Meet the Knights
There are a couple of theories when you approach Columbia’s PIAA playoff opener on Saturday against Strawberry Mansion.
First, had Columbia lost its District Three consolation game with Milton Hershey, they may have had a better draw. That draw would have been a play-in earlier this week against Christopher Dock (10-17) and then a battle against Holy Cross, the District 2 champ.
But, Columbia won and qualified for the state playoffs.
Secondly, it’s the state playoffs and you are going to have to play the best eventually.
So with that, let’s meet the Knights from Strawberry Mansion, the District 12 champs and perhaps the best Class AA team in the state.
The Knights coached by Gerald Hendricks bring a 19-5 record into Saturday’s game, having lost in the semi-finals of the Philadelphia Public League championship to Communciations Tech, 68-62.
To better understand, the Public League playoffs are actually the District 12 playoffs. All the public league teams play in their own class and advance by winning. In those playoffs, the Knights beat the Hope Charter School, 113-87, Prep Charter, maybe the second or third best team in the east, 66-53 and Imhotep Charter (see second or third best team in the east), 82-78.
Its over four losses are to Chester, 82-76. The Clippers are ranked in the top 10 in the nation; Glenn Mills, Prep Charter (non-league), Archbishop Carroll and Philly North Catholic.
Until losing to Communications Tech, the Knights had won 15 straight games.
The Knights, however, won’t be at full strength for the game. One of their starting guards, Marcus “Worm” Johnson suffered a broken leg in a pick-up game, the day before Mansion beat Imhotep.
Dwayne Davis is the team’s leading scorer at 23 points a game and he stands 6-4. The Knights are probably as big as Trinity, the team that beat the Tide in the District Three playoffs. Up front, look for 6-4 Eddie Frazier and 6-7 Devon White to bang the boards and try to dominate the paint. Another player to watch is Isaac Bradford, a lighting quick guard, who is only 5-10. The fifth player to watch is six-foot guard Darren Lawrence.
First, had Columbia lost its District Three consolation game with Milton Hershey, they may have had a better draw. That draw would have been a play-in earlier this week against Christopher Dock (10-17) and then a battle against Holy Cross, the District 2 champ.
But, Columbia won and qualified for the state playoffs.
Secondly, it’s the state playoffs and you are going to have to play the best eventually.
So with that, let’s meet the Knights from Strawberry Mansion, the District 12 champs and perhaps the best Class AA team in the state.
The Knights coached by Gerald Hendricks bring a 19-5 record into Saturday’s game, having lost in the semi-finals of the Philadelphia Public League championship to Communciations Tech, 68-62.
To better understand, the Public League playoffs are actually the District 12 playoffs. All the public league teams play in their own class and advance by winning. In those playoffs, the Knights beat the Hope Charter School, 113-87, Prep Charter, maybe the second or third best team in the east, 66-53 and Imhotep Charter (see second or third best team in the east), 82-78.
Its over four losses are to Chester, 82-76. The Clippers are ranked in the top 10 in the nation; Glenn Mills, Prep Charter (non-league), Archbishop Carroll and Philly North Catholic.
Until losing to Communications Tech, the Knights had won 15 straight games.
The Knights, however, won’t be at full strength for the game. One of their starting guards, Marcus “Worm” Johnson suffered a broken leg in a pick-up game, the day before Mansion beat Imhotep.
Dwayne Davis is the team’s leading scorer at 23 points a game and he stands 6-4. The Knights are probably as big as Trinity, the team that beat the Tide in the District Three playoffs. Up front, look for 6-4 Eddie Frazier and 6-7 Devon White to bang the boards and try to dominate the paint. Another player to watch is Isaac Bradford, a lighting quick guard, who is only 5-10. The fifth player to watch is six-foot guard Darren Lawrence.
Labels: PIAA playoffs
posted by Tide talk at
6:30 PM
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