Rogers connects in clutch for Ryan
His free throws sealed the win over Bonner. North beat Prep to also reach Monday's final.
Archbishop Ryan's Andrew Rogers figured he would take one or two more steps and heave a shot when he reached midcourt with one second to play and the score tied in last night's Catholic League semifinal game against Monsignor Bonner.
Instead, Rogers was bumped - and fouled - by Lijah Thompson, and Ryan's 5-foot-8 point guard calmly sank two free throws with 0.8 seconds to play, lifting the Raiders to a 44-42 thriller over the Friars at the Palestra.
The win advanced Ryan (17-9) into the league championship Monday night against fellow North Division rival North Catholic, a 52-41 winner over St. Joseph's Prep in the other semifinal. Ryan, which has yet to win a league title, is in the finals for the first time since 2001.
Rogers, the North Division MVP, was brilliant in the fourth quarter. He scored all 12 of his team's points and finished with a game-high 22. His heroic foul shots occurred after Bonner's Rob Siter (13 points) made a follow-up layup to tie the game with 6 seconds to play.
"The only thing I was thinking when I got the ball was, 'Go,' " said Rogers, who took the inbounds pass after the bucket. "I picked up speed and got by one or two guys. Then I was going to get around [Thompson] and shoot. . . . It was a good call."
Friars sophomore point guard Jamal Melvin nearly matched Rogers, scoring a team-high 18 points and hitting a clutch three-pointer to draw Bonner (18-8) within 39-37 with 4:45 to play.
Rogers hit a follow-up to make it 41-37, but Siter's steal and ensuing three-point play inched the Friars within 41-40 with 3:06 left. Rogers hit one of two free throws with 15 seconds left before Siter's game-tying shot.
The Friars had trouble solving Ryan's interior defense, which was undersized against the 6-7 Thompson. Ryan's matchup zone frustrated Thompson into just seven points and several mistakes.
"Everybody dropped on Thompson and I stayed behind him," said 6-1 senior center Chris Wilk. "The key was that we kept our composure and never got frustrated."
The Raiders looked unbeatable at the start, taking an 18-5 lead after 10 minutes of play behind its deliberate motion offense. Bonner rallied, though, drawing within 20-15 at halftime. Bonner tied the game early in the second half, 20-20, but never took the lead.
"We're hurting, but it was a terrific effort," Friars coach Brian Daly said. "It's the kiss of death, generally, to fall behind a Princeton offense like that."
Falcons rule fourth quarter.
In the other semifinal, senior guard Lenny Young scored 13 of his game-high 25 points as the North Catholic Falcons broke open a close game in the fourth quarter to topple St. Joseph's Prep, 52-41.
North last won a Catholic League title in 1987.
Young broke a 37-37 tie with a bucket early in the fourth period and, at one point, scored 11 straight points for the Falcons (21-5). Young said he needed to pick up the slack for fellow starter Velton Jones, who played sparingly because of a minor back injury.
"At one point I was the only senior on the floor, and with Velton out, I knew I had to take over," said Young, who shot 11 of 19 from the floor and had three steals.
The Prep (16-11), which did not score a field goal in the fourth period until the final 10 seconds, was led by Joe Meehan's 10 points.
St. Joseph's Prep 11 13 12 5 - 41
North Catholic 14 11 10 17 - 52
SJP: Mike Bradley 4, Rich Hoffmann 7, Jim Mower 7, Matt Williams 5, Joe Meehan 10, Dan Fitzpatrick 3, Phil Giordano 3, Sean Dooley 2.
NC: Lenny Young 25, Woody Redding 7, Shahid Paulhill 4, Bob Makor 2, Josh Stevens 4, Xavier Harris 10.
Archbishop Ryan 13 7 12 12 - 44
Monsignor Bonner 5 10 15 12 - 42
AR: Andrew Rogers 22, Chris Wilk 2, Anthony Keiter 3, Rus Slawter 5, Eric Jann 4, Tom Marshall 6, Mike Colon 2.
MB: Lijah Thompson 7, Rob Siter 13, Jamal Melvin 18, Keefer Francis 4.