Beacon 158 Back-to-School Action (10/23)

BAYSIDE, NY- Monday was the final day of the Beacon 158 Back-to-School Classic regular season, but it also proved to have one of the best and most exciting games as Cardozo faced off with Brooklyn Law and Tech, while another contest between Eagle Academy and Half Hollow Hills East also brought fireworks to the court.

With the playoffs set to begin on Tuesday this was the last chance for regular season thrills, and there were thrills a plenty in one of the more exciting days of action that Beacon 158 has seen this season.

It was great end to end action on Monday in Queens, and with NYCHoops.net on hand for the final two regular season games, here is a recap of the play that put a punctuation mark on the competition before the playoffs begin.

One of the best in the A Division of the PSAL in Law and Tech squared off with the favorites this season in the Queens AA in Cardozo, and it was truly a game to remember as after the Jets roared out to a 14-point first half lead, it was the Judges who fought back and came away with the 2-point win on a buzzer beating putback by forward Javen Soto '18.

Law and Tech took command of the game in the early going as they were able to spot up and get good looks from behind the arc, with Larry Moreno '18, David Grady '18, and Joseph Pena '19 all connecting multiple times in the opening 20 minutes to help the Jets build a double-digit lead.

Marcus Hammond '18 was doing a solid job when he got in isolation chances finishing against contact at the rim, while Dejavaughn Utley '18 was strong in his transition opportunities, but the Judges defense was letting them down as a Moreno three just before the halftime buzzer put Brooklyn Law and Tech up at the break 43-29.

It was as good of a half as the Jets could've hoped for as even though they weren't clicking on all cylinders defensively themselves, they were shooting the lights out, and with Victor Ogbo '18 controlling the paint, they were able to build up what looked to be a comfortable lead.

From the outset of the second half though Cardozo began to turn up the defensive pressure, and the lack over overall ballhandlers for Law and Tech allowed the Judges to create a good number of turnovers, most of which they ended up converting on the other end.

From Peter Pavlidis '18 hitting from the baseline and the elbows, and Soto also getting involved down low on putbacks, the Jets lead slowly started to dwindle. The defensive intensity that Cardozo brought to the table proved to be too much as the Judges would finish a 19-2 run on a pair of FT's from Hammond to take a 48-45 lead with 9 minutes to play in the game.

The lead for Cardozo grew to as big as 7 after a Pavlidis short jumper, but even after losing all momentum, Brooklyn Law and Tech refused to go away as Grady scored 5 straight, and then off a driving layup going down the left side connected by Moreno, it was once again anyone’s ball game tied at 64.

Both Donte Howell '19 for Cardozo and Grady for Brooklyn Law and Tech connected on treys in the final minute to send the game into the final seconds even at 67. The Judges had a couple chances to get the win but missed putbacks inside. Soto though never gave up on the play and just before the final buzzer sounded converted on the Queens schools third chance inside, allowing Cardozo to come away with a very hard fought 69-67 victory.

It was a team effort all the way around that allowed Cardozo to come back and take the victory with Hammond leading the way with 18 points, though Pavlidis had 16 points, Utley added 14 points, Howell connected on 3 three's balls and finished with 11 points, while the hero of the game in Soto had all 8 of his points in the all-important second half.

After leading by 14 at the half it was without a doubt a tough loss for Brooklyn Law and Tech, though they were led by the 17 points of Moreno, while Pena had 15 points, with Ogbo and Grady each scoring 13 points apiece as well in the defeat.

In the final regular season game before the playoffs begin it was the Thunderbirds who showed they could play well enough to win playing the other teams style as Eagle made the game more physical overall, though Savion Lewis '18 still found ways to get off as the MVP of the iS8/Nike Fall Tip-Off Classic scored 20 points to lead his Hills East team to the 13-point victory.

Early on Eagle was staying with Hills East as they got a three ball from Julian Avila '19, and they were doing a great job in the paint controlling the play along with getting strong perimeter defense.

Lewis though began to get out in transition more where he was able to do damage getting to the rim, and then when lanes closed he just pulled up and knocked down long range shots to put the Thunderbirds up by double digits late in the first half.

Half Hollow Hills East was able to take a 28-18 lead into halftime, but to Eagle's credit they were slowing the game down and not allowing the guards of the Thunderbirds to break out and push as much as they wanted. Eagle wasn't shooting the ball well from the outside offensively, and if they could change their long-range fortunes around, the game still looked to be theirs for the taking.

The perimeter play for Eagle though continued to struggle as they got clear looks at the time from long range but couldn't convert. After a tough opening half Julien Crittenden '18 began to heat up a bit for Hills East, and as he and Lewis found their grooves, the game slowly got away from Eagle Academy.

It wasn't until under 3 minutes left in the game that Eagle started to connect from behind the arc again as Marlon Todd '18 connected on three in the final 3 minutes, getting the game back down to single digits for the first time in the second half, but Lewis proved to be too much late as he didn't just score, but he also found open teammates showing off his vision in the open floor to put things away for good.

Led by the 20 points of Lewis, Hills East enters the Beacon 158 playoffs on a high note as they didn't play their best basketball, but still found a way to get a 55-42 win.

Along with Lewis' 20 points, Crittenden added 12 points in the victory for Half Hollow Hills East, with big man Kenny Mathurin '18 proving to be a tough presence inside as well in adding 8 points for the winning cause.

Jahmir Appleton '18 was solid in the paint and displayed a nice touch with a soft hook as he paced the way for Eagle Academy in the defeat with 12 points, while Todd and Avila both added 9 points each in what was not the Bronx schools best shooting performance of the preseason.