Bishop Canevin girls finding scoring touch in early going

By: HSSN Staff
Thursday, December 27, 2018 | 8:00 PM

Scoring is coming easy for the Bishop Canevin girls basketball team.

Through their first six games, the Crusaders are averaging 68.8 points. That is the highest points per game average in Class 2A and fourth highest in the entire WPIAL.

“I think we have great balance,” Bishop Canevin coach Scott Dibble said. “We have kids giving us a spark off the bench. It has been a team effort from the beginning.”

The team’s scoring is up from last year; Canevin scored 55.1 points per game during the opening six games in 2017.

Leading the way is senior Shamyjha Price. The UMass­-Lowell commit is averaging 19.8 points. Price’s season-high was 22 points in a 69-39 win over Laurel.

“She raises the bar,” Dibble said. “Every single kid wants to match her energy. Her focus is incredible. She has always been a great athlete. But she has gotten better at picking her spots.”

Two new faces have made a major impact with the Crusaders’ offense and are averaging in double digits. Junior Alyssa Pollice, a transfer from Seton LaSalle, has used her shooting to be a scoring threat for Canevin.

“She is averaging three of four 3-pointers a game,” Dibble said. “It has been an adjustment because we run a bunch of things. But Alyssa is a junior and has been around. She has picked things up really well.”

Emma Theodorsson, a 6-foot freshman, has showed her scoring touch. She scored 16 points in back-to-back wins over Laurel and Burgettstown.

“It is difficult to come in as a talented freshman,” Dibble said. “There can be so much pressure coming in and expectations high. She is going to be a special one down the road.”

Diajha Allen has been integral for the team’s success across the court. While her priority may not be scoring, the junior point guard is tasked with doing much more for the Crusaders.

“She makes us go,” Dibble said. “I don’t ask her to score a lot. She runs the team. She gets our scorers the ball. We would not be as good as we are without her.”

Senior Gillan Gustine has also been a major contributor to the team’s offense.

The Crusaders scored a 72-42 road win over Frazier on Dec. 22. Price led the team with 21 points. The Crusaders had three other players score in double figures: Pollice with 18, Theodorsson with 14 and Allen with 10.

The win was a major hurdle in the Section 3-2A title chase as the Commodores are one of the top teams in the standings.

“We were not too familiar with some of these teams,” Dibble said. “But the kids know my rule: everyone is good until we prove otherwise. We are still technically a (Class A) team playing up.”

The Crusaders spent part of their holiday break on the West Coast. Bishop Canevin was scheduled to play several games at the Surf-N-Slam tournament in San Diego.

And with a trip to New York early in the 2019 portion of the schedule, Dibble hopes the out-of-state experiences will prep his squad for the postseason.

“I don’t want to get caught up in wins and losses,” Dibble said. “I want to get ready for the playoffs. It is nice to get out and play some nationally ranked teams.

“It is OK if we have a loss here or there. It will expose our weaknesses and tell us what we are good at.”

Nathan Smith is a freelance writer.

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