EDITOR’S NOTE: This is the fifth in a daily series of seven all-state boys basketball teams.
By Mike Gross, LNP News Group
On March 24, at Hershey’s Giant Center, Neumann-Goretti produced a masterpiece.
The Saints shot 63 percent from the field, made eight of 17 three-pointers, and routed Quaker Valley, a previously undefeated team with elite talent, 93-68, for the Pennsylvania Interscholastic Athletic Association Class 4A state boys basketball championship.
Directing the show was point guard Robert Wright III, who had 16 points and 7 assists. That’s how a sophomore became the 4A state Player of the Year, as the leading 4A vote-getter for the Pennsylvania Sportswriters All-State Team.
Neumann-Goretti is one of Pennsylvania’s superpowers, having won nine state titles, all since 2009.
This year’s team lost some games due to COVID-19 issues, and labored a bit in January, losing three Philadelphia Catholic League games by a total of 38 points.
But the Saints ended the season on a 10-game winning streak against high-level competition, winning the PCL, District 12 and state championships.
Wright averaged 19.2 points, 5.1 rebounds and 4.3 assists, leading the PCL in scoring. He shot 43.5 percent from the three-point arc.
His scholarship offers – remember, he’s only a sophomore – include Syracuse, Miami, Seton Hall, Wake Forest, Virginia Commonwealth and Wichita State.
Wright went 7-for-10 from 3-point range against District 2 champion Dallas, which placed Austin Finarelli on the second team. Wright had 30 points, 6 defensive rebounds and 4 assists, to lead the 77-50 victory.
Kentucky coach John Calipari was in the Giant Center for the Class 4A final, primarily to watch Adou Thiero, one of two Quaker Valley senior stars, with Marcus Frank, to make the first team.
Thiero, an athletic 6-foot-5 swingman, got a scholarship offer from Calipari the day after the game. He also has offers from Cincinnati, Maryland and Pittsburgh.
He averaged 23.3 points, 10.3 rebounds, 5.9 assists and 2.1 steals. Thiero made the second team in 2020-21.
Frank, also a 6-5 senior, came up with a huge season including 45 points in a District 7 playoff game and 28 in the state final. Averages: 28.1 points, 10.3 rebounds and 2.9 steals.
Mike Mastrioianni, who directed Quaker Valley to a 27-1 season, WPIAL championship and the state final, was voted 4A Coach of the Year.
Two of Wright’s teammates, Sultan Adewale and Masud Stewart, also received all-state recognition.
Adewale is an athletic 6-8 big who averaged 11.4 points, 7.5 rebounds and 2.1 blocked shots. He shot 58 percent from the field and is seen as a “high upside,’’ recruit, with offers from DePaul, Oklahoma State, Washington, Mississippi, Rutgers, Memphis and others.
In the state semifinal against Dallas, he had 13 points, 19 rebounds and 3 blocked shots.
Stewart, a 6-1 senior, averaged 11.4 points and made 45 three-pointers. His scholarship offers include St. Peter’s, Holy Cross, Rider, Wagner and Delaware State.
On the first team for the second straight year, Trey Martin of Boiling Springs averaged 27.1 points and 7.1 rebounds. He shot 55.6 percent from the field.
A 6-4 guard, Martin averaged 19.6 points over a four-year varsity career. He will attend Shippensburg University, a National Collegiate Athletic Association Division II school.
The first team includes a second sophomore, Moses Hipps, a 6-3 guard from Archbishop Carroll. Hipps averaged 18.9 points, made 76 shots from 3-point range, dropped 35 in a January game with Neumann-Goretti, and had two 31-point state-tournament games.
Hipps made the second team last season, and has offers from Temple, LaSalle, Fordham and Virginia Commonwealth.
2021-22 Class 4A All-State Teams
1st Team
Robert Wright III, 6', sophomore, Neumann-Goretti (Player of the Year)
Adou Thiero, 6' 5", senior, Quaker Valley
Markus Frank, 6' 5", senior, Quaker Valley
Moses Hipps, 6' 3", sophomore, Archbishop Carroll
Sultan Adewale, 6' 8", junior, Neumann-Goretti
Trey Martin, 6' 4", senior, Boiling Springs
2nd Team
Brandin Cummings, 6' 2", sophomore, Lincoln Park Performing Arts Charter
Izaiah Pasha, 6' 6", junior, Cardinal O'Hara
Deyishon Miller, 6' 5", senior, West Philadelphia
Austin Finarelli, 6', senior, Dallas
Masud Stewart, 6' 1", senior, Neumann-Goretti
Liam Joyce, 6' 6", senior, Allentown Central Catholic
3rd Team
Meleek Thomas, 6' 3", freshman, Lincoln Park Performing Arts Charter
Jake Hernandez, 6' 4", senior, Lewisburg Area
Garrett Harrold, 6' 3", junior, Penn Cambria
Tyson Thomas, 6', senior, Allentown Central Catholic
DiNero Washington, 5' 10", junior, Collegium Charter
Edixon Gomez, 6' 1", senior, Bethlehem Catholic
Coach
Mike Mastroianni, Quaker Valley
