Boro Bounce December 23, 2019

As we head into the holidays, here's an update on the high school hardwood action around the boroughs and beyond.

Archbishop Stepinac played four games in the prestigious City of Palms Classic in Fort Myers, Florida, all against nationally ranked opponents, going 2-2 on the trip. The Crusaders, ranked 15th in the USA Today Super 25 and 20th in the Ballislife Fab 50, won their opening round game against Briarcrest Christian of Tennessee (17th in the Super 25 and 34th in the Fab 50), 69-62, with RJ Davis scoring 22 points and Adrian Griffin Jr. scoring 21.

The opening round win earned Stepinac a match up against national powerhouse IMG Academy of Bradenton, Florida, ranked 6th in the Super 25 and 8th in the Fab 50. After trailing by as many as 15, the Crusaders pulled within three at 65-62 in the fourth before falling 80-67. IMG was led by Jaden Springer, who scored 30 points. Springer is the son of Gary Springer, who starred at Iona College and Benjamin Franklin High School in Harlem (the 1979 Franklin team that Springer played on is regarded as one of the greatest high school teams in New York City history). Davis and Griffin scored 20 each in the loss to IMG.

The Crusaders bounced back with a 66-54 win over O'Dey of Seattle, Washington, ranked 21st in the Super 25 and 23rd in the Fab 50, with Davis leading the way with 26 points. Stepinac's trip ended with a 70-64 loss to Scotlandville (LA), ranked 26th in the Fab 50. Davis scored 32 points, eclipsing 2,000 points for his career in the process, while Griffin Jr. had 17 for the Crusaders.

Davis was named player of the decade by lohud sports on Monday, honored as just the 5th male player in Westchester County history to score 2,000 career points.

The Crusaders will have another opportunity on the national stage when they face Paul VI (VA), ranked 8th in the Super 25 and 2nd in the Fab 50, on Sunday December 29 at the Slam Dunk to the Beach tournament in Lewes, Delaware. Stepinac will return to CHSAA league action on Friday January 3rd, when they will take on Iona Prep at the Westchester County Center.

St. Raymond will also participate in the Slam Dunk to Beach tournament, facing Cape Henlopen (DE) on Friday and Gill St. Bernards (NJ) on Saturday. The Ravens had a lopsided 81-57 win over Abraham Lincoln of Philadelphia at the City Legendz Invitational in the Bronx on Sunday. Luis Kortright scored 25 points and Malachi Smith had 22 for St. Raymond.

Brooklyn Collegiate improved its PSAL Brooklyn AA league record to 7-0 with an 89-57 win over George Westinghouse and a 62-60 squeaker on the road against Boys & Girls.

Tahron Allen scored 23 points in the win over the Kangaroos, including a runner in the lane in the closing seconds that proved to be the game-winner. Jaylin Anderson scored 14 points and Amahrie Simpkins had 11 for Brooklyn Collegiate, which survived a late Boys & Girls rally led by Khalil Brantley, who poured in a game-high 36 points.

Brooklyn Collegiate tacked on non-league wins over Poly Prep (68-66 at the Brooklyn Bridge Classic) and Bronx AA power Wings Academy (71-58 at the City Legendz Invitational) over the weekend to improve their overall record to 10-0. The Lions head into the holiday break holding sole possession of first place in the PSAL Brooklyn AA Division with a two game cushion over Boys & Girls, who are 5-2, and two and a half games ahead of defending PSAL AA champs South Shore, who are 4-2.

The Kangaroos fell to PSAL Manhattan AA contender Thurgood Marshall Academy at the City Legendz Invitational on Sunday, while the Vikings went 2 for 3 at the Emerald Coast Tournament in Florida, defeating Somerset Academy (FL) 49-47 and Milton (GA) 62-51 before falling to Memphis East (TN) 65-61.

Thomas Jefferson is in the middle of the pack in the PSAL Brooklyn AA standings at 2-2. The Orange Wave went 1 for 4 at the Tarkanian Classic in Las Vegas, falling to Fairfax (CA) 88-86 and Skyridge (UT) 81-62, edging Westchester (CA) 59-57 and dropping the finale to St. Augustine (CA) 74-67. Jefferson returns to PSAL league play on January 3rd, when they will visit Canarsie.  

Cardozo enters the holidays with a 9-0 record after winning three games last week: a 59-52 win at John Bowne, a 71-43 win over Francis Lewis and a 66-39 win over WHEELS. The win at John Bowne was the most impressive of the three, as the Wildcats entered the game with an unblemished record of 7-0 in PSAL Queens AA league play, ranked 5th in New York State and 3rd in NYC by the NYSSWA. Aaron Miller (15 points and 11 rebounds) and Errol White (12 points and 20 rebounds) each recorded a double-double in the win over Bowne.

John Bowne bounced back with a 68-40 win over Construction and is just a half game behind Cardozo in the PSAL Queens AA standings with a league record of 7-1.  

The Judges and Wildcats will meet in Bayside on January 28th.

Iona Prep improved its overall record to 6-1 after winning their second consecutive Slam Dunk tournament with a 70-60 win over White Plains. Keeshawn Jones scored 17 points for the Gaels and was named tournament MVP. 

At 3-0 in league play, Iona Prep is tied with Stepinac atop the CHSAA Archdiocese standings. The Gaels will have nearly two weeks' rest before their match up with Stepinac on January 3rd.

Benjamin Banneker is a perfect 10-0 after a 56-46 win over Beacon at the Brooklyn Bridge Classic on Saturday. Gabriel Holley put up 40 points in the Warriors' win over James Madison on December 18th.

PSAL A Division contenders KIPP and Murry Bergtraum each suffered their first loss of the season to a CHSAA AA opponent. KIPP fell 71-61 to Mount Saint Michael on December 19th, while the Blazers dropped an 82-55 contest to Archbishop Molloy at the Brooklyn Bridge Classic on Sunday. Bergtraum point guard Dior Davis is averaging 28 points and 15.4 assists per game through seven PSAL league contests.     

PSAL Class B powerhouse Fannie Lou Hamer continues to rack up league wins, currently 10-0 atop the PSAL Bronx B4 Division, but the Panthers were edged by LaSalle Academy 52-49 at the Brooklyn Bridge Classic on Sunday. LaSalle Academy and Fannie Lou Hamer met in the 2017 New York State Federation Semifinals in Glens Falls, a game in which UConn guard James Bouknight helped the Cardinals advance to the final, beating Westhill to win the Class B State title. Fannie Lou Hamer senior Anthony Rose went over 1,000 career points during the Panthers' 63-59 win over Comprehensive Model School on December 19th, leading the Panthers with 28 points and 13 rebounds.

Mount Saint Michael Academy front court standout Ibraham Wattara also reached the 1,000 career point milestone last week, hitting the mark on a pair of free throws with 10 seconds left to give the Mountaineers a 51-49 win over Holy Cross. Mount is 5-2 overall and 2-2 in league play after a 65-62 home loss to Monsignor Scanlan on Monday night. Ray Glascow scored 23 points and Dayton commit Koby Brea had 20 for Scanlan, which is 6-3 and 2-2 after the comeback win.

Xaverian fared well on their trip to Colorado, going 3-0 with wins over Windsor (CO) 72-60, Horizon (CO) 72-70 and Campbell County (WY) 98-94 in Double OT. The Clippers are now 8-1 overall and 1-1 in CHSAA league play. Xaverian will visit Christ the King on Sunday.

After dropping three straight league games, the Royals got back on track with a 58-47 win over Nassau Suffolk CHSAA A Division contender Holy Trinity in Middle Village on Sunday.

In girls hoops, South Shore defeated Valor Christian 52-40 to win the Diamond Division championship at the Tarkanian Classic in Las Vegas, with Ohio State commit Kateri Poole taking MVP honors. The Lady Vikings returned to Brooklyn and topped Philadelphia power Neumann Goretti 64-53 at the Barclays Center in the Kyrie Irving Invitational on Monday, with Poole scoring 26. 

* Correction: this post has been updated to include Thomas Jefferson's 59-57 win over Westchester (CA) at the Tarkanian Classic in Las Vegas. An earlier version of this post did not include this win and indicated the Orange Wave were 0 for 3 at the Tarkanian Classic.