MIRACLE WORKER: New Rochelle senior Khalil Edney was back at practice yesterday, less than 24 hours after his half-court heave became a social media sensation. He showed off tattoos that honor his mother, who died when he was 11. “At the end of the day, I think it was his mother watching over him,” his father said. Edney worked on his shot during practice, but not before a half-hour press conference with teammates and longtime friends Joe Clarke Jr. and Donny Powell. (Paul J. Bereswill)
MIRACLE WORKER: New Rochelle senior Khalil Edney was back at practice yesterday, less than 24 hours after his half-court heave became a social media sensation. He showed off tattoos that honor his mother, who died when he was 11. “At the end of the day, I think it was his mother watching over him,” his father said. Edney worked on his shot during practice (left), but not before a half-hour press conference (right) with teammates and longtime friends Joe Clarke Jr. and Donny Powell. (Paul J. Bereswill (3))
Khalil Edney’s 55-foot, buzzer-beating prayer didn’t just make New Rochelle a champion — it turned him into an overnight phenomenon.
Sunday morning, he was preparing for a basketball game. Yesterday morning, after his heave sent the Huguenots past rival Mount Vernon and to their first Section 1 Class AA title in eight years, he woke up at a posh Manhattan hotel, was picked up in a limousine and whisked around the city for a series of national morning shows.
The 6-foot-2 senior guard, previously best known as the school’s dynamic state championship-winning quarterback, appeared on ABC’s “Good Morning America,” NBC’s “The Today Show,” ESPN’s “SportsCenter” alongside New Rochelle hero Ray Rice, SNY’s “SportsNite” and will be featured on CNN this morning.
“This wasn’t even a dream of mine,” he told The Post at the school yesterday. “You can’t describe it. I’m at a loss for words.”
His Twitter followers quadrupled and he received prom date invites over the social network. A YouTube clip of the shot reached more than 1.4 million views. When he finally got to the school yesterday afternoon, roughly 24 hours after hitting what is now known as “The Shot,” he was greeted in the halls by proud classmates.
And then before New Rochelle (13-9) practiced for today’s New York State regional semifinals against Section 4 champion Binghamton at SUNY Purchase at 4 p.m., he was the star of a half-hour press conference with more than 20 media members in attendance.
“To me, it was a miracle; to everybody else, it was a historic shot,” the 17-year-old Edney said. “It’s unbelievable, it’s amazing. I’m glad I have the opportunity. It’s been a long, long 24 hours.”
Ironically, a football player has put New Rochelle’s basketball team, which entered the playoffs with a .500 record, on the map. The athletic office is filled with photos of the renowned program and Rice, the former Huguenots star who recently won a Super Bowl with the Ravens. The athletic director promised that would change now. Even Rice, whom Edney considers a mentor, is now a fan.
“All I want is a jersey signed for my basement,” the All-Pro running back joked during a segment the two shared on ESPN.
As improbable as the final play was, Edney was nearly not in position to make it. Just nine days ago, he suffered a severely sprained right ankle in a scrimmage. After New Rochelle won a semifinal contest over Mahopac, Edney willed his way back into the lineup after a marathon day of rehab.
Furthermore, this was his first season playing varsity basketball, after he was cut as a junior because of a fractured pinkie from football and didn’t play basketball his sophomore season. He went out for the team to finish his athletic career with longtime friends Joe Clarke and Donny Powell.
Sunday was not the first time Edney saved a season. In the fall, he connected with Clarke on a touchdown pass with 1:35 left to lead the New Rochelle football team to a dramatic 26-21 state semifinal victory.
“His ability to fight through and stay with whatever it is, whether it’s his high school academics, the challenges of a football season, the end of a game like this, it’s indicative of the kind of kid he is and how much of a hard worker he is,” New Rochelle principal Don Conetta said.
The play was called “Valpo,” modeled after the famous shot Bryce Drew hit to lead Valparaiso to an upset of Ole Miss in the 1998 NCAA Tournament. It was set up for Edney, inbounding with 2.9 seconds remaining, to hit Clarke at mid-court and Clarke to find an open teammate at opposite wings. Instead, Mount Vernon’s Jalen David deflected the pass, Devante Banner picked it off and then lobbed it in the air to try to kill out the clock.
Edney, who comes off the bench but is New Rochelle’s second-leading scorer, didn’t hang his head and now famously grabbed Banner’s lob, and in one motion heaved a shot for the game-winner, releasing it with 0.1 seconds left.
“I just don’t give up, don’t stop playing until the clock says zero,” he said. “That’s just my motto.“
Though Edney will play football at Dean Junior College (Mass.) and the sport is his passion, the win over Mount Vernon was by far the most memorable moment of his athletic career, he said. It ended Mount Vernon’s dominance over New Rochelle. The powerhouse Knights, who produced Bobcats guard Ben Gordon, swept the two-game season series in convincing fashion and had won the last seven Section 1 titles.
Edney handled the media blitz with aplomb, smiling for television cameras and reporters’ questions, weary as he was after the last 24 hours. At one point during the press conference, he held his arms extended to display the tattoos in honor of his mother, Akilah Keisha Taylor, who passed away six years ago, when Edney was 11 years of age, from cervical cancer.
The two were close, his father, Louis Edney Sr., said. He has her birthday tattooed on his right arm and the day she passed away on his left arm, with “Mama’s Boy” on opposing arms.
“At the end of the day, I think it was his mother watching over him,” Edney Sr. said. “I think she took [the ball out of the [Mount Vernon player’s] hands and [guided] his shot to the basket. That’s the way it looked.”
Athletic director Steve Young, football coach Lou DiRienzo and basketball coach Rashaun Young plan to speak with Edney about keeping this moment in perspective and using it as a building block in his life, rather than letting it get to his head.
Yesterday at least, Edney seemed focused on the task at hand. He participated in a light practice and has his mind set on the shot being just a part of New Rochelle’s run to the state championship, not an end to a surprising playoff run.
“We’re definitely going to continue the momentum we have,” Edney said. “My main focus is winning the game [today].”
zbraziller@nypost.com