Sports

Ravens race into tournament semis

WASHINGTON – Oliver Antigua didn’t know much about Good Counsel (Md) so instead of formulating a plan to neutralize the opposition’s strength, the St. Raymond’s coach simply told his team to do what they do best.

“We wanted to force the tempo, come out aggressive early and try to cause some havoc,” Antigua said. “We scored 22 points on the break, had 21 assists and a lot of that was in transition. I think we’re very good when we do that.”

St. Raymond opened up a 10-point lead late in the first quarter and cruised to beat the Falcons, 63-54, in the opening round of the 22nd Annual Gonzaga DC Classic at Gonzaga’s Carmody Center Friday night.

“The coaching staff stresses being one of the top defensive teams in the city this year and it’s something we take a lot of pride in,” junior Kerwin Okoro said.

Okoro paced the Ravens with 18 points and 10 rebounds, while fellow junior Daniel Dingle had 12 points, 11 rebounds and six assists. His unselfishness in the open court proved to be contagious.

“I tried to set the tone by coming out and trying to get everyone involved,” Dingle said.

It worked as St. Ray’s (1-1) led 20-10 after one quarter and 29-17 at the half. The Ravens added onto their lead and had a 19-point bulge late in the fourth quarter before putting on the brakes. Good Counsel (0-5) took advantage and closed out the game outscoring St. Ray’s 15-6 in the final 2:40.

“We stopped playing defense,” Antigua said. “In that fourth quarter, they shot 55 percent and at halftime they shot 18 percent and we built up a huge lead. We have to be better at executing and finishing strong.”

Added Dingle: “That has to do with our pride. At the end, you can’t just stop playing. We thought the game was over, but we just need to go for the knockout punch like in boxing.”

Larry Graves had 12 points, Franklin Garcia had eight rebounds and five assists and Shane Rector added seven rebounds and four assists for the Ravens, ranked No. 5 in New York City by The Post.

Matt McCarthy had 17 points and Patrick Finotti had 16 for the Falcons, which play Mount St. Joe’s in a consolation game Saturday at American University.

St. Ray’s advances to the semifinals to take on Charlotte Christian (NC), which defeated Mount St. Joe’s (Md), 56-46. The Knights are led by Anthony Gill, a 6-fot-8 South Carolina-bound senior considered one of the best power forwards in the country. It sets up a scintillating battle between Gill and Dingle.

“He’s a very talented player, both are similarly tough matchups,” Antigua said. “I think Dingle is a competitor so he’ll be ready tomorrow to compete against him. The point guard [Trent Walker] is the guy I’m concerned about though. He’s the one who gets them going.”

Dingle said his team will be more assertive from the opening tip Saturday.

“Today I felt we played very unselfish, but also a little passive,” Dingle said. “Tomorrow we’re going to show that we’re more aggressive and start the game on the right tone.”

dbutler@nypost.com