Familiar Face Minds the Store as Nets Plot Next Moves

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            A month ago, when the Nets were 11-4 it all seemed so easy. The transition to Brooklyn had gone nicely, they had beaten the Knicks, seen Brooke Lopez at his healthy best and gotten off to that start despite severe shooting struggles from the two guys who, on paper at least, were their two best players Deron Williams and Joe Johnson.

            Fast forward to yesterday when Avery Johnson has been asked to take his Coach of the Month award home with him. The Knicks have established themselves as clear favorites along with the Heat in the Eastern Conference.  The Nets are 3-10 since the start, and Williams decided he's better in the system he left in Utah; a system taught and used by a coach many feel he forced out.

            Now a coach familiar to New York area basketball fans, P.J. Carlesimo becomes interim coach. Carlesimo lead Seton Hall to the 1989 NCAA championship game and an overtime loss to Michigan with a cast of players that featured local stars Darryl Walker (All Hallows) Gerald Greene (Westinghouse) and John Morton (Walton High) from New York along with Jersey natives Franz Volcy (Seton Hall Prep) and Anthony Avent (Shabazz High)   One internet report says a new coach will be named shortly while others suggest that even Prokorov will have to wait till next season to get the high profile guy he wants. Speculation has ranged from the zen master Phil Jackson to former Indiana University coach Kelvin Sampson who was successful at three college coaching stints but found his way to the NBA ranks of assistant coaches as the NCAA posse bore down on him.

            Surely there's more to this than the notion that Johnson, "was not reaching them" as Billy King  suggests. But I wonder if the tune out began on December 21 when following a loss to the Lakers Johnson held out Gerald Wallace to avoid playing him in back to back games. The Nets lost a game they felt they should win and even though their extended streak began a bit later and was triggered in large part to the absence of Lopez, the Nets were not an are not a team that can compromise themselves even in games they're "supposed to win". That may have been one factor that lead to Johnson's demise, and the burying of last year's first round pick Marshon Brooks may have been another. Say what you will about Brooks' defense, the Nets need his scoring punch and creativity as part of their rotation. And he had reached a point where he was held out of most games and when he did play his confidence was clearly shaken. And a scorer without confidence is, if I may coin a Brooklyn metaphor, like an egg cream without Fox's Ubet, completely useless. The two losses to Golden State and the loss to Milwaukee that sealed Johnson's fate exposed the Nets' two biggest weaknesses,  quickness and length

            The guy who delivered the news of Johnson's firing, GM Billy King is not blameless in the Nets' struggles. Sure the big moves; the trades for Williams and Wallace, and Johnson still appear solid even as the team struggles to find chemistry. resigning Lopez after a deal for Dwight Howard failed to materialize was the right move, and the amnesty signing of Andray Blatche has proven to be perhaps the Nets' best move even though it now remains to be seen whether he will continue to be productive in Johnson's absence.

            But while the roster has talent there's a terrible lack of depth that's exacerbated when Brooks doesn't figure in the rotation. Right now, Merza Teletovic looks like a guy who has neither the desire or athleticism to compete for rebounds at the NBA level. Toko Shengelia plays with loads of energy but in hindsight perhaps should have been stashed in Europe because his best chance at NBA success appears to be as a skilled power forward rather than a long "3 man" he needs to bulk up for that conversion. Can Brooks' confidence be restored by a new coach. Can Taylor become a rotation player and improve the team's perimeter quickness.        Time will tell if those players are given a chance and can help put the team back on track. A season that began with such promise is now full of the kind of intrigue no team wants and no successful team has. Hopefully for the new team and their fans they can emerge from it stronger and better than before.

Defense Lets One Get Away From St. John's 72-65

              Suffice it to say, St. John's didn't want to go into Big East play following a game like this. The Red Storm begin Big East play on Jan. 2nd at the pavilion against Villanova and if last night's surprising loss to Big South Conference champion UNC-Ashville is any indication, problems the team has had all season remain trouble spots that could hurt the team's chances as they start to face teams that can match, and in some cases, surpass them physically.

            For the third time this season, St. John's let a significant double digit lead slip away. It happened twice in Charleston in losses to Murray State and Baylor. This time, St. John's led on their home floor at Carnesseca Arena by 17 points with 3:11 to go in the first half. And as they built that lead there were lots of good signs. primarily with ball movement and shooting. To their credit Ashville never wavered in their style of play and tempo. They responded to the high flying athletes St. John's features in the paint with terrific fundamentals and physical toughness. Chris Obekpa had another big day with 6 blocks but often the opportunities for those plays came from poor defense as St. John's guards repeatedly allowed penetration. After St. John's opened that 17 point margin coach Eddie Biedenbach's squad had a run that included the last 5 points of the opening stanza and suddenly the lead was just 40-30 and the feeling that St. John's had let the Bulldogs hang around was palpable.

            St. John's held a 54-42 lead with just over 12 minutes left when Jeremy Atkinson began a rally with consecutive 3 pointers against what appeared to be a confused St. John's defense. Their zone inevitably gives up treys and Ashville made 4 in the second half. Today they also allowed inside plays. Ashville's point guard Keith Hornsby. who broke a 65-65 tie with a buzzer beating triple with 1:30 remaining. Moments earlier he had tied the game at 65 by leaking out following a forced St. John's shot for a breakaway dunk. The Bulldogs closed the game with a 7-0 run and out rebounded St. John's 40-30.  That margin included 13 offensive  rebounds. Atkinson pumped in a career high 31 points and added 9 rebounds. Hornsby added 14 and had 5 assist. D'Angelo Harrison lead St. John's with  24 points . In his Red Storm debut Jamal Branch had 2 points 3 boards 2 assists and 4 turnovers in 14 minutes of action. Although he was charged with those 4 turnovers he helped provide the ball movement for St. John's strong first half start.

            

Knicks vs. Nets Round 2. Plus Other Items From the Past Few Weeks

                        

            Thankfully the games, mostly college games, these days have kept me busy and with the high school season fully underway there's less time for me to wax nostalgic, poetic or any other way in these columns that jump from subject to subject with the common thread of basketball running through them. My plan is to still write them from time to time because with the resurgence in pro basketball here combined with the always good high school and college hoops there's lots to write about. And sometimes a summary of  things is all that's needed.  With all this in mind, here I go with some news and notes on the past few weeks.

Knicks Vs. Nets Round 2 Last night's 100-97 win by the Knicks over the Nets was so good on so many levels. The intensity from  fans and players alike at Barckay's Center was phenomenal and the basketball was spectacular in both its explosiveness and its subtlety. Carmelo Anthony scored 45 and essentially lifted the Knicks from a huge deficit to a position to win in the closing moments. From there Jason Kidd, J.R. Smith and the rest of the Knicks hit clutch shots to put the Knicks over the top for the win. And Anthony made the "hockey assist" pass that set up Kidd's game winning triple.  And for those who want to diminish the rivalry because it "doesn't match the Yankees vs. Red Sox or Rangers vs. Is Islanders think not only about the intensity of the crowd but the way the teams elevated their play.  The Nets could've rolled over without Lopez, they didn't and the Knicks likely would have folded last year after the early deficit.  Keep in mind too that Anthony, a guy whose capacity for leadership was questioned from the moment he arrived was the one who helped his team regain their footing and win the game.

Sad News at Hofstra It is hard to hear the news that broke from Hofstra on Nov. 30th. Four players, including local stars Jimmy Hall and Shaquille Stokes were arrested and chanrged with multiple counts of burglary in connection with a string of dorm thefts at the school. If even a small portion of these charges are proven true, these guys have sadly lost sight of the fact that it's a privilege to play basketball or any other sport on a full scholarship, and in doing so they threw away the opportunity of a lifetime. Our hearts go out to the victims and to others on campus who must be left feeling unsafe in a place where safety should be a given to foster learning and growth.

Farewell Rick Majerus The news of master coach Rick Majerus' death on December 2nd touched the hearts of many basketball fans who remember a guy who loved the game and had a great sense of humor. Though he was born in Wisconsin his connection to New York comes from his association with the late Al McGuire  Marquette coach who played at St. John's University and St. John's Prep in high school. Majerus  He was first a player and then a coach for McGuire on teams that seemed to always be on TV in the 60's and 70's before the UCLA games with John Wooden came on at 4 and they were loaded with stars from this area like Dean Meminger (Rice) Hugh McMahon (St. Francis Prep) George Thompson (Erasmus Hall) and many others. As a coach at Ball State, Marquette, Utah and finally St. Louis, Majerus won 517 games, numerous conference titles and made one trip with Utah to the final four. To me, Majerus and McGuire shared the same coaching gifts of being able to communicate with different kinds of players and a mastery of the importance of tempo in basketball. He appreciated both the structure and the freedom of basketball and incorporated both into a winning basketball strategy that was great to watch.

Local Guys Start Revival at Duquesne  Former LIU coach Jim Ferry has begun a revival in Pittsburgh at Duquesne and helped his team bounce back  from two season opening losses to win six of their last eight games; a streak that includes a win over backyard and Big 12 rival West Virginia.  His successor at LIU Jack Peri experienced a bit of coaching karma when a day after the Dukes win over WVa, the Blackbirds posted a big win in Texas against Rice. Another New Yorker, former Christ the King star Sean Johnson recently notched his 1,000th career point and is averaging a shade over 12 ppg in this his senior season.

Big East Non-Football Schools Meet to Discuss Their Future My first reaction to this can be summed up in one word FINALLY. But with a closer look at the circumstances I realize that the reason it's coming now is that if Temple, which is in for football only presently is not a full voting member of the league the 7 basketball schools have the ability to dissolve the league by themselves which would spare them from paying a costly exit fee. Leaving remains an option that is more easily said than done in light of the alternatives being discussed.  St. John's, Villanova, Georgetown, Marquette and even DePaul have long and rich  traditions in basketball and could form the basis of a league that would compete at a national level. Cherry picking teams from the Atlantic 10 may not be so easy because those schools will not leave without the promise of a bigger pay day.  ESPN's Andy Katz stated that the "ideal 5" to form a 12 team league with the original Big East seven would be Xavier, Dayton, Creighton  St Louis and Butler.   While he's correct that Dayton and Xavier are both essential even though they're both in western Ohio, to add both Creighton and St. Louis along with Butler is a bit of market saturation, which is not a bad thing but why do it in the mid west and not in the northeast by adding St. Joe' s?? Also, 12 is a good amount to begin with rather than say, a 16 team non basketball mega conference because even if they played an old school home and home conference regular season, there would still be enough games to keep strong geographic rivalries.  St. John's could still for example play Syracuse, Providence could still play Boston College and Xavier could still play Cincinnati.  This is a drama that will take a while to unfold so here's hoping that the AD's and presidents of the non football schools make the kinds of choices that allow them to stay in the big time.

Obekpa and St. John's Turn Festival Into Block Party

                                           

            Chris Obekpa set a personal best and school record of 11 blocked shots and helped his teammates to a school record of 15 blocks as St. John's held off Fordham 58-47 in the Holiday Festival at Madison Square Garden last night.

            The Rams entered the game with a 1-7 mark and the problems that have plagued them all season did in this game also. They shot poorly (29%) and .turned the ball over entirely too much (23  times).

            In the face of those ugly numbers Fordham had done a few things right.  As coach Tom Pecora  said after the game, "If you had told me that we'd contain D'Angelo Harrison to 14 points and Phil Greene to 8 I'd say hey we have a chance to win this game".

            His team also out rebounded the Red Storm 54-40 thanks primarily to a strong effort from sophomore center Ryan Canty whose hard running led to easy opportunities for baskets and while the presence of Obekpa and JaKark Sampson meant he didn't finish them all he had made enough to give the Rams a 27-24 halftime advantage.

            St. John's would bounce back from that first half that coach Steve Lavin called "our poorest of the season" to score take a 31-27 lead as the second half began.  They'd take the lead for good with an 11-3 run that gave them a 49-41 advantage with 5:31. Sampson contributed six points to that rally including two with his trademark jumper from the key and two free throws. And while Lavin talked about Obekpa's unique combination of timing and length to describe what he called a "unique" shot blocking ability. Sampson succinctly described his teammate's impact on the game. "When Chris blocks a shot it energizes us it's like a dunk on offense," Sampson said.  "t makes us want to play defense and be there with him defensively."

            That energy helped St. John's fight their way past both a wide rebounding margin and a poor shooting effort for an important win against a local rival. Sampson posted a double double with 16 points and 10 boards. Obekpa added five rebounds and seven points  which included one tough jumper from the key and one put back dunk which had the same energizing effect as his blocks .St. John's improved to 7-3 on the year. Fordham which dropped to 1-8 and hopes to have leading scorer Chris Gaston back for Saturday's game against Princeton at Barclay's Center got 15 points and 16 rebounds from Canty

Harrison and Sampson Combine to Rescue St. John's

            

     D'angelo Harrison's 17 second half points and JaKar Sampson's first career double-double helped St. John's avoid an upset loss to a determined N.J.I.T. team 57-49 win at Carnesecca Arena yesterday.

            Throughout the first half coach Jim Engles squad had the game at their pace thanks to a patient offense and what St. John's coach Steve Lavin might have referred to as a "quicksand man to man" defense. St. John's often uses a zone to force the opposition to use the shot clock. The Highlanders followed cutters through the lane and switched on dribble hand offs but seldom ventured outside the key to challenge shooters. That strategy worked and N.J.I.T. combined that with outstanding 3-point marksmanship (6=10) to surge to a 35-23 halftime advantage. Former St Peter's (SI) High standout Ryan Woods who began his college career at Division II Pace University connected on 3 of those first half tri-fectas and finished with a team high 16 points.

            Harrison, who finished the game with 21 points was briefly admonished by Lavin for showing up his teammates who weren't catching his passes. In the second half he did a much better job of leadership scoring 9 points and playing with better energy to ignite a 19-5 spurt out of the locker room and give St. John's a 42-40 lead. Meanwhile Sampson snared 17 rebounds to go along with 15 points and his effort helped St. John's turn a 6 rebound deficit at halftime into a 6 rebound margin for the game. Chris Obekpa who added 8 points and 5 blocks scored 4 consecutive points when he and Harrison first faked a dribble hand off that led to a spin move off the right block and a dunk. On the very next play he took a feed from Sampson and connected on a short jumper to move the Red Storm's lead from 1 point to 5, bring a listless crowd to its feet and effectively salt the game away.

            St. John's heads west to face the University of San Francisco on Tuesday ay 10:pm

            

All Systems Go as St. John's Throttles South Carolina

              

            Sure it's  seven games into the season and St. John's is working in 5 freshman. Not only that there are no upperclassmen in the current rotation. Each of those facts made the Red Storm's 89-65 win over South Carolina even more impressive than the one-sided score indicates. For a team that's played just 7 games together the roles the talented individuals on the team must play are coming into focus and all of them made key contributions in a big game before a crowd of just under 5,-000 at Carnesecca Arena.

            Unlike many teams, even teams with more experience together, St. John's already knows who their go to scorer is. D'angelo Harrison continued to play that role perfectly with an efficient 26 point effort on 8-13 shooting. While his effort showed off what his coach Steve Lavin called "an impressive (scoring) tool box"Harrison was quick to give credit to his teammates. "I made a couple of shots but I had so many easy layups It was me cutting and they found me and I made the layup," he said. "Anybody could have had 26 today."

            Harrison's modesty aside several of his teammates did lots of good things.    Phil Greene was efficient as well, scoring 13 points on 5-8 shooting while adding  4 assists. Amir Garrett was terrific off the bench with 15 points and 11 boards.  He has quietly established himself as the player for this team who's seemingly in the middle of every good run; getting key rebounds, making a key pass or getting a deflection on defense whatever's needed Garrett comes up with it. Players like him are euphemistically called "garbage guys" but they are essential to a winning effort. And when you add to those three elements the effective rim protection of Chris Obekpa, the improved shooting of JaKar Sampson and the high flying energy of Felix Balamou and the team has what Lavin called "some nice pieces" which are slowly being shaped into a team.. And while Lavin had good things to say about all who contributed he singled out Balamou as a guy who's shown the coaching staff more than they expected as he demonstrated both the athleticism people were aware he had and the ability to run the break and make decisions which they did not expect to be a part of his game so quickly. "That's what he does in practice every day." Lavin said.  "And that's how he's gone from being a redshirt (candidate) to 4 minutes to 12 to 22 and now a starter."  All of this is coming together even as St. John's must work in at least one more talented player (Jamal Branch) and perhaps two if the NCAA rules on his eligibility soon. So far the process has gone well thanks to both the coaching staff and a good group of young players.  It will be fascinating to see how a team that is young talented and unselfish can integrate two more guys one or two more new players. If they do so their chances for success in the Big East are that much better.

            With 13:34 left in the game junior guard Brenton Williams was fouled on a drive to the basket, fell awkwardly and sustained a neck injury. He was taken off the court on a backboard and his neck was immobilized by a brace. South Carolina's training staff told coach Frank Martin that Williams had never lost consciousness. And it was announced after the game that he had movement in both his upper and lower extremities and that he'd be allowed to return home with his team today.
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Winning Elements Travel Well For the Nets

                                    

            There are two oft repeated notions that pass for analysis these days in sports.  One says "defense travels well" and means that teams that defend well improve their chances of winning on the road significantly.  The other, most often applied to basketball says "the bench plays much better at home than on the road".

            Last night's 95-83 win by the Nets over the Celtics last night will almost certainly be best remembered for the brawl at the end of the second quarter that followed a hard Kris Humphries foul on Kevin Garnett.  Celtics point guard Rajon Rondo raced in and came to his teammate's defense hitting Humphries and pushing him into the stands under the basket.  Rondo and Humphries were ejected from the game as was Nets;' forward Gerald Wallace who got a second technical foul in the brawl after complaining to an official  moments earlier about a shot in the mouth that was not whistled.

            The fight was a sure sign of a couple of things. For openers it demonstrated that the Celtics, whom as Ian Eagle pointed out during the telecast, had no problem bullying the Nets when they struggled, did not respond well to being pushed back.  It's likely that Celtics coach Doc Rivers had that in mind when he called his team soft after the game.

            It's also an indication that after two years of having a transient roster, the Nets are a team that's together and playing for each other. That not only showed itself during the fight but during the game.

            The Nets followed their great home win against the Knicks with an even more impressive win at TD Garden. They led from wire to wire thanks to a team defensive effort that held the C's to 42% shooting and 1-7 shooting from three point distance.  They also out rebounded their hosts 50-40 and more than doubled their output on the offensive glass 17-8.

            While the wisdom that defense travels held true for the Nets, what the bench did in a huge game on the road flew in the face of convention. Andray Blatche stepped in for a foul plagued Brook Lopez and had 17 points as well as 13 boards while Reggie Evans, whose 33 minutes were at least partly the result of Humphries' ejection did his usual yeoman's work on the boards collecting 10 caroms.

            While the defense and the bench provided the main spark for a great effort, Joe Johnson's game which included 18 points and 6 assists was also essential in part because he became "Iso-Joe" when they needed him to be that guy.  In the 4th quarter when the Nets were trying to massage the shot clock on offense they were able to go to him at the end of it and he made great decisions that resulted in scores, assists or trips to the line. Deron Williams who had a modest statistical game was vital finding his back court partner in the right position and in getting everyone in position so the floor was spaced properly.

            Monday's win against the Knicks was surely a great one but last night's win may be a more certain sign that the Nets, in their new home Brooklyn, have indeed joined the battle for an Eastern Conference title. There's more work to do but the team has shown great talent and great chemistry.  Add a little fight to it and we may have something special.

Round One Goes to Brooklyn 96-89

                        

I must say I felt some consternation this afternoon when I heard one radio talker describe last night's game and the rivalry that may be developing between the Knicks and the Nets as ".....not like baseball (between the Yanks, Dodgers and Giants) in the 50's as if that immediately made it something less in comparison to those bygone days. People can minimize the impact all they want but this rivalry, with its roots in a very different Brooklyn, a very different Manhattan and a very different metro area will have a great place all its own in New York sports and especially when both teams are good as they are now, it will be a special place.

            How people feel about basketball in the city and the boroughs reflects how people identify themselves.  People identify themselves as "from Brooklyn, even though strictly speaking they're also New Yorkers. And for years, when the Knicks were the only pro game in town Brooklyn fans embraced them but the real basketball core of Brooklyn identified with guys from the borough they called home; with Connie Hawkins and Billy Cunningham years ago and with Chris Mullin more recently.

            Last night was the first time that  generations of Brooklyn fans who know the Dodgers and Jackie Robinson only as history to embrace a team of their own and because of basketball's place in Brooklyn it's only fitting that the major sports team that follows the Dodgers should be a basketball team. And while the Knicks' fans cheers definitely added to the energy in the new Barclay's Center, there was a solid contingent of Nets fans too. Some of them may be just sick of the Knicks ineptitude. After all, they haven't won a title since '73 and a fresh start may be what some fans are looking for. Other fans, who think they know a thing or two about hoops may like the Nets team better with its terrific center/point guar combination of Deron Williams and Brook Lopez and its second star in Joe Johnson.  One thing is for certain Brooklyn fans have quickly warmed up to both Reggie Evans and Gerald Wallace, two of the games best blue collar guys and agitators. It's no accident that a loud cheer went up as the Nets expanded their advantage in overtime and a frustrated Carmelo Anthony gave Wallace (who'd helped shut him down for much of crunch time after a 35 point performance in the game) was a great moment for the Nets and one that may indicate why the Nets may be ready to provide a difficult challenge for the Knicks at this point. Even though some of the Knicks' struggles can be chalked up to Jason Kidd's absence, there's little question that the Nets are more ready for playoff, and therefore championship basketball. Yes Joe Johnson needs to play better and yes they probably need to get Marsh on Brooks ready to be part of a playoff rotation but yesterday their grind it out style, the work of their blue collar guys, the lack of quit in Lopez who had a 22 point 11 rebound performance in a game where he would've quit last year when faced with Tyson Chandler's superb effort, are all indications that this rivalry and Brooklyn's new team have nothing but excitement ahead.

Opening Night in Brooklyn Finally Arrives

                                    

            But for hurricane Sandy this would have been the opener; certainly off Broadway but in a place no less important to the history of our nation, our city and the game of basketball..

            Both the Knicks and the Nets have played 12 games and while they do count in the standings they can easily be seen as dress rehearsals for a game between one team whose place in the city's sports fabric is established and one who had a smaller place in it on Long Island and in New Jersey but came to Brooklyn in  search of something bigger and better.  There's little question that the Barclay Center has helped the Nets gain some ground at the box office and the chants of Brook-lyn first heard in Atlantic City during a Nets pre-season game prove that while Brooklyn may have many Knick loyalists Kings County likes a team of its own.

       . Through 12 games, the Knicks have been a game better in the standings (9-3 vs. 8-4) but the Nets have played well and may be playing better at the moment. They are, after all coming off two wins against tough Western Conference foes while the Knicks, prior to yesterday's home win against Detroit suffered three losses in four games. And in those losses they have had deficiencies in athleticism (against Houston) and the ability to play a physical style (against Memphis) exposed. They have also reminded Knicks' fans in those games that there's a fine line between playing with an edge and losing your cool. That said there's a lot to like about these Knicks. Carmelo Anthony, media contrived Brooklyn citizenship aside has been spectacular and while he's been their best player Jason Kidd has been their most valuable one giving them two essential elements of winning basketball, defensive toughness and offensive unselfishness. .

            Like the Knicks, the Nets have demonstrated a winning combination of stars who have responded to the challenge of expectations and veteran tough guys who have reminded them of the "little things" that are essential to winning. Brook Lopez, who was nearly traded in the Dwightmare negotiations is playing better than he has at any time in his career, and after a poor game against Minnesota, a team with a similar sized center Nikola Pekovic he has bounced back with fine games against the athletic front lines of the Lakers (Howard and Gasol) and the Clippers (D'andre Jordan and Blake Griffin). It's worth noting that the Knicks' Tyson Chandler while not as athletic as those guys presents a similar challenge  and has had success controlling Lopez in the past. The Nets have moved Lopez around in the offense and that has clearly helped him. They need a big game from him against Chandler to  earn a win.

            The Nets other two stars Deron Williams and Joe Johnson have played well but inconsistently so far this season. Johnson's best games as a Net have been the last two so he may be just beginning to get comfortable. And while Williams has struggled shooting the ball he took over yesterday's game against Portland by being a playmaker. The Nets are clearly better when he's passing more and shooting less.

            Both teams are very deep as the Knicks minutemen can bring scoring in the form of JR Smith, a three point specialist in Steve Novak, heady playmaking in Pablo Prigioni and tough veteran size inside with Kurt Thomas and Rasheed Wallace.

            The Nets can nearly match that with scoring guard Marshon Brooks center Andray Blatche and the NBA's best back-up point guard C.J. Watson. The key to the Nets' bench however is Reggie Evans who has carved out a similar niche on the Nets to the one Paul Silas had on the Celtics teams that were the Knicks fiercest rivals in the 1970's. Since that reference is a bit old school I'll try and explain it briefly. Silas is one of the long line of great Celtic "sixth men" for the league's most successful franchise and the team that pioneered that role. Unlike many who came before and after him Silas provided that spark off the bench not by scoring but with rebounding and defense and he, just as Evans was in the wins against Portland and the Clippers, often found himself in the game during winning time in the game's closing moments. Even though he may not start a game for the Nets he is certainly a vital part of a winning effort.

            With or without the ancillary hype about things that have nothing to do with basketball (Jay-Z Dolan, Prokarov, celebrity row and provocative billboards) it figures to be a great opening night.  With a respectful nod to the team on the other side of the bridge that was the first sports team I followed growing up, Go Brooklyn.

           

Happy Thanksgiving To All, Manhattan Scores Wins Both on and off the Court Plus Other Notes and Observations

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            Let me begin this installment of my notes and observations by wishing everyone a belated Happy Thanksgiving and expressing the hope that it will be  the start of joyous holiday season for everyone.  College hoops are well underway and the early season games which, sometimes unfairly can have an effect on tournament seeding have been very competitive and fun. Glad to see the college basketball portion of the schedule at the Barclay's Center do so well since many of the hard core gym rats like yours truly who follow the college game as well as the pro game are influenced to do so by our Brooklyn roots.

Manhattan College wins on and off the Court  Manhattan College picked up their first won on Nov. 21 when they scored a 67-56 win over Hofstra in Riverdale. Not Coincidentally the game marked George Beamon's return to action and the former Roslyn High star kicked off what many believe can be a conference player of the year season for him in a big way scoring 29 points after missing the Jaspers first two games with a foot injury.  A pair of other New York high School stars also netted double figures as junior guard Mike Alvarado (All Hallows) scored 12 points while blue collar junior forward Rhamel Brown (Transit Tech) added 15 points on perfect 7-7 shooting from the floor, added 8 rebounds and did a great job patrolling the lane with two steals and 4 blocks.

            The Jaspers have also scored two important recruiting wins in recent weeks landing juco star Chris Thomas, a 6'5" scorer originally from Colorado playing at Chipola (Fla.) JC and Tyler Wilson, the speedy and tough minded guard who has manned the point for Cardinal Hayes High in the Bronx. The recruiting success underscores the good work done by head coach Steve Masiello and his staff which includes long time Rice mentor Rasheen Davis who has returned to the area after successful stints at Louisville, Pitt, and Xavier. Few New York based coaches can identify talent and have a better feel for players from our area than Mr. Davis, Manhattan is very lucky to have brought him home as they try to build their program for long term success in the MAAC.

Hofstra Struggles Early but has a Freshman Building Block. Coach Mo Cassera's Hofstra squad has gotten off to a 3-4 start including that loss to Manhattan as they integrate transfers Taran Buie  (Bishop Maginn in Albany via Penn State) and Shaquille Stokes (Lincoln in Brooklyn via Hawaii) into the lineup. But the future looks bright with those two players plus a guy who may be the most impactful freshman playing at a mid-major school in the metro area.  Jimmy Hall, the 6'7" Brooklyn native who starred for coach Bob Hurley at St. Anthony (NJ) High has been the Pride's best player, working his way into the starting lineup while averaging close to a double-double (12-7 ppg 9,4 rpg)

Ex Pine Bush Star Does "Early Work" for Wichita State We are happy to report that Cleanthony Early the 6'8" forward from Pine Bush High in Orange County (NY) has gotten off to a fast start at Wichita State.  He was long a favorite of ours when we saw him star on the summer circut for the B.C, Eagles where he quickly gained a reputation as one of the highest flyers and best dunkers in our region.  After a year at Notre Dame Prep (MA) and two more at Sullivan (NY) JC Early has averaged nearly 14 points and 7 boards per game for the Shockers and busted out with a 25 point 9 rebound effort against Big 10 rival Iowa as the Shockers beat the Hawkeyes in the finals of the Cancun Classic in Mexico on Wednesday

NY & NJ Stars Shine in Nutmeg State Rival Game.  Only in the zany world that is college basketball will you see a terrific in-state rivalry game happen and only be able to happen, off the U.S. mainland. That happened when  Connecticut powerhouse UConn met Quinnipiac in the Virgin Islands on Nov. 15th with the Huskies pulling out a 89-83 double overtime win.  A trio of local stars  Dave Johnson of St. Mark's (NJ) HS, Jamie Jackson St. Anthony's (NJ) HS and Evan Conti of Holy Cross (Queens) all played vital roles as the Bobcats from the Northeast Conference pushed their Big East rivals to the limit. For the Huskies another local star, Christ the King's Omar Calhoun had 15 points including two key plays down the stretch for a basket and free throws to help UConn hold off a great upset bid.

Sampson's Strong Second Half Lifts St. John's Past Holy Cross

            For the first 25 or so minutes of St. John's 65-53 win over Holy Cross home cooking did not taste so good for the Red Storm. While the Crusaders had nothing resembling the size and athleticism of the Baylor team that had beaten St. John's last Sunday they played St. John's even thanks mainly to execution and effort.

            The Crusaders' patient approach on offense seemingly frustrated St. John's as they hurt themselves the way young teams often do quick shots and lack of ball and player movement. A point guard with a familiar name to St. John's fans, Justin Burrell, helped his team successfully navigate St. John's changing defenses while center Dave Dudzinski never got above the rim but put St. John's big men on his back posting up for baskets.  He and Burrell each had a team high 12 points for Holy Cross.

            Since he struggled in the Red Storm's season opening win against Detroit Mercy. JaKarr Sampson has been the team's best frontcourt  player scoring 14 and 18 points  in losses to Baylor and Murray State. The improvement in his comfort level continued last night even in the first half as his team struggled. It was his jumper just before the halftime buzzer that tied the game at 30 at the intermission. The game went back and forth in the opening minutes of the second stanza until HarD'angelo Harrison gave St. John's a 38-37 with a three pointer from the right side.  Sampson then added 6 of his 20 points to spark a 9-2 run that helped the Red Storm put some distance between themselves and the visitors. Harrison added 17 points for the Johnnies while Phil Greene added 15 for St. John's. Head coach Steve Lavin praised the team's defensive effort in the final 20 minutes as an essential ingredient to the win.

            "We were tied together defensively with good communication that allowed us to pressure Holy Cross more effectively that allowed us to pressure Holy Cross more effectively and take away their air space," Lavin said.  That effort not only helped St. John's limit Holy Cross to 23 second half points but helped them slice what had been a substantial first half rebound margin in favor of Holy Cross. For the game Holy Cross outrebounded the Red Storm 35-31

            Once again both Chris Obekpa and Felix Balamou provided a spark off the bench with energy and toughness.  While the numbers, save for Obekpa's 6 blocks were modest they both appear to be rising steadily on the depth chart as St. John's gets ready for a Florida Gulf Coast team on Saturday that has already beaten ACC rival Miami and lost a tough well contested game at Duke. They'll need to be tied together defensively against a team that can shoot the three ball and moves the ball very well.

Another "What Now?" Moment For Big East Basketball Powers

              I suppose I should preface this by reminding people that Rutgers didn't add much to the Big East's basketball profile.  Even after Greg Schiano did perhaps the most thorough building (not re-building because they were never good in recent and long memory) in the country for their football program and even as C.Vivan Stringer re-vitalized the women's hoops program, men's basketball through a succession  of coaches could never crack the upper echelon of the basketball conference.

              Almost in spite of this their departure to the Big-10 is another in a long list of times where the basketball only powers that founded and drove the league's early success must look at the college sports world through a prism where football drives the bus. In the late 70's when Dave Gavitt conceived and put together the league, and in doing so beat Joe Paterno, who was the primary mover and shaker in eastern football as Gavitt had been in basketball, to the punch in forming a powerful league in his sport. He had an advantage because most schools in the late 70's the football programs that joined the Big East basketball league were at least content as independents even as they joined a conference for their basketball and non-revenue producing sports. Boston College and Syracuse joined the league at its inception and Pittsburgh joined a year later knowing that they would for the foreseeable future remain football independents and the result was the best basketball league in the country not named the NBA. It became a basketball league that helped its member schools expand their reach will beyond their geographical boarders not only with respect to basketball recruiting but with respect to admissions.  St. John's for example has been transformed from a "commuter school" into one that now houses a significant portion of its students.  Make no mistake the Big East's reach into homes via television has a great deal to do with that.

              The future that was foreseeable for administrators in the 80's and even the 90's is now the distant past.  Football's reach, while always bigger than basketball's has now seemingly overwhelmed it. It's football that has provided the springboard for both the SEC  the Big 10 and the Pac-12 to form their own television networks and not rely on outside networks like ESPN, and Fox  to produce games for television.

              The biggest slice of the basketball money pie remains the NCAA tournament which the NCAA itself and not the conferences control. And the Big East, the only one of the FBS conferences that includes non-football playing schools has been left behind both by conferences that have always had football not basketball as their flagship sport and by conferences like the ACC which was also founded as a hoops conference even though all the schools played major college football  The league has scrambled rudderlessly to maintain a football presence with a westward and southern expansion that includes mediocre football programs like UCF and South Florida a rebuilding program in both football and basketball (SMU) and a westward expansion with Boise State and San Diego State.  The net result seems to be that the schism between football and basketball schools will continue as evidenced by recent reports that both SDSU and Boise have made noises about returning to the Mountain West Conference.   The fact that Rutgers left after many had thought the winds of conference re-alignment had settled could mean that other schools, like established members Cincinnati and Louisville or new member Temple even could be looking for fiscally greener pastures for their football teams, or at least hold the threat of leaving over the basketball stalwarts. It's worth noting here that in the recent past the Big East provided fertile ground for schools like Miami  Virginia Tech and Pittsburgh to build basketball programs after football powers had long been established.  In the case of those two schools loyalty proved to be a nice but antiquated notion as they bolted along with founding member Boston College for the ACC thanks to the exponential growth and lore of football money

              With all this in mind the question must be asked: Is it really a good idea for the traditional Big East non-football schools to remain part of a league with football school? What may have been worth maintaining with geographical rivals like Syracuse may be less worth while playing SMU and South Florida. And if that's the case what should those schools do next.

              It has been suggested that those schools aggressively pursue new members and form what is essentially an expanded version of the old league which got into TV markets and produced such good basketball that the nation had to take notice.

              While there's no question that there are enough schools that compete in the basketball arms race of facilities and coaching to form such a league one wonders whether the schools in the Big East are in position to do so. While they seemingly sit idly by while the football mess sorts itself out, the stronger basketball first leagues have moved to expand their footprints. The Atlantic 10 with the additions of Butler and VCU is now arguably the strongest non FBS basketball league in the country and they  have gotten there by expanding their footprint southward with VCU and westward with Butler. If the Big East's catholic non-basketball membership thinks they can count on A-10 brethren like St. Joe's and Xavier to join a new league they may be in for a surprise.  Those schools will not be influenced by faith based connections but by the very secular promise of more money from improved television possibilities and (to a lesser extent) from improved attendance by geography based rivalries (St. Joe's-Nova or Marquette-Xavier to name just two)  There's a very real possibility that the time to form such a league is past and that the A-10's moves have closed the door on that possibility and if that is indeed what's happened the traditional Big East schools may find it impossible to keep the place they've earned through history as major players in college basketball. Last night's win by Georgetown against UCLA in Brooklyn was another in an endless list of examples where a proverbial "small Catholic School" has taken the fight to the one of college sports' big boys and won on the court. The battle those schools face now is one that will be waged across negotiating tables. They will need to strengthen old ties even as they forge new ones to stay financially competitive at the highest levels of basketball. I hope it's a fight those schools are willing and able to wage.

Harrison and Obekpa Come off the Bench to Key St. John's Win

     Sophomore guard D'Angelo Harrison and freshman forward Chris Obekpa started yesterday's game against Detroit Mercy on the bench thanks to decidedly different circumstances. They would both play vital parts in what would become a 77-74 win for St. John's.  For Harrison, concerns about his approach to practice and the game were put aside as he scored a game high 22 points and in the second 20 minutes lifted St. John's offense with just the right mix of aggressiveness to take the game over, and poise to make the right play even when someone else scored.

              The reason for Obekpa's early seat  on the bench was more typical. After all, the talented 6'9" freshman faced stiff competition for a starting position from classmates Jakar Sampson whose offensive repitoire is considered further along than Obekpa's and from Christian Jones, a less heralded prospect who has emerged quickly and shown a potentially lethal combination of strength and skill.

              Before a small but enthusiastic mid-day crowd that welcomed back St. John's greatest player Chris Mullin, as well as its former coach and fellow Marine Park resident Fran Fraschilla, the Titans were the first of the two teams to find its footing offensively. Behind veteran guards Ray McCallum and Jason Calliste they used a late rally to take a 37-29 lead at the intermission as tjey picked apart St. JJohn's man to man defense with penetration and ball movement. For St. John's even as Phil Greene kept the Red Storm within shouting distance with terrific shooting on the way to a career high 20 points, the lack of ball movement and balance appeared to be sure signs of trouble.

              In the second half it was Jones who provided the first  offensive push,  He found a cutting D'angelo Harrison with a perfect post pass for a basket, scored in close and made one of two free throws. Then it was Amir Garrett's turn to key an offensive spark. Coach Steve Lavin singled out Garret's "balanced floor game" and on offense that manifested itself in scoring not only with an improved jumper but by cutting and screening and effectively playing off guards Harrison and Greene.

              While McCollum and Calliste continued to hold St. John's at bay Obekpa helped keep them within striking distance with record setting basket protection (8 blocks) and terrific rebounding (12 boards)

              Harrison would provide the final push not only with his scoring but with his playmaking in addition to clutch shots he set up Garret for the two free throws that tied the game at 60 hit the jumper that gave St. John's its first lead of the second half 62-60 and after Detroit tied it again. he scored 5 consecutive points and assisted on a basket by Sir Dominic Pointer in a sequence that would give St. John's the lead for good.  In the final push Obekpa used his shooting touch to put a final exlamation point on his great effort, hitting a 15 foot jumper with 1:21 left to make the score 69-64 and hold the Titans at bay.

              St. John's will now play the College of Charleston on Thursday at 5pm. in the opening round of the Charleston Classic.

New York Connections Continue to Help Norfolk State Plus Other Notes and Observations

Perhaps no single player in last year's NCAA tournament had a more sudden and surprising impact than Kyle O'Quinn the former Campus Magnet star who led Norfolk State to a first round upset of Missouri.  With O'Quinn moved on to the Orlando Magic they figured to take a step back but instead kicked their season off with a win at Rhode Island, spoiling Danny Hurley's debut as Rams' coach  A pair of New York area players figured prominently in the win: Brandon Goode a junior center from James Monroe High in the Bronx picked up the slack in the paint left by O'Quinn's absence in the paint with 13 points and 13 rebounds.  On the perimeter former Xaverian standout Jamel Fuentes had a terrific all around game with 11 points 7 boards 5 assists and 2 steals. The Spartans, handled the Rams 67-55. In other news:

St. Peter's Upsets Rutgers  Former Archbishop Molloy HS and Upsala College standout John Dunne has quietly done (pun intended) a great coaching job in Jersey City, keeping them competitive in the MAAC and winning it two years ago. Like many successful mid major coaches he has done it with a veritable hodge podge of transfers and "diamonds in the rough. In Friday's win two local transfers, Blaise Ffrench of Holy Cross High in Queens contributed just 4 points but added 9 assists with just 3 turnovers to help set a slow and steady tempo that Rutgers never got comfortable with in the 56-52 loss to the Peacocks. That said don't think for a minute that St. Peter's stalwart defensive effort had was completely due to the slow pace. Few teams are better prepared defensively than Dunne's teams and on Friday they held Rutgers to just 36% shooting overall and 15% from 3 point distance. Offensively the Peacocks had 14 assists on their 22 field goals and just 9 turnovers.  All of that good work allowed them to overcome a 40-19 reboundhg def8c8t f9r a great win.

Padgett Plays Well in First "home" Game Former Lincoln High star James Padgett became the first Brooklyn native to play a college game in Brooklyn's new Barclay's Center.  The Maryland senior played well scoring 10 points and grabbing 5 boards in the Terps 72-69 loss to Kentucky.

Wright Stars in George Mason Upset of Virginia It was great to see that former Mt. Vernon star Sherod Wright finished with a team high 15 points as the Patriots beat the Cavs 63-59 . Wright  lost his sophomore season to a knee injury to years ago has battled back diligently and now as a redshirt junior appears poised for good things  Also in that game former Christ the King standout Corey Edwards, who had an injury plagued freshman season contributed 4 points and 2 assists in just 8 minutes.

Nets Complete Weekend Sweep  The Nets' weekend sweep of Orlando included a dominant win on Friday and a closer win at Barclay's center on Sunday. It was important for the Nets to get back on track following a bad loss to Minnesota and an expected loss at Miami but it remains worth remembering that especially without Jameer Nelson the Magic may be the league's worst offensive team. It's clear the Nets still have a ways to go before becoming a really good club.  While Padgett became the first local college guy to play at Barclay's Center former Forrest Hills High and St. John's standout Moe Harkless became the first local pro to do so. He struggled in limited minutes as he continues to work his way back following a sports hernia injury that caued him to miss much of the summer and pre-season.

D'antoni Takes Over as Coach of Lakers: Much of the chatter surrounding former Knicks' coach Mike D'antoni's appointment to that position with the Lakers has focused on the fact that he will be reunited with point guard Steve Nash, with whom he enjoyed his greatest coaching success with the Suns. That's both the easiest and most optimistic talking point for the Lakers. There are still some pressing questions even though the Lakers will almost certainly be more comfortable in the more quickly paced offense that D'antoni will install once he arrives.  Can the Lakers, led by Kobe Bryant be accountable defensively even as their new coach will not hold them to a very high standard?? The pick and roll/pick and pop style of offense will certainly help Nash, Bryant and Gasol but will it help the most important part of their future Dwight Howard??  Although his running is well suited for what they do his skill level may not be. And they may not be able to space the floor properly for the new offense with both Howard and Gasol on the floor together. Time will tell if this works but the feeling here is there's a greater chance fir failure than success

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Nets Hit Early Speed Bump in Loss to T-Wolves

                        

              Just when we thought the Nets transition to Brooklyn was going to be seamless save for the unveiling of a silly mascot that inspired an even sillier play on words (Brooklynknight) the County of Kings' first NBA team has met with some adversity and must try and shake it off tonight against the defending champion Heat in Miami.

              Letting a 22 point lead slip away was bad enough.  Giving up the games' final 11 points was worse.  Truth be told though the most troubling part of the T-Wolves 107-96 win is that almost despite an 80+ million dollar spending spree the weaknesses that showed themselves in the loss were familiar ones that Nets' fans saw all too frequently last season when Brooklyn was still New Jersey.             

              Once again, this year as last. the Nets were outrebounded 44-30. The Wolves took 14 more shots and had 9 more field goal makes. Brook Lopez got out quicked and out toughed by Wolves center Nikola Petrovic, who would have done even greater damage than his 21 [points and 9 boards were it not for early fouls.

              As poor as the numbers looked for Beooklyn the optics looked worse. Both Lopez and Kris Humphries were exposed as slow and Lopez showed again that he struggles when an opposing center can look him in the eye and move him off his spot. After 2-1/2 quarters of really good offense they went to nothing but isolations at the first sign of trouble and it backfired on them to the tune of a 32-10 fourth quarter.

              It's fair to say that the return of Gerald Wallace will fix some of what ails the Nets. He was their best player in the 4th quarter of their win over Toronto. Thanks in part to playing as a quick "4" rather than a power "3" But this injury may linger so the Nets will need to find a way to be quicker and more active especially on the boards. Lebron and the champs may be hard to get well against but in an Eastern Conference that figures to be tight, they'd better get well soon.

A Hidden Gem Shines For St. John's in Lavin's Return

              Perhaps the single biggest change that the internet age has wrought on college basketball is that it's now possible for gym rats everywhere to, in effect, cover every nook and cranny of recruiting from the comfort of his own home. Gone are the days for instance when North Carolina could recruit Michael Jordan without much competition until their own staff placed him at Five Star camp just to make sure he could play against the best in the country. These days thanks to the internet everyone knows everyone there are no secrets anymore.

              Last spring St. John's signing of Texas native Christian Jones was largely overlooked until the announcement. And then the chatter that followed on message boards and blogs wondered who he was "How come this guy isn't on any lists?" was a question that was posted over and over on St. John's blogs, rival team blogs and recruiting blogs all over the web.

              To be sure the lead story of the Red Storm's 73-55 exhibition win over Sanoma State Saturday was the return to the sidelines of Coach Lavin, who missed all but two games last season while he recovered from prostate cancer. it's also fair to say that two of Jones' freshman teammates nosier introductions to the fans at Carnesecca Arena than Jones did. Jakar Sampson, the fine forward from Akron who comes to Queens  already sporting a national reputation scored 14 points, tied Jones for team high rebounding honors with 7 and had 6 steals. Chris Obekpa, the shot blocking specialist who is known more locally than nationally because of his time at Our Savior New American School on Long Island, also made a loud first impression with 7 blocks officially and enough altered shots that St. John's should consider adding that category to the statistical totals it hands out after each game.

              Even as Obekpa Sampson and the rest of his teammates were exciting the crowd with explosive plays there was Jones whose presence may have been quieter but was still hard to miss. He hit the boards for 7 rebounds against a team that was shorter but stronger, he scored 8 points of his own and added 3 assists and 2 blocks. In 29 minutes he showed as much versatility as anyone on the floor for St. John's and the kind of rugged body and physical approach that will likely serve him well as he gets ready for college hoops.

              Coach Lavin was also impressed at how the game, "never really got too fast for him." And when asked to summarize how he found such an unheralded but talented recruit he told a story that was more likely to have been heard in the days before the internet.  It included "a guy from Detroit" who had seen the Texas native on the summer circuit and whet Lavin described as "six degrees of St. John's" that made the youngster curious about  the program. Those connections included a year with guard Phil Greene as his teammate at Florida's IMG Academy, an acquaintance with fellow Texas native D;angelo Harrison and the chance to meet former St. John's star Mo Harkless while he prepared for the draft at IMG. Jones game may be quiet and polished but his confidence and poise are outstanding. And the fact that he's taken Harkless' number 4 likely speaks to that confidence in addition to being a tribute to the  Orlando Magic rookie  For Lavin there's a moral to the story, as he put it "this is why I always tell my assistants to pick up the phone you never know what you might find." Indeed while an exhibition game is only a small and flawed sample, Jones showed enough poise strength and hoops IQ that there's a chance he may be a hidden gem. And just think, he was just a little luck and a phone call away.

News and Notes from Saturday: Four Johnnies, freshman Felix Balamou senior God'sgift Achiuwa along with junior college transfers Orlando Sanchez and  Marco Bourgault were held out of the game. Bourgault and Sanchez are reportedly awaiting decisions from the NCAA regarding separate eligibility issues while Achiuwa and Balamou are considering red-shirting this season. Lavin said they expected final determination on Sanchez and Bourgault to be made soon and that their status would be one of several considerations in the decision to redshirt Balamou and Achiuwa. Sophomores Phil Greene and Amir Garrett tied for game high scoring honors with 17 apiece

Dingle and Okoro Write Championship Chapter For St. Ray's

Much of the postscript following St. Ray's 66-58 win over Holy Cross for the CHSAA's AA city championship has focused on what senior stars Daniel Dingle and Kerwin Okoro endured during their careers at the Bronx basketball power.  There's  no doubt that the loss of six teammates over two seasons gave the two players, who were still growing in their games and as young men, pause to think long and hard about their futures.
While the off the court situation at St. Ray's eventually calmed down, senior year brought with it new challenges. St. Ray's struggled early, in part because of injuries, especially an ankle that severely limited talented junior Shane Rector, and perhaps due to the absence of arch rival Rice High School seemingly made the bull's eye on the Ravens both larger and brighter. The Ravens suffered losses to  Cardinal Hayes and Mount St.Michael, and Archbishop Stepinac who rejoined the "AA" division after Rice closed. A blowout loss to the Cardinals at the end of the regular season was likely the team's low point, and seemingly made them an afterthought going into the post season.  After all, Hayes had their powerful front line and speedy backcourt transfers from Rice. Christ the King, the league's two time defending champs had the league's best player in Omar Calhoun, and Holy Cross could spread the floor and shoot the three as well as any team in the league..
The Ravens did a remarkable job proving the so-called experts wrong. They won the top seed in the New York Archdiocese with a win against Hayes. won convincingly against All Hallows in the intersectional quarter finals and grinded out a tough win in their fourth meeting against Hayes. Suddenly a new group of Ravens was in familiar territory for Coach Oliver Antigua and the program; at Fordham playing for a city title.
Of course the team responded with a championship level effort. In doing so they not only took home a title but withstood a tremendous challenge from Holy Cross, who played great despite facing some early adversity when star guard Marquise Moore left the game with a minute to go in the opening quarter due to foul trouble.
The Knights trailed 15-12 at that moment but played a terrific 9 minutes to hold their ground against St. Ray's. While Rector and Okoro propelled them to a quick offensive start, Will Davis kept the Knights on their heels with 13 first half points that included 4 triples. Even though St. Ray's had played well, the Knights trailed by just 31-29 at the half without Moore and they appeared to be in good position as the second half opened and Moore was back on the floor.
The third quarter settled into a terrific back and forth battle. Okoro switched on to the hot shooting Davis and limited him to just 8 second half points. And his production both ends of the floor, 21 points and 10 boards gave him a well deserved MVP honor. The Ravens extended their margin as Holy Cross hurt themselves a little bit with quick jump shots against an aggressive defense that seemed to frustrate them.  While the Knights would rally to keep the game close St. Ray's always seemed to have a winning response. And while most of those came from Okoro, one crucial one came with Dingle's help. Daniel did not have a big scoring game but as he has throughout his great career he did whatever it took to help his team.  In addition to his 11 points he hauled in 10 boards and added six assists, including one crucial one on a beautiful feed from the post to a cutting Myron Hickman for a critical two points. Rector, whose scoring was crucial in the first half finished with 16 points. For the Knights Davis had 21 points and Moore added 13 points.
Through a season's worth of struggle, the 2012 Ravens demonstrated a champion's heart, and enriched the great history of St. Raymond's basketball while carving out their own place in it.  Congratulations to both teams on a great game and season, and to St. Ray's on a well earned championship.

Molloy and Hayes Advance to Face Brooklyn-Queens Top Seeds

Archbishop Molloy and Cardinal Hayes posted convincing wins in last night's preliminary round action in the CHSAA's "AA" intersectional playoffs. Hayes will face Bishop Loughlin the 2 seed from Brooklyn Queens while Molloy will face top seeded Holy Cross in what should be a great day of quarter final action Sunday, March 4th at Fordham University. Here are recaps of last night's action.

Cardinal Hayes 67 St. Francis Prep 42 For a little over a quarter Tim Leary's Terrier's controlled the pace of the game and made enough outside shots to stay close.  While opponents tend to focus on the Cardinals' talented inside duo of Amadou Sidibe and Jalen Jenkins, it was coach Joe Lods perimeter guys who took advantage of the attention the post guys drew and kick started Hayes' offense. Nasir Williams who finished with 13 points started the barrage with a three pointer and Shavar Newkirk who finished with 17 followed displaying both his superior outside shooting and driving skill. Sidibe added 13 and Hayes had a convincing win. Brett Buser led St. Francis with 10 points and Gabe Gonzales added 8 points.

Molloy 65 St. Peter's 59 Senior guard George Davis had 19 points and led a balanced effort for the Stanners. He and C.J. Davis drove effectively to the basket and when they weren't scoring they were setting up Morrell Gaskins and Marco Kozul for scores. Coach Jack Curran's squad led by 12 at the half and by 7 as the fourth quarter began. But that's when coach Charlie Driscoll's got hot and rallied behind the play of perimeter players Jack Shanahan, Andrew Cannon and sophomore Lattrell Curtis.  They combined with sturdy Patrick Fennell's good work around the basket and nearly helped St. Peter's steal this one. The Eagles' Andrew Cannon, one of the CHSAA"s best shooters hit a triple with 2:16 left to bring his team to within 55-52. George Davis responded for Molloy with a pretty baseline reverse layup and two free throws. Moments later when Cannon hit another trey to bring the deficit back to four points Molly passed ahead against pressure defense and found Kozul for dunks which effectively sealed the win.

            In addition to George Davis' 19 points C.J. Davis added 15, Morell Gaskins had 14 while Kozul had 14 and 13 rebounds for Molloy.

            Shanahan led St. Peter's with 14 points, Cannon added 13, Fennell had 12 and Curtis added 11 points

Clippers and Knights Advance to Freshman Finals

            Holy Cross and Xaverian, who arguably have been the best freshman teams in the CHSAA this season posted wins to advance to Saturday's final at Holy Cross. The game will feature some of New York City's top talent in the class of 2015 and will provide a great glimpse into what is a bright future for basketball in the metropolitan area. Here are brief recaps of the games that set the stage for Saturday.

            Xaverian 73 St. Ray's 58  Talented lefty big man Latiq Lainey helped the Clippers get out of the gate quickly scoring 10 of his 18 points in the first quarter. Throughout the game he demonstrated all the abilities that will make him a target for major colleges once he's a senior. He involved his teammates with his passing, rebounded well and did a much better job than earlier in the year staying out of foul trouble. For the Clippers Lainey's efforts were augmented by a pair of talented lefty guards Dorian Issac, who finished with 19 points and Zack Bozar who hit double figures and played his best floor game of the season. Forward Luke Schriber may have been the team's best player. He finished with 16 points and showed terrific outside shooting ability and a great knack for being in position for rebounds.

            The Ravens stayed within striking distance behind the play of point guard Jaquan McKennon, who bounced back from a first half struggle to finish with 19 points and a pair of smooth shooting wings Efram DeJesus and Sonny Lorenzo who finished with 14 and 10 points respectively.

            Holy 57 Stepinac 53 The Knights rallied late with some terrific execution down the stretch. Consecutive "high-low" plays that resulted in baskets for talented big man Jeremy Bonafaccio and a long trey from Jeremy Bishop helped the Knights hold off a stubborn Crusader squad. Guard Cheyenne Nettleton led the Knights with 15 points while Bishop added 14. Guard Brandon Steed added 10 points but was a catalyst with his quickness in transition and on defense

Despite Heavy Hearts Knights Win Diocesan Crown

At the end of the day as Holy Cross celebrated their 60--57 win over Bishop Loughlin it was left to Marquise Moore, who's been their best player, to sum up the situation succinctly when he said, "He stayed strong for us, he stayed strong for the team".

            Staying strong could not have been easy for Knights' coach Paul Gilvary, whose mother passed away on Wednesday after a brief illness.  With this in mind before I begin the game story I'd like to first extend condolences to both coach Gilvary and his brother Tim who serves as assistant athletic director at Holy Cross and plays a vital role in the operation of the CHSAA "AA" division as well. Their selfless work at Holy Cross and within the league has been vital to the education of children throughout the city. Thoughts and prayers go out to them as they mourn their loss.

            Even in a championship game the young Lions came out with the same aggressiveness they showed while upsetting top seeded Christ the King on Wednesday.  Behind Elisha Boone (18 points) Khadeen Carrington (16 points) and Mike Williams (13 points) the Lions sprinted to a 22-10 lead with just over four minutes left in the first half. But thanks to the Knights' ability to get Moore the ball in different scoring spots, and some key minutes off the bench from soph Josh Wallace the Knights trailed by just 28-24 at the half.

            Moore, who finished with 25 points played as he has all year, scoring on drives and jumpers from the elbow and baseline. As the Lions kept fighting, Moore kept providing scoring answers and by the time the final period began the Knights led 41-39

            The final quarter was a nip and tuck struggle but with the game tied at 50 Will Davis followed in a miss and Moore had two free throws to give Cross a 54-50 lead. But a great effort by Loughlin on the boards and four missed free throws by the Knights opened the door for the Lions. Carrington was fouled on a drive and made the first free throw to make the score 58-57. Coach Gilvary called timeout and Carrington missed the next one and on the scramble that ensued the arrow pointed the Knights way on a tie up. Moore was fouled and made both free ones for what would be the final margin. On their last possession with 2.6 seconds left the Lions threw the ball into Carrington, who let a shot go from beyond half court that hit the rim and drew a gasp from the audience.

            Both teams are to be congratulated for a great final game and a great Diocesan Tournament. Both have well-earned byes into the intersectional quarter finals, and both will be tough outs in that tournament next week.

           

Cross Shows Veteran Poise While Young Lions Score Upset to Reach Diocesan Finals

Second seeded Holy Cross used a terrific fourth quarter and near perfect free throw shooting to earn a 62-55 win over Xaverian while Bishop Loughlin's young lions used their slashing and shooting ability to streak past defending champion and top seeded Christ the King 74-67 at St. Francis Prep last night. The two teams will meet tomorrow for the Diocesan title in a matchup that features a Holy Cross filled with talented seniors and a young Loughlin squad which struggled at times during the regular season but showed last night they're capable of putting a winning effort together at any time against any team. With their wins both the Knights and Lions earned byes into next week's intersectional quarter finals.  Here are recaps of last night's games:
Holy Cross 63 Xaverian 55 The Clippers started well in this one, leading 28-23 at the half. While the Knights' Will Davis did a terrific job against the Clippers shooting star Brian Bernardi, n teammates, George Lambert and soph Raven Owen combined with the Clippers' other star Dillon Burns to pick up the slack. Owen especially was exceptional in helping his team to their half time advantage; providing scoring with great drives and terrific passing. He even found Bernardi with a quick hit ahead pass. for what would be his only open look at a three pointer which he drained.
Owen experienced some hard growing pains in the second half when two quick shots by him that missed opened the door for the Knights to tie the game at 28 with a quick 5-0 burst out of the locker room.  Behind Marquise Moore, Davis and Mareiga Clarke the Knights opened up a six point advantage before the Clippers regrouped and tied the game at 41 heading into the final 8 minutes.
From there the Moore's clutch shooting and Davis' defense were the difference Moore's 22 points included a perfect 8-8 from the charity stripe and a contested trey from the corner which gave the Knights a 57-50 lead with just under a minute left.  Davis' defense limited Bernardi to just 12 points and while Dylan Burns would put in 20 for the Clippers they forced him into many tough ones that led to transition opportunities for the Knights. As they have all season the Knights demonstrated the kind of poise that comes with having seniors and an ability to score at all 5 positions that should continue to serve them well in the playoffs.
Loughlin 74 Christ the King 67 Super sophomore Khadeen Carrington and his Lion teammates showed once and for all that they will respond to a challenge.  Carrington  was fouled hard with just under 6 minutes remaining in the third quarter and the Lions trailing the Royals. Play was stopped, a flagrant foul was called, and Carrington's mom rushed to the court to check on her son. Once play resumed the Lions, led by Carrington blitzed the Royals, outscoring them 16-11 to close out the period and when Mike Williams put the Lions ahead 56-52 with one of his signature three point shots, the Lions hurt the Royals as they did in two close regular season loses, by spreading the floor and driving to the basket.  While Carrington was the main scorer, picking up 17 of his 26 points in the last two quarters, Williams Jordan Nanton Elisia Boone and the rest of the Lions each contributed key drives for either baskets or assists as they utilized their quickness advantage perfectly against the bigger Royals. And when CK finally gained their footing and lowered the margin to 7 points with 2:15 left it was time for Carrington to provide the knockout blow with a tough off balance banker from the left side.  For the Lions Williams added 12 points while Boone, Lavar Harewood and Kevin Ravenell each added 10.  For the Royals Omar Calhoun had 18 points and Jon Severe added 16 in the loss

St. John's Finds Help From Within For Second Straight Win

To be sure the hot topic amongst the hard core internet informed fan base of St. John's men basketball has been whether or not help is on the way. With their coach Steve Lavin still following a modified schedule that allows him to be at practice and on the recruiting trail much has been posted written and said wondering what kind of recruiting class the Red Storm will announce  this spring and whether or not that class will be able to augment the efforts of a talented freshman group that has played well at times but struggled  because of the lack of depth behind them. The interest in the next recruiting class, and coach Lavin's efforts has been so intense that the beat writers from the Daily News and the New York Post watched the game from Lavin's apartment.

            As their coach searches the recruiting trail to hopefully find that depth, the Red Storm may not be adding roster depth just yet but they have become deeper  in a sense because players who are starting out of necessity are beginning to get better and make more significant contributions.

            As the young Red Storm earned their second straight win with a 79-72 victory over DePaul on Tuesday. the guys who have been their most consistent performers were again rock solid.  D'angelo Harrison led the scoring with 23 points and was exceptional with poise and free throw shooting that helped ice the game for St. John's. Moe Harkless  contributed  with 14 points and 11 rebounds. It's likely that tired legs that can be expected when a freshman plays 40 minutes a night have caused his normally reliable jumper to falter. But to his credit he has continued to make his presence felt on the boards and by scoring inside. The double double was his third straight.

            The difference in these last two wins that have helped St. John's snap a four game losing streak has been the play of other freshmen who started more slowly than the two stalwarts but are now finding their stride as St. John's comes down the stretch of the season. Amir Garrett, who joined the team at the semester break appears to have shaken the rust off and is beginning to play some great basketball.  He finished one rebound short of a double-double of his own (18 points 9 caroms). And while he may be happier with the three pointer he nailed from the left corner, a surer sign that the rust is completely gone is the 9 of 11 he shot from the free throw line.  He and Harrison led a free throw shooting effort that coach Mike Dunlap described as the "story of the game" that was "kinda invisible. And it helped St. John's win despite scoring just two field goals in the final 4:46 of the game.

            Garrett also combined with the team's energy guy Sir^Dominic Pointer to lead a defensive effort that forced 18 turnovers. On paper the wins brought St. John's to just 12-16 overall and 5-10 in the Big East but with the rest of the iron five (beyond Harkless and Harrison) beginning to find its stride, good things may happen before re-enforcements arrive.