VIDEO: Mallon, Caper Tigers hold off Wildwood Catholic’s comeback effort

Posted: January 18th 2026

Ryan Mallon scored 15 points to help Lower Cape May's boys basketball team to a 48-43 win over Wildwood Catholic Sunday.

By BRIAN CUNNIFF

CapeAtlanticLive.com

ERMA – On Friday, the Lower Cape May Regional High School boys basketball team squandered a four-point lead in the final two minutes and was dealt a one-point loss by Millville.

Two days later, Ryan Mallon and his Caper Tiger teammates made sure it didn’t happen again.

In a rivalry game with Wildwood Catholic Academy Sunday afternoon, Lower jumped out to a 14-2 lead before holding off several Crusader challenges in posting a 48-43 victory.

“Ten days ago if a team pressured us like Wildwood Catholic just did, I think we probably turn the ball over a lot and then we’re in trouble,” Lower coach Scott Holden said. “We’ve worked on that a lot in practice lately and it showed in a close game. I think we got better as a team today.”

Lower Cape May appeared on the verge of a comfortable victory when leading by nine points at 29-20 in the third quarter. But Wildwood Catholic quickly mounted a challenge when it executed a rare seven-point possession. Immediately after a basket by Paris Kinsey, officials whistled a second flopping violation on Lower Cape May which resulted in a technical foul. Kinsey made the two free throws, then sank a three-pointer after Wildwood Catholic was awarded the ball out of bounds to quickly make the score 29-27.

Still, Lower surged at the close of the period with an 8-2 run and took a 37-29 lead into the fourth.

That’s when Wildwood Catholic got hot from the outside as Monroe Bowman made a pair of three-pointers and Calvin Kiker and Peyton Rosenello each made one in the period. Rosenello’s triple with 1:22 to play pulled the Crusaders within a point at 44-43. 

John Fernandez answered with two free throws with 30 seconds to go to up Lower’s lead to 46-43. After Wildwood Catholic missed a heavily contested three-point attempt with nine seconds remaining, Mallon sank two more free throws to set the final score.

The victory was Lower Cape May’s second of the season over the Crusaders. The Tigers posted a 47-35 win over Wildwood Catholic at the Boardwalk Basketball Classic in late December.

“Coach (Brendan) Norris is doing a good job with Wildwood Catholic,” Holden said. “They kept coming at us. But it’s always good to beat a local rival.”

Wildwood Catholic’s only lead of the game came after Al Diallo scored on the game’s opening possession. Lower then reeled off a 14-0 run and the Crusaders were forced to play from behind the rest of the way.

“We play really hard and we bring the tempo, but have to break this habit of coming out of the gate slow,” Norris said. “You can’t shoot yourself in the foot and have a 10-, 12-point deficit in the first quarter and expect to win many basketball games.

“Our effort was great. But when you’re playing catch-up trying to come from behind, it’s hard to steal six or seven possessions against good teams.”

Mallon, a junior guard, topped Lower Cape May (10-3) in scoring with 15 points. A couple of his baskets came at critical times, stopping Crusader surges.

“Ryan did very well today,” Holden said. “Two years ago when he was a freshman he broke his foot. Even though we had the team that won 20 games that year, I told my assistants he would’ve played a lot if he didn’t get hurt and they looked at me like I was crazy. But then the following year he was a starter. The kid has ice in his veins. Defensively he’s solid and offensively he’s solid. Just a nice all-around ball player.”

Fernandez and Ty Bonner each added 11 points for Lower.

Kinsey and Micah D’Anna each scored nine points for Wildwood Catholic (5-9). Rosenello added eight.