An Evening of Firsts as Loughlin Prevails
The first official non-league game of the New York season took place on Tuesday as Bishop Loughlin of the CHSAA played at home against Forest Hills High School of the PSAL. It was also the first official game as head coach for a high school team for Rudy King.
It turned out to be a good day for both the new coach and his team, as the Loughlin Lions, after getting off to a shaky start, handled their business, defeating the Forest Hills Rangers 90-67
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In the first quarter, Bishop Loughlin jumped out to a 20-6 lead against Forest Hills with a balanced attack from 6-foot-6 senior small forward Trevon Hamlet and 6-foot-2 combo guard Brandon Frazier.
Jayvaughn Pinkston, who has not played in any scrimmages with Loughlin due to disciplinary action, did not start for the Lions but subbed in midway through the quarter and was somewhat effective especially on defense.
Maurice Harkless, a lanky sophomore forward for Forest Hills, kept the game competitive scoring well in the paint as did senior forward Chris Larmond leading a 10-2 run as the first quarter ended with Loughlin only up by 6 points.
Playing a 3-2 zone to start the second quarter, Loughlin seems unorganized as Forest Hills scored again from the foul line and again in the paint to pull to within 2 points early. Frazier ended the drought scoring inside but only for a moment as Forest Hills defended with a 1-2-2 zone.
With 4:37 left in the half, the Lions regained composure as Pinkston began to assert himself in the paint on offense as Loughlin extended their lead to 9 points in under a minute.
Nicholas Padgett, a sophomore point guard and Harkless finally put points on the board for Forest Hills but Loughlin machine began to dominate more consistently on ends of the floor. The half ended with Loughlin up 40-30 with 16 points by Hamlet.
To start the second half, Loughlin came out with intensity, going on an 11-5 run as Pinkston again did not start. Hamlet and Frazier once again led the attack as soon the Brooklyn, NY team was up by 20 points midway through the third quarter.
Down 62-47 going final quarter Forest Hills task would be daunting. The Queens, NY team did manage to cut into Loughlin's lead trimming it at one point down to 14 points but they simply were out executed, ultimately going down for the count.
Trevon Hamlet was the high scorer with 27 points followed by Jayvaughn Pinkston, with the exception of a mega-dunk in the fourth quarter, had a quiet 17 points. Maurice Harkless scored 18 points for Forest Hills.
After the victory, NYC Hoops asked Coach King how it felt to coach his first official game. "Man, it was a lot of emotions running through my mind, especially about my pops who passed away some years ago. He would be proud; and my moms who couldn't be there tonight. I was also thinking about the quote I gave my players before we took the floor. 'You only think of obstacles when your mind is off you'," said King.
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