Mike Greenman says he's "5-7 and whatever."
The "whatever" might refer to his weight, but also might be an intangible quality that defines the St. Augustine Prep junior guard and many of his teammates.
"We're going to outhustle almost every team," Greenman said after leading host St. Augustine to a 59-41 victory over Eastern on Saturday in a clash of Top 10 teams in the Cape-Atlantic Challenge.
It wasn't a pretty victory for St. Augustine (18-2), the No. 6 team in The Inquirer's South Jersey rankings. But while they shot just 36 percent from the field (16 for 45) and just 19 percent from three-point range (3 for 16), the Hermits played sturdy defense and made their free throws.
Most of all, they held their own against the top-ranked Vikings in a physical battle with 43 fouls and 49 free throws.
"Not many teams outphysical us," Eastern coach Joe Murphy said.
Greenman led all scorers with 23. He was 9 for 10 from the foul line in the fourth quarter.
Junior forward Blake Rossell added 10 points with 12 rebounds and junior guard David Sullivan scored 12 points for the Hermits, who have won seven in a row.
Senior guard Mike Wilson and sophomore forward Matt Klinewski each scored 10 for Eastern (17-2), which had won seven in a row.
"We shoot the ball way too much from the outside," said Wilson, whose team was 14 for 49 from the field (29 percent), including 4 for 24 (17 percent) from three-point range. "We needed to get the ball inside a lot more than we did."
St. Augustine is the defending Non-Public South A champion, but the Hermits lost several key athletes from that team, including Inquirer South Jersey Player of the Year Isaiah Morton, now a freshman at Marist.
St. Augustine coach Paul Rodio, who has been in charge of the program for 35 years, said this year's team reminds him of some of his early clubs. The Hermits rely more on tenacity than talent.
"We have a saying, 'Cut your heart out and throw it out there,' " Rodio said. "These guys do that."
Rodio said he considers Eastern a "top-tier" South Jersey team, along with Paul VI, Bishop Eustace, and Willingboro. He said St. Augustine belongs in the next tier with the likes of Lenape, Shawnee, Cherry Hill East, and some others.
"But we feel like we can step up and play with that top tier, and if we do, we can be dangerous," Rodio said.
The Hermits' patient offensive approach and match-up zone defense slowed the Vikings, who had scored 84 in a victory over then-No. 1 Paul VI on Feb. 4.
"They are very, very good," Rodio said of Eastern. "We knew we had to control the tempo if we were going to have a chance."
The Hermits received great defensive work from Sullivan and Rossell, and a big boost off the bench from senior guard Dom Palmieri (three points, three assists, two steals).
"We beat the No. 1 team, so we shouldn't be scared of anybody," Greenman said. "This gives us a lot of confidence that we can play with anybody."
St. Augustine 12 9 15 23 – 59
Eastern 15 5 11 10 – 41
SA: Austin Johnson 2, Blake Rossell 10, Mike Greenman 23, Brent Slotoroff 4, David Sullivan 12, Dom Palmieri 3, Kyle Lindsay 3, Brian Seward 2.
E: Devon Bell 9, Mike Wilson 10, Avery Walker 5, Matt Klinewski 10, Brett Knoblauch 5, Melvin Ford 2.
Contact staff writer Phil Anastasia at 856-779-3223, panastasia@phillynews.com, or @PhilAnastasia on Twitter. Read his blog, "Jersey Side Sports," at www.philly.com/jerseysidesports
