NYCHoops.net - Panthers Stump B&G, Return To Finals

October 31, 2009

Jay Mumford
NYCHoops.net Staff Writer

When jump shots don't fall, the absence of a Plan B can equate to being in a cage with a Panther. There's no way out, and if the Panther is feeling aggressive, the situation just became more bleak.

On Saturday morning, the defending champion Panthers flattened a resilient, tough and defensively sound Boys & Girls team that became undone in the quest for the jump shot and struggled to generate offense. When the dust settled, the Panthers' firepower had ousted B&G from the hunt and stamped their return ticket to the big dance, 85-63.

Both teams made statements via defense early on, as the Panthers' initial man to man and B&G's swarming zone press were equally viable. But from the opening tip, B&G's Achilles' Heel was putting the ball through the cylinder. In fact, they never held a lead, and when their deadliest outside weapon, Mike Taylor (4 points), nailed a trademark trey for his only field goal of the game, B&G were as close as they would get, 11-10. PG Sterling Gibbs and South Kent Prep standouts JJ Moore and Russ Smith made sure the gap widened with a flurry of three pointers and fast break buckets for the Panthers. When their shooting momentarily went cold late in the first quarter, Ryan Rhoomes kept the lead intact in his role as the clean up man. Strong offensive play from forward Leroy Isler was the lone battery for B&G outside of a solid team showing at the charity stripe, and after eight minutes, the Panthers were up six, 25-19.

PG Antoine Slaughter opened up the second quarter with a corner three to pull B&G back into the one possession game, but back to back crafty lay-ups from Smith negated the charge. Isler would begin to attack the basket, with buckets cutting the lead down to three twice -29-26 and again at 33-30- but the ensuing avalanche from the Panthers went unanswered. B&G's on the ball pressure left Moore all alone on the weak side twice in a row, and the 6'6 Brentwood native made them pay with a pair of crippling corner threes. But that was merely the beginning of the onslaught. After Reynaldo Walters baked the defense for a lay-up, the Panthers had gone on a 14-0 run and took a seventeen point lead, 47-30. The Panthers' height advantage also gave them an obvious edge on the glass, and a series of key offensive boards kept them in good standing. Despite the tough play of Isler (who scored 16 points, all in the first half), B&G faltered with a pile-up of turnovers and a classic case of settling for jump shots. Isler and front court mate Jeff Neverson did manage to capitalize on some Panther turnovers late in the half, and when halftime rolled around B&G were still in contention, only down ten (49-39).

Unfortunately for the Bed Stuy B&G squad, their shooting woes ballooned significantly in the second half. Any intentions of using their late first half run as a springboard back to the game fizzled out when their inability to buy a bucket was answered with a Russ Smith highlight reel. The former Molloy standout started his roll with a pair of NBA range threes, only to follow with a coast to coast lay in and an ankle-breaking shake and baking of three B&G defenders for a crowd-riling finish. He knocked down another long ball for good measure, and when DaShawn Wiggins drained one of his own, the Panthers held their biggest lead of the game to that point, 71-47. Meanwhile, B&G's offense went from rusty to igloo cold. Taylor's scorching hand from last weekend's game against BC Eagles was nowhere to be found, as the junior continuously struggled to find the touch throughout the game. B&G settling for jumpers chalked up to a paltry 9-33 performance from the field in the second half, with Neverson (who scored a team high 17 points) and Brandon Williams (10 points) bearing the brunt of the offense. The Panthers' pressuring of the ball forced B&G to cough it up as well, and when turnovers came into the mix, their chances at a comeback were beyond slim.

Despite exiting the tourney in a blow-out, Boys & Girls emerged from the slept on high school division to partake in the final four. Their resilient roll through the early rounds of the playoffs was impressive, and should again mark them as a top contender in the PSAL (and NYC as a whole) for the upcoming season. The members of the Panthers, on the other hand, have another game to play before they disband to their respective high schools, and their name and title are on the line.

"I think our chances to repeat are good", said Panthers Assistant Coach Hassan Bilal. "Not too many people the offensive firepower we have, but the keys for us (in the championship game) will be sharing the ball and picking it up on defense."

JJ Moore and Russ Smith led the Panthers and all scorers with 23 and 22 points, respectively. Sterling Gibbs added 14 points.

The Panthers will face fellow NYC AAU Powerhouse, New Heights, at 11AM on Championship Sunday.

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