Christ the King, Lincoln and Boys & Girls, Cardinal Hayes, St. Raymond and Cardozo.
The city’s elite programs were included in last week’s NYPost.com poll asking, “Which NYC player would you choose to take a game-winning shot?”
The winner doesn’t attend any of those traditional powers. No, Connor Huff comes from tiny Collegiate, a private school on the Upper West Side of Manhattan, which has enjoyed more success than anyone over the last four years with four straight NYSAISAA and New York State Federation Class B crowns.
And Huff, the versatile 6-foot-4 forward who has played varsity on three of those title teams, has been key to such success. His victory, perhaps, shows how far Collegiate has come in the local basketball community.
“It’s an amazing feeling,” said Huff, who won last year’s state title with a buzzer-beating layup. “I feel honored in a way to know that people respect my game and went out of their way to vote for me. The other guys that were in the poll are phenomenal athletes going to phenomenal schools. I feel very honored to be in the running with those guys and to win the poll is more of an honor.”
Huff received 3,643 votes, good for 50.48 percent of the 7,166 votes. Temple-bound forward Daniel Dingle finished second with 1,995 votes (27.84 percent) and Thomas Jefferson’s Jaquan (Son Son) Lynch was third with 914 (12.75 percent).
It took another major step to prominence on Monday when the undefeated Dutchmen (7-0) took apart previously undefeated Brooklyn Collegiate, 48-33, in the New Heights Holiday Festival. The Lions are considered the PSAL Class A favorite and in Ervin Mitchell, have one of the league’s top talents, a senior averaging 32 points per game this year. Huff dominated him, scoring 20 points to Mitchell’s four.
“He always seems to come through in the biggest games,” teammate Ryan Frankel said of Huff. “We’ve come to expect that. He seems to always deliver. He was awesome.”
Typical of an elite player, Huff’s all-around game has grown. He’s become a solid perimeter shooter, capable of knocking down 3-point shots. His ball handling has improved and Voelkel is using him more at the high post, as a playmaker as well as a scorer.
Against Brooklyn Collegiate, he did as much damage setting up others as finishing off plays himself, helping to break the press and finding teammate Henry Frye for easy baskets inside.
“I feel more comfortable on the court and with being comfortable, I feel I can see the court better and I can make better decisions,” he said.
Unlike many of the players in the poll, Huff hasn’t picked a school, and it won’t be on the Division I level. He is looking at Division III schools Milddlebury and Amherst. In the meantime, he’s focused on going out a champion, leading Collegiate to the Ivy Prep League title, along with another NYSAISAA title to return to Albany.
“I would love to leave high school on a great note,” Huff said. “I think Coach Voelkel deserves it. We’ve worked so hard thus far. It would be a great honor and I think if we work hard, hopefully we’ll get there.”