Lincoln Park arrived in Oregon for a tournament last week undefeated and nationally ranked.
The Leopards will soon return home after suffering their first loss in more than 11 months.
California got the best of Pennsylvania on Tuesday night, as St. Joseph, Calif. ran to a 74-60 win against Lincoln Park in the semifinals of the Capitol City Classic in Salem, Ore.
In what was arguably the biggest “national” game a local team has played since DeJuan Blair and Schenley beat DeMatha Catholic in the PrimeTime Shootout in 2007, last season’s California state Open Division runner-up defeated the reigning WPIAL and PIAA Class 4A champion. Lincoln Park (5-1), ranked No. 18 nationally by MaxPreps, saw its 23-game win streak come to an end, while St. Joseph (9-0) continued its perfect start.
Not only did St. Joseph beat Lincoln Park, but its star player won the much-anticipated matchup of five-star recruits. St. Joseph’s Tounde Yessoufou is rated by Rivals as the No. 10 junior in the country, while Lincoln Park’s Meleek Thomas is No. 7. Yessoufou, a 6-foot-6 forward built like an NFL defensive end, went off for 38 points, matching his gaudy season average. Yessoufou hit four 3-pointers, was 8 of 11 from the free-throw line, and scored 18 of his team’s 22 third-quarter points. Thomas, a 6-4 guard, connected on three 3-pointers and finished with 17 points.
Brandin Cummings scored a team-high 27 points for Lincoln Park. Cummings, a Pitt recruit, made four 3-pointers and was 7 of 9 from the line. Rhaki Lum chipped in eight points.
St. Joseph stormed to a 31-21 halftime lead behind Yessoufou’s 16 points. The St. Joseph lead grew to as many as 21 points in the third quarter, but Lincoln Park kept fighting. Lum’s two free throws cut the Lincoln Park deficit to 65-56 with 2:23 left in the game, but that’s as close as the Leopards would get.
Lincoln Park coach Mike Bariski was visibly displeased with the officiating throughout the game. Three of his players — Cummings, Dorian McGhee and Dontay Green — fouled out in the fourth quarter. St. Joseph attempted 34 free throws and Lincoln Park just 13.
Lincoln Park had not lost since suffering a 54-49 loss to Central Catholic on Jan. 14. That was Lincoln Park’s only loss of the 2022-23 season, one in which they went 30-1.
The Leopards will finish off their trip by playing in the third-place game Wednesday night.
Other boys games
• Avonworth junior Rowan Carmichael had a memorable performance, connecting on nine 3-pointers and scoring a career-high 47 points to propel the Antelopes (5-2) to a 91-63 non-section win at Union (1-5).
• Mike Michalski scored 14 points to lead host Class 4A South Allegheny (6-0) to a 43-40 non-section win against defending WPIAL Class 6A champion Central Catholic (1-3). Bradley Gompers led Central Catholic with 14 points and Payton Wehner added 10.
• Mt. Lebanon (6-0) continued its torrid start by doubling up visiting Penn-Trafford (4-4), 58-29, in a non-section game. Nate Girod led the Blue Devils with five 3-pointers and 19 points and Brody Barber added 15 points.
• Peters Township (5-2) got 18 points from Mickey Vaccarello and 16 from Jack Dunbar on its way to a come-from-behind 73-66 win at South Fayette (3-3) in non-section action. The Indians outscored South Fayette, 29-20, in the fourth quarter. Michael Plasko led the Lions with 26 points.
• After falling behind by 10 points at the half, Chartiers Valley (4-3) rallied for a 77-61 home win against Knoch (4-1) in a non-section game. Jayden Davis scored 25 points and Julian Semplice 18 for the Colts, who held a 47-21 scoring edge in the second half.
• West Allegheny (7-0) remained unbeaten after a 50-33 non-section win against visiting Trinity (2-4). Brandon Bell paced the Indians with 16 points and 12 rebounds. Dante DeRubbo led Trinity with 9 points.
• Jake Wolfe scored 20 points and Ama Sow added 19 to push Montour (4-1) to a 68-66 non-section win at North Hills (2-3). Montour held a 33-25 halftime lead. Zach Pollaro paced North Hills with 27 points and Eric James chipped in with 21.
• Isaiah Jeter scored 12 of his game-high 24 points in the third quarter to propel host Central Valley (3-2, 1-0) to a 62-40 win against Blackhawk (3-4, 1-1) in Class 4A Section 2. Tyler Heckathorn led Blackhawk with 15 points.
• Zach Washington made five 3-pointers and scored a team-high 17 points to help Quaker Valley (4-2) edge visiting Mohawk (2-4), 45-43, in non-section play. Joe Coyle chipped in with 16 points for the Quakers, while Bobby Fadden paced Mohawk with 21 points.
• David Kwiat scored 19 points and Anthony Bonner had 14 to help host Neshannock (6-1, 2-0) claim a 62-51 win against Ellwood City (3-5, 1-1) in Class 3A Section 1. The Lancers outscored Ellwood City, 22-10, in the third quarter. Joseph Roth led Ellwood City with 21 points.
• Erond Jakupi tallied 23 points and Keystone Oaks (2-4, 2-0) remained perfect in Class 3A Section 2 after a 59-51 win at Steel Valley (0-8, 0-2). The Golden Eagles outscored Steel Valley, 22-9, in the fourth quarter. Nate Yuhas led the Ironmen with 21 points.
• Wayne Love poured in 28 points to lead defending WPIAL champion Deer Lakes (6-1, 2-0) to a 71-61 win at Derry (5-2, 0-1) in Class 3A Section 3. Derry’s Stan Rajkovich finished with 18 points, 12 rebounds and 8 blocked shots.
Girls game
• Bella Antonacci scored a game-high 17 points to help Indiana (5-1, 2-0) win its fifth game in a row, 40-21, at Kiski Area (3-4, 0-1) in Class 5A Section 1. Cassie Boyer added 12 points for Indiana, which held a 24-11 lead at the half.
Three stars
*** — Macky Bennis, Burrell. Bennis connected on seven 3-pointers and led all scorers with 29 points while leading host Burrell (6-0, 2-0) to a 73-47 win against Ligonier Valley (2-4, 0-2) in Class 3A Section 3.
** — Tyree Turner, Greensburg Central Catholic. Turner pumped in a game-high 33 points while leading the Centurions (7-1, 2-0) to a 70-55 victory at Serra Catholic (3-4, 0-2) in Class 2A Section 3.
* — Rakiyah Porter, California. Porter poured in 28 points to propel host California (4-4) to its third win in a row, 57-17, against visiting Jefferson-Morgan (2-6) in a non-section game. Porter is averaging 22.6 points per game.
Hot from deep
Players with 3 or more 3-pointers: Macky Bennis, Burrell, 7; Nate Girod, Mt. Lebanon, 5; Zach Washington, Quaker Valley, 5; Xavier Rigby, Rochester, 5; Isaiah Jeter, Central Valley, 3; Tyler Basil, Elizabeth Forward, 3; Daniel Spence, Elizabeth Forward, 3; Brody Almashy, South Side, 3; Laekyn Flinn, Thomas Jefferson, 3.
Boys scores
Aquinas Academy 73, Geibel Catholic 56
Avonworth 91, Union 63
Belle Vernon 65, McKeesport 55
Brownsville 63, Waynesburg 50
Burrell 73, Ligonier Valley 47
Central Valley 62, Blackhawk 40
Chartiers Valley 77, Knoch 61
Clay-Battelle, W.Va. 76, Mapletown 34
Deer Lakes 71, Derry 61
Eden Christian 62, Rochester 60
Elizabeth Forward 70, Bethel Park 51
Erie 73, North Allegheny 62
Greensburg C.C. 70, Serra Catholic 55
Jeannette 55, Leechburg 29
Keystone Oaks 59, Steel Valley 51
Montour 68, North Hills 66
Moon 45, Fox Chapel 29
Mt. Lebanon 58, Penn-Trafford 29
Neshannock 62, Ellwood City 51
New Castle 63, Hempfield 58
Peters Township 73, South Fayette 66
Ringgold 47, Greensburg Salem 46
Quaker Valley 45, Mohawk 43
St. Joseph, Calif. 74, Lincoln Park 60
Seneca Valley 54, Baldwin 43
Seton LaSalle 49, South Park 43
Shady Side Academy 80, Apollo-Ridge 33
South Allegheny 43, Central Catholic 40
South Side 81, Western Beaver 54
West Allegheny 50, Trinity 33
Girls scores
Avonworth 60, Bishop Canevin 25
Baldwin 43, Thomas Jefferson 40
Beaver 44, Hopewell 37
California 57, Jefferson-Morgan 17
Hempfield 52, North Hills 39
Indiana 40, Kiski Area 21
Oakland Catholic 76, Connellsville 16
Penn Hills 46, Gateway 17
Ringgold 43, Carrick 31
South Fayette 70, Ambridge 17
Upper St. Clair 64, Moon 44
Brad is a sports writer at the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, but he's currently on strike. Email him at beverett@unionprogress.com.