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.

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.

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.

                                                                                                                                                                             

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.

Stanners Take Round One Vs. Royals 78-67

For one night at least, and perhaps others over the next two seasons given how good these teams are, it felt like the old days at an Archbishop Molloy -Christ the King game. They reportedly stopped selling tickets an hour and a half before the varsity, spectators were lined up 4 and 5 deep on the stage at one end of the gym and the buzz in the crowd remained constant from start to finish.

But the names and exploits of the great players from those days; like Kenny Anderson and Rob Werdann from Molloy along with Khalid Reeves and Derrick Phelps from CK are distant happy memories. And the gym at Molloy is now named for their late legendary coach Jack Curran, who guided the Stanners  through over a half century of great basketball.

       Last night's game between these two storied programs had so much more than just the elements of atmosphere and tradition for both sides. There was also plenty of talent on both sides. Combine that with terrific effort and fans were treated to a great game that was a much tougher win for Molloy than the 78-67 final tally indicates.

The electric atmosphere may have had something to do with both teams struggling to shoot the ball early. And in a game loaded with talented underclassmen it was a pair of upperclassmen guards who helped the Royals get and maintain an advantage early in the game. Georgia Tech bound Jose Alvarado was solid and smart as always and his spinning scoop shot where he took the ball under rather than over 6'6" Khalid Moore was the first of several highlight reel plays for the game. The Royals' best player last night though was his back court  partner junior Tyson Walker. He heated up from 3 point distance quickly, scoring 16 of his game high 27 points in the opening two quarters, played his typically pesky on ball defense against super soph Cole Anthony and had a terrific floor game.

Despite that difficult early moment guarding Alvarado Moore emerged quickly as the Stanners' best player. Statistically he finished with 21 points and 9 boards, he drove to the basket early and found his outside shot as the game progressed, He also involved fellow junior Moses Brown with his passing and helped set up what may have been the biggest play of the night.

The much anticipated battle of the big men, CK's soph Kofi Cockburn and Molloy junior Moses Brown never really got on track.  While both young players showed good improvement in some areas such as catching the ball and "second jump" if you will for rebounding, both guys spent significant time on the bench thanks to early fouls. Cockburn drew an unfortunate fourth foul halfway through the third quarter when he took a quick pass sprinting into the lane and could not stop to avoid a bravely taken charge by Molloy's John Herring. Molloy was able to take advantage as Anthony finally found some rhythm. He scored on consecutive drives to give Molloy a 5 point advantage when the tenure of the battle between the two big men changed completely. Perhaps frustrated by his foul problems. Cockburn rebounded a badly errant three pointer and tomahawked a right handed dunk over Brown. The dunk drew oohs and ahhs but the most impressive part of the play was the catch of a ball that rebounded sharply and at an odd angle off the glass. That play could have been a game changer for CK but Moore and Brown combined on a quick response with Moore making a spinning drive and dish to Brown for a two handed power slam. The dunk drew Cockburn's final foul and the sequence seemed stir a healthy dose of competitive anger in Brown, who controlled the paint, made his free throws down the stretch and combined with Anthony, who scored 11 of his 23 points in the final quarter to salt away round one for the Stanners. 

The game had an old school feel to be sure, and it may be an indication of an  old school ending for the season  in which these teams meet for a Diocesan title in March and in the inter-sectionals for what would be a fourth time. The "AA" division is as deep and talented as it has been in some time so the road to those games will not be easy, but both teams looked great last night and figure to improve with experience. The atmosphere and talent on the floor harkened an old basketball soul back to a glorious time in  New York hoops.

The Big Fundamental 2.0 Leads Creighton Past St. John's

              The immediate reaction to last night's 85-72 loss by St. John's to Creighton, was fairly predictable. Coach Chris Mullin "didn't like his players' overall energy." And the team's two best players, Marcus LoVett, and Shamorie Ponds questioned their own aggressiveness in the loss. It's almost reflexive these days for players to blame themselves in post game pressers. But the 4,928 fans in attendance might remember the game more simply as their first look at Justin Patton.

              Even those of us who follow recruiting closely on the internet had to do a little digging to find out about the young big man from Omaha. Two summers ago, ESPN and other services made him an consensus top 100 player. Though he was taken off that list by ESPN during his senior year at Omaha North High, big things were still expected from a guy whose length and athleticism made most observers think he could make an immediate impact on defense while his offensive game developed.

              Before the start of last season, both the youngster and the program made a decision to redshirt. Both player and coaching staff insisting that it was for the long term, that there was no physical issue or off court trouble.

              That athletic but unpolished player may have been the guy who arrived on campus two years ago but the player fans  were treated to last night combined that uber athleticism and length with fantastic fundamentals; catching everything, making perfectly time rim runs and using the glass on offense, while walling up to block and change shots on defense. Of his 4 assists three of them were perfectly timed back door passes from the high post to a cutter; two were bounce passes and one was a perfectly placed lob to the rim for a Marcus Foster slam. He also had 25 points and 9 boards, not a bad night's work for a supposed raw athlete who showed lots more polish than any of his more highly touted classmates at Kentucky and Duke.

              Patton's effort was part of a well-balanced Creighton attack that saw Maurice Watson orchestrate beautifully, add 19 points of his own and make a pair of crucial three pointers as St. John's tried to claw their way back into the game.

              The Blue Jays closed the first half with an 11-2 run to take a 44-26 advantage into the locker room, and followed that with a 6-0 opening burst to begin the 2nd half and push the margin to 24 before St. John's could find their footing. LoVett and Ponds lead the offense with 23 and 17 points respectively and Tariq Owens had a strong second half, finishing with 12 points and 5 boards. Despite their best efforts St. John's cut Creighton's margin under 10 just once at 63-55 on a LoVett basket with 6:17 left.  Watson responded quickly with a triple and the veteran Blue Jays, with help from their talented redshirt freshman Justin Patton put the finishing touches on a road win that will be precious in the rugged Big East conference. No doubt he left a lasting impression on the fans at Carnesecca Arena last night.  What they saw was a player who showed unusual patience by redshirting, and one who's now reaping the reward of that patience. For those who follow college basketball to the exclusion of pro ball enjoy him while you can. He deserves recognition with the so-called one and doners in other programs. And in fact, because of patience work and coaching, he may be a better pro than any of those guys.

St. John's Wins the Old Fashioned Way vs #13 Butler 76-73

              Before St. John's could put last night's 76-73 win over  #13 Butler on the left side of the ledger they had to endure one last scare. Even though the Red Storm's freshman star Shamorie Ponds had connected on four straight free throws, Butler still had one last chance to tie the game and force overtiime.  Bulldogs' guard Kelan Martin, who finished with 13 points took a pass and put up a half court shot that in hindsight may have reminded Butler fans of Gordon Hayward's last second heave against Duke in the 2010 National Championship game. Luckily for St. John's  Martin's shot also produced the same result. It was nearly perfect but bounced harmlessly off the rim. And at 76-73 St. John's had their first win over a ranked team since 2014, their first 1-0 conference start since 2011 and, perhaps most significantly, the first signature win of the Chris Mullin era.

              The win came thanks to several significant moments for St. John's, but perhaps the best thing St. John's did was compete and win in a game that was essentially an old fashioned Big East slug fest. With a loud and sold out crowd at Carnesecca Arena, they matched an intense and physical Butler team, played them even on the boards, and shot over 50 for the game against a defense that was infinitely better than the one they faced against Syracuse last Wednesday.

              Shamorie Ponds, who acknowledged the crowd in his post game remarks, was again the calmly efficient offensive star. His 26 points included a perfect 6-6 from the line and 9-15 shooting from the floor. It's worth noting also, that Ponds and his team mates did a terrific job of making the two point shots that Butler's extended defense gave them. They made just 4-16 three point tries but got enough from  2 point distance and enough from the free throw line (18-23) to earn the win. They combined that shooting effort with perhaps their best effort of the season defensively, holding a Butler team filled with veteran scoring options to 46% shooting from the floor and 24% from beyond the arc. And they held Butler's top two scorers, Martin and center Andrew Chrabascz  to 13 and 4 points respectively.

              The two teams played a  nearly even first 30 minutes and in the early going St. John's found offense from Bashir Ahmed who scored 11 of his 19 points in the first half. They also got another big lift from Darien Williams, who finished with six points on perfect shooting and six rebounds. While the Red Storm limited Butler's two top scorers they got strong contributions from Tyler Wideman  and guards Avery Woodson and Kethan Savage.

              The two teams were tied at 38 as the second half began. The veteran Bulldogs slowly began to build their margin behind Savage, Woodson and some unexpected good work off the bench from center Nate Fowler.  Butler grew that lead to 61-51 on a triple by Woodson with 10:34 remaining and after St. John's  quickly trimmed the lead to 5 on an Ahmed triple the next few minutes were played within a 3 to 7 point window.

        After a Martin jumper made the score 69-64 with 2:56 left, St. John's began what would ultimately be a victorious final push. Ponds connected on a contested three pointer and then combined with Malik Ellison  for a steal that saw Ellison scoop up the loose change and slam home the game tying basket. A layup by Wideman gave Butler the lead back but St. John's got another contested jumper, this time by Marcus LoVett, to pull even  at 71 with 41 seconds left. Ellison was then fouled rebounding a Tyler Lewis miss. He made the first free throw but missed the second only to be picked up by team mate Tariq Owens whose hustle created a tie up and kept possession with St. John's The inbounds play that followed allowed St. John's to get Ponds to the line where he drained both free throws. St. John's fouled purposely but Lewis made them pay for that strategy cutting the deficit back to a single point with 6 seconds left. Butler fouled Ponds again and again he made both free throws. With the lead back up to 3 points Chrabascz missed a long triple. Lewis then alertly fouled Williams who had rebounded the miss sending him to the line. He missed the free throw, which Chrabascz rebounded and quickly pitched it ahead to Martin for his last ditch game tying attempt. As the ball bounced off the rim and the team and fans celebrated a great win, national prominence may have still seemed a ways off for St. John's. But what they did do was welcome themselves back to the ultra competitive scrum that is Big East Conference Basketball. Two weeks ago even that first step forward did not seem likely to be made this season, but here they are and it's sure nice to have them back.