Sports

Boys holiday basketball roundup: Kangaroos manhandle Prestonwood, advance to Beach Ball final

Boys & Girls didn’t need any last-second magic Thursday night. The Kangaroos did more than enough damage throughout as they knocked off Prestonwood Christian (Texas), 79-66, to reach the Beach Ball Classic finals for the first time in four trips to the prestigious tournament in Myrtle Beach, S.C.

Mike Taylor poured in a team-high 23 points, Leroy (Truck) Fludd had 17 points, Teyvon Myers added 10 and Jeffland Neverson had eight points, six rebounds and four assists for The High (9-1), which led 42-32 at halftime and by as many as 18 points over the Texas powerhouse. Forward Julius Randle, considered the top sophomore in the country, had 33 points and 12 rebounds, but didn’t get nearly enough help.

The Kangaroos move on to Friday’s title game against Miller Grove (Ga.), ranked third in the country by USA Today, Friday at 7:30 p.m. If No. 17 Boys & Girls win, it would become the first New York City team to win the tournament since Bishop Loughlin in 1997 and the first ever PSAL club.

No. 3 Lincoln 70, Paramus (N.J.) 49: Isaiah Whitehead scored a team-high 12 points, Shaquille Stokes added 11 points and Kamari Murphy followed with 10 points, 13 rebounds and eight blocks for the Railsplitters (8-0) in the Planet Athlete National Holiday Invitational in East Orange, N.J. Lincoln meets St. Benedict’s Prep (N.J.) Friday at 6 p.m.

No. 4 Rice 62, Gonzaga (D.C.) 58: Joshua Gomez posted a triple-double of 18 points, 11 blocks and 10 rebounds and Jermaine Sanders followed with 16 points and six rebounds for Rice (6-1). The Raiders advance to Friday’s fifth-place game against Greater Atlanta Christian (Ga.) in the Beach Ball Classic in Myrtle Beach, S.C.

No. 5 St. Raymond 94, Lake Oswego 88: Larry Graves scored 22 points and grabbed seven rebounds, Daniel Dingle had 21 points and seven rebounds, Franklyn Garcia notched 20 points and Kerwin Okoro chipped in 17 points and nine rebounds for the Ravens (7-5), who finish seventh in the Les Schwab Invitational in Portland, Ore.

No. 7 Cardozo 71, Bishop Loughlin 41: Chris Gayot pumped in 18 points and five assists, Ta’Jay Henry finished with 13 points and eight rebounds, Shelton Mickell had 11 points and six assists, and Jermaine Lawrence totaled 10 points and 12 rebounds for Cardozo (6-0), which never trailed, in the Brooklyn Basketball Challenge. Bishop Loughlin is 2-4.

Bedford Academy 69, Banneker 49: Darien Best scored 12 points and hauled in 10 rebounds and Sean Snagg and Malik Brown each followed with 10 points for Bedford Academy (10-2), which has won seven games in a row, in the Brooklyn Basketball Challenge.

Transit Tech 72, Mountain Valley (Maine) 58: Anthony Prescott scored 14 points and dished out eight assists and Matt Banton followed with 10 points for the Express (6-8) in the Red Claw Holiday Festival bracket championship game in Portland, Maine.

South Portland (Maine) 53, Susan Wagner 50: Tyrese Campbell notched 17 points and James Bertucci followed with nine for the Falcons (5-5) in the Red Claw Holiday Festival finale in Portland, Maine.

Archbishop Stepinac 61, Horace Greeley (N.Y.) 42: Julian Wright and Josh James each scored 10 points and Conroy Baltimore had nine points, 10 rebounds and seven blocks for the Crusaders (7-3), who forced 22 turnovers, in the first Slam Dunk championship game in White Plains, N.Y.

Mount St. Michael 73, Kennedy Catholic (N.Y.) 59: Peter Aguilar scored a game-high 31 points and grabbed 11 rebounds and Clarence White sank six 3-pointers and dropped in 27 points for the Mountaineers (11-0) in the second Slam Dunk final in White Plains, N.Y.

Plainfield (N.J.) 60, Robeson 47: Shawn Ponds scored 22 points in defeat for the Eagles (7-6) in the Planet Athlete National Holiday Invitational in East Orange, N.J.

Bayside 64, Sanders (N.Y.) 56: Uzonna Akazi had 25 points and William Dobie and Wayne Mitchell added 14 points apiece for the Commodores (10-3), who snapped a three-game losing streak, in the consolation game of the Sacred Heart John Volpe Christmas Tournament in Yonkers, N.Y.

Curtis 59, Archbishop Molloy 57: Dontay Jackson sunk two free throws with 3.7 seconds left to give Curtis (10-4) the win in the third place game at the Aviator Holiday Hoops Tournament. It came after Chris Dorgler, who scored 20 points and hit three 3-pointers, tied the score at 57. Dashawn Richmond led the Warriors with 18 points, Omar Woods had 13 points and Debonair Edwards added 10. Marko Kozal and Christian Giles chipped in 10 points each for Molloy (8-2).

St. Francis Prep 49, Brooklyn Collegiate 48: Glyne Straker scored 17 points and Joe Salerno added 12 points on four 3-pointers for St. Francis Prep (7-3) in the consolation round of the Aviator Holiday Hoops Tournament. Andrew Winter tallied seven points and 14 rebounds and George Hatzioannides added seven points. Arnold Fripp led Brooklyn Collegiate with 11 points and John Rashaad added nine.

St. Edmund’s Prep 50, CSI/McCown 33: David Louison dropped in 14 points and Marlo Caputo chipped in 10 for St. Edmund (7-4) in the consolation round of the Aviator Holiday Hoops Tournament. Chris Labady had eight points. Quamaine Tomlin led CSI (4-9) with six points, James Archer had nine and Joseph Ojo added eight.

Christian Brothers Academy-Albany (N.Y.) 60, St. Peter’s 56: Stefan Bock scored 26 points and Vernon Maddox had nine for the Eagles (9-2) in the CBA Holiday Tournament championship game.

OTHER SCORES

Cardinal McCarrick (N.J.) 81, Monsignor Farrell 74

Thornton Academy (Maine) 72, Moore Catholic 68

Los Alamitos (Calif.) 75, Tottenville 68

Franklyn Township (N.J.) 58, McKee/Staten Island Tech 55

Eagle Academy 60, George Westinghouse 56

zbraziller@nypost.com