Quick, who is the highest-scoring team in the WPIAL?

Aliquippa? Avonworth? Chartiers Valley? No, no and no.

With the regular season winding down and the playoffs only three weeks away, the highest-scoring team in the area is none other than the Aquinas Academy Crusaders — and it really isn’t even close.

Through the team’s first 15 games, Aquinas (13-2, 4-1) is averaging a whopping 83.1 points per game — nearly 8 ppg higher than the next-closest team, Avonworth. Coincidentally, the Antelopes handed the Crusaders their first loss of the season, 89-82, in the opening game back on Dec. 2 — and since then, Aquinas has won 13 out of its past 14 games while scoring 80-plus points 11 times.

“They are having so much fun,” said Crusaders coach George Yokitis. “Not that we ever lose perspective of that, but it’s supposed to be fun. And this is their free time. The kids work hard in school and other things in life. We try to make it fun, and I think it’s a fun way to play.

“We shoot it pretty rapidly, and the kids get to score. They like scoring, and they like running.”

These kinds of scoring outbursts were a common occurrence at Aquinas from 2019-23, when Vinnie Cugini starred as a record-breaking guard for the Crusaders under Yokitis. Cugini graduated in 2023 as the WPIAL’s all-time leading scorer with 3,189 career points.

Surely, with “The Genie” no longer around and a limited talent pool of only 15 boys per graduating class, Aquinas would regress back into a middle-of-the-pack team in Class 1A, right? Not so fast.

In year one without Cugini, the Crusaders finished 15-10 overall while advancing to the WPIAL quarterfinals for the second year in a row. This year, though, there are plenty of reasons to believe Aquinas has what it takes to go where no Crusaders team has ever gone before.

“I guess I’m not surprised that we score a lot,” Yokitis said. “We’re not trying to break any records or anything. We’re just playing how we play and having fun.”

Aquinas Academy’s David Zaharko is one of three players scoring in double figures for the Crusaders this season. (Emily Matthews/Pittsburgh Union Progress)

Yokitis credits Hall of Fame coach Rick Pitino and his old instructional VHS tapes for the foundation of his entire coaching philosophy, which is centered around a fast-paced, full-court-press style of play that requires an extreme level of intensity and commitment.

“It just seems simple to me, this whole concept. When you steal the ball, the floor is open,” Yokitis said. “[Pitino] said four things — kids will like playing this way because it’s fun. Parents and spectators will like it. Team morale will be great. And lastly, it will probably be successful, because you’ll play like this every game, and the other team will only play like this once or twice per year.

“If people play our way, we think we’ll have a little advantage, because that’s how we practice and play every game.”

Of course, it’s one thing to implement such a demanding defensive system, but it only works if you have the players willing and able to execute it — and this year, Aquinas has no shortage of them.

Leading the way for the Crusaders is senior guard Jake Guillen, who surpassed the 1,000-point plateau earlier this year and currently ranks third in the WPIAL with an average of 26.3 ppg. Ever since Cugini’s graduation, Guillen has stepped in as the team’s go-to scorer over the past two seasons — but the top spot on Aquinas’ all-time leaderboard is still just a bit out of reach.

“We kid Jake about it all the time,” Yokitis said. “We put up a banner, and Vinnie’s banner is right above his. And we said, ‘Well, Jake, you only have about 2,000 more to go.’”

Aquinas Academy’s Sam Duer ranks second on the team with an average of 22.5 points per game. (Emily Matthews/Pittsburgh Union Progress)

Alongside Guillen, junior guard-forward Sam Duer has emerged among the area’s leading scorers as well with an average of 22.5 ppg, putting the talented tandem on track to join an ultra-exclusive club if they can maintain this pace until the end of the season. Only five duos in the history of the WPIAL and City League have averaged more than 22 ppg for an entire season, with Lincoln Park’s Meleek Thomas and Brandin Cummings making history last year as the only teammates to do so in back-to-back seasons.

“Sam Duer is probably the best pure shooter of the basketball I’ve ever had,” Yokitis said. “We have three or four kids who really can shoot the ball. They are in the gym a lot. They work in the offseason, and they work on their form. And we shoot a lot of 3s.”

Elsewhere, senior point guard David Zaharko is taking on added responsibility as the team’s primary facilitator on offense while still contributing a healthy dose of scoring at 12 ppg. Plus, Zaharko is responsible for being the last line of defense on the Crusaders’ full-court press, and he also takes pride in doing all of the dirty work like taking charges, fighting for loose balls and battling on the offensive glass.

“We only have two seniors, Jake and David,” Yokitis said. “David is a fantastic leader. He’s playing point now. He’s so mentally tough. He can do anything. He rebounds the ball and pushes it like a lunatic. Gets big rebounds, big steals. Any trapping defense has to have someone with some responsibility for the back, and he’s the kid. He’s just so smart.”

Put it all together, and you have a close-knit bunch of well-rounded players who each want to see each other succeed — and a coach determined to do everything in his power to help them reach their full potential.

“The team is very, very close. And that goes down to the freshmen,” Yokitis said. “We’ll see [what happens]. We’ve got a chance.”

Aquinas Academy coach George Yokitis has the Crusaders gearing up for a potential deep playoff run in Class 1A. (Emily Matthews/Pittsburgh Union Progress)

Sewickley Academy soars to top of Class 2A Section 2

It has been several years since Sewickley Academy reigned over Class 2A with back-to-back WPIAL crowns in 2017-18, but the Panthers could be primed to return to prominence.

Fueled by the lengthy duo of 6-7 sophomore center Adam Ikamba and 6-6 freshman forward Mamadou Kane, Sewickley Academy (12-2, 8-0) has stormed to the top of the Section 2 standings going into a pivotal rematch Friday at Winchester Thurston.

The Panthers already own an impressive 44-35 win against Class 6A North Allegheny on Dec. 30, along with a 54-49 win over Northgate on Jan. 10. The Flames figure to be Sewickley’s biggest threat to bring home the section title, and there should be plenty on the line when the teams rematch Feb. 4 at Northgate.

So far this season, the Panthers’ only losses came against Nazareth Prep, 42-40, in the season opener on Dec. 6, and Jan. 12 at the Ron Galbreath Classic at Westminster College against Farrell, 58-54.

South Allegheny’s Cameron Epps is averaging 18.6 points per game as a senior for the surging Gladiators. (Emily Matthews/Pittsburgh Union Progress)

South Allegheny tandem could make history together

Every year, a handful of players around the area reach the coveted 1,000-point milestone for their career, but it is rare to see two players from the same team achieve the feat in the same season. To see a set of teammates reach the mark on the same night is almost unheard of.

This Friday, South Allegheny guards Drew Cook and Cameron Epps will attempt to join the 1,000-point club together when the surging Gladiators travel to Shady Side Academy for a Class 3A Section 3 showdown. Cook is a junior who enters the contest with 993 career points, while Epps is a senior who currently has 975 career points.

On the season, Cook is averaging a team-high 20.4 points per game for South Allegheny, while Epps is following closely behind with 18.6 ppg. Epps is the youngest of a trio of talented siblings, following in the footsteps of older brothers Antonio — an all-conference defensive back and team captain at Duquesne — and Bryce, the school’s all-time leading scorer. Cook is also an outstanding wide receiver in football who caught 80 passes for 1,490 yards and 18 touchdowns this season.

Steve is a sports writer at the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, but he's currently on strike. Email him at srotstein@unionprogress.com.

Steve Rotstein

Steve is a sports writer at the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, but he's currently on strike. Email him at srotstein@unionprogress.com.