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PLAYERS OF THE YEAR
BASIL HARLEY
WADLEIGH
Small in stature but big in heart, Harley enjoyed a memorable senior season. The third-year starter scored (17 points per game), distributed (eight assists) and led. Wadleigh was extremely young — it depended on freshmen forwards Donovan Wilkerson and Lenny Kadisha — but still dominated PSAL Manhattan AA, won its sixth straight borough crown and reached the Class AA quarterfinals.
The 5-foot-6 uncommitted Harley was responsible for much of that success. His finest moment was the PSAL Class AA second round when he went off for 39 points in his final home contest, a 77-71 win over Bayside. He made three 3-pointers, dished out 10 assists and added seven rebounds.
“He went out like Captain America, he went out like Donald Trump, he went out like Flavor Flav with all the girls,” Wadleigh coach Mike Crump said.
SHEQUANA HARRIS
MURRY BERGTRAUM
The task was daunting and her heart was heavy. Harris came into the season as the senior leader for Murry Bergtraum with the goal of a 14th straight PSAL city title. And she’d have to do it without slain friend and teammate Tayshana Murphy.
Bergtraum had a difficult regular season, losing three league games — the most in about a decade. But in the playoffs, Harris put the Lady Blazers on her back. She led them back to the Garden, where she had 22 points in a victory over McKee/Staten Island Tech. When the buzzer sounded, she grabbed a picture of Murphy that was sitting near her team’s bench and took off on a victory lap.
“Winning this one was so special,” Harris said. “I knew [Murphy] was there with me.”
COACHES OF THE YEAR
RAY VOELKEL
COLLEGIATE
If Ray Voelkel is coaching, odds are Collegiate is winning.
After leading the Dutchmen boys soccer team to its second straight NYSAISAA title, the former American University standout guided the basketball team to fifth straight NYSAISAA Class B and New York State Federation Class B crowns, both record streaks.
Sure, he had experienced seniors Ryan Frankel, Connor Huff and Willie Gwathmey at his disposal, but he didn’t have the most talented team in the state tournament. He still won it all, finding ways to limit Collegiate’s foes by focusing in on their weaknesses and exposing them.
Collegiate achieved all its goals, winning the Ivy League, NYSAISAA and the Federation. It had a knack for playing its best in the season’s biggest games, a nod to Voelkel’s preparation and his players’ steely focus.
ED GREZINSKY
MURRY BERGTRAUM
Once thought of as just a recruiter and a compiler of talented players, Grezinsky has more than proven himself as one of the city’s best and most prepared coaches. This season he was simply brilliant, keeping together a heartbroken team that was dealing with the murder of Tayshana Murphy.
Bergtraum lost its fair share of games this year — a rare three in league play — but the Lady Blazers were there in the end again rather unexpectedly. They beat Francis Lewis, a team that defeated them during the year, in the PSAL Class AA semifinals and then took down McKee/Staten Island Tech at the Garden.
“Of the 14 city championships we’ve won, this is the sweetest,” Grezinsky said. “People ask me every year, how does this one compare to the others? This is the best one.”
BOYS
By ZACH BRAZILLER & MARC RAIMONDI
Can anyone stop Collegiate?
The Dutchmen out of the Ivy Prep League won their fifth straight New York State Federation Class B championship, extending their record feat. The previous record was two in a row.
Wadleigh continued its dominance of PSAL Manhattan with a sixth straight division title and Class AA quarterfinals berth. In the CHSAA, the void left by closed powerhouse Rice was felt in Manhattan. St. Agnes made waves, reaching the Class B city final and Xavier advanced to the Class A semis.
First team
G Louis Costen, Wadleigh
A gifted athlete who is as versatile as he is talented, Costen enjoyed a solid senior season for Wadleigh. The undecided 6-foot-5 senior played out of position inside and was one of the Tigers’ top rebounders, averaging 15 points and 12 rebounds per game for the six-time defending Manhattan borough champion.
G Matt Crockett, Xavier
The 6-foot-3 swingman became a leader as a junior on a young team, which he helped lead to the CHSAA Class A semifinals. Crockett was just as adept in the post and finishing around the basket as he was draining 3-pointers, making him a very difficult player to defend for opposing teams.
G Ryan Frankel, Collegiate
If the MIT-bound point guard didn’t leave Horace Mann for Collegiate three years ago, the Dutchmen wouldn’t be riding a five-year title streak. An adept playmaker, accurate perimeter shooter and steady floor general, Frankel earned MVP honors in the New York State Federation Class B tournament, leading Collegiate to the crown with 19 points and six assists in the final.
F Connor Huff, Collegiate
The Ivy Prep League’s version of Tim Duncan, Huff graduates a winner, a four-time NYSAISAA and New York State Federation Class B champion. The Middlebury College-bound forward did it all in his career for the Dutchmen, be it scoring inside and out, rebounding at both ends, defending or helping younger teammates.
G Shane Richards, York Prep
The borough’s lone Division I signee doesn’t go to PSAL dynamo Wadleigh or private school powerhouse Collegiate. No, the Manhattan College-bound sharpshooter got it done at tiny York Prep, sticking it out and helping to build the program rather than transferring to an established power.
SECOND TEAM
G Brian Lissak, Columbia Prep
F Tyshawn Myles, WHEELS
F Zuri Pavlin, Calhoun
G Gelvis Solano, Health Professions
F Dimencio Vaughn, St. Agnes
THIRD TEAM
F Taulant Ibraj, Eleanor Roosevelt
G Brian Cavaluzzo, Regis
G Brendan Ferguson, Xavier
G Shammgod Wells, LaSalle
F LaSalle Wright, West 50th Street Campus
HONORABLE MENTION
F Kashif Davis, St. Agnes
F Sam Gordon, Hunter College HS
G Nyck King, Manhattan Center
G Brian Zorrilla, St. Agnes
F Chris Polanco, LaSalle
GIRLS
By MARC RAIMONDI & JOSEPH STASZEWSKI
The journey was very different, but this year ended like the previous 13.
Murry Bergtraum won its 14th straight PSAL city title despite a season of tragedy. Lady Blazers senior star guard Tayshana (Chicken) Murphy was murdered in September. Playing for her, Bergtraum completed what coach Ed Grezinsky described as the program’s greatest championship yet.
In PSAL Class A, Lab Museum United advanced to the semifinals and Martin Luther King Jr. earned a trip to the quarters. Loyola and Columbia Prep battled it out all year in the NYCAL.
First team
G Dionne Coe, M. Bergtraum
A leader and the team’s most consistent 3-point threat, Coe played a huge part in Bergtraum’s run to a 14th straight PSAL city title. The sharpshooting senior had 14 points and an acrobatic layup to put the Lady Blazers up six points with 1:14 left at the Garden, all but sealing the championship victory.
F Janicha Diaz Carrion, Man. Ctr.
No, it wasn’t a traditional Manhattan Center season with almost 20 wins and a deep run in the postseason. But Diaz Carrion played hard throughout and finally realized her potential as one of the best players in the PSAL — momentum the junior hopes to carry into next year.
G Ashanae McLaughlin, M. Bergtraum
The freshman stormed onto the scene this year and made a huge impact. McLaughlin had a flare for the dramatic, making a ton of big shots for the Lady Blazers — she had ice water in her veins from 3-point range.
G Jenny Ramirez, Lab Museum United
Still smarting from a loss to Tottenville in the regular season, Ramirez got revenge on the Pirates by pouring in 34 points against them in the PSAL Class A quarterfinals. The athletic, Marshall-bound guard had 16 points in a semifinals loss to Goldstein and helped LMU to one of its best seasons.
F Maya Wasowicz, Beacon
The strong, 5-foot-9 wing was a scoring machine for Beacon, dropping in 21.8 points per game in leading the Blue Demons to the playoffs. They didn’t achieve their goal of winning a postseason contest, but Wasowicz, also a star in karate, will go down as one of the program’s best players.
SECOND TEAM
F Widly Couloute, Murry Bergtraum
G Christina DiTolla, Loyola
F Ashanti Plummer, Lab Museum United
G Yamira Saez, Martin Luther King Jr.
G Penny Savryn, Columbia Prep
THIRD TEAM
F Aries Adams, Murry Bergtraum
F Grace Conrad, Loyola
G Isabel Feldman, Dalton
G Destiny Freeman, Baruch Col. Campus
G Amber Jones, Manhattan Center
HONORABLE MENTION
G Terri Chu, Baruch Col. Campus
F Carly Doyle, Columbia Prep
G Grace Geist, Manhattan Village
G Valerie Nunez, Graphic Comm. Arts
F Katherine Ross, Loyola
ALL-CITY SCHEDULE:
Tomorrow:
All-Bronx boys,
All-Bronx girls
Thursday:
All-Queens boys,
All-Queens girls
Friday:
All-Brooklyn boys,
All-Brooklyn girls
Sunday:
All-City boys,
All-City girls