WILDWOOD, N.J. - Note to Archbishop Ryan High's basketball opponents: If you ever want to shock Christian Rivera, send someone shorter than 6-2 to the center jump circle.
As near as Rivera can remember, he has never looked down at the guy across from him.
"Sure, I wish I was 4 inches taller," he said. "But I'm not, and I do the best with what I've got. You have to work harder and box out and make sure you're in the right positions."
Thursday, Ryan found itself at 7-0 and meeting Ocean City in the championship game of the Bill Osborn Memorial Bracket, played at the Wildwood Convention Center as part of the Boardwalk Basketball Classic.
Win No. 8 came in rather easy fashion. Shooting 5-for-7 from the floor, with one trey among those buckets, Rivera scored 11 points as Ryan coasted, 52-33.
Fans of fancy moves left disappointed. The 180-pound Rivera, who's blessed with decent feet, merely offered the tight flip shot here, the quick, one-dribble move there.
"I don't try to do too much out there. Just the things I can," Rivera said. "I'm not a good athlete. Nobody on our team is, really. Well, not like the guys you see on Neumann-Goretti or some of those other teams. But we're coached well and do what we're told, and that helps us get these wins."
Ryan's coach is Bernie Rogers, a former star guard for the Raiders, and his father, also named Bernie, happens to own a house in nearby Wildwood Crest.
Guess where everyone stayed Wednesday night, after the Raiders captured their first-round game in the tourney?
Wow. An entire team in one house? How many floors? Three? Four? Numerous enclosed porches? Heated, at that?
Hardly. It's a two-floor job.
"It was no problem," Rivera said. "We had a great time. They decided who slept where by how early you got there. Some guys got beds. I got a couch. The rest of the guys slept on the floor."
Back in Philly, maybe sleepovers should become a staple at someone's/anyone's house. The Raiders had no trouble imposing their will against 4-0 O.C., especially when it came to long-distance shooting.
Though people tend to think of Ryan's Princeton offense as something meant only to produce backdoor layups, Rogers has no problem with sensible treys. The Raiders went 11-for-19 beyond the arc and - get this - the deep subs were perfect at 3-for-3, thanks to Shane Kelley (two) and Tim Raucheissen.
