After trailing for most of the first half, Manhattan AA power WHEELS put together a strong second and edged Brooklyn AA contender South Shore 61-57 in PSAL basketball action at the Brooklyn Bridge Holiday Classic on Saturday. WHEELS struggled handling South Shore's zone press early, and Jalen Blaize's 3-pointer with 2:11 left in the first quarter gave the Vikings an 18-11 lead. Behind senior Marlon Moreta, WHEELS closed the quarter on a 14-4 run, and a 3-pointer by Brian Ortiz in the closing seconds made it 25-22 South Shore at the end of the opening frame.
End of 1st Q: South Shore 25 WHEELS 22 @SSHSVikings @WHEELSnyc @BklynBridgeHC @BKYSC #psal pic.twitter.com/qoolvrmh6X
— HS Box Scores NYC (@hsboxscoresnyc) December 17, 2016
After WHEELS tied the score at 27, free throws by Mikael Burnett Wala and Femi Odukale of South Shore put the Vikings ahead 35-30 with less than 1:00 to play in the half. Again, WHEELS closed the quarter strong, rattling off a 5-0 run in the last 45 ticks to tie the score at 35 at the break.
Halftime: South Shore 35 WHEELS 35 @SSHSVikings @WHEELSnyc @BklynBridgeHC @BKYSC Below: Deep 3-pointer by Mikael Burnett Wala of South Shore pic.twitter.com/7SmYUuPIOC
— HS Box Scores NYC (@hsboxscoresnyc) December 17, 2016
WHEELS took its first lead of the game, 37-35, when it scored the first bucket of the second half, but South Shore answered with a 5-0 run to regain the lead at 40-37 midway through the third. WHEELS then outscored the Vikings 10-6 for the remainder of the third quarter, giving the Wolves a 47-46 edge heading into the fourth.
End of 3rd Q: WHEELS 47 South Shore 46 @WHEELSnyc @SSHSVikings @BklynBridgeHC @BKYSC #psal pic.twitter.com/xRfFKtSPEv
— HS Box Scores NYC (@hsboxscoresnyc) December 17, 2016
WHEELS started to pull away in the final quarter, taking a 56-49 lead after Mohamed Sylla chased down an offensive rebound that lead to a 3-point play by Moreta with 3:15 remaining. WHEELS held a comfortable 60-52 advantage with only 34.6 ticks left, but things got interesting after Blaize nailed a 3-pointer at the 27.4 mark and was fouled in the act from behind the arc with only 8.9 seconds remaining. Blaize made 2 of 3 from the stripe, cutting the deficit to 60-57. Moreta was fouled in the backcourt on the next possession, and he sealed the 61-57 win for WHEELS by converting the second of two free throws with 3.9 on the clock.
Final score: WHEELS 61 South Shore 57 @WHEELSnyc @SSHSVikings @BklynBridgeHC @BKYSC #psal pic.twitter.com/SDftDDPiKY
— HS Box Scores NYC (@hsboxscoresnyc) December 17, 2016
Moreta finished with 20 points, Sylla had 7 points and 10 rebounds and Ortiz and Raheem Ragsdale had 9 points for WHEELS. Blaize had 20 points and Burnett Wala had 11 points for South Shore. Free throw disparity was a factor in this game, as WHEELS got to the line 31 times, converting 17, while the Vikings had only 10 attempts, converting 8 of them.