ALBANY – Long Island Lutheran’s most recognizable names and top prospects are junior forward Kentan Facey, versatile junior wing K.J. Lee and speed demon freshman point guard Chris Atkinson. Its seniors are often an afterthought.
The Crusaders’ season, however, would be over if not for them.
Brandon Alford, one of the team’s few players to have a hand in last year’s New York State Federation Class A title, scored 11 of his 13 points in a game-turning 22-1 run and Ryan Denicola was a monster inside as LuHi topped PSAL champion Brooklyn Collegiate, 66-56, in the ‘A’ semis Friday night at the Times Union Center in Albany.
“The best players on the floor were Ryan and Brandon,” LuHi coach John Buck said. “Brandon has grown so much. He had eight steals, which shows his refusal to lose. He wills us to victory, along with Ryan.”
The Crusaders will meet Long Island public school Harborfields, a 68-56 winner over Iona Prep in the other semifinal, Saturday at 7:30 p.m. in the state final.
Alford spent much of last winter as a little-used reserve, taking a backseat to stars like Achraf Yacoubou and Jordan Allen who are now at Division I schools. DeNicola left LuHi (22-6) for Blair Academy, only to return this fall to regain the “family” atmosphere he missed at the New Jersey prep school.
“And now I have a chance to win a state championship,” the 6-foot-6 Adelphi-bound widebody said.
Ervin Mitchell led Brooklyn Collegiate (26-6) with 18 points and Adrian Williams had 12.
After a slow start, Alford shot LuHi into a commanding lead. He sank three consecutive 3-poiinters and added a jumper as the Crusaders ripped off a 22-1 run. At its conclusion, the Long Island team held a commanding 25-11 advantage.
“I felt like my [teammates] were a little nervous, they were looking at me and I had to be aggressive,” he siad.
Brooklyn Collegiate, fresh off winning its first city title of any kind, refused to let its season die without a fight. Down at one point by as many as 21 points late in the third quarter, the Lions fought to within five in the fourth, ripping off an 11-1 run. But Alford answered with his only basket of the second half, Facey hit a free throw and the Brooklyn public school could never get closer than seven.
Along with Facey, Denicola had his way inside, scoring 15 points and grabbing seven rebounds. The two, in fact, combined for 27 points and 18 rebounds, often playing taps on the glass against smaller Brooklyn Collegiate.
“We had a big advantage, me and Kentan inside,” Denicola said. “They couldn’t handle us on the boards and on post-ups.”
The win sets up a battle between the top two teams on Long Island and a rematch of LuHi’s regular-season victory over Harborfields, a 55-41 result. For Alford, it holds extra significance. He isn’t expecting to play college basketball — he’s a standout running back/cornerback on the gridiron. His future is in football.
His basketball career isn’t over yet – he still has a Federation title to win.