Thursday, February 23, 2017

Loughlin Wins Epic Battle Will Face Molloy Friday

              Top seeded Archbishop Molloy and second seeded Bishop Loughlin will meet in Friday's Brooklyn Queens Diocesan championship at Christ the King. Although form held with the best teams in the regular season advancing for what should be an epic title tilt, the semi-final games demonstrated the balance and depth in the CHSAA "AA" division. Molloy rallied from an early deficit against a young and quick Holy Cross team in the opener while Bishop Loughlin beat Christ the King in a 98-90 double overtime thriller that may well be remembered as one of the best game's ever played in long and storied history of the  New York CHSAA and indeed New York City scholastic basketball. Here are recaps of both games which set up Friday's finale.
Molloy 80 Holy Cross 61 The final margin in the opener is a bit deceptive given that the Stanners had to rally from an early nine point deficit. Holy Cross does not have a player who can match Moses Brown's presence in the middle but they have a talented group of perimeter guys who were able to spread the court and get to the basket. Talented sophomores Hassan Diarra and Shemar Franklin combined with junior Shadique Watkins combined to execute a fine game plan where the Knights spread the floor on offense and got to the rim. Diarra in particular is a prospect that schools at every level must keep an eye on because in addition to great talent he has terrific strength that allow him to finish through contact and compete for rebounds. The Knights' effort put Molloy on its heels early but behind sophomore Cole Anthony and Brown who finished with 21 and 23 points respectively the Stanners took control in the third quarter. Brown finished often with powerful dunks at the end of press offense navigated beautifully by Anthony whose game seems to be maturing both physically and mentally as he showed improved athleticism getting several in traffic rebounds. In what was a well earned win for the Stanners, the Knights showed that they could surprise in the intersectional playoffs and that they will be a force to be reckoned with next season.
Bishop Loughlin 98 Christ the King 90 Simply put, this game had all the elements of a classic and, I'll say it again, it will go down as one of the greatest in the history of New York schoolboy hoops.
              First and foremost Loughlin got an MVP  performance from the player chosen as the league's MVP Keith Williams, who finished with 37 points including three free throws with no time left on the clock that sent the game into its first overtime session. Prior to that, CK had staged a furious comeback to pull ahead after trailing for nearly the entire game.  Sophomore  Phillps Joseph, junior Tyson Walker and Alvarado all contributed important baskets to the Royals rally.  But when Alvarado missed the second of two free throws and the Royals had only a 70-67 margin Alvarado smartly fouled Williams  with 3 seconds left to keep him from attempting a game tying three point shot. The foul was CK's fourth team foul and Alvarado's  fourth personal foul and ruled a common foul by the officials meaning no free throws for the Lions. Loughlin inbounded the ball again, and again Alvarado fouled in an attempt to prevent a three point try. This was Alvarado's last foul and it was ruled a shooting foul by the official. Williams stepped up, alone at the line because time had expired. swished the first two and had the last one  crawl over the front of the rim thanks to good backspin. The game was tied at 70.
              To their credit, Christ the King continued to play tough. In addition to good poise from junior Tyson Walker and Sophomore Jaylen Davis the Royals got key baskets from Josh Hodge and Jonathan Lamartine.  They tied the game at 79 at the end of the first extra session when Davis made a great cut without the ball to get a pass from Walker. He then dropped a perfect dime to big man Kofi Cockburn who powered in a dunk. Moments into the second extra session Walker drew his final foul and Loughlin was finally able to secure the win..
              For Loughlin, Williams' virtuoso performance not only gave the Lions an early working margin but it gave the super junior Marquise Nowell time to get going on offense. He was terrific in the second half finishing with 24 points and 17 assists. Sophomore Justin Champangie provided terrific early energy for the Lions as well. Save for Williams' Ed Gonzalez team is young and talented and last night's fight for survival will serve them well as they face Molloy on Friday. The Lions and Stanners split two regular season meetings each winning on the road. Those results plus last night's drama may well set up another game for the ages tomorrow. It will certainly be a game worthy of a championship.



Wednesday, February 15, 2017

Anthony Does "Little Things" Helps Molloy to Big Win

              In what was an otherwise quiet night for Cole Anthony. he came up big when it mattered most. His two free throws with .9 seconds left gave Molloy a 68-66 win at Christ the King last night and his two  offensive rebounds off missed free throws took extra possessions away from the Royals  down the stretch, and may well have kept his team in position to win the game.
              Even with those extra possessions, Christ the King still had a chance in the closing moments to get back in it. Trailing 66-63 sophomore forward Phillips Joseph connected on a left wing trey to tie the game with 12.5 seconds left. After a time out the Stanners moved the ball patiently until Cole Anthony drove to the basket and  was fouled on a reach in that set the stage for Anthony's game winning free throws.
              To their credit the young Royals battled back from an early deficit for nearly the entire game. The Stanners' lead was 17-12 after the first quarter but just one at halftime (36-35) and one again after three quarters. Early in the game senior guard Jose Alvarado provided much of the scoring but his effort was matched by swingman Khalid Moore, who scored 17 of his game high 20 points in the first two quarters.
              For this game at least, the much anticipated battle in the paint between Molloy's Moses Brown and CK's Kofi Cockburn was one where Cockburn had the edge. While Brown had some good moments for sure Cockburn demonstrated that he's a very different player than he was when these two teams met a month ago. Experience has improved his ability to move around in the lane and combined with his strength made him a significantly better rebounder. The one highlight move for him on offense was a perfectly executed drop step to the baseline that he powered in for a layup. It's a move he does not make at Molloy a month ago and demonstrates that he's making  significant progress toward becoming an elite level prospect.
              Despite Cockburn's strong game inside, the clutch basket by Joseph and a strong effort from Alvarado Molloy seemingly had just enough to win the game. In addition to Moore's hot start, John Herring provided steady scoring both with his outside shooting and his ability to move without the ball.

              With the win Molloy sweeps the season series from the Royals. Keep in mind that the Royals are a young team with a terrific senior leader at point guard in Alvarado. The regular season games between these two teams and the competitiveness of the league on both the Brooklyn-Queens side and the New York side will no doubt make for an exciting playoff run.

Saturday, February 11, 2017

Owens' Big Play And Big Effort Help St. John's Past Seton Hall

              Perhaps it's a bit ironic that in today's 78-70 win over Seton Hall, St. John's, a team that has tried to make the three point shot a focal point of its offense made just three of them in what was one of this season's best wins. Two of those triples came in a first half closing rally that helped St. John's take a 37-27 lead into the locker room at MSG that they would never relinquish. Make no mistake though, the play that triggered the rally that included those three point shots was all about defense and effort and came from a player who's given St. John's those things all season long.
              With just over 4 minutes to go with the Johnnies trailing by three, Tariq Owens sprinted to the paint and with great length and a well timed leap blocked what looked to be a sure layup by Pirate freshman  Myles Powell. Then as St. John's moved the ball quickly in transition he made a rim run that was just as perfectly timed and slammed home a Marcus LoVett miss. The play brought the St. John's crowd to life and even though Seton Hall still had a one point margin, coach Kevin Willard called a time out, perhaps sensing  the momentum had changed right there.
              What followed was another block, this time by Bashir Ahmed, who followed with a triple on a pretty drive and kick pass from Shamorie Ponds.  On St. John's next possession Ponds came off a screen and drilled a triple of his own. By the time the half had ended St. John's had finished off a 20-6 run and had a firm handle on their 6th Big East win of the season.
              The block and follow slam was the best sequence in a terrific game that saw him finish with 12 points 10 points 12 boards and 4 blocks. While St. John's was again outrebounded by Seton Hall 46-34, the game stood in direct contrast to the Pirates' January 22nd win at the Prudential Center. In that game St. John's was dominated as a team in the paint and individually by Pirates' center Angel Delgado, who posted 21 points and 20 boards in that win. This time the numbers were still good (13 and 10) but clearly nowhere near the dominant effort he'd  had at home. While Owens' ability to attack and defend the rim was the biggest key to the win, others made key contributions to a battle well fought and ultimately won by St. John's in the paint. Kassoum Yakwe's game was statistically quiet but he provided good initial defense on Delgado and allowed St. John's to mix their strategy; sometimes double teaming him with a second big  while sending a guard down to rake his dribble on other post touches.
              Between them, Ponds and LoVett made just one three pointer but they drove the paint for 17 and 19 points respectively. Nearly all came on drives to the basket and pretty in traffic finishes from the pair of lefties. It should be noted that LoVett's effort came off the bench as coach Mullin started both Yakwe and Owens. The move was particularly risky in this game since reserve big man  Darien Williams missed the game  with a reported foot injury. It paid off as the two bigs played effectively and got some assistance from an unexpected source. Amar Alibegovic had 7 points, a rebound and, yes, a blocked shot in 13 very important minutes.
              The Pirates committed 18 turnovers which St. John's turned into 30 points. The loss came after two straight overtime wins. The Pirates were missing starting forward Ismael Sanogo due to an ankle injury but got a terrific 11 point 12 rebound effort from Michael Nzei who started in his place. St. John's visits  Hinkle Field House on Wednesday for a matchup against Butler.




                                                                                                                                                                             

Thursday, February 2, 2017

Ahmed and Yakwe Help St. John's Go Inside for Win over Marquette.

              All season long St. John's coaches, fans, and perhaps even his teammates have been waiting for a game like this from Kassoum Yakwe.  As a freshman last season there were several of them for the 6'7" forward, including a game vs. Seton Hall at MSG where his effort and rebounding helped the Johnnies nearly steal a win.
              Last night's 86-72 win over Marquette at the Garden was hardly stolen. It was in fact a terrific all around effort that saw the Johnnies not only get strong performances on the perimeter but lots of production inside. Bashir Ahmed scored a career high 23 points and while that total included a pair of three point baskets, he also drove hard for scores when St. John's, adjusting to a zone defense by Marquette, had him flash into the middle take passes and drive hard to the basket. He made several baskets  in traffic and when he got to the line he shot a perfect 5-5.
              While Ahmed provided punch in the paint for the second half, it was Ahmed who did so particularly in the first 20 minutes and he did so in a way that looked familiar to those who saw him last year; slipping ball screens and cutting to the basket for finishes at the rim.  The difference between last season and this one may be that there are new perimeter players getting him the ball and they needed time to develop chemistry. Whatever the reason might be for Yakwe's  early season struggles, the difference last evening was immediately discernible according to one of those guards Marcus LoVett.
              "We're definitely a different team when Kassoum is on fire like  he was today and Bashir as well". Lovett said. Head coach Chris Mullin offered another reason for Yakwe's sophomore struggles, suggesting that Yakwe often playing as the only "big" on the floor was a contributing factor. And while Yakwe filled the stat sheet with 14 points 6 rebounds and 3 blocks Coach Mullin was quick to point out the contributions of the team's other big men, Tariq Owens and Darien Williams, who did not score a single point but provided a solid defensive presence guarding Marquette in the paint and were able to stay on the floor with Yakwe. Owens pulled in a game high 11 rebounds for the Johnnies.
              While the good work inside may have provided the difference in the game, the perimeter guys who have provided scoring punch all year were good as  well.  Shamorie Ponds finished with 18 points and a team high 7 assists which included a personal 7-0 first half closing run which gave the Johnnies a 45-37 edge at the half.  Lovett added 17 and 5 helpers. On the defensive end, St. John's effectively limited three of Marquette's key scorers. Sophomore Haanif Cheatham, senior Luke Fischer and freshman Marcus Howard all entered the game with double digit scoring averages for the Golden Eagles and all were held under those numbers while graduate transfer and three point shooting specialist Katin Reinhardt was held to just three points, making one triple in five tries.
              Coach Mullin called this his team's most complete effort of the season, and indeed it was thanks to terrific play at both ends of the floor and terrific balance on offense. In what has been a season full of excitement and exasperation for St. John's fans, 5 league wins with 7 games to go is certainly a sign of progress, and hopefully a sign of things to come.