Penn Hills' Sherron Schifino helps new-look Point Park get back to winning ways

Sherron Schifino didn’t find a home at Youngstown State. The Point Park senior went to Ohio following his graduation from Penn Hills in 2017 as a preferred walk-on and did some workouts with the team, but decided to come back home.

After spending time at CCAC Boyce, Schifino landed with the Pioneers after being convinced to go there by former coach Joe Lewandowski. The 6-foot-1 senior guard has grown with the program, which has exploded this season.

Schifino averages 12.4 points per game and has been a key piece for a Point Park team that is 18-5 overall and 9-3 in the River States Conference East Division. The Pioneers are set to have their first winning season since 2015-16.

During the course of his career, Schifino has spent time climbing the school’s record books.

Schifino is 18 points away from passing Jim Ney to move into the top 10 of Point Park’s all-time scoring list. He has scored 1,283 points during his career.

Schifino is also 13th in school history with 132 made 3-pointers.

Where Schifino feels he has made the biggest improvement is with his skills.

“My progress has been good,” Schifino said. “I’ve worked on my game a lot since my first game in JUCO ball. I’m more comfortable. I am able to handle the ball more and shoot better.”

When it comes to contributing to the Pioneers, everyone is expected to pound the glass. Point Park leads the NAIA in rebounds per game at 48.2 and outrebounds its opponents by a margin of 13.6 per game.

“We have a lot of guys that can do a lot of things,” Schifino said. “We rebound well and rebounding leads to offense. We thrive in transition.”

For Schifino, he has made a big transformation when it comes to fitness. Between the end of last season and this year, Schifino lost weight and improved his cardio. He is one of the team captains this season.

“He has real ability,” coach Kevin Reynolds said. “I believe he compares well to some guys I’ve had who have played in Europe. He shoots well and rebounds well. I believe Sherron could play somewhere after college.”

Schifino said he noticed things would be different this season right away. After Reynolds, who was at Division II Quincy (Ill.) University as an assistant last season, came in as coach, Schifino saw the program was going to be different.

“This year, he brought in the offseason workouts, including in the summer and offseason,” Schifino said. “He brought the mentality up right away. I’ve been able to adapt pretty well. They are Division I-style workouts.”

Schifino says he has seen a major transformation since he came into the program. This year, Point Park averages 81.4 points per game and doesn’t need any one person to carry the load. Jo Valerie leads the team in scoring at 19.6 points per game, while Jalen Stamps contributes 17.4 and Cyrie Coates averages 15.1.

Reynolds said assistant coach D’Rae Wise played a big role in helping get everyone in shape.

“Sherron and Jordan (Stowe) lost a lot of weight,” Reynolds said. “D’Rae is super energetic and those guys have embraced strength and conditioning. They’ve all gotten in great shape and embrace their roles.”