Davis and Clarke Flash Familiar Form for Holy Cross in Big Win

            

            For senior guard Will Davis and his classmate forward Mareiga Clarke last season seemed to never really get started.

     For Davis, it was a severe knee injury which caused him to not only miss significant playing time but forced him to play with a bulky  brace which left him not only with diminished quickness but a bit tentative with respect to how much he could do physically when he returned to action.

            For Clarke, the problem was one not  typically associated with young athletes; high blood pressure. He too missed significant time and was a diminished player when he returned as doctors tried to find the best way to get it under control. And for both young men it meant taking a step backward from promising sophomore campaigns

            Last night as they helped coach Paul Gilvary and their teammates to a convincing 58-38 win over Campus Magnet the two players demonstrated that they were healthy again and ready for a great season.

            Statistically, that meant 20 points for Davis and 19  and 10 rebounds for Clarke. But to see what it really means one must look beyond those numbers. Together they helped the Knights put together a terrific defensive effort and rebound against a taller and more physical Panthers' squad. Ten of Davis' points came in a first period that saw Holy Cross sprint to a 16-9 advantage. They took a 26-13 lead at the half with the help of senior guard Anthony Libroia who showed his usually reliable shooting touch and improved ball handling and passing as he scored 9 points and added 11 assists.  All four of Holy Cross' seniors (including talented but injured guard Marquise Moore) have drawn college interest. Davis reportedly received his first offer from Fairfield while Libroia is reportedly being evaluated by local D-II programs. If Clarke continues to play well he will likely draw interest from many programs  during the late signing period. And when the team adds Moore, who is recovering from a broken big toe, a deep playoff run may spark even greater interest in all of Holy Cross' class of 2012 players.

            Legendary coach Chuck Granby's squad clearly has some talent in senior wings Sam Durodola, Justin Harvey and Tarik Raynor as evidenced by surprising wins over Bayside and Cardozo earlier this season. Yesterday several of the Panthers arrived late, and were clearly not ready to play. Given Coach Granby's long winning history, this will be a lesson for his team and may in the long run help propel them to continued success in the PSAL

Harrison's Second Half Surge Helps St. John's Avoid an Upset

            

            Freshman D'angelo Harrison tied his career high with 21 points, scoring 17 of them in the second half to rally St. John's to a 66-61 come from behind win over Texas Pan-American last night at Carnesecca Arena.

            To their credit the Broncs played nearly the entire game dictating both pace and style.  On offense, they used a patient perimeter attack moving the ball effectively against St. John's zone defense and connecting on twice as many three point shots (10) as St. John's (5). Defensively  they made a choice to eschew the pursuit of offensive rebounds in favor of retreating on defense and taking away St. John's transition game. The strategy worked as they took a 32-24 lead into halftime and extended that to 12 when Earl Jefferson laid in a pass from Josh Cleveland.

            At that point. Harrison demonstrated why St. John's coaching staff continues to have confidence in his shooting even as he goes through what can be described as typical freshman struggles. "He's our designated shooter," assistant coach Mike Dunlap said. "Whether it's well beyond the three point arc or on top of it we're happy to have him shoot it." Harrison rewarded that confidence with a personal 10-0 scoring run that drew St. John's to within 44-42 with 11:19 to go.

            The Broncs were able to stave off St. John's surge for a while longer with the ability to make clutch three's and use the back door play as a pressure release when St. John's defense got too aggressive. The Red Storm would not take their first second half lead until Sir'Dominic Pointer, who seems to be in the middle of every rally with hustle plays, converted a pass from Phil Greene to make the score 57-55. Pan American would respond, opening a 4 point advantage with just 3:45  left when Jared Maree and Brandon Provost buried consecutive 3's.

            Those baskets would be the last points for the Broncs.  A basket by God'sGift Achiuwa with  1:36 left trimmed the deficit to 2 and then after the Red Storm didn't score on two possessions, they went to their home run hitter and Harrison delivered with a long trey and with 36 seconds left St. John's had the lead for good. A moment later Moe Harkless atoned for two missed free throws with a steal and dunk that extended that lead to 64-61. Two more free throws by Harrison and terrific man to man defense which coach Dunlap said they went to extensively in the second half, helped salt away the win.

            Almost lost in the hype surrounding Harrison's shooting heroics and the debut of Amir Garrett, was a terrific 22 point 9 rebound effort by Achiuwa. Garrett was thrown right into the fray, entering the game at the 13:22 mark, playing 15 minutes scoring 3 points and adding two boards. His first point came on a first half free throw and his first field goal was a dunk assisted by Achiuwa.

            When asked about the decision to play Garrett, coach Dunlap not only cited the 6'6" lefty's talent  but the promise Garrett had kept. "We had an opportunity (by playing him) to let him know that we appreciated who he is and what he's done for our program by showing loyalty in a tough situation." Dunlap said.

            He could have added that as the Big East season begins on Monday against Providence, they'll need his energy, toughness and selflessness to help them through a schedule that is extraordinarily tough.

St. John's Sprints Ahead and Holds off Fordham in Holiday Matinee 56-50

            For a bit more than 17 minutes, Fordham had yesterday afternoon's game against St. John's right where they wanted it. Not only were they ahead 26-24 but the game was being played at a pace and score that they were more comfortable with.  Even though St. John's dominated the offensive glass, and even though the Rams did not make a lot of shots, three point shooting especially by former Loughlin guard Brandon Frazier helped Fordham balance the game and maintain a slight advantage.

            One possible answer St. John's would not have in this game was the ability to go to the bench.  That option, as has been well documented was limited even before the season began when  NCAA's academic clearing house ruled three talented recruits ineligible. It was diminished further this past week when Nurideen Lindsey made a sudden decision to leave St. John's, and then cut further by a decision to bench Malik Stith for the first half of the game because of  what was termed a "minor violation of team rules concerning academics".

            Luckily the Red Storm found answers from within the iron five  that played the entire first half.  In the final 2:46 St. John's went on a 11-0 run to turn that two point deficit into a 9 point advantage.  St. John's would pick up right where they left off after halftime adding 7 points to that margin before a Chris Gaston jumper mercifully broke the string for the Rams.

            The rally that closed the first half began with two free throws from D'Angelo Harrison and included two baskets one  a triple by Moe Harkless But the key to the rally was two great energy plays by Sir"Dominic Pointer, who on consecutive plays blocked a shot that provided the possession that led to Harkless' trey, and followed that with a steal and assist to God'sgift Achiuwa for a slam. Harrison and guard Phil Greene provided the second half spark and seemingly put St. John's in command 42-26 with just a shade under 17 minutes left and they maintained a double digit margin until 7:37 left when a trey by former Bronx JFK standout Jeff Short connected on a trey to cut the deficit to 8 points. As Fordham slowly chipped away at the margin with scoring primarily from Gaston and Frazier, St. John's hurt themselves with what may have been an attempt to save energy given their short bench. While they did not turn the ball over much during that stretch they did try and take time off the clock and while doing so, did not get good looks at the basket. A dunk Kervin Bristol off a pretty assist by Fatty McMillan cut St. John's lead to 53-50 with 1:55 left. St. John's did not score on the ensuing possession but with a chance to tie the game Fordham's youth betrayed them as former Midwood standout Brian Smith shot a quick three that missed and when Gaston tried a two-pointer following a McMillan offensive board St. John's finally secured the win with a free throw from Phil Greene and two more by Sir"Dominic Pointer.

            Almost despite having four players go the entire 40 minutes the Johnnies won the game thanks in large part to their good work in what are often referred to as "hustle stats" they had 19 offensive rebounds and scored 13 second chance points.  The Johnnies also outscored the Rams 22-10 in the paint. Moe Harkless led the way for St. John's with 13 points and 10 caroms for his third straight double double. Harrison scored a team high 15 points for the Johnnies while Achiuwa added 10. Brandon Frazier had a game high 17 points for Fordham while Gaston added a double double of his own with 11 points and 14 boards. In the opener of the Holiday Festival double header Rutgers knocked off Stony Brook 67-58 behind 22 points from Myles Mack. Former Thomas Jefferson (Brooklyn) High standout Dave Coley paced Stony Brook with 17 points.  For the first time ever the Holiday Festival at Madison Square Garden was a one day event rather than the tournament it has been in the past.

Boys & Girls Serves Notice With Big Win at CK

                                    

            With their 64-59 win at Christ the King yesterday, the Kangaroos of Boys & Girls High reminded everyone that  CK isn't the only team talented enough to win its third straight city title. In fact, the win was so convincing that, at least in the early part of the season, it's safe to say that Ruth Lovelace's squad looks a lot more ready to achieve that goal. They were more aggressive at both ends of the floor, deeper, tougher on the boards and last but certainly not least, they flashed a Player of the Year candidate of their own in senior forward Leroy Fludd.

            Fludd's 23 point, board controlling all around effort was without a doubt the primary catalyst for the Kangaroos winning effort but it should also be noted that  the first burst of energy for the road warriors from Brooklyn came from their bench.  After Christ the King sprinted to an early advantage senior guard Bryce Jones came off the bench and quickly connected on two long lefty triples to help Boys & Girls regain their footing.  After that Fludd and his teammates played even for the rest of  the half and took a lead into the half time locker room when another senior guard Nick Jackson hit a tough jumper from the right wing.

            Jackson's basket set the stage for what would be a huge, and ultimately decisive third quarter for the Kangaroos. Fludd scored from both inside and out while guards Jackson  Wesley Meyers and Tyliek Kimbrough all contributed important baskets and assists.  Forward Joel Angus bounced back from a quiet first half to contribute all 8 of his points in the second and lend Fludd a big hand on the boards.

            While Boys & Girls' perimeter players augmented Fludd's effort with just enough offense for the win, their most important contribution was to a stellar defensive effort which not only held Calhoun to a modest total for him of 18 points but held Isaiah Lewis to just 13 and Jon Severe to 12. CK's offense was often reduced to just a clear out and a one-on-one move.  Calhoun tried bravely to bring the Royals back and had an opening with some late turnovers by the Kangaroos. he could not bring them all the way back. Calhoun connected on a long contested triple with just over 3 minutes left to bring the Royals to within 59-54 but they'd get no closer.  Minutes later when another long triple by Calhoun  went half way down and spun out, the home crowd was quieted knowing that the visitors from Brooklyn, led by a terrific senior of their own had come to Queens and earned a great win.

Christ The King Gets by Fiesty Jefferson in Season Opener

                        

            A gym with as much history as any in New York City provided the setting for a terrific season opening tilt.  At the Tony Jackson Memorial Gym at Jefferson in Brooklyn's East New York section banners hang that honor not only its namesake, the great St. John's star, but other basketball luminaries such as former Laker and Knick Jim McMillian, who played college basketball at Columbia and former Trail Blazer and Laker Leroy Ellis, who also starred in college for St. John.

            Though Christ the King, 2011-12's preseason favorite would eventually pull away for a 92-81 win make no mistake they were tested by a Jefferson squad that played with terrific energy and jumped on the two time defending CHSAA champions early, taking a 21-18 lead into the first intermission, and extending that margin to 7 points (34-27) late in the second quarter. The Orange Wave's effort was even more impressive than it looked to those in what was a packed house since they were missing perhaps their best player in talented 6'5" lefty senior Thaddeus Hall.

            In Hall's absence junior guard Jaquan Lynch, who is perhaps the team's most experienced player in terms of minutes played picked up the slack.  The  player who earned significant varsity minutes as a freshman two years ago despite giving up pounds and inches to older players has now become a small (5'10") but sturdy guard whose scoring and playmaking not only gave Jefferson a terrific start but helped them stay in the game throughout. He finished with a game high 28 points while others such as Jermoine Faison and Richard Moody all provided the energy and defense that helped put the Royals on their heels early.

            It took Christ the King a bit longer than half way through the second quarter to find its bearings.  Facing that 34-27 deficit they closed the quarter with a 17-8 run to lift themselves to a 44-42 lead at halftone and followed that with a 22-9 third quarter to give themselves a 66-53 lead after three quarters. Junior guard Jon Severe who finished with 22 points was the Royals most consistent scorer from start to finish while senior leader Omar Calhoun finished with a team high 25 points combined with Isaiah Lewis to hold off Jefferson in the fourth quarter.  Lewis, who struggled with decision making for much of the game was terrific in the last 8 minutes  finding 6'8" soph reserve Adonis DeLaRosa and Calhoun for baskets after Jefferson trimmed the lead to single digits.  And Calhoun took the air out of the Jefferson rally as he's done against many teams; with deadly precision shooting the ball both from beyond the arc and at the free throw line.

            While CK's scoring came largely from their perimeter trio, the contributions of Jordan Fuchs cannot go unmentioned. The scoring and  rebounding numbers, 10 and 11 respectively look modest, but throw in 6 assists, a few of them to Severe cutting down the wing and his importance in their press breaker and you see the makings of a terrific all-around game from a terrific all around player.

            Christ the King found itself after the game's early moments and passed a tough early test while Jefferson demonstated that despite the loss of talented players like Edson Avila and Shamel Williams, plenty of talent remains for them to be a team the pre-season favorites in the PSAL cannot take lightly.