard, ended up with a game-high 21 points for Reading. Merriweather and Weshly Rosario each scored eight points. The Red Knights had won eight of their previous nine games.

Reading (Girls)-58, West York-49

The Bulldogs’ five-game winning streak came to a halt at the Geigle Complex. The (10-7) Red Knights reeled off the first seven points and led 14-8 after the opening quarter. Senior guard Mekhira Gaskins scored six points in the first half and Reading was on top 27-14 at the break. West York pulled within 33-26 with five and a-half minutes left in the third quarter, but the Red Knights answered with a 9-to-3 run. They had a 48-36 advantage going into the final period. A three-point play by sophomore Xiani Beatty made it 53-40 with 5:13 remaining. Both teams then went scoreless for two minutes. The (9-6) Bulldogs trailed 53-45 after Cam Forsythe’s three-point play with 1:35 on the clock. CJ Henry’s layup closed the gap to 54-49 with 26 seconds left. Nalani Sosa and Yolanda Velez each split a pair of free throws to put Reading in front 56-49 with 23 seconds to go. Following a West York turnover, Velez connected twice from the foul line. Beatty finished with a game-high 16 points. JilliAnn Laws, a 5’11 senior, added eleven points and Velez chipped in with seven. Forsythe had a team-high 13 points for the Bulldogs and Brooke Nalls ended up with eleven. The Red Knights have won four in a row.