Red Knights still perfect

Reading is 30-0 after it defeats Central Dauphin East for the District 3 AAAA championship
By Gorden Blain
HERSHEY -- The list of reasons is long why Reading is 30-0 and PIAA District 3 AAAA basketball champion.

Offensive balance.

Tenacious Defense.

Rebounding and shot blocking.

Veteran, battle-tested players with talent, size and quickness.

Senior leadership.

Unselfish, team-oriented players.

Coaching.

All of it was on display at its best on Saturday afternoon at Giant Center as the Red Knights defeated Central Dauphin East 63-51 in the PIAA District 3 AAAA championship game.

The resounding victory gave Reading its 18th District 3 championship and second in the past five seasons after going 21 years without a championship. The win also reaffirmed that Reading had once-and-for-all erased any doubts-- legitmate or not-- that it deserves mention among the best teams that have won district championships, both district-wide and at tradition-rich Reading.

And it kept a rare, magical undefeated season intact heading into the PIAA state tournament.

“It feels good,” said Reading senior guard Jordan Burdine. “Everybody expected to come out here and win. People were doubting us that we can’t come up and just against tougher opponents. I think we showed everybody. Everybody on the team wanted this respect. Going 30 and 0, there was really no pressure on us. 30 and 0 felt real good. We just decided to get the W.”

Reading is in the western side of the AAAA bracket where it opens the tournament Saturday at 2:30 p.m. at Garden Spot High School against the eighth-place team from District 1 Souderton (17-12).

C. D. East (23-5) landed a spot in the eastern side of the PIAA State tournament bracket and will play the District 11 third place team Northampton (21-8) Saturday night 7:30 p.m. at Hersheypark Arena.

The steady Burdine, who was named Reading Hospital and Medical Center Player of the Game by SPORTSfever Television Network which televised the game, scored 16 points that included two three-point baskets. Rider recruit and 6-7 senior Jermaine Jackson scored 12 points and had 10 rebounds. Nelson Leon scored 11 points.

The Red Knights made 22 of 38 shots (58 percent) while C. D. East misfired on 43 of 64 shots (33 percent).

“Obviously, we lost to an outstanding team,“ said C. D. East coach Bruce Leib. “Their overall defensive pressure on us. They bothered our point guard probably more than anybody else did. We have an excellent point guard in Jon Breeden. And their size. Jordan Burdine is not only a 6-1 guard, he’s extremely quick and tough. They moved the ball well. They’re all pretty big. We battled hard but they’re a complete team. I’ve got to hand it to them. Their coach does a great job with them. They’re not 30 and 0 for nothing.”

C.D. East, the Mid-Penn Commonwealth Division regular season co-champion and 3-seed in the district tournament who started four underclassmen in the final, held its own with the powerful Red Knights deep into the first half. Panthers guard Demond Bates jump shot tied the score at 21-21 with just over a minute left in the second quarter.

East had led by as many as five points in the first quarter as the Panthers were able to establish their successful offensive style that revolves around point guard Jonathon Breeden scoring and feeding Bates and guard Amani Glenn for open jump shots and forward Quion Gunning for layups inside.

Their constantly changing defenses, orchestrated by coach Bruce Leib, kept the Red Knights in check.

Gunning had eight and Breeden and Bates each had five as the Panthers and Red Knights were tied 21-21.

But that’s where East’s game plan hit the wall and Reading’s fell into place.

The Red Knight’s defensive pressure on Breeden, spearheaded by junior guard Justin “Macho” Rodriguez, began to take Breeden and the Panthers out of their offense and East scored just four points in the second quarter. The Panthers made just nine of 31 shots (29 percent) in the first half.

“I told the guys, one of the things we needed to do well today was shoot the ball,“ said Reading coach Richard Reyes. “I wanted Jermaine to get established early which he did in the first quarter. I told them we have to make sure that we’re mentally ready to play defense for 32 minutes.

“I told Rodriguez that the guard number 32 is pretty good. What we have to do is just play sound defense on him. Don’t let him take over the game offensively, get their guys involved, pick and roll, dish and penetrate on us. He did a good job keeping him in front of him.”

When Burdine buried a long three-pointer from NBA range with 1:06 left in the first half and added two free throws with 41 seconds left, the Red Knights had a 26-21 lead.

Then, when it looked like East would hold the Reading lead at five heading into the halftime as Gunning partially blocked a Reading three-point shot, the Red Knights’ Trenity Burdine caught the shot as it fell short of the basket and laid it in just before the horn sounded to give Reading a 28-21 halftime lead.

So many ways for Reading to beat an opponent. So many reasons the Red Knights are undefeated and rated among the best teams in Pennsylvania.

“Definitely, that was a crucial point,” said Leib. “Even that last basket before the end of the half, right at the buzzer. They got a little lucky there. We needed to stay a little closer. We had to have a lead or be real close in the fourth quarter then I thought we might be able to spread them out and do a couple of things.”

The Panthers hung around but never could get closer than five in the second half. East defensive specialist sophomore Christian DeVan, who held Harrisburg’s Quincy Roberts in check but had his hands full with Jordan Burdine, skied high to grab an offensive rebound and finished it with a layup and free throw to trim the Reading lead to 36-30 with 3:02 left in the third quarter.

Breeden followed that with a steal off a double team, half court trap and fed Bates whose layup try to trim the Reading lead to four got wedged between the rim and backboard.

Possession to Reading and East’s comeback never got unstuck again.

Jackson, Rodriguez and Trenity Burdine strung together three baskets and the Red Knights led 46-33 with 6:06 left in the game. And despite a monster effort by 6-3 Gunning, the Panthers’ only senior on the floor and version of Charles Barkley who scored 23 points and grabbed four rebounds against the taller Red Knights, East never seriously threatened again.

“I’m glad we made it this far yet I’m sad we didn’t get the gold,“ said Gunning. “Reading deserved it. They went out there and played hard for 32 minutes. I think their height advantage made all the difference. They blocked a lot of shots early. They set the tone.”

The Reading lineup stats aside (all five starters average double figures), the underpinning of its undefeated season has been the tone the Red Knights have sculpted from their balance, focus and chemistry.

“Coming to practice every day, coaches getting in our heads, ‘Look, we’re 29 and 0 but we’re really 0 and 0,“ said Jordan Burdine. “That’s what he just kept in our heads. We’re 0 and 0. We came out to play like we’re 0 and 0 every game.

“Dedication, commitment, coaching. Everybody wants to win. Nobody on the team is selfish. We do what we can do. I’ve got a big role, a senior role for me and Jermaine. We come out and do our role and just allow our teammates to back us up.”

A 30-0 record can be heady stuff for a high school basketball team but Reyes has a group of players who keep their well-deserved headlines in perspective.

“We have senior leadership,“ said Reyes. “It keeps everybody nice and calm in that locker room. Togetherness. We preach that family atmosphere all year. When anybody stepped out of line, it was the team bringing everybody back together. Not the coaches. It was these players and they were just a family unit all year long. Our agresssiveness as a team and our bench coming to practice every day giving it their all. It just makes everything go so well.”