Brooklyn College Academy Pulls Off Upset
The PSAL dropped their borough seedings and one of the early matchups we wanted to check out was No. 7 Transit Tech vs. No.10 Brooklyn College Academy. We recently got a chance to interview emerging superstar 6’5” SG Ashton Reynolds (Transit Tech HS, NY ’24) who made our top ten 2024 available New Yorkers plus had Head Coach Kenneth Hafford on as well. This was a great start to playoffs and this one certainly didn’t disappoint.
BCA got their first bucket from 6’3” G Nouhoun Diarra (Brooklyn College Academy HS, NY ’24), Reynolds buried a triple. Transit Tech got a steal from their 2-3 zone and Reynolds finished the break for two. The Express got a bucket from 6’5” F Jadyn Wilson (Transit Tech HS, NY ’24), Reynolds blocked BCA and Wilson scored again. Tech led 9-2 when Diarra got a bucket, and BCA got a stop then scored. Transit missed and Diarra went 1/2 from the line.
Reynolds finished an athletic bucket, BCA scored, Tech hit two free throws and Diarra was able to make a free throw to end the first. The Express lead 13-11 despite out playing BCA who drew first blood despite a Reynolds block. Reynolds hit three, BCA missed, Reynolds hit two free throws and after a bad turnover Wilson scored for Tech. The Bobcats got an and1 but missed the free throw. Reynolds found an open teammate for two, they traded baskets and BCA went 1/2 from the line.
Mr. Reynolds converted a wild finish at the hoop, he made 1/2 from the line, and Diarra scored a tough bucket. BCA sank two free throws and Reynolds got fouled again. He made one, hit a deep triple and helped Transit get a big stop before halftime. They took a solid 31-22 lead into halftime, even though it felt like they should be up more. BCA came out on fire with back-to-back scores. Tech hit a big three, Bobcats answered with two and so did Transit.
The Express scored again to take a 38-28 lead with about four minutes left in the third. 6’6” F Abdoul Sissoko (Brooklyn College Academy HS, NY ’26) got a quick hoop. Tech hit their free throws, Diarra sank a pair, the Express got an easy bucket then followed it up with Davis going one of two from the line. Diarra drew another foul, made them both, Sissoko finished a put back for two. Transit Tech now only led 42-36 with under two minutes remaining and got a monster slam that got the crowd off their feet. The Bobcats responded with a hoop and a stop. Sissoko finished inside for two and they sent Reynolds to the line.
The BCA bench was loud as Reynolds missed them both., Bobcats buried a massive three and then scored in the final seconds of the quarter to take their first lead of the game. Bobcats led 45-44 had the gym stunned. Reynolds found his teammate for a layup to take back the lead. Brooklyn College Academy missed, Reynolds missed both his free throws, the Bobcats scored and then Diarra converted a massive and1 plus made the free throw. Reynolds drew more free throws but only made one. Sissoko scored inside, and Wilson answered for Tech causing a BCA timeout.
Transit Tech got a massive stop after the timeout. Reynolds made two free throws after getting fouled. BCA responded with a huge three to push the lead back up to five with just under two remaining. Tech missed a wild shot, BCA scored, Wilson quickly answered for Tech and the Bobcats turned it over. Reynolds got fouled, missed both freebies, BCA snuck by Tech for a basket which pushed the lead to 7. Express hit a three, they fouled, BCA went 1/2 from the line, Tech missed and Sissoko scored to leave no doubt. Brooklyn College Academy had a tremendous second half performance and outlasted Transit Tech 63-56.
They had a really balanced attack and their entire rotation of players were the MVP of tonight’s game. Sissoko was huge in the second half, adding 14-points while Diarra handled most of the offensive with 13-points. Reynolds led all scorers with 24-points, including some very impressive highlights. While Wilson stood out as well for Tech. Transit Tech definitely is disappointed as they were one of the teams projected to make some noise but the Bobcats deserve a ton of credit for their toughness and perseverance tonight. BCA will travel to Southshore HS (NY) as they look to continue their momentum.