Christ the King and Corey Edwards will be looking for their second straight New York State Federation Class AA title on Sunday. (Christina Santucci)
ALBANY – Boys basketball beat writers Zach Braziller and Dylan Butler break down this weekend’s New York State Federation boys basketball Class AA tournament at the Times Union Center in Albany. For the live blog, click here.
SCHEDULE
Saturday
NYS Federation Class AA semifinal
2 p.m. – Boys & Girls vs. Mount Vernon
Sunday
NYS Federation Class AA final
12 p.m. – Boys/Mt. Vernon vs. Christ the King
Boys & Girls Kangaroos
Head coach: Ruth Lovelace
Record: 24-6
Player to watch: Mike Taylor
Mount Vernon Knights
Head coach: Bob Cimmino
Record: 21-5
Player to watch: Jabarie Hinds
Christ the King Royals
Head coach: Joe Arbitello
Record: 22-6
Player to watch: Omar Calhoun
Outlook: When last season ended in disappointment with an overtime loss to Christ the King in the New York State Federation Class AA title game, this is where Boys & Girls hoped it would be one year later.
The Kangaroos are in Albany for the ‘AA’ tournament, but with a twist – they are extremely shorthanded. Seven players were recently ruled out of the game by principal Bernard Gassaway for academic reasons. The players – starter Jeffland Neverson and key reserves Teyvon Myers, Anthony Hemingway and Nkosi Brown are among them – are eligible by PSAL standards, but Gassaway has made an effort to hold student-athletes to strict standards.
The Kangaroos in question either failed their first-period class, which broke a rule Gassaway set forth at the beginning of the year, had low averages or suffered from poor attendance, according to coach Ruth Lovelace.
This isn’t the first time this winter Boys & Girls has been undermanned. Point guard Antione Slaughter, the hero of the Kangaroos’ run to their second straight PSAL ‘AA; title, and Hemingway each missed five games for failing a first-period class midway through the season and Rutgers-bound star Mike Taylor missed six games, including a pair in the playoffs, for also failing his first-period class.
“We have people off the bench that didn’t play the whole season that are ready,” Taylor said. “They’re good and they’re gonna help us out.”
Indeed, Taylor, Hofstra recruit Malik Nichols, Slaughter and power forward Leroy (Truck) Fludd will be on the floor and impressive sophomore guard Wesley Myers could see his way into the starting five.
“You would like to play with your full team, but most of our nucleus is there,” Lovelace said. “We still expect to do well with the kids that are here.”
Mount Vernon will put the Kangaroos’ lack of depth to the test. The Knights can go 10 deep and will likely press Slaughter and Co. from the jump. Though The High has Taylor and Nichols, Mount Vernon will have the best player on the floor is Jabarie Hinds, a West Virginia-bound point guard recently named co-Mr. Basketball New York along with Long Island Lutheran Achraf Yacoubou.
Mount Vernon has won five Federation crowns – second only to Rice (six) – though this is its first appearance in the end-of-year tournament since 2007. Boys & Girls, meanwhile, has never won a Federation title.
Christ the King coach Joe Arbitello will have a nice courtside seat to watch Boys & Girls and Mount Vernon duke it out Saturday afternoon as his Royals await the winner in Sunday’s title game. The two-time defending CHSAA ‘AA’ champs have a bye into the final, but Arbitello isn’t so sure that’s a good thing.
“Everyone says they like that bye, but I don’t think I like the bye,” he said. “I think I’d like to play, get a feel of the court and then play again. These kids are used to playing 36 games a day in AAU so its not like they’re going to be crazy tired.”
Unlike last year, the Royals are completely healthy heading into the title game. That means the dangerous backcourt of George Mason-bound Corey Edwards, elite junior Omar Calhoun and tough-as-nails T.J. Curry are all raring to go.
The frontcourt is comprised of Syracuse-bound quarterback Terrel Hunt and senior Chris Ortiz, who has embraced his role as a defensively specialist and a force on the boards.
“It should be a great final, no matter who is in it,” Arbitello said. “I just hope we come ready to play.”