North Catholic seeks better shooting night in championship rematch with Lincoln Park

By: Chris Harlan
Thursday, February 27, 2020 | 8:17 PM

Purchase Photo Options

Nearly a year after the loss, North Catholic coach Dave DeGregorio forced himself to watch the video of his team’s WPIAL championship.

Some parts were worse than he’d remembered. The Trojans had a dismal shooting night and lost 62-50 to Lincoln Park in the WPIAL Class 3A finals. DeGregorio watched the video only because North Catholic has a rematch looming with Lincoln Park.

“We shot 28 percent last year,” DeGregorio said. “I didn’t realize because after a loss like that, I usually couldn’t watch the film. We can’t do that this year. It’s a different team, a different vibe.”

No. 2 seed North Catholic (23-2) faces No. 1 Lincoln Park (21-4) at 9 p.m. Thursday at Petersen Events Center.

It’s no secret that North Catholic likes to shoot 3s. The Trojans, led by guard Isaac DeGregorio, average nearly 30 per game. Lincoln Park took advantage of that last winter with a defense that smothered the 3-point line and left one defender in the lane.

If Lincoln Park tries that approach again, DeGregorio predicts that his team is better equipped to fight back. North Catholic averaged 78 points per game this season, which ranked first in the WPIAL regardless of classification.

The Trojans are averaging 70.3 in the playoffs.

“Now, I’ve got four guys on the perimeter who can all shoot the ball,” said DeGregorio, who’s in his second season as North Catholic’s coach. “It’s a little bit harder to take one guy and just put him in the lane.”

The two teams were ranked first and second all season, so this rematch was anticipated for months.

Lincoln Park is a two-time defending WPIAL champion making its record-tying fifth consecutive appearance in the finals. Lincoln Park joins Midland (1973-77), Duquesne (1992-96) and Aliquippa (2003-07) as boys basketball teams to reach the WPIAL finals five years in a row.

“A lot of teams don’t get there five times in 30 years,” Bariski said. “The excitement never wanes. It’s what we play for. We’re extremely, extremely excited about going back to the Pete. We believe we belong there, so we’re happy we’re going.”

North Catholic reached the finals for the third time in four years. The Trojans defeated Lincoln Park, 56-51, in the 2017 WPIAL Class 3A championship.

Both teams returned three senior starters from last year’s matchup. Lincoln Park returns Isaiah Smith, Andre Wilder and Tanner Mathos, the 6-foot-5 forward who defended the rim last year. North Catholic returns Isaac DeGregorio, Ryan Feczko and Jackson Paschall.

North Catholic made just two 3-pointers last year against Lincoln Park and went 0-11 from the arc in the final three quarters. DeGregorio went 2 for 9 shooting.

“It was a combination of us not running good enough offense to get the shots that we needed and they’re long,” DeGregorio said of Lincoln Park. “They’ll be the longest team that we’ve played.”

Lincoln Park lost to The Villages (Fla.) Charter, Highlands, Vincentian Academy and New Castle.

North Catholic’s losses were to West Chester East and St. John Paul the Great of Dumfries, Va. The Trojans enter with the buzz of a 17-game winning streak, so Lincoln Park feels a little like underdogs.

“Everyone’s talking, so we have something to prove,” Smith said. “We’ve got that chip on our shoulder and we’re going in there to prove what we have to prove.”

Chris Harlan is a TribLive reporter covering sports. He joined the Trib in 2009 after seven years as a reporter at the Beaver County Times. He can be reached at charlan@triblive.com.

Tags: Lincoln Park, North Catholic