Ben Chobhaphand didn’t explain why he decided to bench star Maurice Harkless, other than repeatedly saying it was a “coach’s decision.” A source close to the program told The Post Harkless missed a recent practice and was therefore suspended for the game.
Whatever the reason, the Rangers couldn’t make up for the loss of the Connecticut-bound forward, falling to Long Island Lutheran, 60-49, in the Big Apple Basketball High School Invitational at Baruch College Monday afternoon.
Nick Padgett led Forest Hills with 16 points and Denzel Dulin added 13, but the two shot a combined 10-for-29 from the field. That statistic was a microcosm of the Rangers’ offensive performance. Overall, they shot 26 percent from the field, missed 12 free throws and were outrebounded 42-35.
“You’re not gonna beat anybody [like that],” Chobhaphand said.
Villanova-bound guard Ashraf Yacoubou had 19 points, 13 rebounds and four assists and Hart Gliedman had 20 points and 10 rebounds for the Crusaders, who shot 50 percent from the field and made six 3-pointers.
“We didn’t play with enough intensity,” said sophomore guard Rudy Collins, who managed just five points himself. “Everybody didn’t box out, we didn’t play a lot of help defense.”
Forest Hills (10-7) was left with little margin for error without the 6-foot-7 Harkless, who is averaging 16 points and 11 rebounds this year in league play. Chobhaphand was pleased that his players weren’t looking over at the bench, for the small forward to rescue them. He also said that while the Rangers were invited to the tournament, in part, because of Harkless, he wasn’t going to let that dictate how he ran his program.
“From my standpoint I would like to see him play because he’s their marquee player and is the reason they were in our tournament,” tournament organizer Jason Curry said. “But their coach has to do what’s best for his player and program.”
When asked if Harkless’s benching would preclude them from returning to the tournament, he said: “I’d like to know the reason from him before commenting on that.”
LuHi led 32-20 at halftime on the strength of a 19-8 run to close out the second quarter. The lead grew to 16, 41-25, on a Yacoubou 3-pointer, but Forest Hills made a run. Spearheaded by their press, the Rangers climbed to within nine on a pair of occasions, but couldn’t get any closer. Clearly, Harkless would’ve made a difference.
“It hurt us a lot, [not having] his scoring ability,” said Dulin, a junior guard. “But we have to know we play without him.”
The loss dropped the defending Queens champion Rangers to 10-7 overall and 3-5 in non-league play, which included a 15th-place finish in the McDonald’s Tampa Hoops Classic. Chobhaphand said he isn’t worried about his young team’s confidence, despite the amount of losses. Last year, he said, Lincoln took its bumps in non-league play yet still won the city championship.
“We’re preparing for the middle of February,” he said. “I feel now we can beat anybody or lose to anybody.”
Plymouth Whitemarsh (Pa.) 63, St. Raymond’s 54: Devin Brooks had 20 points on 9-of-13 shooting and grabbed nine rebounds, Lawrence Graves had 14 points and Kerwin Okoro added 11 points and seven boards for St. Raymond’s (4-6), which trailed 20-6 after the first quarter en route to a third consecutive loss.