Friday, March 29, 2002
NEW CASTLE, Pa. -- Will another J.R. Bremer emerge from the 2002 Rising Star Basketball Classic? How about another Donatas Zavackas? Or maybe another David Young?
One of major college basketball's leading scorers and starters on two nationally-ranked teams played in previous Rising Star games.
The eighth annual event, sponsored by New Castle-area attorney Dallas W. Hartman, will take place April 4-5 at the New Castle High Field House. Some of the top high school senior boys from Pennsylvania will play all-stars from Ohio in the feature game of a doubleheader.
Bremer, a 6-foot-1 senior, is St. Bonaventure's career scoring leader. The former Cleveland Heights High standout went scoreless in the 1998 Rising Star but handed out four assists to help Ohio defeat Pennsylvania 123-111.
Zavackas, who represented Akron St. Vincent-St. Mary in the 1999 Rising Star, played a big role at Pittsburgh. The 6-3 junior forward averaged 11.4 points and 5.5 rebounds per game. He had 12 points and a Rising Star record 13 rebounds to help Ohio rout Pennsylvania 129-92.
Young, a 6-5 junior guard from New Castle, started every game, averaging 8.6 points per game for Xavier. He scored a team-high 15 points and was named Pennsylvania's most valuable player in the 1999 Rising Star.
The opening game on April 5 will get under way at 5:30 p.m. and will match some of the top senior boys from Lawrence and Beaver counties in Pennsylvania against each other, while the Pennsylvania and Ohio all-stars will clash at 8 p.m. Bob McConnell of George Junior Republic will guide the Pennsylvania squad and Strongsville's Joe Lynch will lead Ohio, which leads the all-time series 4-3. Mohawk's Dom Mioni will be at the helm of the Lawrence County team and John Rorick of Riverside will coach the Beaver County standouts.
Fans can get a preview of the "Rising Stars" during skills contests April 4 at 7 p.m. at New Castle High. Players from all four teams will participate in 3-point field goal shooting and slam dunk contests as well as an autograph session. There also will be an all-star game at 6 p.m. that day featuring players from the Lawrence-Mercer counties elementary basketball league.