CLAYMONT – Archmere used a strong defensive game and a series of high-percentage shots to take control of Concord in what resulted in a 43-33 win on Dec. 12 at Moglia Fieldhouse.
The Auks needed a fourth-quarter comeback to defeat Tower Hill in their season opener a few days prior, but the script was different this time. Archmere kept pounding the ball inside against the taller Raiders, picking up offensive rebounds when they did miss shots, and scoring most of their points inside the paint.
Kevin Kozicki (St. Mary Magdalen Parish), new to the Auks this season, opened the scoring when he drove the baseline and weaved between two Raiders defenders for a layup. Freshman Khaleef Wilson Jr. scored on an old-fashioned three-point play after driving to the hoop, putting the Auks on top, 7-3, and after Mark Mervine caught a pass under the hoop and went off glass, Archmere was on top by a 12-5 score, prompting a Concord timeout.
Noah Blessington (St. Mary Magdalen Parish) opened the second quarter with a steal, which would become a theme throughout the game. The Auks did not convert that turnover into points, but Kozicki did get a layup following a steal early in the quarter, and Wilson swiped another Concord pass. When the Raiders did get shots, the Auks were there for the rebound and pivoted quickly into an offense that is noticeably quicker than in previous years.
Blessington stretched the lead to double digits with a shot with 3:40 left in the half, and John Orsini (St. Thomas the Apostle Parish, Glen Mills, Pa.) collected the lone remaining field goal before the break. The Raiders managed just two field goals in the second.
The scoring from both teams cooled in the third until Blessington hit a short baseline jumper. Kozicki took a back-door pass and laid it in, and the lead was its largest at 30-13. The Raiders were held scoreless in the second half until Carlin Hollis followed a miss with a putback five minutes into the third. The Raiders trailed by 15 after three.
Concord unleashed its strongest comeback effort as the fourth quarter opened. Michael Wright hit a quick field goal, and he followed that with a three-pointer. The Raiders got the ball back, and Wright was fouled while shooting. He made one free throw, and with 6:30 remaining, St. Mark’s lead had been cut to nine.
Wright fouled out, however, with four and a half minutes to go, and the Raiders’ scoring slowed. The Auks didn’t score in the fourth until Blessington hit a free throw after Wright’s foul. Having taken Concord’s best punch, the Auks returned to feeding the ball down low, and they took the home victory.
Orsini led the Auks with 14 points, and Blessington had 8. Archmere (2-0) is off until Dec. 29, when they will play in the Green and Gold Tournament at Cecil Community College (Md.) against an opponent to be determined.
Wright had 8 for the Raiders, while Hollis and Shawn Neurell each had 7. Concord fell to 3-1 and will be back on the court on Dec. 16 at home at 3:30 p.m. against Conrad.
Photos by Mike Lang.
