Pope John Paul II boys continue their magical run into state tourney

With its inexplicable ability to escape from desperate situations and an uncanny knack for happy endings, it would be easy to mistake the Pope John Paul II boys basketball season for one of the many drama club productions in the area that are prevalent in the spring.

Unlike Dorothy’s trip in which she finds her way back home, the Golden Panthers journey down the yellow brick road has led them to the PIAA state tournament, where they will have to use their brains to defeat their first round opponent, the Philadelphia Electrical and Technology Charter, following their fairy tale-esque double overtime win over Bishop Shanahan 73-65.

In the latest chapter of the story of the team with arguably the most heart in District One, PJP2 needed a little help from the wizard, played by Mike Mansur as he came off the bench and magically sparked the Golden Panthers to a 14-4 run midway through the first half to help overcome another slow start and give PJP2 its first lead of the game at 18-15.

Mansur posted a game high 18 points, connecting on four field goals, but more importantly, converted 10-of-16 from the line as he was a force underneath with 14 rebounds, seven of them coming on the offensive end.

The pesky Eagles (15-11) wouldn’t go quietly into the night as they scored eight straight points to again put PJP2 in a hole, before Paul Mills converted two free throws. That set the stage for David Cotellese to hit a three pointer with 1.8 second left in the half to tie the game at 26.

“This is amazing,” said Mike Mansur. “I just felt really good all game. We knew we needed to be strong on the boards and get second chances. Our plan in the second half was to attack the basket and make them make a play or foul us."

"P, B & J," as head coach Jack Flanagan affectionately calls his senior core of Paul Mills, Billy Malescio, and Jeff Evans, led the way again Saturday. The Golden Panthers got 17 points and 11 rebounds from Mills, five field goals and 14 points from Malescio, and two huge three pointers and 10 points overall from Evans.

Everyone who has seen a PJP2 game this season knows that they have the confidence to shoot from anywhere, even if a few misfires are included in the mix.

It was somewhat unusual, then, to see the aggressive inside style that Flanagan and his staff employed in the second half. That helped the Golden Panthers force the Eagles into fouls early in the third period.

It would prove to be a big factor down the stretch as senior Mike Ibarguen, one of Bishop Shanahan’s best scoring threats, fouled out in regulation.

“We are going to states,” said head coach Jack Flanagan. “This was the prize. We've wanted this opportunity since the season started. This is our NCAA tournament. We wanted to pressure them inside, which worked out great as one of their best players fouled out in regulation.”

The Golden Panthers had four point and five point leads with under a minute to play in regulation and in the first overtime period, respectively, but could not close out the Eagles.

Shanahan senior Marco Arias knocked down a bomb from beyond the arc, his second of the game, with 8 seconds left in overtime to send the game into another four-minute tornado of action.

With 1:50 left in the second extra period, Paul Mills, who struggled early from the line, converted two crucial free throws to post the Golden Panthers to a six-point lead and make it a two-possession game.

“This is what we have worked for,” said Mills. “You can not say enough about the job Mike (Mansur) did today. Twice I had to get out his way, he was going for a board right over top of me.”

Overall, the Golden Panthers shot a little more than 50 percent from the line at 25-of -45.

“This is the first double overtime I have ever been in,” said Malescio. “This is why I love this game. This is fun when everything is on the line. Mike did an awesome job today, he was a beast inside and his rebounds gave us a ton of second chances.”

Bishop Shanahan (65) – Redmond 6 4-8 16, Henshey 6 0-6 12, Ibarguen 4 0-0 8, Sam 0 2-4 2, Conrad 4 2-3 11, Seeney 3 3-5 9, Arias 2 1-2 7. Totals 25 12-28 65.

Pope John Paul II (73) – Cotellese 3 2-4 10, Evans 4 0-0 10, Gribb 1 0-2 2, Mills 4 9-13 17, Malescio 5 4-10 14, Mansur 4 10-16 18, Mahoney 0 0-0 0, Stinson 1 0-0 2, Taylor 0 0-0 0. Totals 22 25-45 73.

Bishop Shanahan             15  11  12  14  7  6 – 65

Pope John Paul II             15  11  17  9  7  14 – 73

3-point field goals: Arias 2, Evans 2, Cotellese 2, Conrad.

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