Lions And Clippers Earn 1st Round Diocesan Wins

 

  Bishop Loughlin and Xaverian earned 1^st round wins last night in the Brooklyn-Queens Diocesan tournament at Molloy. Here are my recaps of both games. The numbers next to the teams represent their seeding in this particular tournament. With my travel to games, like everyone else, restricted by COVID, these games, and I hope more in these playoffs, provided a chance to see some talented teams and players in the always competitive CHSAA playoffs. It was also great to see college coaches such as Binghamton’s Lavell Sanders and Fordham assistant Ronald Ramon out looking at high school players after a spring and summer that saw the transfer portal limit scholarship opportunities for high school players. The hope here is that as things slowly return to normal, that will start to change. The Lions and Clippers move on to the Diocesan semi finals on Wednesday at St. Francis Prep.

(3) Bishop Loughlin 88 (6) Holy Cross 83 The Lions held off Holy Cross in a game that saw them lead by double digits several times only to have the Knights rally behind clutch three-point shooting and good execution. The Lions featured a trio of 20+point scorers including senior Jaream Eason who paced them with 28 points. A pair of talented sophomores 6’3” Jakai Sanders and 6’6” Daye Kabba each scored 20 as well. The Lions took a 41-33 lead into halftime as Holy Cross stayed close with the help of senior guard Anthony Russo and junior guard Tyler Castro who helped make the 3-point line an equalizer for the Knights. They combined with senior Devin Grant, who provided finishing ability around the basket to cut the deficit to 4 points before Sanders and senior guard Christion Joe, whose floor game and leadership were outstanding from start to finish, put the finishing touches on a well earned win with free throws. Two more Loughlin youngsters who put up modest numbers yesterday but bear watching for the future are 6’7” junior post player Makhaya Moore and 6’2” sophomore guard Christian Jeffrey, who each provided terrific energy and athleticism. Russo finished with 23 points for Holy Cross while Grant added 20. The Lions move on to face second seeded Christ the King in Wednesday’s Diocesan semi-finals.

(4) Xaverian 69 (5) Molloy 52 The Clippers used a strong 3^rd quarter to push a modest 25-21 halftime advantage to a 50-35 lead as the 4^th quarter began. Michael Walker, a 6’7” junior forward who was saddled with 3 first half fouls came out strong for the Clippers and did a terrific job finishing around the rim playing off of guards Nasir Muhammad and Aaron Goldstein who each worked pick and roll plays with him in the middle of the floor.  Sophomore Nico Pena scored 10 points all in the second half and, while he struggled to find his normally reliable 3-point shooting moved without the ball very well and finished well at the rim. Senior John McCabe, who led Molloy with strong outside shooting and scoring on basket cuts, briefly gave the Stanners a lead when he scored consecutive baskets to open the third period. Xaverian then went on their decisive run behind Walker, Muhammad, Pena and Goldstein. Muhammad and Pena then closed the game with outstanding free throw shooting for the Clippers. Junior forward Emmanuel Ikioda also had a strong game providing inside scoring for the Stanners. The Clippers move on to face top seeded St. Francis Prep in Wednesday’s Diocesan semi-finals