Nazareth Prep beats No. 2 Cornell to reach 1st WPIAL championship game

By: Jim Equels Jr.
Monday, February 25, 2019 | 11:13 PM

The character of a team is often revealed by how it responds to adversity. Nazareth Prep had the content of its character challenged on several occasions against Cornell Monday night in the WPIAL Class A semifinals at Ambridge High School, and each time it responded.

In fact, its response was championship caliber.

No. 3-seeded Nazareth Prep took an early double-digit lead only to see No. 2 Cornell cut the deficit to one on two occasions before halftime and two points in the second half. Each time, Nazareth answered, as it led wire-to-wire and rolled to a 71-57 victory.

The Saints, who won the first playoff game in school history less than a week ago, now find themselves in the WPIAL championship game. Nazareth Prep will meet section foe Vincentian on Thursday night at the Peterson Events Center.

“Cornell is a great team, and if they get a lead, they get momentum,” Nazareth Prep coach Nehemiah Brazil said of his team responding to Cornell’s rallies. “We felt their wrath up at Cornell (a 78-59 loss). We wanted to make sure we stayed on top, and I told our guys we had to match their energy. This is championship basketball; there is no tomorrow. I told them they had to get it done right now. Our guys responded.”

Nazareth Prep jumped out to a quick 21-10 lead in the first quarter before Cornell began to chip away, ultimately cutting the lead to one, 27-26 on a 3-point basket by Kaden Divito and a traditional three-point play by Luke Piccolo. Nazareth Prep answered on the other end with a drive to the basket by Jabriel Johnson. After Cornell pulled to within a point once again on a basket by Zaier Harrison, Nazareth Prep scored five points in the final 21 seconds of the first half on a 3-point basket by Tre Harvey and drive to basket at the buzzer by Hassan Ismaeli to give the Saints a 34-28 halftime lead.

Cornell then opened the second half with two quick baskets to cut its deficit to 34-32 only to see Nazareth Prep respond with a 12-2 run that, for all intents and purposes, put the game away. The Saints spread the wealth, as freshman Jaden Gales came off the bench to score four points in the run, while Ismaeli added a trey and Will Taylor chipped in five, including a 3-pointer.

“That’s just our offense,” said Ismaeli, who led Nazareth with 20 points. “We wanted to come out strong and take the lead early. Shooting 3s is a big part of our offense.”

“We have guys who are capable of knocking down outside shots,” Brazil said. “One thing I like about my team is that we take advantage of what the opposition gives us. Guys did a greater job of staying patient and finding those opportunities.”

Nazareth Prep had four players reach double figures. In addition to Ismaeli’s 20, Harvey added 16, Taylor had 15 and Gales chipped in with 10, all in the second half.

Divito led Cornell with 22.

Monday’s win was the continuation of a historic season for Nazareth Prep, which has never reached a WPIAL championship game.

“When we got together in the fall, we looked at the potential we had and we talked about if we put in the work, this could be the end result,” Brazil said. “There are other guys working hard, but I don’t know if there are other guys working harder.”

To win the elusive championship, Nazareth Prep must defeat defending champion Vincentian, a team that it lost to twice this season. In fact, Thursday’s game will be Nazareth’s third consecutive playoff game against a Section 1 opponent. Brazil is not surprised.

“I kind of thought this was a possibility that this could happen,” Brazil said of Section 1 teams dominating the Class A tournament. “We’ll enjoy this win tonight before worrying about slaying that dragon.”

Tags: Cornell