The WCAC is probably one of the toughest high school basketball conference in th country. They feature teams that can go toe to toe with the nations best. St. John’s College High School showed the strength of the conference last night by beating Mater Dei 54-43 in the quarterfinals of the Beach Ball Classic.
St. John’s opened the game with a 18-9 lead thanks to three-pointers by Maryland commit Anthony Cowan, and Jeff Dowtin. Mater Dei found a way to cut into the Cadets lead as they trailed 26-24 at the end of the first half. In the second half, St. John’s went on a 14-4 run to break away from Mater Dei.
St. John’s guard Anthony Cowan finished the game with 16 points, 4 rebounds, 4 assist and was 3-6 from the three point line. Senior forward Kylia Sykes had an impressive game. He finished with 18 points, 7 rebounds, and was 9-11 from the field.
Rhode Island commit Jeff Dowtin only had 8 points and was 2-6 from the three point line. The Cadets outscored Mater Dei 28-14 in the paint and shot 55% from the field. On the defensive end, St. John’s tallied 16 defensive rebounds (25 total), 5 blocks, and 4 steals.
Mater Dei was led by Spencer Freedman who scored 12 points on four three pointers. MJ Cage scored 9 points which was second best on the team. The Monarchs shot 33% from behind the arc and 35% from the field.
The Cadets victory over a top 10 basketball team sends them to the semifinals of the Beach Ball Classic. They will play Shadow Mountain (Ariz.) tonight at 8:45. Shadow Mountain will feature Michael Bibby, the son of former NBA guard Mike Bibby.
Ryan McFadden is a freshman at Iona College and alumni from DeMatha Catholic High School. He is the founder of Inside The Locker Room. Follow him on Twitter @RMcFadden15
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